KidsSTOP - Mess-ive Science Party

Back at KidsStop yet again because this party seems too fun to be missed. My friend brought her kids there and told me it was really well suited for my kids, so I decided to take plunge. Quite honestly, my first impression was that the tickets didn't come cheap...because I was so used to my discounted price LOL!

Having been there, I have to say it was definitely worth every penny because it had activities that the kids probably won't be able to try at a normal indoor playground. This included - bubble play, hunting for uv candles, spin art...just to name a few. We even snag a door gift. 

Apart from that, some of the labs were open and it was an eye-opener to see how big the place actually was and how much facilities it had. The children also enjoyed their first magic show. It was not just the kids, it was obvious that the husband and I had fun too. It has been a while since I indulged in such child-like party activities and it did bring back joyful memories. 

Each slot was 3 hours. The kids pretty much spent the first 2 hours enjoying the new activities and the last hour holding their father's hand showing him their personal favourites in the usual hangouts. Overall, the event was very well organised and there was barely any queue at any stations etc. Don't get me wrong, the place was packed but they did manage to disburse the crowd well. 

For lunch, we decided to try the Stellar Kitchen Bar which had stellar reviews. (No pun intended). The food and drinks were really good. We know it is good when our picky eater ate 2 slices of their pizza. Apart from that, the price was also reasonable. Initially, we wanted to eat at the nearest mall instead because the food at attractions are usually quite meh. But this was really good and is way more convenient. :)

Great family day out and totally worth making a trip to the west!

New indoor playground - Yooland

This feels so Aunty, but now I groupbuy quite a bit of the kids' needs. Well, mainly because it is cheaper. So apparently, even tickets to indoor playgrounds can be groupbuy now. LOL! Yooland recently opened in Westgate and my friendly neighborhood gb host was coordinating orders. They were selling at $28 for 2 hours and could be used even for weekends/ public holidays. It was quite affordable. 

Personally, I don't really know if they could survive because a much cheaper and wholesome option - KidsSTOP (you can read more about my reviews here) was just across 2 roads and there is a free playground within the shopping mall. But it definitely provided the kids with an alternative option and it sure looked fun and very clean (maybe because it was new). Let's just enjoy while it is there. 

Yooland's theme is futuristic and there were a lot of strobe lights elements incorporated in its play area. It does make the photos look a lot better. The area is quite big and incorporate some of the usual elements which the kids love such as kitchen pretend-play, hinoki sand pit (one of the more interactive ones) and dress up areas. Some of the more special items include the bouncing inflatables, lighted lego, giant hamster wheel and mobile vehicles. 

It was a lot of fun for the kids and the adults. Half of our time was spent during the peak and another half was during the lull period. I have to admit during the peak, I nearly went deaf at the hinoki pit. I don't think the kids fully split their time to the different stations. During the peak, they just went to whichever areas which was less crowded. 

Overall, the kids had a lot of good fun. They didn't entirely fully rotate through every station during the 2 hours slots. Guess that means...round 2? Haha. And yes, I took a lot of nice photos :)

KidsSTOP - Most reasonable indoor playground in the west

We went to KidsSTOP yet again. This is really one of our most frequent hangouts simply because of its affordability. The last time we went was nearly a year back (you can read our review here), this was the first time the #2 is going there with her brother. Saving hack: If your parents are senior citizens, they can bring a toddler that is less than 18months FOC!

Coming to this place with 2 kids honestly was havoc, I might have over-estimated myself. How I envisioned the whole experience was both my kids wanting to play at the same station...But most of the time they were at separate stations which were not within eye-distance. In the end, I spent most of my time with the younger child because my older kid was more sensible and could understand instructions better. Note to self, children have independent thoughts too...haha.

Something that was new for us was The Little Ant Kingdom. To be quite frank, I am not sure what was the exhibition occupying that space previously. But with this, the whole indoor playground experience is complete. My older kid spent quite a lot of time in this area...because new equals more fun! There was a nice slide, climbing structure, ball pit and lego building area. 

The toddlers expected me to join them in most of their activities. Even though this place was spacious, some of the corners could be quite tight and prove to be a test on my flexibility. If it is your kid's first time here, you could probably need more than 1 session for the kids to "properly play out" all stations to their heart content. My kids have came here a few times with their respective schools/ caretakers so they pretty much have their own favourites. 

If you are Singaporean, you must be careful when booking your slots because Singaporeans enjoy a huge discount! I almost failed to select the right category and had a shock at the price. We will definitely be back soon...for its biggest birthday party because the activities seem interesting and is something that is not usually offered by other indoor playground. :)

Pororo - Revamped

The last time we've been to Pororo was in 2011 (you can read about our review here). I always felt Pororo was the best indoor playground for the young toddlers given that every corner has protective sponge all over and the train is such a highlight for my kid. It has since been revamped and we were quite keen to check it out since the younger kid hasn't been here!

The key changes was that the old carousel was replaced with 2 sponge-looking carousels, which adults can no longer join the ride. (Not as fun if you ask me). The kids supermarket was replaced with an expansion and fancier cafe. Because the cafe sells food and drinks at a very reasonable price, no complaints from me. Haha. There was a new spinning cup station which pleased the children very much!

The indoor gym area was changed quite drastically. It was definitely a refresh in terms of outlook but I found the play areas pretty mainstream. Their old play area had more interesting areas that couldn't be found in other indoor playgrounds like the human spinner. Generally, the kids couldn't be held down as long in one area. We even had time to watch the shows/ take photos. Either that, I have learnt to better maximise my time. 

Also, they had lowered the age for free entry from 1 YO to 9 months. The train was still a highlight for my #1 but my #2 was crippled with separation anxiety and she is almost 1.5 years old. She preferred watching from afar. She was quite happy to spend most of her time at the ball pit and other pits and was quite reluctant to venture/ try new play areas. She is definitely not here to maximise our money worth, LOL. 

The kids found new love with the Hinoki Pit. I don't remember it being much of a fun the previous time. But they enjoyed loading the pails and pouring the beads over each other, digging holes and placing pails on their head. We spent a great deal of time there. I concluded that kids and their definition of fun is so different. Overall they still had a lot of fun.

Don't really think I will be coming back another time unless I have another kid. Maybe it is just me, but I prefer indoor playgrounds that I can have a bit of fun too. I can't even fit in any of their rides and some of the tiny spaces. It seems like the expectations is just for me to leave the kids to run wild...but what I am really looking for is quality bonding through fun and games. 

Unknown Indoor Playground - Bouncy Paradise

New indoor playground we found...but this one is not always open and is a little inconveniently located. The playground that I am talking about is Bouncy Paradise. Unlike most indoor playgrounds we know, this one is only opened on public holidays and weekends. Each session is 2 hours. 

Personally, I felt this was more suitable for the older kids because the structures were pretty high. A lot of fun for the adults for sure, cos this might be built for us. For my kid (who is not even 3), he was a bit afraid to climb some of the structures. There were those which he successfully climbed up but I had to "haversacked" him down. 

For parents who are very particular about hygiene, this one doesn't strike out to me as particularly clean. There is air-con but after a few bounce here and there you will be sweating buckets. The good news is that the drinks within the vicinity are quite reasonably priced. It is $19 per pax. Baby (below 13 months) went in free, but she basically people watch and pretended to bounce at uncrowded areas. (We only brought here there because we didn't want her to feel left much).

Not in photos was the flying fox. I was quite surprised my boy actually did it twice. I was a little afraid that he might slip off. Guess, I should have trusted him more. If you are a teenager, I would highly recommend you to go with your friends. Haha. The younger me would be sure to have a ball of a time in this!

Wan to Play @ West Coast Plaza

I might really be secretly using my children to enjoy all the indoor playgrounds around Singapore. A new one - Candy Land popped out in West Coast Plaza and we decided to give it a go too. At first glance, I thought it was pretty small and girly. Didn't really expect my boy to enjoy it, let alone myself. 

Boy, I was wrong. I had so much fun on their slide. It was the best slide I have ever been in all the indoor playground so far. It was fast and furious. I squealed in joy. In fact, we only stayed at the ballpit and climbing structure the whole hour. My kid was not interested in the dress-up area. 

Like most indoor playground, I found the structures pretty narrow or maybe cos I am fat, so it was like a full workout when my kid made me follow him him away. Tip: Find the child a friend and you will be free. Fortunately, halfway some other older kids "adopted" him and the 3 of them had so much fun together. It was also great cos these older kids looked out for him and taught him to climb the more difficult structures. I could finally take a break. 

In case you are wondering, this inflatable bunny looking thing was from the playground as well. My kid was so obsessed with it, he brought it everywhere. Thank god, he didn't insist on bringing it home. It blocked the narrow entrances and there were times I had to "rescue" it. Gawd, save me. 

The price is quite reasonable and I do see a lot of parents throwing their children there while they go grab their groceries. After an hour, my kid was utterly exhausted. I do see ourselves going there for another round because he didn't even try out the other "stations". The area also sell quite a bit of toys/ props. Personally, I find the colour scheme/ sales items more catered to girls. 

But I guess when it comes to slides and having fun, there is no gender differentiation. There was a party that day so there was a "free magic show". But my kid was utterly uninterested, LOL! I had lotsa fun...which is kinda of important right cos if you wanna take my money, you better make sure I am having fun too :P

KidsSTOP - Fun, educational and value for money

Am so happy to share this place - KidsSTOP with you guys, this was where we initially wanted to go on the eves but there were no slots. No wonder because we only spent $4 (free for kids below 18 months). It was rather fun and instagrammable. It ticked all my checkbox. 

From baby's perspective, he probably still preferred Pororo Park more since everything was made to his height. And there were structures for him to climb very safely. KidsSTOP, in comparison is a little more suitable for a toddler and every station seems to forcefully put in some science concept. 

Basically, KidsSTOP is under Science Centre and it feels more like a government non-profit project. For Singaporeans, it is $2 for adults on and $5 for a child (above 18 months) during off peak. The husband bought a ticket for our kid by mistake and even managed to do a refund at the counter rather effortlessly. Profiting attractions probably won't do that. 

Given the price tag, I wasn't expecting much. But I was blown away once I step in because all the exhibits were so thoughtfully put together. It has everything what an indoor playground (which charge you an arm and a leg) has at such an affordable price. The space area was also huge. My child only managed to play (maybe a quarter) of whatever that is available. 

Not every exhibit/ station is suitable for a toddler and even within the exhibition, some probably won't be appropriate either. The farm area was one place we played the longest and I even managed to chat with a tourist Mum and gave some insights how the education is like. So, my poor kid has been labelled "home-schooled" because we decided to let him start school like in our time around 3-4. 

But this apparently is perfectly normal overseas. To cast all this name-calling, I will be doing a post/series on the "curriculum" I have for my kid so that more parents would feel assured taking this normal route. For info, my kid is still considered advanced as per the PD. That's why I always get a bit riled up when people speak of my child like he is going to be a retard simply because we didn't choose the kiasu route. Proud Mummy moment was when my son followed the other older kids and managed to slide down himself too!

Exhibits suitable for them apart from the Farm includes the nice shiny sand play to dig for Dinosaur bones (my son hates sand haha), tessellation glow in the dark exhibition (nice photos but he doesn't stay too long inside cos there isn't much to do), engineering area (super fun but limited number of people can go in, I was stuck outside while the guys had fun) and the supermarket area (which apparently had a cooking area which my kid didn't venture to cos the area is pretty big)

But don't worry, cos kids make their own fun. Even in the unsuitable exhibitions, you can just keep a watchful eye over them so that they won't trip and fall. I took him on a hurricane stimulator (bad idea!) and it probably left him scarred. Bad Mummy moment, oops. I do try a lot of things with him sometimes to find out what ticks him hehe. 

My boy was obsessed with this wind generator which spells danger everywhere. He did learn how to move a wheelbarrow and mustered courage to walk through a veil. So, money well spent. The toilet is also very children friendly. This boy was so at ease he took a dump in the middle of his play. 

KidsSTOP was even fun for us parents! And after a good play, there are lots of lunch  and shopping options at JEM, West Gate and JCube. Whee~~Will probably sign up a membership for him when he is older because we do see ourselves going there quite often!

Only indoor playground available: Kidz Amaze

 I feel bad for my kid. Not only am I a clueless first-time parent, I am a super last minute one too! We were considering bringing our kiddo out during the eves but twice we would only sit down in front of  a computer to research the day before. Not that it helps, because all the tickets were snapped out!

Initially we decided to explore a garden (not revealing anything here yet), but boo to rainy days. So I tried to find an indoor playground which still had slots. And voila - we found Kidz Amaze.

Kidz Amaze is located in the far-flung of Boon Lay (maybe that's why it wasn't fully booked even on a peak). And we managed to squeeze a slot. There is no toddler's corner and lots of loud noises. Some kids may be terrified. Ours was a little startled but he wasn't quite willing to give up play-time so he braced himself along. 

There were a lot of tall, climbing structures which our little one struggled with. Most of the time, we were climbing the same few "flights", picking up balls along the way. The bigger kids were engaged in faster-paced games of shooting but they were all really sweet to pause every time our boy got in the way. (well-bred children)

Each slot was about 1.5 hours which is really more than enough for our little one and us. We paid a total of $22 because the husband didn't manage to renew his Safra membership in time. It is probably one of the least value for money indoor playground so far (cos it isn't free for kids less than 2 YO) But we may consider signing up a permanent membership when he is older. 

If you are still planning to bring your baby there, there is quite a nice slide. And after the session, you can still enjoy quite a nice meal/ shopping trip at Jurong Point :D