Hot in Atlanta Family Entertainment Centers

In trending terms, home is called people’s “first place” in life, with their workplace a second place. The location where people go to relax and socialize? That’s the third place—hence the name Amp Up1 Hospitality uses on the marquee of their FEC.

Doug Warner, chief solutions officer for Amp Up1 Hospitality, explains the concept allowed him to analyze, “how folks interact differently, and what are the common threads that people really demand … from a psychological perspective, and what that escape looks like when they’re trying to get out and have fun together.”

Utilizing these observations, Warner and his business partners began exploring different ways to create the ultimate third place. “We basically culled all of that knowledge into one place and said, ‘If we could start over from scratch, what would we do differently?’” Warner says. “How would we reduce friction? What, in terms of gaming offerings, would we present differently?” After spending two and a half years developing the concept, Your 3rd Spot opened in 2022.

“When we got to Atlanta, it became clear very quickly that we had the perfect place in terms of real estate and a landlord partner, but also a community that is receptive to entrepreneurship, new business, small business, and a place where they get excited about things to do,” Warner explains. “In Atlanta, it’s about what’s new and cool and exciting, and we felt that warm welcome the minute we opened our doors.”

Your 3rd Spot advertises they have more than 100 activities and experiences, from nostalgic arcade games and shuffleboard, to bowling and tabletop games, along with a diverse food and beverage menu. Culinary offerings are carefully curated to create a sense of discovery and a shared sense of community, bringing guests closer together.

“Our food program is small plates, which selfishly is the way that we love to experience food as a team the most,” Warner explains. “Where you just order a bunch of different things to the table, everybody’s taking a bite, they’re kind of sharing their experience, they’re trying new things—that again—leads into that sort of connection and discovery element of it.”

The attraction has nearly 1,100 people in their membership program, with operators planning a second location in the greater Chicago area. 

Warner encourages FEC Summit attendees to see how they do things differently at the facility.

“There’s a sort of sophistication to our brand that we really enjoy, and I think people love.” Warner says.

For those with a creative mind, Lego Discovery Center Atlanta offers families a place to use their imagination to build.

“There’s a huge family draw here,” explains Courtlyn Ward, schools and groups coordinator for Lego Discovery Center Atlanta. “A lot of people come to Atlanta to vacation. We have the Georgia Aquarium, we have the Atlanta Zoo, so bringing the Atlanta Discovery Center really did just make sense to this market.”

Lego Discovery Center Atlanta offers 35,000 square feet of interactive experiences, including two rides—the Kingdom Quest dark ride and the 4D Cinema.

The multi-generational aspect is key to this FEC’s appeal. “Lego is a toy for anybody of any age, we can have a five-year old walk out there with like a 40-year-old dad, and they’ll both have an equal amount of fun out there building cars in our car building area and racing,” says Elizabeth Baker, master model builder at Lego Discovery Center Atlanta.

To keep a visit fresh, Lego Discovery Center Atlanta hosts different seasonal events, such as Brick-or-Treat during Halloween. It’s a way to use the FEC to incentivize return visits.

“We can transform the entire attraction, so guests will have a brand-new experience when they come back and visit us in October or in December, or during the summer,” Ward says.

Another aspect that makes Lego Discovery Center stand out is the employee culture. The FEC emphasizes empowering their guests’ creativity; it is also a Certified Autism Center. “The staff here is very interactive,” Baker says, explaining how the operator wants its staff to feel like a friend who believes in the creativity of its guests.

That sense of creativity allows guests to construct objects from pits of Lego bricks to getting advice from Lego staff. “[It’s] sort of a novel experience that’s a little bit more about human interaction and being creative together than is about passively consuming,” Baker concludes.

In the early 1900s, the Ponce de Leon amusement park thrived in Atlanta with Ferris wheels, the Loop the Loop roller coaster, and a mineral spring. By the early 1920s, the amusement park was replaced by a Sears catalog facility. One hundred years later, the location returned to its roots through Skyline Park, an attraction situated on the rooftop of the old Sears building.

Mandy Slater, the chief creative officer and co-founder of Skyline Park’s parent company, Slater Hospitality, says she had no experience with attractions, when developers of Ponce City Market reached out.

“We got some consultants and some help on the front end, and we figured the rest out along the way,” Slater tells Funworld.

Today, Skyline Park includes an 18-hole mini-golf course, midway games, a three-story slide, and the Heege Tower ride from Sunkid. The 9 Mile Station restaurant and 12 Cocktail Bar add food and beverage offerings. “We’ve kind of touched on all of those things that make it appealing to a wide group of people,” she explains. 

With its unique location, Skyline Park has found creative ways to maximize the space—and weather—for extra revenue. 

Rooftop Terrace is a tented space available for private events and ticketed events—such as ice skating—during a typically less profitable winter season. “How do we get people up here to embrace the cold?” Slater asks of the inspiration to add skating. “Let’s get them up to ice skate, and just embrace the winter. So that’s turned a dead season the first year into one of our more profitable seasons,” she says. Slater notes that outdoor activities encourage visitors to dress for the weather, so they are not surprised by the low temperatures.

Moving forward, Slater sees an opportunity to expand the Skyline Park concept. “I’d like to see what Skyline Park can do if it goes into other cities. I’m excited because I feel like we’re 10 years in, and I feel like we’re just getting started.”

In nearby Duluth, Pokiddo Indoor Playground offers a multitude of attractions, from trampolines and foam pits to slides. When the FEC opened in 2025, it became the newest location in a chain that started in China and continues an expansion westward.  Research led Pokiddo to Atlanta.

“We chose the Atlanta area because of the tremendous economic and population growth the region has experienced over the years,” explains Willy Zheng, marketing and customer relations manager for Pokiddo USA. “Our Duluth location is an important starting point for us, and we are excited about continuing to expand Pokiddo into more communities in the future.”

The Pokiddo brand helps share a spirit of fun with every guest that passes through. “One of my favorite things is walking into Pokiddo and seeing children running around, playing, laughing, and using all of their energy. Seeing families enjoying the space is what makes the business exciting for me,” Zheng tells Funworld. He recommends operators develop a strong brand that translates to the guest experience when looking to set themselves apart from the competition.

“We don’t want children and families to think of us as simply another indoor playground. We want them to remember the Pokiddo name, our characters, our atmosphere, and the experience they had here,” Zheng says. “When a child asks their parents, ‘Can we go to Pokiddo?’ instead of just saying, ‘Can we go to the playground?’ that tells us we’ve created something memorable.” Zheng concludes.

The clock is ticking in this messy FEC concept. Beat the Bomb encourages guests to compete in multiple challenges to disable a threat. And it’s not just any challenge—lose and the attraction blasts guests with paint, foam, or slime. (Yes, hazmat suits are included.)

General Manager Barron Nicholls explains the concept “is an immersive gaming experience, similar to an escape room, but not quite an escape room. Our mission is for individual rooms in which you and a group of people all work together. The more levels you go up, the more points you earn, which transcends into time in order to beat the bomb in the fifth level.”

Different missions feature different types of challenges, and for visitors who beat all three, they become eligible for a Cash Bomb Mission. Win and guests could receive $1,000.

Nicholls says that Beat the Bomb has found success in leaning into seasonal events, such as a Haunted Mission for the Halloween season, with a spooky red slime ending. “We try to do something fun and exciting every month with different programs and different activities, whether it’s breast cancer awareness, Halloween, or St. Patrick’s Day with our cocktails,” Nicholls explains.

The LBE plays a key role in the Atlanta community. Whether hosting company team building events for locally based Chick-fil-A and Coca-Cola, or giving free tickets to nonprofits, Beat the Bomb is a brand seen outside its own walls.

“You may ride around the city and see the ‘Bombing Mobile,’” Nicholls laughs as he explains the LBE’s way to drum up publicity. “We have a fully wrapped SUV that drives around the city with a discount code on it for people to have an opportunity to come to Beat the Bomb.”

The attraction stays on the cutting edge to provide a memorable guest experience. “We’re always adding new games. We’re always changing. We’re evolving,” Nicholls says.

A desire to create repeatable experiences led to the development of Activate. What began in Winnipeg, Manitoba, now includes more than 70 locations spanning North America, Europe, and the Middle East. Two of those locations can be found in the Atlanta area, in Buckhead and Alpharetta. “We feel like it’s a city that really matches our vibe,” explains Rachel Smith, vice president of marketing.

The location in Buckhead offers 14 different game arenas, and more than 200 game levels. “Each game runs one to three minutes and gets harder as you level up, Smith explains. Players wear an RFID wristband that tracks scores across every room, so you can see yourself climb the rankings visit after visit.”

Smith says hosting birthdays, school and youth groups, and corporate team building do well since the games are cooperative, competitive, and quick to learn. Repeatability is also a key to the success of the brand.

“Our founders had been running escape rooms and kept hitting the same problem: once you solve the room, there’s little reason to come back,” Smith believes. Therefore, Activate introduces new games to keep the attraction feeling fresh and, well, active. “Returning guests always have something new to try,” Smith says. “Because the platform is digital, we can keep it fresh with new levels, new games and new competitions, so a guest’s 20th visit is as fun as their first.”

The enduring popularity of slime now has an address with Atlanta’s Sloomoo Institute.

Sara Schiller, co-founder and co-CEO, explains the attraction blends the sticky goo with contemporary art.

“We realized that this was something that we needed to bring to the world, but not just as selling a product of slime, but actually to get people to immerse themselves into the joy and fun of play and playing with slime,” Schiller explains.

Sloomoo’s first location opened in New York, with an expansion to Atlanta in 2022. “Atlanta is a community that’s also open to new ideas and open to trying things and exploring,” Schiller says about the decision to expand south.

Sloomoo Institute’s activities involve getting hands-on experience and connecting with friends and loved ones.

“You are rolling up your hands and playing from beginning to end,” Schiller says.

Aesthetically, Schiller also sees the importance of offering facets adults will appreciate through sophisticated design and STEM learning. “So, while we’re family entertainment, adults will feel like they’re in a world class museum,” she says. Sloomoo’s Atlanta location features educational exhibits, like a gigantic slime mold explaining single-celled organisms and how they collaborate in order to find food.

“Kids are in there thinking that they’re just jumping around and playing, but they’re actually learning,” Schiller tells Funworld.

When it comes to staffing, Sloomoo makes it a point to hire employees who have intellectual differences. “So many families have people with intellectual differences, and when they walk in and see people who look like them or act like them, that subtle welcoming—that is real, honestly connecting with your guests—and we couldn’t be more proud to have such a great workforce,” Schiller states.

Whether guests played with slime as a kid, or appreciate art as an adult, Sloomoo aims to create an emotional connection for guests who should never feel they’re too old to play and learn. “We’re really feeling an emotional need,” Schiller says. “And whenever you feel an emotional need, you know that you’re tapping into something that has longevity.”