Theme & Amusement Parks in Chalco

Laser tagging is a pastime enjoyed by children and adult children alike, mixing the elements of strategy, accuracy, and inevitable fits of fun. In the multilevel neon arena, taggers slink into the shadowy mist to surprise their opponents, or take a Zeus-eye view, zapping bolts of lasers from above. As a warning, some strobe-light effects will be used to intensify the battle's excitement and celebratory break dancing.

Go-karts hug the twists and turns of a 1/4-mile track. Six batting cages hurl baseballs and softballs at speeds between 50 mph and 80 mph. An 18-hole miniature golf course coaxes putted balls down greens ranging from 75- to 185-feet in length. Elsewhere, water balloons fired from a launcher soak opponents stationed at battle zones. For 20 years, Papio Fun Park has enraptured families with abundant outdoor and indoor activities and games.

The indoor facility hosts trampoline-hopping players at Spaceball or Jumpshot, while an arcade brims with quarter-operated air hockey, pool tables, and laundry machines disguised as video games.

Though its name implies a focus on inflatable attractions, the all-ages indoor playground at Pump It Up of Omaha also gets kids active on an 18-foot rock-climbing wall and a theatrically lit karaoke and dance stage. These attractions stand among a sea of air-filled slides and climbing structures, some designed by members of the management team. The Slippery Slope challenges climbers to run up an inflatable slide, collecting velcro flags as they race to the top; bounce castles propel jumpers into the air; and the Chaos obstacle course lets racers run side-by-side or practice shaking hands while walking. The playground also holds special programs such as day camps for young and medium-young children, private birthday parties, and field trips. Many of Pump It Up's staffers are university students working toward education degrees; they often organize contests and games, and supervise visitors while playing on the same level as their smaller guests.

At Boulder Creek Amusement Park, people tap in putts on two 18-hole golf courses, wallop spheres in eight Monopole batting cages, and clamber up at 24-foot climbing tower. The Adventure mini-golf course ($7 for adults; $5.50 for children 12 years and younger) leads golfers over drawbridges and past whitewater rapids, and the wheelchair- and stroller-accessible Sport course challenges putters with lengthy greens and simulated sand traps. Ninety-three-foot deep batting cages ($1.75 for 15 pitches) offer eight stalls equipped with softball and baseball pitching machines with 35-foot-high ceilings to mimic the feeling of slugging home runs or clubbing asteroids from whence they came. Looming over the park, the 24-foot Mt. Boulder Climbing Wall ($4 for two climbs) features grips and foot holds designed to entice climbers upward with challenging configurations and spacing.

As a boy, Jeff Bledsoe anxiously awaited autumn, when the pumpkins he planted each year warmed to an orange hue along with the falling leaves. Eventually Jeff also bloomed, married wife Maria, and spawned five pumpkin-planters of his own. But he never lost his childhood fascination for all things autumn, namely the events that come alive every year on October 31. At Skinny Bones Cornmaze & Pumpkin Patch, he, Maria, and their brood have converted Jeff’s interest into their lifeblood. Jeff personally maps out and plants the 10-acre corn maze with 10-foot stalks each year, according to an Omaha.com feature, but he leaves Saturday-night spooking up to the staff of scarers that haunts the field after hours. After meandering through the maze, guests can pick their own pumpkins, enjoy hayrack rides, or make lifelong friends with goats that rarely talk back at the petting zoo. That’s in addition to the haunted-barn maze, Mad Cow ride, bounce house, and Nerf-gun war zone that also offer entertainment on crisp fall afternoons.

Glossy hardwood bowling lanes explode with the sounds of crashing pins at Aaron's Family Fun Center, where an arcade, outdoor mini-golf course, and six sand volleyball courts keep all manner of attentions entertained. The 32-lane array gives ample space for individual and league play, though larger parties can opt to reserve The Den, a private, elegant bowling alley featuring six lanes, library-paneled walls, and no restrictions on false old-timey mustaches. The mini-golf course challenges putters to 18 holes with a range of colorful obstacles for year-round enjoyment, though unfavorable weather may limit off-season play to all but the most wind-resistant of miniature athletes.