Four Ways to Have an Unforgettable Spring Break - MetroFamily Magazine
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Four Ways to Have an Unforgettable Spring Break

by Jennifer Sharpe

Reading Time: 5 minutes 

Spring break is upon us! Whether you are planning your own mini-staycation or just looking for new ideas for family fun, here are four family-friendly locations to help you plan unforgettable spring break fun.

Enjoy the Ultimate Bowling Experience

Top-notch service, awesome atmosphere and delicious food make Bricktown’s RedPin Restaurant & Bowling Lounge (200 South Oklahoma Avenue; 405-702-8880, www.bowlredpin.com) a great choice for families. “Our bowling lanes are server-attended meaning that guests really don’t lift a finger except to bowl,” explains Erin Brewer, owner. “Our staff is trained to serve and they really cater to our guests’ every need.”

Staff members deliver bowling shoes, help find bowling balls for guests, input bowlers’ names in the computer, and serve food and drinks directly to your lane. Lanes are furnished comfortably with couches and the decor is vibrant, modern and hip.

Kid-friendly features include bumpers that are programmed to come up and down automatically and plenty of kid-sized shoes. Low-weight balls and bowling ramps make bowling easy and fun for younger bowlers.

Kids will love fun food choices like mini cheeseburgers, mini pizzas, chicken fingers and baked mac & cheese. The kid’s menu offers choice of drink, entrée and side item for $5. “We serve real, delicious food.” Brewer expands, “And we’re proud that it’s made-from scratch using local, natural ingredients.”

Over spring break, RedPin will be open regular hours, opening at 11:00am Monday through Saturday and 1:00pm on Sunday. RedPin’s Lunch Bowl deal allows guests to bowl for just $4, which covers one game plus shoe rental. Games are buy one, get one free for Happy Hour Bowling from 4:00-7:00pm Monday through Friday. Free parking is available in lower Bricktown with a valid RedPin receipt. RedPin accommodates all types of group gatherings including birthday parties for all ages and reunions. “Our job is to take care of the details so our guests can simply enjoy one another, have fun and make great memories,” Brewer says.


Explore a Local Safari

Experience a variety of amazing animals at Tuttle’s Tiger Safari zoo (963 County Street 2930/South Frisco Road, Tuttle; 405-381-9453, www.tigersafari.us). Families can have fun, interactive experiences including singing and dancing with Moe the Moluccan Cockatoo or petting a kangaroo. Or, kids can hop a ride on the back of a tortoise, play hide-and-seek with a shy hyena or laugh at the Gibbons apes as they perform tricks. There is so much to see at this exotic and unique venue just on the outskirts of the metro. “I often hear feedback from my customers about how we offer a great place to spend the day with kids,” says Bill Meadows, park director. “Groups tell me that we offer the best field trips ever.”

This zoo is home to more than sixty different animals including tigers, lions, porcupines, alligators, kangaroos, lions, lemurs, macaws, otters, pythons, owls, donkeys, apes, bears and tortoises, just to name a few. A new education center adds to the learning experience. For $10 per person, the standard tour includes access to view the animals on a walking tour and participate with feeding stations for the deer, tigers and the petting zoo. If you would like to tour without the animal
feedings, the prices are $8 for adults and $7 for children, and children under age 2 are free. The VIP tour for $25 per person includes the full safari guided interactive tour including the feedings, plus a chance to hold various animals. Have  your camera ready for great photo opportunities!

Enjoy special extended spring break hours during the second and third weeks in March when the park will be open daily from 9:00am to 6:00pm. Feeling super-adventurous? Stay overnight in the African Safari Hut. The gorgeous brand-new cabin boasts amazing views and puts you right at nature’s door for just $165, which includes VIP tours for two. Tiger Safari also offers Sundowner Safari Tours in the evenings and is a popular spot for unique parties, including sleepovers.


Enjoy Amazing Aviation

Make the short drive west to Weatherford to the Stafford Air & Space Museum (3000 Logan Road, Weatherford; 580-772-5871, www.staffordmuseum.com) and experience the legacy of Oklahoma hero General Thomas P. Stafford. Sharing space with the Weatherford Airport, this museum offers more than 40,000 square feet of aviation and space exhibits and honors Stafford’s achievements as an accomplished aviator and astronaut. The museum is open Monday through Saturday, 9:00am-5:00pm, and Sunday, 1:00pm-5:00pm. Admission is $7 for adults, $4 for ages 55 and up, $2 for students and free for children under age 5*. AAA members receive a discounted admission of $5 per adult. Parking is free.

“One of the greatest things about our museum is you can walk right up to our exhibits and see them at such a close range,” explains Brandi Rizzi, director of marketing & public relations. “You can walk up to the Titan II rocket and touch it. You can walk up to an F-1 engine, and stand in front of where the mile-long flame shot out of the immaculate Saturn V rocket. The list goes on and on with the artifacts that are eye level and easy to see. Our museum is able to put you up close and personal with aerospace history.”

The museum is an official Affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution. Membership to the Stafford Air & Space Museum includes membership to the Smithsonian Institution with access to a variety of benefits and special offers. “For the past half-century, few people have more profoundly impacted the development of American aviation and space exploration than Weatherford native General Thomas P. Stafford,” states Max Ary, museum director. “The impact of his contributions will live for generations. The Stafford Air & Space Museum is dedicated to telling this extraordinary story, and to keep this legacy alive.”

[*Editor’s Note: Print a Kids Pass coupon for up to three free children’s admissions at the Stafford Air & Space Museum at www.metrofamilymagazine.com/kids-pass.]


Fantastic Fun with Physical Fitness

Well-known for awesome classes, parties, camps and clinics, Oklahoma Gold Gymnastics (707 Centennial Boulevard, Edmond; 405-341-1175, www.oklahomagoldgymnastics.com) also offers Kid’s Day Out and Kid’s Night Out programs.

This month, Oklahoma Gold will be hosting Spring Break Kid’s Day Out programs daily during the week of March 17-20. These programs are for children ages 3 to 15 years old (children must be potty trained). The Kid’s Day Out will run from 10:00am until 1:00pm, and snacks will be served. The cost per child is $25 per day. And, if a date night with your significant other is in order, take advantage of Oklahoma Gold’s monthly Kid’s Night Out program on first Friday night of each month from 6:30-9:30pm for $25 per child.

These special programs offer non-structured supervised activities such as riding the zip line, trampoline jumping, rock climbing, trapeze swinging, triple swinging, cartwheeling, bungee jumping and flipping. Energy burning is what it is all about at this large, clean and well-managed facility with two separate age-appropriate gyms.

“Our facility set up is very unique,” explains Steve Hoehner, owner. “Not many clubs have the ability to cater to several ages and levels like we do. Inside our recreational facility we have two separate gyms, the Tumbletown gym for preschooler’s and the big gym for school-aged children. Once the children advance to the competitive levels, we have a completely separate facility just for them too. It makes for a very safe learning environment for everybody.”

Energetic and fun staff help make this facility extra special for all participants involved in any of Oklahoma Gold’s programs. “I hear a lot of positive feedback about our staff. They are very encouraging and patient with the children,” comments Hoehner. “I have been very blessed to have such a terrific staff over the years. Great people teaching children is the most important ingredient to success. And they are a lot of fun to be around. Just ask the kids!”

Looking for more ways to make your spring break unforgettable? Visit www.metrofamilymagazine.com/spring-break-activities for more fun ideas, activities and event suggestions.

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