With the school holidays and winter in full swing, the phrase; "I'm so bored", is likely to be brandished about quite a bit. Luckily for parents, Port Elizabeth has upped its game where indoor activities are concerned.

It used to be a case of hoping for some space in the local family restaurant's kiddies area, but that was then... Now, we've got options, in fact, we have the option of JOINING our kids in a range of fun activities (Although there is absolutely nothing wrong with watching them from the sidelines while drinking a cup of coffee).

Here is a list of ACTIVE indoor activities to join your kids in. With so many new things popping up, it's easy to miss something fabulous, so please let us know if you know of any active indoor activities we missed out on.

 

Active indoor activities for families in Port Elizabeth

INDOOR ROCK CLIMBING

Valley Crag Indoor Climbing Centre in Lower Valley Road Baakens Valley offers an array of rock wall climbing options for various experience levels. Whether your idea of climbing is the stairs at work when the elevator is broken or you come with your own climbing shoes, there is an option for you. Their close on 500 square meter climbing wall makes them the largest climbing gym in the Eastern Cape, boasting with bouldering, top rope, and lead climbing. They have a dedicated gym for climbing related training and an onsite coffee shop for chilling out between climbs. A day pass will set you back R80 while an intro lesson is only R150. There are monthly, group and family membership options available. This activity is one of the free offers on the Nelson Mandela Bay Pass.

 

GLOW MINI GOLF

Glow Indoor Sports in Moffet on Main Lifestyle Centre adds a fun spin on putt-putt, or should I say: "they shine a new light on the activity". With glow in the dark balls, accessories, and obstacles the venue makes for a fun family day out. They also offer other glow in the dark activities such as foosball and air hockey for no extra charge. A little coffee shop keeps you fed while you wait for the others to catch up with your awesome mini golfing skills. They also offer birthday and group packages. A session at Glow will set you back R65 for 9 holes and R80 for 18 with discounts for posting on social media.

 

TRAMPOLINE FUN

If you are looking to jump into holiday fun with your kids, Gravity Indoor Trampoline Park in Framesby is the perfect place to get started. Apart from the metres and metres of interconnected trampolines they also have a foam pit, basketball arena, ninja course, devil slide, dodge ball arena, and the newly added and very exciting escape rooms. If you aren’t too keen on embarrassing yourself by falling face first in front of your brood you could just watch and enjoy a cup of coffee and snack at their on-site cafe. Entry into the open jumping arena is R80 per person for 1 hour (3-7 years) R100 (8 years and older) and R35 for non-slip socks. This activity is one of the free offers on the Nelson Mandela Bay Pass.

More indoor trampoline fun can be had at Gravity Play Park which has recently opened in the central court next to the food court at Baywest Mall (this time for kids 3 to 10 years old). This “super-sized” play area boasts with extra large slides, ball pits, climbing frames, rides and more. Their biggest selling point is the fact that you can drop your child off in this safe facility for an hour for R60 or R80 for two hours - their security measures include photo verification and tagging.

 

LASER TAG

Laser Headquarters in Newton Park is an indoor laser tag arena and entertainment centre catering for kids 7 and up. Laser tag is a game played with guns that shoot out an infrared beam. Players wear special equipment kitted with infrared-sensitive targets so when they are hit by the opponents infrared gun their equipment lights up letting them know that they are out of the game – it is completely pain and stain free. They also have a pool table, foosball table, air hockey and an X-Box gaming system for those not too keen on playing interstellar cops and robbers. Two 15min games will set you back R60 with birthday party and group booking options available.

GOOD OLD BOWLING

Bowling at the Lighthouses at the Boardwalk is an old school favourite. With up to 8 people on one lane and your name up on the screen, you can challenge your family to a tenpin showdown. The rules are simple, roll the ball down the lane and knock down the pins, the person who knocks down the most pins wins. Lighthouses also have fourteen pool tables and a Sports Bar to cheer up and sore losers (of age). One game is R45 per adult (R75 for two games) and R33 for children (R57 for two games). With party packages available.

You can also go bowling at Nitro Park at the Baywest Mall. They feature a state-of-the-art 10-lane bowling alley suitable for all ages, with customized, unique settings for each customer's experience and built-in connection to Facebook, allowing customers to check in and share live updates of their games. A game costs R56, two consecutive games are R90 and three consecutive games are R120. They have various packages and special offers running daily.

GO KARTING

Algoa Grand Prix Indoor Go-Karting located at Moffet on Main Lifestyle Centre (in the underground parking lot) is the ideal place to live out your racing driver dreams. Junior karts are available for kids older than six and their double-kart allows you to take on a passenger. There is full safety marshaling and they have the latest in electronic timing technology to give you a real Grand Prix experience. Hair nets and helmets are provided for your race and you can purchase food and drinks on site. Tickets cost R70 per person for 10 laps.

ICE SKATING

The Baywest Ice Rink is the ideal place to let it go (Frozen reference for those who managed to miss this animated obsession). This is the ideal time to school your kids and show-off the moves you learned in the 90s when Port Elizabeth had the Jadene Ice rink at the Tramways building. Or maybe (and more likely) they can school you. Don’t worry the ice rink does have trained first aiders on duty at all times with medics on standby during peak hours. The 27m x 54m ice rink promises hours of fun for kids as young as four (depending on their shoe size). The entrance fee is R60, shoe hire is R25 and on Wednesday you can skate for half price. This activity is one of the free offers on the Nelson Mandela Bay Pass.

BUMPER CARS

Nitro Park at Baywest Mall is home to G-Force Bumper cars. All ages are welcome to try out the 12 dodgem cars in a large driving arena. Rides last between 3.5 and 4 minutes, and all ages are welcome. Children under 1.3 meters tall must be accompanied by an adult.