During our recent 48 hour visit to Manchester, we gave the kids free reign over where they wanted to visit and after the excitement of I’m A Celebrity Jungle Challenge and Harry Potter: The Forbidden Forest Experience I was convinced it would be somewhere quieter.
No such luck – they decided upon Play Factore, the UK’s Largest indoor family entertainment arena – think soft play for BIG kids!
Play Factore was about a 20 minute drive from where we were staying, at the Hyatt House Hotel and you need to book before you go.
Entry is based on timed sessions and when we arrived, the large queue spilled outside into the car park, but once inside, there was plenty of seating where you could relax with a coffee, if the kids let you.
There were two things that the kids were most excited to try, the first being the tallest indoor play frame in the world at over 15m high, filled with a network of tunnels, slides and fun filled obstacles from giant bubble balls to spider nets and rollers, plus an astra slide that stretches over 40 metre long!
They even persuaded me on the slide and it’s a bit quick. In fact, I am pretty sure the kids were airborne at one point, but they did it again and again.
The second area they couldn’t wait to try was the Star Wars themed Laser quest arena.
With blaster in hand, both kids and adults can compete against each other with an ultraviolet backdrop of their favourite Star Wars characters and see who scores the most points.
The boys also enjoyed the Valojump trampoline gaming platform, where you have to bounce and complete the challenges on the screen in front of you.
Eliza on the other hand, got stuck in to a game of football on the football pitch.
Our session lasted 2.5 hours, which was plenty of time for the kids to burn off some energy. For us parents, when we weren’t joining in the fun, there is an Italian coffee shop and cafe serving a wide range of delicious treats and beverages, all at reasonable prices.
We really enjoyed our visit to Play Factore, which can be found at the Trafford Centre. Entry costs from £10.95 for kids aged 5+ and £4.50 for adults. You can also hire a private room at Play Factore for a kid’s birthday party for as little as £18.95 for kids aged 5+. This includes all food and drinks and you can also add cool features like a face painter or magic mirror photo booth with Manchester photo booth hire to make the day extra special.