If I grew up in Brisbane and was looking for a place to throw my 10th birthday party, this place…read morewould be heaven. Actually, I am 21 years old and it is still heaven. I brought a friend from couchsurfing who'd been travelling through Brisbane for an activity that was fun and out of the ordinary. The walls were covered in futuristic paintings that looked like they'd been done back in the '80s and made me feel right at home. (I grew up in the 'burbs.) On the night we played, there were two separate birthday parties happening simultaneously, i.e. it was pure chaos. The staff there seemed to handle it very well, though, and were very helpful to us first timers. After we signed up, we received neat name tags with our laserforce identities that could be kept for future games. There's a clean, open area for adults to relax, as well as an arcade area for kids who are still hyped up on adrenaline and sugar. The actual laser force is the bomb. Sure, you're wearing sweaty helmets that stink of hormones and you're versing pre teens who will slaughter you the moment you hit the floor, but there's real joy in running around a giant warehouse shooting invisible lasers at each other. Come to Laserforce if you're looking to find your inner child, or if like me, you are actually still a child.

You know Lazerforce is badass when I couldn't even find a category to put it under…read more (Why is there no LAZERFORCE under Entertainment YELP??) I'm sure most everyones familiar with the concept of the game, but for those people not in the know (You sad sad humans) the premise is relatively simple. You are on a mission to kill or disarm as many baddies on the other team as you can. Cast all loyalties aside and watch the competitive natures come out in your friends or familia. (Coupled with an over blown lazer pointer cased in a plastic gun.) If you have kids DO make sure to introduce them to the lazer show on a saturday the place on weekends is heaving with kids and they will make a bunch of friends in no time. If you are an adult DO make sure to stay as far away from this place as possible on a saturday these kids are hocked up on slush puppies and sugar. They will eat your face if you get in their way. Tremendously fun for kids (and making for a hilarious experience when intoxicated.) I highly recommend paying this place a visit.

Danibelle's Musicadium is located at the PCYC Lang Park. Not only is it a great time for the kids…read morebut its very affordable. ($8 a session (or 10 for $70) with a $20 PCYC yearly membership fee) it is well worth it. Danibelle sings, dances and gets the children up and exercising. Each week she has a different theme and always dresses in costume which the children love. Her love of children is evident the first time you go to class. Each class consists of 15 mins of music- singing dancing and exercise, 15 mins of play time in the incredible tot gym at the PCYC and then 15 mins of play with the toys, balls, hoops, cars etc. Classes are broken down by Babies to Walkers Tues-Friday 11.15am - 12 noon - 3months - walking Walkers to 2yrs Monday - Friday 9.15 - 10am 14 months-2 years Climbers (2yrs-5yrs) Monday - Friday 10.15 - 11am 2 years - 5 years My son loves the class and its a great hour to spend with him as he learns songs, dances and has fun. Its also great for the mums to meet other mums.

Ekka is like a massive more awesome version of a state fair. The food expo building had lots of…read morefree samples. We ate so much for free! We did end up buying some goodies to take home too. They have a petting zoo area, rides, junk food vendors, multiple stages with live music, & booze for sale! Then they have Ekka nights at the main arena it starts off with a great fireworks show & follows with various entertainment. We had lots of fun. It cost $25US per person to get in.

The Ekka is Brisbane's annual agricultural show, formally known as the Royal Queensland Show. In…read morereality it's the biggest carnival in Queensland, lasting for ten days and giving us a public holiday on the seventh day, aka People's Day. And aka Plague Day. It's a tradition and widely-held belief in Brisbane that when one goes to the Ekka, one catches the 'flu. This is allegedly highly true of People's Day, traditionally the Ekka's busiest day as parents are dragged to the event by excited kiddies. It's always held in August and it seems like the rain waits all year for the Ekka to come around and dumps it all on you in one go. As much of the Ekka is outdoors (most people come for the carnival rides) you're probably going to get rained on, unless you want to trudge around in an umbrella or wear a raincoat (I love how the latter are now being called "emergency ponchos" in supermarkets). Though it's not all about the agricultural show as it was in the good old days, there is still a substantial portion devoted to such activities - dog shows, brightly coloured baby chicks and a room where you can roam freely amongst farm animals are memorable events. Unfortunately animals mean dirt ground and rain means mud. Don't wear your favourite sneakers here. The major indoors section includes the Ekka fashion show and the showbag pavilion. Even as an adult - recognizing what a rip-off these things are - I love getting a few showbags. Carrying home bags filled with treats just doesn't feel like a bad thing. There's also more "adult" stuff at the back, such as a lot of cleaning goods stands and demonstrations (yawn), a discount book store (not bad) and posters of obscure stuff you like, such as Doctor Who (awesome). I've thrown up at the Ekka from a violent ride (the Zipper - not ON the ride, fortunately, but this ride's cages have seen some serious stomach acid carnage in their time), I've been rained on, but I've never caught the infamous bug that is supposed to go around during Ekka time. In spite of knowing how overpriced the whole event is (entry is somewhere over $20 for an adult, and then you pay for each ride you go on*) I still like the Ekka. It's not only associated with happy childhood memories, I still enjoy it. Two years ago I spent a night on the dodgems, picking teen boys in showdowns. I was unstoppable. The guys didn't even charge me in the end, they just let me keep going as everyone else lined up. Best Ekka ever. Oh, and there's bars and pubs there for fathers who've had enough of walking around to look at everything. *Some rides are as cheap as $5 but they're usually more around the $10 mark. The bungee bullet ride is around $40, with ride prices generally increasing marginally each year.

This iPlay has been around for a while and has always been lots of fun. It is quite large with all…read morethe usual arcade games including air hockey, race car driving simulation etc. It is not too expensive either and customer service is great. Only suggestion would be to get a photo booth! Would definitely recommend for a range of occasions :)

My upbringing was heavily laden with astrological lessons. If I hear the terms 'conjunct',…read more'squared', or 'retrograde', my mind will spiral back to my teenage years where I spent a lot of time sitting at the kitchen table studying planets and their relationships to each other. As I underwent my astrological education, I developed a deep fascination with astronomy. This astronomical intrique led me to the Planetarium. I'm almost embarrassed about how many dates I've had there. I blame adolescent discussions regarding the 'mysterious qualities of Scorpios'. The cosmic skydome is where it's at. They have shows on there all the time (they play 2-3 times per day, so enquire ahead of time). Currently there's a show on called "Cosmic Collisions" which I like to think of as a space version of Demolition Derby. When you go to a show in the cosmic skydome, you walk inside the darkened dome and look up. You'll be sitting under an imitation black night sky. The lights are choreographed in a certain way so as to highlight details like certain constellations. And that's the boring stuff. To the Big Dipper and beyond! The shows usually cost between $10-$20. The Planetarium also has a mini theatre where you can watch documentary shorts about space related subjects. You can also take in factoids about space from the posters that hang along the walls of Star Trek inspired walk ways. Don't forget to check out the Planetarium store on your way out. This place is FULL of cool nerdy space toys. I think it's by far the best toy shop in Brisbane. Who doesn't love dehydrated space food?

Ever wanted to sit under a blanket of stars? Ever wanted to go somewhere romantic under the stars?…read more Learn about the solar system? Learn about the Mars Mission buggy thing... this place is for kids and adults, and it's undiscovered... not that many people know it's there, it's all hidden away across the car park of the Mt Cootha Botanic Gardens. I love this, it's my dirty little secret getaway on a hot summers day. They have the cosmic skydome, an educational experience or walk if you may. They have a display zone, it's free, you can sit and see hubble telescope pictures or learn things about Mars... they show different things every now and then... there isn't a time limit, you can stay there all day. In the skydome there are shows, they last maybe 30 minute in length and you sit and learn about black holes and cosmic collisions, there are kids shows as well scheduled, tickets are very cheap too, mostly under $10. There is a kid in all of us, this is where you unleash your inner kid. I love love love it, and will be taking my children there for years to come.

It's been a good while since i've been in an arcade, but when someone is having a 30th, what else…read moreis there to do? This was a Timezone when I first moved to Brisbane, and I'm sure it was bigger, with far better games. There's not a lot here, and a few things were on the blink. You've got a couple options. We went with 30 minutes and we could play all but the most expensive games. There's various options including with meals, so definitely figure out what's best for you. Keep in mind, you won't win prize tickets, but for our 30 minute session we had 100 tickets. Are you confident you'll earn that many on the games?

If you're looking for a game arcade in Brisbane, or even air hockey with 33 pucks, then this is…read morethe place for you! The customer service here is good, and the arcade itself is amazing, as well as ice cream for after the day which I'm sure everyone wants a very good Arcade

Release your inner child. Take a breath of nostalgia…read more These arcade places still exist. In the corner of the Indooroopilly Shopping Centre food court, you'll see Fastplay. Complete with tickets for rewards in every game in this small room. There is Time Cop, Air Hockey, Basketball, all your childhood jammed into this tiny little room. Loud music, sweaty school kids, dodgy little rubber toys you get after spending a gazillion dollars there. It's arcade at it's best. More for the teen in you, but there is a game in here for everyone (Daytona!!!!!)... ah back in the day. This was the place to go on a teenage date. Who knows how long this is going to last until the wifi computer games will it out of existence, so make sure you get your arcade on at Fastplay before the time runs out.

Whoever says arcade games are just for kids, was wrong. Arcade games can be enjoyable for people of…read moreall ages. I have a soft spot for Fastplay Game Centre since it was the arcade centre I would go to as growing up in the western suburbs. This arcade game centre is no-where near as large as the ones in the city and larger shopping centres, but it does the trick. The 'Dance Dance revolution' type of game is always popular and there are a few 'Wack-a-Mole' and 'pin-ball' games as well as the ever-popular photo-booth. On the weekends, you will find a bunch of kids running in and out of the place, but the occasional will adults come here too. Playing a couple of games at the Fastplay will not burn a hole in your pocket so why not pop by and let you inner game-nerd come out?

Jugglers Art Space is an excellent art exhibition space located in the Valley. It has a very young…read moreand fresh vibe with its grungy looking interior and street art decorations. Although it is predominantly an exhibition space, I have seen it used for smalls gigs and even markets. The type of art exhibitions held is often modern art that has a youthful feel to it. I believe none of the work presented here are made by well known artists, it seems Jugglers prefer to showcase work from local artists or students. I find this really nice to see as it give the place a very homely non-obnoxious vibe. The exhibition space is not very large but enough to accommodate a couple hundred people on their opening nights. There is also a large backyard area which is where I have seen bands and markets being held. I have also seen bands play inside one of the exhibtion rooms. If you want to check out some art created by local talent, I would suggest checking out one of the exhibitions at Jugglers Art Space.