Scientists agree that the only reason adults have children is so they have a socially acceptable reason to visit amusement parks, eat at novelty pizza arcades, and see movies with Shreks in them. Put some fun in the oven with today's kid-friendly Groupon to Playland-Not-at-the-Beach, located in the old Angelo’s Market Building in El Cerrito. The Groupon includes access to all exhibits, shows, arcade games, and carnival games. Choose one of the following options:
- $5 admission for children ages 14 and younger or seniors ages 55 and older (a $10 value)
- $7 general admission (a $15 value)
Playland-Not-at-the-Beach is a 9,000-square-foot monument to American amusements of yesteryear. Stroll along the rainy-day-proof boardwalk to play charming antique penny-arcade games while attempting to remember the last time something cost a penny. In Pinball Alley, more than 30 pinball machines are set to free play, providing hours of quarter-free fun, and Esmeralda the Fortune Teller (additional cost) transforms awkward adolescents into 80s leading everymen. The Bygone San Francisco exhibit engages eye rods and cones with 3-D pictures of the 1906 earthquake, and 2-D historical footage and home movies play inside Laughing Sal’s Theater with just as much clarity and 100% fewer cataclysms. Learn about San Francisco’s Sutro Baths and Whitney’s Playland, which once stood guard over Ocean Beach, protecting the city from invasive longboards.
Occasionally, you can catch 16-year-old Magical Nathaniel’s prestidigitation act, which sends magic-loving maws plummeting to the floor. Gather the whole family or a group of anonymous picture-frame models for old-fashioned, eye-popping, and jaw-dropping amusements with today’s Groupon to Playland-Not-at-the-Beach.
Reviews
Though there are not many reviews of Playland-Not-at-the-Beach, the San Francisco Chronicle mentioned it and 60 Yelpers give it an average of five stars.
- This place is amazing! And truly a labor of love! – Michael B., Yelp
- At the risk of sounding corny, I must say this place is cool, neat, awesome and fun! They don't call it a museum of fun for nothin'. I suggest starting with the Playland history documentary, which also includes fascinating stories of the Sutro Baths. – rosie m., Yelp
Groupon Says
Thanks a Slot
Playland-Not-at-the-Beach features, among other things, free-to-play penny slot machines for the kids. Adult slots, however, give out a variety of prize denominations depending on the combination of slots that comes up. What are some of the most common slot machine results and what prizes do they yield?
Result: /Cherry/Cherry/Cherry/
Prize: $11 and a coupon for half off new Mountain Dew: CherryKickSplosionPunch
Result: /7/7/7/
Prize: miniature slot machines that are simultaneously spitting out gold nuggets
Result: /Mirror/Mirror/Mirror/
Prize: a DVD of your high-school teachers explaining how they always knew things wouldn't turn out okay for you
Result: /Silhouette of Woman/Silhouettes of Twin Boys/Silhouette of Dog Wearing a Hat/
Prize: envelope containing the whereabouts of your family
Result: /Question Mark/Question Mark/Question Mark/
Prize: Mashed potatoes!!!!
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