Honestly, I preferred Magic Mountain, its predecessor, though that probably had a lot to do with those childhood memories of me never actually going there. Well, I did once, but I didn't go on any of the waterslides, which was a shame. In a way, this is just a pale imitation of that once great structure that used to sit on the foreshore like a pile of ... mud. Yeah, that describes it beautifully. I guess, though, this does look better, but it just doesn't have the charm that the Magic Mountain had. read more

See all

Using cards instead of tokens is the only world my kid will grow up knowing. And while the transition is easy for him, for me it's having to choose between whether the money on his card will be based on time spent playing, actual monetary value, or playing on some things but not others. This mental calculus was made easier by the lovely person behind the counter who asked a few questions about what my kid was interested in playing, how long, and then we just paid for whatever based on her recommendation. The kid then tried his hand at some ticket-prize games before making his way upstairs to the arcade games. This is where I discovered that my kid is scarily fantastic at that Terminator shooting game. ??? A little over an hour later, we exchanged his collection of tickets for some gross sticky hand trinket and then tried some mini golf. It is by far the smallest (by size) course I've ever played on but it was nice - in view of the beach and outdoors. Would I come here again? If it was raining. Honestly, not a bad way to spend some indoor kid time. read more

I would probably never take my kids here, far too chaotic, too many little people running around and getting lost and crying and fighting. But as an adult, without any kids too look after this place is kinda neat, I mean later in the evening when all the little ones are tucked in bed. I came here with a small group to play mini golf 20 mins before they were closing, they didn't like us much for it but it was a peaceful game of put put which I lost. There are bumper cars and boats which I really want to try and this huge water slide thing which could be a bit of fun. I wont be going out of my way to come back though, but if I'm in the area I might. read more

See all

Anyone who's read my reviews before knows I rarely give a bad one but oh my god was i disappointed here! Everything has that slightly manky I'm ten years old and badly in need of maintenance feel. We took the little on here for a ride on the train first which was $12 for two minutes of going around the putt putt course and for some reason the train made this God awful screeching noise whilst going which confused the little miss (although she did still enjoy staring at the golfers) We then paid another $6 to go on the carousel but the teen running it didn't help us on at all so I actually had to lay the baby on the floor of the cart, get in and pick her us and vice versa to get off. I think the only positive for me was when hubby and friend went to play on the water boats and I got to feed the baby in peace. Both of their boats were broken, one stuck on shoot and one stuck on move but they came back smiling and laughing so that one was a winner albeit ridiculously expensive and broken. The arcade games were just old and sad looking - the whakamole machine had ones come up that were broken and the punch a duck machine had pre punched ducks. The boo loved her bob the builder ride which for some reason was much shorter than the ones in the shopping centres! All in all it gets two stars because it did entertain and the things that worked made us smile but it is in major need of an upgrade and a reduction in prices!! read more

See all

In it's former state, it was once nick-named by locals as the giant, fibreglassed Jurrassic turd. Now standing proudly in it's place, and longer shaped like a mountain, or magic, it is now a family amusement arena and convention centre. It still hold part of it's heritage by proudly displaying the original carousel inside. No longer using tokens as currency, or cash, this now updated payment system is on a swipe card, or you pay for hourly sessions where you have unlimited access to the amusements. I have broken down the main amusements with the following star ratings: Putt Putt *** Water slides ** Bumper Boats *** SkillTester ***** Ferris Wheel * Overall Experience *** P.S borrow someone else's kid, or look out of place. read more

The Beachouse - Amusement Parks Near Me - Glenelg, SA

I grew up a Magic Mountain kid and refused to go here out of protest for a while when it first opened. Then the kids got the better of me one day. It was nice and hot so we thought the water slides would be a great treat for them. Had to find a street park, which took forever down at Glenelg, and then find out coins as it was ticket parking, and then walk to get there, but still....... A little pricey because when you get there the kids just want to do everything. You buy Fun Cards (so having to buy one for each child it's now like having an extra 3 credit cards in my purse all the time) and then put credits on them and different activities cost different amounts of credits. Then when you run out of credits or when you go next time you can just recharge your card. It's a pretty simple system really that works for all the activities they have. The waterslides are great and there's a few to choose from to suit different ages. In addition there are also bumper boats, dodgem cars, arcade games, mini golf, a carousel, a ferris wheel and an indoor kids play castle. And check out their website - in the school holidays and over summer they have some great "lock in" deals with full access for a set price. Well worth it to wear the kids out or keep the teenagers occupied. read more

The Beachouse - Amusement Parks Near Me - Glenelg, SA

See all

The Beachouse at Glenelg is a hoot! Break open your wallet or purse when you visit though because it's not cheap. As far as amusement parks go the site of The Beachouse has pretty rich history. As Rani and Michelle have said it used to be known as Magic Mountain but that looked like something out of the Flinstones. I knew it as the Sideshows but apparently way back in the 1930's it was Luna Park. The Luna Park people went broke in 1934 and all the rides were dismantled and sent to Sydney where they established Luna Park at Milsons Point. The only ride that didn't get shipped off to Sydney was the merry-go-round and I believe that merry-go-round is the one that still sits inside The Beachouse today. While I love The Beachouse I do have to say I think the single arm Ferris Wheel is a bit of a joke. Standing a whole 25 metres tall it seems to fit with the general lack of all things tall when it comes to Adelaide architecture. The absolute highlight of the whole place would have to be the water slides. There are two where you can slide down on your bum or tummy and a third where you use a raft. The only problem I've ever experienced is the old water up the nose issue due to the rush of water but who cares - its fun! I do like a round of mini golf or as it used to be called when I was a kid, Put Putt. There is a 6 stroke maximum per hole if you're observing the rules but no-one's really going to mind if you take an extra shot or two unless of course you're holding up players behind you. Other great rides include the good old dodgems, the bumper boats and the train for the little kids always brings a smile to my face. The Beachouse is always worth a visit if you've never been. Have a go on the water slide and let out a big scream - it's a great stress reliever. read more

The Beachouse - Amusement Parks Near Me - Glenelg, SA

See all

Run down, over priced and an average experience overall. It seemed like every single machine we tried needed some sort of maintenance in some way or another. One of the basketball games didn't keep score, the other 2 didn't print winning tickets. The pirates game is missing the pirate wheel....that you need to play the game. Most of the gun games are so inaccurate you can barely play and all of the games are so old and dated but are still between $2-$4 a player to play. The staff didn't really care when we told them we just wasted $6 on the pirates game that won't work because the wheel is missing. His answer was once that level is over you can still play the next one and you only lose a few lives... yep...sounds fair. I really had to push the point of how unhappy I was with this before he gave us the money wasted as credit on another machine. Don't waste your time or money coming here to play arcade games. You will be sorely disappointed. read more

The Beachouse has definitely seen better days. Now it has become way overpriced and slack in both service and attitude. Although it has a perfect beach location and the possibility of attracting a very big beach audience, it isn't able to capitalise on it like it used too. The prices have been seriously jacked up for starters. A four minute ride on the dodgem cars will now set you back around $7.00 which is a complete rip off. The bumper boats are also expensive and almost always broken or out of order. The only drawcard they had was the waterslides but now that Marion Aquatic Centre has built some, they also have been overlooked. Considering how expensive it is, I would give it a miss and just take your kids to the beach for free. read more

I can remember when Magic Mountain used to be here, I was about six years old when it got knocked down. A couple of years later the beach house was built to replace the beautiful plastic mountain. Young children would think that the beach house is amazing but it's quite over priced to be honest. If you're rich or a step daddy looking to buy your step child's love then feel free to go here. It's pretty fun but I think that the fun is short lived as I tend to see a lot of crying cranky children. The games are pretty cool but you have to buy a beach house card in order to play them. I really wish the machines would accept dollar coins without having to buy the beach house card because I don't want a beach house card. I'm 17 but if I was a parent and didn't have much money or was on a budget then I'd just take my children to the park. Places like St Kilda are great because they're free and I've had so many great memories there. People believe that spending loads of money means your child will have loads of fun but that's not the case. Now I will give a description of the beach house. There's mini golf, three water slides, loads of arcade games, a merry go round, bumper boats and a play café thing (kind of like wiggly worms) I've been here and I feel like it's over stimulation for a child's brain. There's just so much to see it's kind of overwhelming. You can't take your kids here and expect them not to want to go on everything because that's like throwing a doggy a big bone and telling him not to eat it. I think that the beach house is a good idea but it's just too pricy. If it was free then believe me, I'd probably camp out the front for a week. If you're a parent then take your mini potato to the park for a day or if you want to take them on water slides then go to a pool that provides them DO NOT go to the beach house that provides all of it in one because you fun will be short lived and your money will probably be gone. If you choose to go to the beach house then save for it. read more

The first time we came here a teenage boy ran over my toddler with his enormous adolescent feet, causing her to smack her little head on the floor and split her lip. And despite the fact there were Beach house kids in those red shirts running around absolutely everywhere, no one was able to help out a baby with blood pouring out of her mouth. We ended up grabbing a handful of napkins to stem the blood flow and got the heck out of there. Is this place full of amazingly fun activities for kids? Why yes, yes it is. Are the staff properly trained to care for children? No, probably not. They seem to be very good at flirting with each other though. There's all kinds of teens making moony eyes at each other between the play equipment and the water slide. In their defence they're not childcare workers, it's the parents job to take care of their kids in public places. I just try to steer clear of this place as much as possible because it's overpriced, way too packed on holidays, and frankly I'd rather go to the playground. read more

Parents should rightfully consider putting their children up for adoption if said children insist on their parents forking out rather large amounts of cash for a completely 'meh' experience. THREE CENTS PER SECOND on the dodgem cars. Seriously. Think about that. I don't care how special they are, no dodgem cars should cost that much. The best thing that can be said for this place is that hopefully it'll bear the entire brunt of a very small and surgically accurate tsunami at some point, wiping out only this building and possibly several clowns. read more

I grew up at Magic Mountain (known controversially as the pile of poo). Many years ago it received a major overhaul and was relaunched as The Beachouse. It's a modern, two-storey rectangular building with mainly glass exterior. You'll still find the water slides, ferris wheel (although it's now a modern, enclosed wheel), the original merry-go-round, bumper boats and mini golf, however all have been relocated. A new addition and a highlight for smaller children is the two-storey play area ($8 for 2 hours). Children can climb, slide and tunnel to their hearts content while parents watch sometimes nervously from below at the limited tables and chairs. It doesn't happen often, but can be quite comical if you hear a call from high up, "Mum!! I'm stuck." To which a parent quickly responds by clambering up the kid-sized ropes and tunnels in search of their youngster. (I'll giggle until the day it happens to me...) Most of the Beachouse floor space over two levels is taken up with gaming machines. Each machine accepts a card which you recharge to a dollar value. Fun cards cost $2 each and the average game costs 1.5 to 3 credits at a $1 a credit. Limited tickets spurt out after each game and these can be exchanged for cheap plastic toys once you acquired the correct number of tickets. Don't be conned into thinking the number of tickets received are a reflection of the cost of the game. You might get 4 for avariation of ten pin bowling, but you'll need 20-30 to get a plastic toy you could pick up from The Reject Shop. It can be good fun though and when the toy inevitably breaks after 10 minutes, you can duck to the Reject Shop on Jetty Road and you're sure to find a similar toy for a few dollars. The Beachouse does an okay trade through the other seasons, but summer is understandably booming. It's most popular on weekends and does a great trade in birthday parties. The cafe offers the sort of food you can expect - chips, hot dogs, ice-creams and is expectedly disappointing. Birthday parties packages include food served by the cafe. As at the summer of 2011/12, management have acknowledged that the ferris wheel has been underwhelmingly received and the one lap of eight minutes is being sped up and will soon be completed in four minutes. It's still eerie being inside an enclosed plastic bubble. I much prefer the old fashioned caged wheels. But, I'm also afraid of heights so take my comments with that in mind. The Beachouse is not cheap, but it is a fun activity, especially in the summer. read more

I am in the generation that will forever compare The Beach House at Glenelg to Magic Mountain, and of course the latter takes it out for me. What can I say, I'm already feeling nostalgic! Although many argued that the brown blob of a rock, rather than a mountain was not the most aesthetically pleasing display situated bay side, I for one quite enjoyed the old setting. The old arcade style facilities were great for kids of all ages, whom would arrive to the Mt. equipped with old school tokens and magic coins. I guess the cave like magic charm has been somewhat erased since then, however perhaps that's what kids prefer these days. In fact I guess The Beach House itself is a true vision for Generation Z., and really caters best to the youngest of kids. Luckily there are still waterslides and mini golf to keep the big kids entertained. It is also nice to see that the new and "improved" venue has kept inline with some old traditions such as the old carousel, which dates back many years. However I'm not sure what's going on with the Ferris Wheel located at the front.... The canteen also serves great carnival like food, with tasty treats such as very artificially coloured gelato- I guess that's one of the best things about being a kid. Finally for the adults, the function room on level three of The Beach House is perfect for celebrations of all sorts, and boasts gorgeous ocean views. If you are happy to splurge a little on a special occasion then perhaps give this venue the ultimate test. read more

The Beachouse - Amusement Parks Near Me - Glenelg, SA

See all

I have been a regular at The Beachouse since it opened. My son used to love to the indoor playcastle, train and carousel. But now he's all about the waterslides! My husband takes him on the inflattable raft slide. They love it! Definatley a great day out. And they have hands down the best Gelati - try the kinder suprise or cinamon donut! So good! :-) read more

The Beachouse is great! I visit with the kids every school holidays. They love it and it's a great way to keep them entertained during the break. The place is packed with games and activities so they never get bored of visiting. The playcastle is a great place to take your younger kids and catch up with other mums in the cozy seating area with a coffee while the little ones go nuts. Theres also heaps to do for the older kids, they love the waterslides, cars and boats. We usually end up going for the power hour deal, really good value. We've also had my sons birthday party here. Great packages and service. We hired a host to help out with everything so all we had to do was sit back and relax while they took care of everything and kept the kids entertained. read more