Things to Do in Berea

A rider since age 5, Brooke Walton saddled up to a horse not long after her own feet knew steady ground. By age 15, she had already qualified for national medal finals, ridden in her first Grand Prix, and earned invitations to represent the United States for Young Riders in France and Venezuela. In 2003, Brooke finally harnessed her passion and natural aptitude for horse riding into the founding of Indigo Road Farm, a training facility on whose grassy pastures she now nurtures show horses and hosts lessons for new riders. Horses housed in one of three barns whinny in contentment as they survey their lodgings, which include 17 rubber-matted, ventilated stalls and perks such as bimonthly massages from a professional chiropractor. When freed from their stalls, steeds gallop across Indigo Road Farm's four spacious pastures, sand area, and derby fields strewn with waterside jumps.

Inspired by the bright, rich colors of 18th-century French and Swedish design, longtime Greenville resident Jennie Leigh Gainey revitalizes tired old home decor or furniture pieces with a distinct aesthetic that Town magazine calls "Alice in Wonderland meets Ethan Allen." Gainey's refurbished furniture pieces evoke simultaneous airs of refined gentility and informal hominess, like an ivy-covered country manor or an English baron in sweatpants. Having traded in the makeup brushes she once used to makeover the likes of Matthew McConaughey for more conventional art supplies, Gainey uses coats of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint to impart an antique finish to nearly any surface. Eager DIY-ers can gather to glean her technique during relaxed BYOB painting parties.

At Golden Park, bowling balls tumble down 32 slick lanes while optional bumpers steer them away from the gutter and automatic scoring tracks every strike and spare. Black lights and a disco atmosphere wash over the lanes during glo bowling, held Friday and Saturday nights until 1 a.m. The skating arena lets visitors relive the carefree days of the '70s, when kids gathered at the rink after school and congressional elections were decided by bouts of roller derby.

A snack bar and tiki lounge restore energy lost during heated games, and flat-screen TVs keep competitive juices flowing with sports broadcasts. Nearby, the game room shelters arcade machines, a foosball table, and four billiards tables that often host APA Pool League matches. Golden Park also boasts the Bowling Connection Pro Shop, which outfits players with new balls, shoes, and bags for forthcoming frames.

PlayNation Party Play and Playsets materializes childhood dreams in a 6,000-square-foot indoor playground popping with monkey bars, rock walls, and playhouses. Inside the weatherproof haven, wooden seesaws jounce younglings, and jumbles of slides, ladders, and ramps give children the space to develop fully rounded Chutes and Ladders characters. While children aged 1–9 scramble across colorful apparatuses, parents and their guardians can watch over the frolicking little one from a designated seating area. PlayNation has also started the PlayNation Play Pals membership program, which doles out seasonal discounts and savings for birthday parties.