When my sister and I arrived at Enchanted Forest Mini Golf a few weekends ago, we were wowed! From…read morethe range of holes and facilities, to the friendly owner who was very helpful and chatted to all of his customers. This was really great considering I haven't received this kind of service at other mini golf places around Auckland. We really enjoyed the variety of holes. Sounds weird I know but Enchanted Forest Mini Golf seriously has two of the coolest holes we have ever seen! The first one you have to hit your golf ball through chains - it sounds harder than you think! The second hole was unique for sure. The hole is completely surrounded by netting. The aim is to hit your ball as hard as you can (it sits on a raised platform), and if possible, hit the bullseye up top, ultimately to get a 'hole in one'. Again, it is harder than you think, but it is loads of fun! Plus, all the kids around us really enjoyed it! Another highlight is that the space around the mini golf course is very large! There is a shop where you purchase your tickets and other things like cold drinks and ice creams. There are also plenty of tables and chairs, plus you can use their BBQ's located onsite (free to use if you play one round of mini golf). This would be perfect for a birthday party or family gathering. An added bonus is that there is a Countdown right next door - easy to stock up on food beforehand! I guess the only negative would be that it is a little rough around the edges but it definitely feels like you're in a forest (or bush!). Interesting fact - the space used to be a park, and instead of removing everything, they have kept all the original trees and plants which is nice to see - we even saw a Kauri tree! Overall, Enchanted Forest Mini Golf is the best I have tried in Auckland so far. The added bonuses (unique 'net' hole, BBQ's, supermarket next door and location) really make this mini golf worth going to, not just to play a few games, but also to get a group of family and friends along and have a BBQ lunch or dinner afterwards!

From the owner: Our 18 hole Mini Golf course is built inside a park and comes complete with mature trees and…read moregardens that provide privacy, shade and tons of fun! With 18 international length holes and a course designed and built by a golfer - for golfers, we provide a genuine challenge and fun for all ages. We are focused on the children's fun, but with one eye on the "big kid's" entertainment too. With a selection of piped music around the grounds, native birdsong and park atmosphere the Enchanted Forest is relaxing and fun for the grown-ups too, with charm, character and a beautiful setting. If you think you know this course, then think again! We have some exciting changes underway, with a huge tidy up and re-planting programme, the roll out of a course make-over and a coffee bar on the way. With free use of our picnic tables and BBQ's, our aim is to ensure that everyone has a fun and a relaxing day Enchanted Forest style - for a great price.

I've always been a fan of mobile farms. As a child the best birthday parties, in my opinion, were…read morealways those where Ronald MacDonald mobile farms and pony rides were the central focus. Even as an adult, my love of these mobile farms has remained intact. A few weeks ago there was a Market Day in Ponsonby, and in the front of the Pumpkin Patch store on Ponsonby Road was Farmer Paul and his mobile pets. I was ecstatic. An enclosure had been erected in the store and there was literally about 30 or 40 animals in it. Rabbits, guinea pigs and rat everywhere! And, one of the rabbits was enormous. Bonnie, the Flemish giant rabbit was super cuddly and you had to hold her like a baby she was so heavy! Farmer Paul himself was a classic 'kiwi bloke' - hat, singlet, stubbies and gumboots, and he and his partner Tracey were great with both the animals and the kids who happily crowded around the enclosure and petted the animals. I would recommend Farmer Paul and his Mobile Pets and Pony Rides not only for littlies birthday parties, but also school fairs and community markets. The whole experience was brilliant!

So to be fair my stomach kind of drops when I walk in here. And you're unlikely to see me up the…read morewall unless I'm in a particularly belligerent frame of mind. It's pretty scary. Kids however don't seem to have issues with height; perhaps because indoor rock climbing has become a part of school holiday programmes and most of them have had the opportunity to do it at some point. Mine love it. I don't like watching them up there so to be fair it's not often me that brings them here. Love it or fear it, this is a great place to come and face a mental challenge while getting a different kind of workout. Just go with a buddy - they will responsible for your life. Just kidding. While being part of a pair is helpful it's not necessary as of course Clip'N'Climb has trained safety professionals. One thing to note though is that climbing happens in sessions; on the hour every hour.

Get your sweat on because an hour at Clip N'Climb is an excellent workout. And even better, you're…read morehaving so much you don't even realise it's quite a fair bit of exercise. This indoor climbing is great for wet days but having said that, it's fun regardless of the weather. They have 34 walls of various themes as well as the extra Leap of Faith or Vertical Drop Slide. You go through a brief safety and harness/ auto belays guide at the beginning then let loose onto all the options to climb. The auto belays mean you don't have to have a partner on the floor and that you could come alone and still be able to climb up and get back down no problems. It takes some time getting used to just letting go once you're at the top to drop down but it makes things a lot easier. Love the colorful walls and unconventional climbing holds that sometimes makes for extra challenges. Personal faves though definitely not the most easiest- the ice pick climb, loose rope netting military style and tall wobbly green pole height climb. Highly recommend. Such a great activity for all ages.

One of the best benefits of having kids is getting to be a kid yourself and Megazone is a great…read moreplace to do just that. I never understand when parents don't partake in childish activities - we even had a boys' birthday party here where a dad went INSIDE the warzone to just stand and watch. If you have no idea what all this is about, laserstrike is the preferred birthday party choice of boys (and some girls) aged 7 to 12 and probably older - we're not there yet. You rally your troops, divide them into two teams, tool up and go to war. There's an instruction video and staff on hand to help you get into your harness-thing. The harness-thing has light targets for your enemy to see and of course your laser gun. You then go run around in the dark shooting each other and the team with the most points wins. Most excellent entertainment - especially getting those kids that are, let's say, not your favourites. So ring up, book your group and they'll give you a room where you can do the food and cake thing along with two 20 minute game sessions. Get pizzas delivered and it's simple and fairly affordable as far as these things go. Just make sure you join in - it's bloody good exercise and wicked fun.

Laserstrike! You can do it here. What else do I need to say? Only that's it crazy good fun, and if…read moreyou're not totally exhausted by the end of it from running up and down ramps, hiding from the other team, and ambushing your opponents, you're not playing it right. This is one of the more fun laserstrike places I've been to, because it's got two floors, plenty of hiding spots and full on ATTACK music. They also give you an extremely serious briefing, which is pretty funny considering what a dork you look like when you put on the harness. Try and get a couple of groups together, it's more fun when you know the people you are playing with and against, not to mention it being a pretty good way of finding out who is a take-no-prisoners, no-mercy type, (yes, it's always the quiet one) and who is a big scardy cat.

I love this little park located in the heart of Remuera. It has to be one of the more fun…read moreplaygrounds in the area. With a swing set, a big climbing frame, slides, a flying fox and a skate board bowl, there is something here to entertain all the kids while you could be walking the dog (on leash only). Upland Road playground also has a lot of greenery for you to sit down on and set up a picnic for lunch or those summer evenings. Located incredibly close to Benson Road dairy, it's only a short hop and skip away to get an ice block, ending a perfect fun filled afternoon at the playground. I have grown up coming to this playground and have taken my siblings here a number of times. It's always a favourite; you just can't go past the awesome flying fox!

This is a super cool park for kids! There's a playground with actually nice and maintained play…read morethings and swings, slides, all that sort of thing - appeals to young babies up to older children. Plenty of seating for parents while the kids play. There is also a big flying fox, and a skate park for the bigger kids. To one side is a cliff that kids can climb up and have a little picnic at the top. We have had several birthday parties here. And heaps of grassy playing area! HEAPS! But note - if you are allergic to grass, this is the grass that will make you come out in a rash. Parking is on the road.

Want somewhere that you can come and bring your baby who is crawling, your toddler who is starting…read moreto walk or for your toddler/kid who needs to burn off some energy then this is the place to come. They have special areas for the smaller ones and other more exciting areas for the bigger more adventurous kids - even looks exciting to me I wouldn't mind sliding down the big air slide. There are also dress up areas next to the pretend house that has a bedroom and kitchen. They also have a small carousel and little cars for them to zoom around in . I wouldn't recommend this place for under 10 months old, but anything from 10 months is fine. This place is also pretty special to me as its where my baby took her first unsupported steps after she had been walking around pushing a little baby stroller. For under 1 year olds is free, but all adults have to pay but you get a cold or hot drink so its all worth it. Theres also plenty of parking and great meet up point for a coffee group.

This is such a fun place for little kids! They can (and do) go absolutely crazy and wild, and…read moresprint around with sweat actually dripping from their hair (I'm not even kidding, you should bring a towel, it's really gross) - totally focused on having with with the element of danger (from all the climbing and obstacles and other kids also sprinting around crashing into each other). So if you just think about the fact the kids are having a great time, it's all ok. But if you look a bit closer... well actually it's best not to. My main issues are that it's a bit dirty, like for example the ball pit is full of sticky balls that pick up all the dirt from the ground, and then little kids suck on them. Plus there's the whole sweat factor. Some of the toys and activities are getting pretty old now and could do with replacing. Added to this is the food issue - the whole place reeks of deep fried food because you can have birthday parties there and you get huge trolleys of every kind of fried food there is. When it all come out of the kitchen at once, the stench is overwhelming. Also, you are not supposed to bring your own food, so it is not ideal for children with allergies. (they may have changed this policy, I'm not sure). Parents are charged an entry fee. But you get a free drink.

Even though the Stardome is now named after a benefactor (can't be helped I guess), it is still as…read morecool as it ever was. The staff don't mind if you just wander in and have a look around and the foyer alone has enough to amuse the kiddies for at least half an hour, probably longer. During the school holidays they run all kinds of fun stuff and if you haven't been before, it's unlike anything else you can do around the town. You absolutely have to be organised and book in advance and maybe the movie is a bit dated, but it's fascinating and presented in a way that makes astronomy accessible to everyone - even 3 year olds. There's an arty crafty session where the kids get to make their own (artistically questionable) souvenir but the highlight is that the film is shown Cinema 180 style on the ceiling. A bit hard on the neck but SO worth it. You can hire the Stardome for functions but when I looked into booking it for an event, I ran in to the problem of how to keep kids from playing unsupervised in the lobby so that's something to consider. I'm ashamed to say I have never been here in the evening and actually looked through that giant telescope at the night sky. I intend to do it every Winter but late nights out in Winter just don't seem to happen. This is the year.

We were thinking about what show we should pick and have chosen "The winter sky". It was just…read moreamazing, to see what stats and planets we can see with our naked eye from Auckland. At least in good weather. After the show we went outside to see the Saturn through telescopes. Not the Zeiss one, but smaller. I saw the Saturn through the telescope for the first time and it was the biggest happy moment I have had in years! You can actually see the planet and the rings! Super cool! We haven't had a chance to use the Zeiss telescope because of the weather, but we are definitely going to do this next time.

I discovered this park one day when out walking. It is tucked away at the end of a no exit street…read more The playground has been recently updated and I think it is a pretty great park. Find a spot at a BBQ table or hang out on the grass, or if you want to get active run up and down the hill at the back of the park.. If you have children I'm sure they would love the new playground. How much fun do those two, bright greeen enclosed slides look?! (I'm yet to actually try them out). When I was at this park last, one family had iPhone in hand and were geocaching. So there might be something really awesome to find... or it might just be a box, who knows?!

Love the facilities here. The grounds are clean and well maintained. The parents' area is within…read moresight of the playground. The staff are friendly and expertly proficient in providing food and beverages. My children love this place. This is my first time here as we normally go to "Jump", an indoor trampoline facility just up the road. The best thing about Bounce and Beyond is that unlike "Jump" there is no time limit. Your kids can run them selves up and down the huge inflatable slides until they pass out! Bonus!!! ;-) Busy time is Saturday and this is shown on the website. If you're keen on a quiet day, you're best to avoid busy times here with the screams of delight emanating from the scores of delighted children and the thrum of the motorised fans keeping the inflatable apparati inflated. I'm here at peak time right now and it's nothing to worry about. Great place, with a great atmosphere. There are party facilities available for hire as well as free parking nearby. There is also a gladiator ring where two combatants (child or adult) can bash each other with padded jousts, trying to knock their opponent of their raised dais. A whole lot of fun, for a reasonable price, for as long as you like! What could be better at energy sapping for your little terrors, I mean angels? Nothing is better than this place in the whole of Gods green earth. Love, love and love!