2nd birthday party location opinions

doodlebug914

I'm looking for a location for Ethan's 2nd birthday party.  We had his first at our house, and it's just too crowded to have that many people (40ish) in the wintertime.

Most of the kids are older than Ethan... one is younger, and the rest vary from age 3 to age 10.  Here are the options I've come up with that are close to our home and most of our guests:

1.  Bananas in West Chester, which is an inflatables play center ($200 for 15 kids, 80 minutes of play, 40 minute party after, can bring your own food/cake).  Includes: punch, bottomless popcorn, free party supplies, setup/cleanup.  We have never been here before, and I'm not sure if it's too "big" for Ethan.  We're planning to go visit this week   I do think it may be more appropriate for the older kids.  We are also planning a "monkey" theme party and I think this would be fun to incorporate.

2.  The other place I am looking is the West Chester Academy of Music.  This is a "Music Pups" class, a party for a 1-4 year old birthday child.  I'm not sure if this would be appropriate for the older kids, or if I should just not worry about it since the primary purpose is to have something fun for our birthday boy!  It's $150 for 20 kids, 90 minute party (45 minutes of musical play, you bring all of the birthday supplies - food, plates, drinks, etc.).  Ethan LOVES music and I think this would be really fun for him.

Both of these options are good for us, because we would have more adults than children attending.  They both allow us to bring in our own food, and don't charge for adults.

Any opinions?  Or if anyone else has any suggestions, I would appreciate it!!

curlypie1

I took Nora to Bananas when she was almost 2 years old. It was fun but there was only one bouncy activity she was able to do by herself. She is pretty daring but the bigger activities where you climb real high and go down the slide were really scary for her. The older kids would have an absolute blast though. Did you check out Entertrainment Junction? I know they do birthday parties and adults love that place too.

LoriZ

You could also look into Pump It Up.  I haven't been to Bananas but Pump It Up has Cozy Coupes and other stuff to keep the younger kids busy.  Allison needs help with most of the inflatables, but she has a blast!

I'm positive there are two sides to the story, but I have an acquaintance who had a horrible experience throwing a party at Bananas.  She brought in outside food, got into an argument with the owner since he said they have a contract with Papa John's, and the owner called the police.  Like I said, I don't know the whole story, though.

allibaba76

Bananas sounds like a decent deal.  We took my son there a lot last winter and he did just fine (he was just a bit over 2). 

 

They are pretty clear on their website about their food policy regarding bringing in outside food.  

riabiron

If it is pretty soon you can check out doing a party at WinterFest at the beach. It is actually pretty decently priced, lots for everyone to do and the food is good. My SIL works there and she just set up a party for the whole family after my MIL's wedding on Friday. We got food, ride passes and free cocoa. The kids loved the ponies and petting zoo and the bigger kids loved the ice skating and sledding.