Hey everyone, Blake here with another review from my family’s latest adventure! This time, we checked out the Laser Bounce Family Fun Center in Levittown, NY. We were recently visiting some family out on Long Island, and with the rainy weather, we were going a bit stir-crazy stuck inside. So we decided to head over to Laser Bounce for some indoor fun!
Laser Bounce is tucked away in this huge warehouse building right off Hempstead Turnpike. From the outside, you’d never guess how massive it is inside! As soon as you walk in, you’re met with rows and rows of flashy arcade games, plus attractions like laser tag, bounce houses, a VR experience, and more. It was definitely sensory overload at first with all the sounds and lights going on all around us.
One really cool section was their state-of-the-art arcade. It felt like stepping into the 90s with all these classic games I remembered from childhood, along with a bunch of new high-tech games I’d never seen before. The kids had a blast racking up tickets to trade in for prizes later on. I even showed John how to master Cruis’n USA on the racing games, just like my old man taught me back in the day!
Ballocity and Bounce Parks
Of course, the main attractions at Laser Bounce are the huge indoor bounce parks and the Ballocity arena. When I say huge, I mean it – these massive, interconnected inflatable structures take up nearly half the building! Ballocity was the highlight for my daughter Jenette. It’s essentially a massive ball pit combined with bounce houses, tunnels, obstacles, and cannons that shoot balls everywhere.
Jenette had so much fun diving into the pit to gather up balls and then dump them into this vacuum tube that sucks them up and shoots them out of the cannons overhead. The sheer joy and excitement on her face was priceless. Even I joined in on the action, although crawling through those tunnels with my dad bod was quite the workout, I tell ya!
The bounce park section was more tailored for the little ones, with a wide open space filled with trampolines, basketball hoops, and balance beams. There’s also an awesome Ninja Warrior-style obstacle course over there that John attempted about 10 times trying to complete. Safe to say that one humbled me quite a bit when I gave it a go!
One thing we noticed was that the bounce park and Ballocity sections rotate every half hour. So you’ll sign up for a 90-minute pass, but can only access each area for 30 minutes at a time before they swap. It avoided overcrowding which was good, but also felt a bit rushed trying to cram everything in during your allotted bounce time. Still, it didn’t put much of a damper on the fun!
Laser Tag and Arcade
No trip to Laser Bounce would be complete without a round of laser tag! We gear up with these cool futuristic vests and laser blasters, then get let loose in this sprawling multi-level arena filled with ramps, towers, mirrors, and neon lights. There were a bunch of other kids in there from various birthday parties, so it felt like an all-out laser war at times!
I teamed up with John, and we set out on a mission to destroy the other team and rack up points. We took cover behind some barriers, and then I ran out guns blazing to draw their fire while John snuck around the flank. Sure enough, he surprised them from the side and took down like 3 kids in a row before they even realized what was happening! It was awesome teamwork on our part, high-fiving each other after our domination.
Of course, Jenette accused us of ganging up on her specifically the whole time, so she got her revenge when we played a round of the 2 v 2 laser frenzy game. It’s like a laser maze you have to navigate through without touching any beams – way harder than it looks! She basically left me in her dust, unable to make it past the first section. Definitely no mercy from my own daughter.
When we weren’t bouncing or blasting people, we spent a good chunk of time in the arcade section racking up tickets. Of course, most of the prizes you can trade your tickets for are junky plastic toys that seem really appealing at the moment, then break five minutes after getting home! But that’s all just part of the charm.
As I mentioned earlier, the mix of classic arcade cabinets and modern virtual reality setups was really impressive. We must have dropped at least $50 alone just replaying games over and over, trying to beat each other’s high scores. For John and I, it stirred up some great nostalgia from our younger years. But seeing the pure wonder and excitement as Jenette experienced her first arcade games was heartwarming too.
The one machine we kept coming back to was this 4-player cooperative light gun shooting game called Paradise Lost. You team up to fight off hordes of oncoming zombie monsters and let me tell you, it got INTENSE once the bosses started appearing! Picture me and the kids yelling our heads off, mashing buttons frantically, trying to stay alive as we barely defeated the giant zombie hydra in the final wave. Moments like that where we all bonded together are what family memories are made of!
Positives and Negatives
Overall, we had an absolute blast during our 5 hours running around Laser Bounce! As you can see, there are a ton of fun activities crammed into this place that appeal to all ages. The variety of games and attractions makes it easy to find something exciting without getting bored. Most importantly, Laser Bounce gave me and my family a chance to step away from our phones for a while and simply enjoy each other’s company.
With that said, Laser Bounce did have a few drawbacks worth mentioning. Namely, the facility felt extremely chaotic at times. Between all the birthday parties going on and families coming and going, it would get quite loud and crowded in certain areas. Don’t get me wrong – my kids love chaos and noise! But as an adult, I found myself seeking refuge back in the arcade for some peace here and there.
The other frustrating aspect was the way they schedule and rotate everything. You sign up for time slots and get shuffled between activities every 30 minutes. It avoids overcrowding but also means constantly being rushed out of one area right when you’re having fun. I wish it was more flexible, where you could bounce or play laser tag until you decided you were finished.
But don’t let a couple of nitpicks deter you – 99% of our experience at Laser Bounce was pure fun. If you find yourself on Long Island with bored kids to entertain, I highly recommend checking this place out. It’s perfect for ages 5 and up, but we big kids had just as much fun letting our inner child run wild!
Wrapping Up
And that wraps up my review of Laser Bounce Family Fun Center! Let me give a special thanks to their awesome manager, Alex, who helped ensure my family had the best possible experience. His passion and dedication to making Laser Bounce a fun, welcoming place for kids was evident. Give him a shout-out if you stop by!
I hope you enjoyed this glimpse into our chaotic yet entertaining family outing. If you want to see more family-centric content covering attractions across the states, check out The Virtual Reviewer.