This was my second time over the years hiring Animal Encounters for my children's large birthday…read moreparty. John did an outstanding job accommodating our group from start to finish. The team was attentive to the various age ranges of children, patient with all of our questions, and clearly prioritized the well-being of both the children and the animals. The cleanup was handled efficiently, as if it never happened. Overall, I highly recommend this company for this service. Their attention to detail, professionalism, and warm hospitality made the party fun and memorable!

We booked the Australian animal encounter for my animal loving five year old's birthday party and…read moreall the kids had a blast. Kim was super engaging, entertaining, and educational. She had all the kids laughing! I really appreciated how well run and calm everything was. Kids that were scared to touch the animals still felt comfortable and enjoyed the program. Grown ups were also able to hop in and pet the wallaby :)

We had a fun time visiting this holiday season pop up! I don't know how necessary it is because we…read morewent at noon when they opened, but you can prepurchase your tickets online (I'm guessing they might "sell out" at busy times but I don't know). Our first stop was gas pump cocoa with whipped cream and sprinkles! Stand back because the pump is old school and can slosh when the workers fill your cup. We played games outside and inside, having to wait a bit for skeeball to be available. We did not opt in for the two paid photo ops but did get some good free photos ourselves. Snacks were available but limited. The staff were dressed in on theme pump station outfits and all quite kind and helpful. Very cute idea--would love to visit in the evening time!

Super fun! Hot chocolate, games and a dj. It was silly but good fun. Unfortunately parents were…read moreallowing their children to takeover the ski-ball without taking turns and throwing the wooden balls overhand, moving them from one machine to the next and just behave completely out of control which was unfortunate but not the fault of Kringle's. Everyone on the staff was friendly and helpful.

I can't believe we live so close and I'd never even heard of this place. We usually go to Elevated…read moreSportz or Flying Squirrel, so Sky Zone wasn't even on my radar. Another parent mentioned it during an Easter egg hunt, and I figured we'd check it out so my kids could compare before deciding where to have their birthday party. We came in this morning, filled out the waiver, and the staff walked us through the pricing and membership options. Then, out of nowhere, they told us not to worry about paying for today (thanks Claire) --just grab the grip socks. That honestly caught me off guard. You don't really see that kind of approach much anymore. It felt like they were confident enough in what they offer to just let the experience speak for itself. My kids had a great time and ended up choosing this as their birthday spot. So while they let us try it out for free today, they probably just locked in a party that'll cost me over $1k. Customer service was great all around. Only small downside--it was a little cold inside.

Very much mixed reviews here…read more Positive: First of all, the place is wildly and almost endlessly entertaining for children of all ages. There are times when my kids drag me here 4-5 times a week, and that's still not enough! The space is clean: very clean, and the staff does a fantastic job of maintaining the cleanliness throughout the day. As for said staff, although young (high school age mostly), they are all incredibly helpful and friendly. The price is unbeatable; it almost seems unfair to the franchisee. It can get pricey if you pay the daily rates, but you can't go wrong with a membership. Just two trips a month and you're ahead. That being said, we do always end up spending at least $50 every time between new socks (you can buy and reuse, however we forget to bring them 9, times out of 10). Then food, ice cream, arcade. But even with those, it's still a bargain. Neutral: The food is, sub-par. It's very limited (chicken tenders, nachos, pizza, pretzels, fries) and everything always tastes.....off. we've had everything multiple times, and it's consistent, so it wasn't a one off. Kind of tastes like they bake their fried foods. Which given the inexperience of the staff, understand. The food is fine for kids, but anyone with a palate over 17 should temper their expectations. There are signs everywhere saying no outside food or drinks, but we seem to be the only ones that respects it. Do with that information what you will. Challenges/opportunities: While the staff is super friendly and helpful, they don't seem to enforce any of the rules. Older kids are running over little kids everywhere, other parents set up shop like they own the place, a whole family even took over the balcony to set up their own private birthday party because they didn't want to pay the birthday party costs, which made it so I couldn't go up and watch my kids from there. I've seen fast food bags from every chain in western Washington in the building. My favorite is when people bring a cooler full of Tupperware filled with food from home. Then there's the other "guests": we spent a good 4 hours there the other day, and I don't think I heard English spoken by a single person, which is fine, but again, do with that information what you will. It's challenging sometimes, though, for my children and any of my children's friends we bring to play here to understand the play style of kids who might be brought up with a different set of values. While understanding and respecting other traditions of cultures is valuable, when they're there, I just want them to play and be kids. Then there's the chairs. Those f****ng massage chairs. They have 4 massage chairs you can pay to use, but other parents are constantly using them as lounge chairs while their kids play, which would be fine if they didn't let out the loudest, most obnoxious, smoke alarm- rivaling beep if you sit in them without paying for it. Not a day has gone by without some absolutely clueless guardian sitting there, either oblivious or ignorant to the fact that they're making everyone else borderline homicidal with that beeping. That beep can be heard from every corner of the building, and it's bad. Really, really bad. Maybe if the employees were empowered, or motivated to ask people not to sit in them without paying? Or better yet, they could put up a gentle sign asking people not to sit in them without using them for their intended use? Although we've already addressed how well the other signs work. Better yet, they put up a sign, as well as ammending all the other signs, translating them into multiple languages, starting with Spanish and Amharic.....

So, it's not the most fun, but maybe if you're a tourist and you're looking for something that will…read moretake you around to different sites around the city, this might be good for you. The questions weren't very "puzzling" - they weren't very clever and brainy which was a little disappointing. It was a little tricky clicking through the app and when to click because they give you some time to walk to places. Most of the answers were really easy once you get to the spot, but occasionally it was tricky trying to figure out exactly what answer they wanted. We actually tried this in another city as well, and it was roughly the same experience - just mediocre.

UPDATE: They apologized and gave me a refund so I'm adjusting my rating. I do hope they've fixed…read morethe glitches that caused this to happen and have made it easier to reach customer support on the weekends so this won't happen to others but they were professional in their response, even though it was too late to save my party. Original post: Thanks for ruining my birthday, Puzzling Adventures! I purchased the Puzzles by the Glass (21 and over) adventure for my birthday party as it seemed like it would be a fun time. What I wound up with instead is some sort of walking tour of the sculptures at the Seattle Center. It was a total snooze fest and definitely not what I wanted to do for my birthday. Basically, it has you walk from one sculpture to the next, read the plaques, and then answer a reading comprehension question for each one. Freaking ridiculous. I thought I was purchasing basically a pub crawl and thought it would be a fun way for my friends and I to go on an adventure and check out some places we might not otherwise go to. After 30 minutes of walking from sculpture to sculpture, our group finally decided it was clear they weren't leading us to a bar so I tried to call but (surprise) nobody works at Puzzling Adventures on the weekends when folks might actually be using their products so there was no way to get support to get us on the correct adventure so we chose our own adventure instead. What a waste of money (not just the cost of the "adventure", but also the $22 parking at the lot it has you start at).

This place is wonderful if you haven't been there try it. They're beautiful instruments and it is a…read moregreat place to go. The employees are very helpful. Put music in your life. You'll find joy try this place. You're gonna love it. You'll thank me later.

I had two lessons left on a monthly plan when I got hit with a barrage of work and life tasks (I am…read morefinishing writing a book and recovering from liver failure). I needed to pull back on all extra commitments for a while. I asked to pause my ongoing lessons and ...guess what? Because I can't take the lessons right now, I LOSE THEM, per company policy. $200 down the drain on these folks. This is terrible customer service and very bad business practice (if not illegal). Trust Pilot and BBB are my next stops.

Lora Lee's family farm is amazing in every season. We enjoy coming here late summer and fall for…read morethe sunflower maze. There's many options to see the sunflowers in the valley, but this is hands down the best. The snack shack has amazing, fresh treats that vary for the seasons. The real shaved ice in the summer is on point. Also a fun outing for Christmas trees. Beautiful setting, friendly staff, the best hand made wreaths and a fun you cut experience. Don't miss the mini donuts and espresso at the snack shack. There's farm animals to see and amazing views of the valley. I always highly recommend Lora Lees to friends wanting a day trip to the valley. Everyone has raved about the experience.

I always see the cherry blossoms and the tulips like a good PNWer, but somehow miss out on…read moresunflower season every year! I was determined to change this in 2024. And Lora Lee's was the perfect place to break my streak! It's only 45 minutes from Seattle, in an idyllic setting, with friendly staff and a ton of vibrant, cheery sunflowers. We did the sunflower maze which was beautiful and not hard. There are lots of bees but they don't really care about people--they're busy with the flowers! They also have a little stand with shave ice, coffee and snacks and some tables and chairs so you can sit and relax in the lovely setting. I believe they rotate sunflower maze locations--the one we went to was a bit of a walk. Make sure to wear sturdy shoes, as the ground is a little bumpy. I definitely want to add Lora Lee's into my flower-pilgrimage rotation!

Located inside 24 hr fitness in Issaquah. Go up the stairs and it's to the right. Super cool, open,…read moreclean arena and still has the new shine to it. We went as a small group of kids to try out a class on a Sat afternoon. Kids were exhausted after! They loved the fact that they got to learn from Tim Schnee who has competed on American Ninja Warrior 5 times. My son was really wanting to do the ramp like his friend and Tim was right there giving him pointers and cheering him on. The next run my son nailed it and was super proud. I love the enthusiasm the staff had for the activities. In the past, places that had activities even like this seemed to be run by high school kids who weren't really even interacting with kids. This was a legit professionally run ninja place. They set up a course that was challenging yet had all levels incorporated. There were short cuts built in to it. At the end they even had a green button/buzzer the kids could use to signal they completed the course. There's a bathroom and water fountain right there next to the course. No need to go outside at all into the 24 hour fitness area for anything. Lots of bench seating available for parents. If we weren't so stuck with sports on the weeknights and weekends already we'd sign up for the 6 week class. For now, I think it will be our new bday party spot or coming back for a drop in time. Thanks Tim for getting the kids pumped up today and making em all feel like real ninja warriors! Will def be back.

We ultimately decided to stop because the class no longer felt consistently safe to us…read more The head coach appeared to show clear favoritism toward certain children, while other kids received far less supervision and assistance during activities. During hanging and obstacle exercises, there were moments when children needed help but no coach was nearby to assist or spot them safely. For a ninja-style program involving climbing, swinging, and elevated obstacles, consistent supervision and equal attention to all children should be a basic expectation. What was also disappointing was the lack of concern or follow-up when we chose to withdraw. No one asked why we were leaving or seemed interested in understanding our experience, which left us with the impression that parent feedback and individual student experiences were not being taken very seriously. For parents considering this program, I would recommend paying close attention not only to the facility itself, but also to how consistently all children are supervised, guided, and included during class.

We had such an amazing experience at Slime Factory! It was just my two kids for the last…read moreappointment of the day, and we never once felt rushed--in fact, it felt like such a personal, special experience. Lily truly made it unforgettable. She was incredible with my kids--so patient, fun, and fully engaged with them the entire time. Even at the end of the day, her energy and positivity never dropped. She made each of my kids feel confident, included, and excited about what they were creating. It's not easy to keep that level of enthusiasm, especially for the last appointment, but Lily went above and beyond. My kids haven't stopped talking about how much fun they had with her! Highly recommend Slime Factory, and if you get Lily, you're in for an amazing experience!

Such a fun indoor activity for young kids (and honestly, me too). Pricing felt reasonable…read moreespecially since we got two slimes out of our visit. Our girls absolutely loved mixing everything together and picking out the extra add-ins like glitter. The place is clean and well kept. Staff was so friendly and age-appropriate with my young kids which I really appreciated. Would definitely go back.

This is one of the places both of my nephews frequent in recent birthdays as they are both winter…read morebirthdays & it's easy for their classmates to get to. The kids definitely have a great time every year & Pump It Up has a schedule for each reservation; the kids are introduced to the concept/safety/rules, led into one of the rooms where they get to play for about 30-40 minutes, then lead into a bigger room where they have other slides and additional activities to choose from (a 'high wind' simulation, photo booth), then lead upstairs to have food/cake with their friends. Those who work there are mostly high school kids doing the best they can & do just fine. Some of the cons is the parking is terrible; even when I was told by my family to come early to help set up & they have a few "reserved" spots up front, that can vary by the staff who aren't very kind about it even when it's discussed by the payor of the reservation & there is signage to park against the wall near an apartment building next door...or you have to park across the intersection about half a block near some other apartment complexes. So, basically the place is packed with large parties from morning to close so just keep in mind of this if you're planning to come out.

My family attended a child's birthday party here and I didn't have any high expectations. I…read moreunderestimated the volume of play space and how fun all the variety of giant inflatables were for the kids (and adults). I'm a germophobe when it comes to managing my toddler and the areas appeared sanitary without funky smells and other unknowns. I can imagine how hectic it would be trying to coordinate ongoing parties throughout the day and tons of families; but the staff could do better with communicating check in, transitions between the large play rooms, and their overall lackluster demeanor in dealing with children.

What a fun experience - my grandson and I had a blast! Thank you and don't forget to make a…read moredonation

Hey this little train ride is pretty fun! After seeing this on TV, it was added to our list of…read more"cheaper things to do on the weekends" and it's totally worth it! First thing I suggest is to make sure they are running the trains, their schedule is only on select days so it's worth it to check it out before heading over. Second, get there early! We got here right at opening and the line was already getting long. Though it moved pretty quickly once the trains started running. And finally bring the kids lol, our two year old did just fine and he had a blast! The trains are easy to sit on and once it gets going there's plenty for the little ones to see. They operate via donations so keep that in mind and support this awesome service!