Enjoyed bowling here! Had an awesome time here. Would definitely come back again! Pricing is fair and staff are friendly and knowledgeable! read more

Johnson's Duckpin Lanes - Bowling Near Me - Hamden, Connecticut

See all

First time here, bought a couple Groupon's for a great deal. We took our 5 year old daughter on a Sunday for her first time bowling and she had a blast. The older lady at the counter was smiles and very pleasant, simple old school style establishment which i absolutely love. These kinds of places are true gems and need to be treasured. read more

Fun experience with friendly staff! They were very accommodating and patient with our large group. This is a fun activity to switch things up a bit! read more

They were reallly helpful and patient I hadn't been there in over 20 years and was thrilled that they were still there I'll be back again read more

Old school , but friendly and very clean Had a really great time ! Will be back for sure read more

Had fun . But employees seems not the friendliest.Also had a fountain drink not sure if they've cleaned it lately. Went home and can't stop throwing up hadn't eaten anything. read more

Not autism friendly. I have been there on multiple occasions with autism clients and with the autism school I work for. I was completely put off how we were treated and how we were spoken to because of how my client bowled. The way my client was bowling was not a way that would cause damage even said so by the employe. They just didn't like how he was bowling. I would never recommend this place to anyone. read more

Best. Time. Ever. I bought groceries less than 200ft away from this place a bazillion times and had I not received a Groupon as a gift, I NEVER would have known this gem of a spot was hidden beneath all the stores....wow! Take the plunge. Pass through the double glass doors and descend down the old-highschool gym steps steps, and prepare to immediately be greeted with a huge dose of nostalgia. I swear, it's like stepping back into your childhood. (Especially if you can remember the 1970s, 80s - shout out to my brethren baby boomers, gen-Xers!) I had been duckpin bowling before as a kid, but my husband was a complete newbie. From the minute we arrived it felt like home. We were immediately greeted by the kind person behind the desk, and given the lay of the land and rules. I knew this was just the place for family fun! We picked up our little shoes (which were well maintained and not stinky!) and our score cards. We proceeded to our lane, ready to reign victorious. Despite it being a weekend, the place was relatively empty! The lanes were well maintained, and the balls were all in great shape. My husband, who is quite the old-school bowler, had such a time keeping his ball out of the gutter! (I guess duckpin bowling is a "great equalizer!") They also have gutter blockers available, for kids/adults, so you can play a gutter free game. But, trust me, live on the wild side. There's a reason they give you that third ball! That being said, we had an absolute blast. The music was pumping, but not too loud, and everything was just like a step back into the bowling alleys of my childhood. They even have a little snack bar, if you work up an appetite. Nachos? The facility is clean, the staff is great, and the game is super fun! I highly recommend it. We will be back! read more

Monday afternoon bowling with 3 kids. Bowled 3 full games. 2.25 hours. Most of the time we were the only lane bowling. Lady at the desk was very sweet grandmother type. We had a blast. read more

See all

We went with friends while visiting for the holiday. Totally fun! The lights and music made it even better. First time trying Duckpin bowling - I liked that the balls were smaller and you get 3 each time. read more

Growing up in New Haven, this is what I thought of when people said "bowling." For the longest time, Duckpin was all I knew. Now that I live in Omaha, where ten pin bowling is all that's around, Johnson Lanes is a must-visit spot whenever I'm back in Connecticut. Not to make it sound like I'm a big time bowler (I'm most certainly not, and I absolutely suck), but there's something about this charming little place that always makes me happy. Johnson Lanes will transport you back in time several decades. It's a simple, no-frills place where you still keep score by hand, and instead of a fancy bar and grill like many modern bowling alleys have, there's a Pepsi machine and a rack of chips and candy bars. The focus here is completely on having a good time with family and friends (and since it's pretty far underground, there's just about no cell service here, further reinforcing the need to actually pay attention to the people you're with!). The alley is definitely old (It's been there for 60 years!), and it shows - surfaces are worn, and features are certainly dated, but to me, that just adds to the charm. Plus, everything is kept nice and clean, unlike some other bowling alleys I've been to. The staff are always really nice as well. They'll leave you alone while you bowl, but are happy to answer questions, or to help reset pins if something gets stuck (again, these are old lanes!). It's a little expensive, especially if you have a big group (and you pay per hour, per lane, so the longer it takes to get through a game, the more an afternoon of bowling will cost), but in my opinion, the laid back fun is totally worth it. Sure there's cheaper entertainment around, but there's really nothing else like this incredible blast from the past. read more

I love love love this spot. I used to go duck pin bowling here when I was a little one in the early 90s. Usually only a few people in there at one time. So you can really dig your toes in and have some fun. read more

are there posted prices? i didnt see any. she told us what it would cost when we got there but it seemed high, like maybe they just make it up as they go along? $23/hr? does that sound right? I dunno... i always thought bowling was a less expensive entertainment option but a movie is $9 for 2 hours. Anyways, its not regular bowling as the name implies it is duckpin. small balls. small pins. returns are exposed, not secret hidden tunnels like on the newer modern alleys. score keeping isnt on a screen, its on paper so you gotta know how to score. fun place, i just feel like i way way overpaid. read more

Johnson's Duckpin Lanes - Bowling Near Me - Hamden, Connecticut

I came here with my wife one evening when we had some time to kill in the neighborhood. I'm used to 10 pin bowling, and have done some 5 pin bowling before, but never duckpin. The first thing you see are the signs informing you that, in no circumstances will any outside food or beverage be allowed. We descending the stairs and were greeted by the woman behind the counter. She asked if we had ever been duckpin bowling before, and told us the rules when we said we hadn't. Then she gave us our shoes and score sheet and pointed us to a lane. It was a lot of fun. There's no computer to keep score, just paper and a pencil. Also, it was pretty cheap for an hour of fun. My one complaint would be that the balls in our lane had some pretty big chips out of them. Having not been duckpin bowling before, I'm not sure if it really had any impact, but I had trouble putting any spin on the balls, and I'd like to think I would have done better with better balls. :) read more

As nice as it was it was a little ghetto the scenery is bland the workers had an attitude and to top it all off I had an awful experience and I'm never coming back here again read more

What a great rainy day activity! Came here with a groupon and had a blast with the kids. The facility is clean, and the owners are very nice and accommodating. read more

Great find! Showed up with my 2 year old and we had an absolute blast. Very family friendly, clean place. I can see becoming a regular to this place! read more

We had an amazing time. Everyone was so nice especially the ladies at the desk. They were super organized and clean. There was a league bowling next to us and our pins kept getting stuck but every time someone would come running over to help us out. The kids had a great time. We will be coming back very soon! read more

I returned here after a very long time thinking I could have a cheap night out locally. I remember it being pretty fun and a nice place BOY WAS I MISTAKEN. As other yelpers have stated there was no posted sign for price, however unlike they stated we were charged $30/hr + $5 for each pair of shoes. This would have been fine except for the following. The balls looked like they were over 2 decades old. They were chipped and everything. The lanes looked pretty straight at first glance but we had to change lanes because the ball was actually running straight and then bounced.... pretty amusing. Then for the kicker, when I talked with the lady at the counter, she kind of chuckled and said something about how this part of the plaza caught on fire and because they were in the basement all the water flooded down into their location and the "place has never been quite the same". The equipment in the alley looked like it was from 20 years ago but the floors "looked" new but clearly there was something still off. I wonder how much of that equipment was water/fire damaged and just cleaned up..... Needless to say we paid for the hour and 2 pairs of shoes, stayed 25 minutes and then went to a different bowling alley that was actually half the price and had more modern (and straight) lanes. The end result was $40 dollars for 25 minutes in a DUMP with staff that is more concerned about posting rules about outside food/drink than prices per hour. I think one of the other yelpers hit the nail on the head when he thought they made up the prices as they went along. I wasn't even there long enough to get thirsty but I could only imagine how much a water would have costed. read more

Great fun any time. Brings back memories of duckpin bowling as a kid.

The proprietors of Johnson Lanes couldn't have been more cordial and helpful to our large group today! The group included adults, and kids from three and up, and everyone had a great time. We will definitely return there next time we have a bowling party! read more

I've been to the duckpin lanes several times before but I feel the need to write a review today. Great fun at a great price. My kids (5 and 13) have bee asking to go to bowling for several weeks now. We were out shopping today and I stopped at another local lanes and there was no one in it, got a weird vibe so we left. I drove all the way back to Hamden where I was greeted by a July Special. For 1 1/2 hours, we got to bowl as many games as we could plus shoe rental and a pitcher of soda....for $30!!!! (I even played). The extra special bonus was that at 3pm they turn the lights down and play music and have glo bowl. The kids were thrilled. This is a great fairly inexpensive activity and the kids had fun. Take a group as that deal is for every 5 people! Really, this is one of those good old fashioned fun things to do and it doesn't break the bank. No outside food FYI. Eat before or after or buy a small snack there. We will be back again. read more

Had our daughters 4 year old birthday party here. It was terrible. It was dirty, the staff were not flexible at all. They came over the intercom frequently to reprimand parents and children. I we not recommend. read more

Bowled here since I was a kid! Awesome staff great for kids (my kids love it) glow in the dark bowling is so much fun. Great for a night out!! read more

I came in with my niece. I had been here a few years earlier so I thought I knew what to expect until the woman behind the counter told me that the price was $24 per hour. That price of course did not include shoe rental ($3 per pair of shoes), so I ended up paying a grand total of $30 for an hour of bowling. If you are bowling with a group of people (say 6-8) it doesn't seem so bad, but for just two people, I definitley overpaid! Next time I will just go over to Amity Lanes which charges $10 for 2 hours of bowling ( plus $2 shoe rental). read more

I have taken my children here several times. It is always a fun time. It is a bit pricey, but you can tell it's family owned and I like giving business to local family owned businesses. I wish that we could bring in drinks or some snacks from outside, as the bowling prices are high. The woman working there is always pleasant and helpful. I would recommend taking children to come here anytime, as they are always welcoming. read more