Press trip.
Back in October half-term, just before the second nation-wide lockdown we were lucky enough to visit KidZania London. We were invited to explore the place for the first time as we have never been before. I would say the children would have been a too little before. But now they are at the right age. I’d say it’s suitable for all children between 4-12. Sorry for the quality of the photos, the lighting in Kidzania is a bit dim.
What is KidZania
Before our visit to Kidzania I had seen photos and heard all the hype about how much fun this place is. But I couldn’t really imagine what really it was about. KidZania is a large family entertainment place located in Westfield London. Practically, it is a mini city, made for children. Everything is child sized and it’s set up with little streets, shops, places to go. Plus a police station, hotel, theatre, vet, restaurant, so a mini version of a town centre.
The kids can try all activities and with the help of grown up attendants they can become a police man, a fire fighter or a vet for 20 minutes. It’s also very educational and the grown up attendants are all very helpful and lovely! with each completed activity the children receive salary on their very own, dedicated KidZania Bank card. At the end of the 4 hours (which is plenty to discover everything) they can exchange the saved salary for little gifts at the check out.
Our favourite activities
We probably did about 1/3 of all activities, mainly due to the current Covid-19 restrictions, which meant less children could have been at the same place at the same time. However, it didn’t mean very long queues, probably 10-15 minutes at each activity. The. children absolutely loved becoming a vet, a policemen and a dancer. My boy also enjoyed the British Airways simulator.
Covid-19 measurements
As I mentioned one of the measurements was that less children were allowed at the same place at the same time and we needed to queue. But the staff handled everything absolutely brilliantly and smoothly (I was even wondering if they are trained kindergarten workers or child minders because every one of them was so good with kids!
With a big smile and genuine kindness and interest in what they do. We also had to wear masks, children included above 4 years. Parents are not allowed in some the activity areas to accompany the children to save the space for the children as numbers are limited and to reduce queuing time.
Facilities
We had a meal in one the KidZania restaurants: pizza and hot dog, they were good. There are a few toilets around, baby change and bag storage. There’s a shop at the check out. There’s even a grown ups garden (it didn’t serve food or drinks when we were there), where adults can sit down and work whilst the kids are playing. (I guess with bigger children this is perfect.)
We also found the craft room great as a quiet room – my boy, who has autism, can get a bit overwhelmed with too many people and inputs around so we also spent some time in here. What a great thing to have!
We’re hoping to be back soon! Have you ever been on a visit to KidZania?
