Statesman.com wrote:
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Austin’s Park
16231 Interstate 35, 670-9600. austinspark.com Hours:11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
Attractions: It’s easy to spend hours here. Inside games include classic ticket-earners like Skee-Ball and spin-the-wheel types along with Pac-Man, Guitar Hero and shoot-’em-ups. The games use tokens, and Tuesdays, all the games except the ones that give out tickets are free. We played some games, but there’s so much to do here, you could easily skip them entirely. Inside, kids can climb a rock wall, rocket down an inflatable slide, ride the Little Shot (like the Frog Jump at Gattitown) or play laser tag. Outside, kids can shoot water at each other in the bumper boats, ride the tea cups, drive Go-Karts or junior Go-Karts, ride a train and try to climb a rock wall waterfall. There’s also minigolf and batting cages for an extra charge. We spent five hours here one night and I had to drag them home. It’s the longest we spent at any of the entertainment centers.
The food: The buffet offers a couple kinds of pizza, two kinds of pasta, a small salad bar and a dessert. The kids were happy with the buffet, but it’s not extensive. There’s also a snack bar with ice cream, beer, nachos and pretzels for an extra charge.
What we paid: Normally, its $18.50 to get in. We went on a Tuesday when everyone pays $15.95 for food, all games except ticket-giving games and the rides. (That’s also true Fridays.) I paid $59.95 for two kids at the $15.95 price, me at $7.95 for just the buffet and $20 in game tokens for the ticket-giving games.
Deals: After 7 p.m., pay only $9.95 for all the rides, but no buffet. The best deals are the Tuesday and Friday special.
Community Impact Newspaper Round Rock | Pflugerville
By Rob Heidrick Click for full post
Rick Hunt’s office overlooks the expansive first floor of Austin’s Park, and through a panoramic glass window, the amusement park’s general manager has a bird’s-eye view of rows of arcade machines, carnival games and rainbow-colored inflatable playgrounds. Outside the 50,000 sq. ft. building, go-karts and bumper boats await their riders, most of whom have recently returned to school after summer break.
Attractions
* 135 arcade games
* Laser tag
* 18-foot inflatable slide
* Two go-kart tracks
* Bumper boats
* Moonwalk
* Nine batting cages
* Climbing walls
* Teacup ride
* Paintball range
* Miniature golf
Austin’s Park
16231 N. IH 35, Pflugerville, Texas 78660
670-9600
www.austinspark.com
The park is in its sixth year in Pflugerville, and although its peak season drew to a close in September with the start of the new school year, Hunt said he expects a steady stream of business from field trips and other group outings.
“Everyone from all over the state comes to Austin for their 8th grade field trips to see the state capitol and the Bob Bullock Museum,” he said. “They also want to do something fun while they’re on the field trip to Austin.”
Group outings, which also include church lock-ins and graduation parties for high school seniors, make up about 30 percent of the park’s business, with the remaining 70 percent coming from walk-ins, Hunt said. During the three weeks of spring break in March, he said the park gets anywhere between 300 and 1,500 visitors a day—as many as 20,000 in the peak nine days of the season. A total of 400,000 people visit each year.
Austin’s Park, which was called Austin’s Park and Pizza until 2008, is owned by the San Francisco-based firm GESD Capital Partners. It employs about 70 off-season employees and about 150 during the summer months.
The park’s most popular attraction is the go-karts, with one track for teens and adults and one for younger riders. Outdoor batting cages and a towering rock-climbing wall are other points of interest, and Hunt said despite the park’s large size—22 acres—most parents are content to let their children wander around and choose their own activities.
“The main thing we try to do is make sure everybody has fun and that it’s a safe environment,” Hunt said. “If you had a 10-year-old, you would feel comfortable when they’re not right under your feet. A lot of parents come here and they’ll go hook up to the Wi-Fi or read a book, and they’ll say, ‘This is the first two hours of quiet time I’ve had to sit down and read.’”
Hunt said the park is adding more inflatable slides to offer more activities for children younger than 8 years old, as well as new ticket-dispensing skill games.
Austin’s Park also participates in charity events including an annual backpack drive and a Christmas party for the Adoption Coalition of Texas, an organization that finds new homes for children in foster care.
