Ahoy! Welcome to Adventure Island!
posted in Antrim, Indoors, Outdoors |Adventure Island, Junction One, Antrim
Adventure Island is a welcome distraction from the retail paradise of Junction One. There are two sections, Indoors and Outdoors, which I’ll cover separately.
Indoors
The Indoor section upstairs is a “ball and tube park” much like others around the country. The first impression is that it’s always crowded. Walking into a crowded café/seating area where every table is festooned with the shoes and coats of the familes already present is a little depressing. If you’re attentive and sometimes quick, you can maybe secure a chair or table as there is no cloakroom provided. The toddlers area is separate and secure from the older kids but there was a lack of staff on the ground near the toddlers so supervision really has to come from the parents, which is entirely reasonable. Understandably, the larger part of the structure which has the older kids is better staffed. The staff at Adventure Island are very friendly and very good with the kids so no complaints there. The only concern is for those with younger children - much like other similar play areas, the older kids sprint around expending a lot of energy and the feeling that Adventure Island is cramped just increases the possibility that a smaller child would be bowled over in the rush. The café facilities are reasonable enough; a little too expensive for my tastes and very crowded.
Outdoors
Even with the bitter winds and spitting rain of a Northern Ireland summer, the outdoors were much preferred by the children. In January however, it’s a little colder but their enthusiasm for the park has not dampened.
The outdoor facilities are free, clean and provide plenty of seating for adults as well as very well maintained play structures. There’s a sheltered picnic area providing for seating in view of the play area and allowing use of the food and drink vendors in the Junction One complex. The flooring is made of soft impact synthetic material in case of trips and falls and the ship and castle are very approachable even to a toddler.
WOW Overview
Kids Say:
4 year old: Can we come back here tomorrow? Can I come here for my birthday? (Regarding the outdoors)
2 year old: I’m a pirate!
Stress Level (indoors) 4 (Visibility of older kids and lack of seating make this a little less stress free than it should be.)
Fun Level (indoors) 3 (The kids enjoyed it but were not pleased with older kids pushing them around.)
Cost Level (indoors) 3 (Café and entrance fee certainly add up. Add to this any shopping done by partners at the Retail Outlet.)
Stress Level (outdoors) 2 (Good visibility and the kids were really able to busy themselves.)
Fun Level (outdoors) 4 (Whether they just enjoy climbing or they get into the whole role-play of being pirates and princesses on the ship and castle, they had great fun.)
Cost Level (outdoors) 0 (Free is my favourite price. And it’s certainly as good as any outdoor parks I’ve been to in the province.)
