FUNHAVEN: WHERE PARENTS CAN HAVE A BALL, TOO
Indoor amusement centre is great idea for March Break
Q How can I entertain my kids during the break?
A How about heading to an indoor amusement centre such as Funhaven, near the Ottawa Ikea store? Your kids will have fun — and so will adults, as we three old-timers proved during a recent afternoon of bumping and bowling, zooming and zapping. Especially during weekdays, which are less crowded, action is non-stop.
Q What did you do?
A Bumper cars! Not having been on one in years, I found myself grinding gears as I tried to master the steering. That meant I was easy prey for more adept youngsters. Once I got my bearings, though, I took great glee at staring the kids in the eye, smiling menacingly and racing to crash into them. Each ride takes three minutes, but some payment plans allow all-day access. We didn’t dawdle, though. Mini-bowling beckoned.
Q Mini-bowling?
A Yes, Funhaven has a few lanes where even tykes can try their hand. The pint-sized pins and lighter balls don’t spoil the fun for adults, though. The whole operation is computerized so you don’t have to know the rules for keeping score. Scoring is automatic for laser tag, too.
Q Laser tag?
A That was my favourite event. It’s inspired by Star Wars. We donned hefty vests that light up so you can see fellow players in a dark two-level room peppered with barriers behind which to hide. Using a gun, you try to shoot members of the opposing team (enemies all!) without getting shot in return. I quickly developed a killer instinct that provided sobering insight into the psychology behind true combat. Outdoing everyone was Jake Booth, 13, of Kemptville, who challenged us to a match. Despite his need to ride a walker because of cerebral palsy and scoliosis, Jake visits Funhaven regularly. His honed skills were no match for me. Neither was the emergency door I crashed into, setting off alarms.
Q What else can one do at Funhaven?
A There’s Laser Frenzy, an activity akin to those heist movies in which art thieves wend their way around laser beams. You step over and bend under a lot of them. Even at the easiest setting, it’s not easy. A jungle gym includes a three-level spiral slide, ball launcher and cave crawl. A slew of arcade games with names like Terminator Salvation, Big Rig Truckin’ and Hoop Fever, a basketball-tossing game, allow the skilled to accumulate points convertible into carnival-style prizes.
Q What about food?
A The facility serves kid-friendly fare like pizza and hotdogs, but our choice was the restaurant at nearby Ikea, the furniture store. It’s kid-friendly, with a couple of areas where youngsters can play games, and the menu is wider, with kid-sized portions of fish and chips or meatballs ($2.99). With an eye on keeping families happy, the restaurant provides baby food and bottle warmers — and beer and wine to soothe adults. The Big Rig Brewpub, with an upscale sports bar menu and prize-winning brews, is a good choice for adult-only groups.
Q Is all this safe for youngsters?
A If you don’t have to sign a waiver, I figure, you must be safe. You’re strapped into the bumper cars, and a six-metre-high rock-climbing wall has a double-redundant system of harnesses and staff to ensure folks follow the rules. Where danger might lurk, age or height restrictions are in place. The only thing likely to take punishment is your wallet.
Q How much does all this cost?
A It depends on what your troupe wants to do. If your kid (or you) wants to zero in on one activity for the day, such as bumper cars or the climbing wall, full-day access to just that attraction costs $12.99. Packages, ranging up to $27.49, offer access to several activities. Some things, such as mini-bowling, must be purchased separately, however. Study the website (funhaven.com) before you go to figure out what works best for you. If you plan to simply watch others have fun, by the way, there’s no charge.
Q Where is Funhaven?
A It’s at 1050 Baxter Rd. From the Queensway, head south on Pinecrest Road, then turn left onto Iris Street, then another left onto Baxter Road ( just past the Ikea store). Funhaven will be where Baxter Road dead-ends. OC Transpo route 152 drops you off at Iris and Baxter. Other centres with similar offerings include Fun Junction (779 Maloney E., Gatineau), Cosmic Adventures (1373 Ogilvie Rd.) and Midway (2477 Kaladar Ave.).