Austin J. A.
Yelp
I'm really glad we left home three hours early because I spent one of those hours circling Norman Street, hunting for Sky Zone. Where are you, Sky Zone? I consulted two GPS devices, and Google Maps mobile, and pressed up-down-up-down-left-right-left-right-B-A-START, and scoured every inch of the industrial area within which Sky Zone is located...and then I found it. Trust me when I tell you that you will need an entire truck full of breadcrumbs to get into and out of this place - there was one tiny sign on the main road, and then tiny signs at the beginning of the labyrinthine complex of rock-climbing, marble-cutting, and general industriousness wherein which Sky Zone is located. Their ample parking lot is dark for the most part, which is creepy, but the building itself is well-lit.
I was unprepared for how large an indoor trampoline park was going to be. Wow! Picture a patchwork quilt with squares bordered on all sides by thin strips of material: that's what the trampoline layout is like. There are about fifty square and rectangular trampolines in one big swath, separated by these hard, padded dividers. You don't want to land on one of those dividers, but it's not like they don't tell you in the training session beforehand. The training session consisted of a staff member going over rules and procedures in front of a video in an area where there were lots of seating options. I was surprised at the fact that one of the jumping zones (there's at least four of those "quilts" - one is a kiddie zone) was designated as a place where you could do mid-air flips. Mind you, they don't encourage anyone to do them, and say specifically not to do things that are above your skill level, plus you sign a waiver at the beginning that holds Sky Zone harmless for anything that happens to you. It felt fair and balance, is my point.
A trip to Sky Zone goes like this: sign waiver (unless you've signed one electronically online in advance), pick up your orange sticker ticket (you wear it and it tells you your scheduled jump times - either a half hour or a full hour) and your blue jumping shoes (the most fun anyone's had in a pair of blue shoes since Elvis Presley), stash ALL your stuff in a cubby or (paid) locker, and head over to the trampoline areas. Pick a trampoline area - do you want to play dodgeball or airball, or are you going to do some flips, or maybe just bounce freestyle? There's minimal or no waiting, and it's one person to an individual trampoline. It is impossible to be in this space without smiling - and I looked at everyone's faces, so I should know! There were people bouncing off of the walls (which are also trampolines), leaping like mountain goats, doing aerobics (they have classes that are an hour long), and everyone was smiling. My face hurt at the end of the night!
I have fibromyalgia, which means I was very concerned that I would be booted off of the tramp-field for "resting;" they have a strict policy of no sitting down on the trampolines, and if you saw how some folks caromed around in there, you'd agree with the policy wholeheartedly. Anyway, nobody gave me any flak for how gently I was bouncing/bobbing, or how many times I got off of the trampoline field and went to sit on one of their nearby orange couches. There are six or so stairs up to each field, so it's not, to my knowledge, a truly accessible space (unless there's some kind of ramp or lift that I missed somewhere), and because the stairs are powder-coated metal with holes in it, I would exercise extreme caution using any assistive devices on these stairs, in case of getting stuck. It's not just young people and kids, either. I saw plenty of grey hair catching air out there!
For safety, cleanliness, innovation, sweet tunes, and way more exuberant fun than I could've ever imagined, this place definitely rates four stars.
A complete hour is, I believe, $18 per person? $12? I didn't actually understand their pricing schedule, but someone else may be more adroit at it. You can apparently buy a ten-hour pass for $100. A half hour of bouncing time was definitely enough for me. Oh! And bring at least two quarters if you want to use the locker; they cost $0.50 for a small one.