Things to Do in Cincinnati

Shielded from the elements, customers at Glowgolf traverse the course’s 18 holes of indoor miniature golf amid an extraterrestrial neon glow. Vivid murals of jungle and underwater scenes adorn the course’s walls, with giraffes, zebras, and otherworldly creatures serenely coexisting. The course itself brims with potted plants and decorative treasure chests along with traditional mini-golf obstacles such as loop-the-loop ramps and water traps filled with live sharks.

Strikes and Spares keeps its bowling old school—clean, family-friendly, and free of self-throwing balls. Kids can shed their superabundant energy while bowling or playing arcade games whilst you warm up with a game of pool or darts (trying to combine them is strongly discouraged). With your Groupon, three games of bowling will give you ample time to perfect your form and wipe that smile off the boss's face that you painted on each of the pins.

Cherry Grove Lanes embraces the changing of the seasons with both indoor and outdoor areas dedicated to group recreation. During the warmer months, the alley raises the nets on seven sand volleyball courts. Primed for nighttime play, the well-lit courts rest beside an open-air lounge that accommodates groups with colorful parasols, shaded tables, and ample room for airborne chest bumps.

Indoors, Cherry Grove Lanes provides solace from summertime sweats and wintertime gusts with 34 synthetic bowling lanes and a pub equipped with dartboards and pool tables. The lanes host fall and summer leagues for adults, seniors, and children, as well as bowling instruction from four-time PBA national titlist Brian Himmler. The staff also fires up sandwiches, appetizers, and pizza to prevent guests from cracking open bowling balls in hopes of reaching the tasty nougat cores.

Kids bounce off the walls of inflatable castles, cascade down air-filled slides, and squirm through plush obstacle courses at Pump It Up's indoor playground. Designed with safety in mind, this staff-supervised funhouse excites children's imaginations while they burn off extra energy at Pop-In Playtime.

Also designed as a party venue, the interactive party experiences involve interactive themes such as Pirate Quest and Superhero Training Camp, which challenges kids to decode secret messages as they listen to an adventuresome soundtrack. To fuel parties, parents can purchase pop, pizza, and cake, alongside balloons and goodie bags. Strengthening both imagination and body, Pump It Up also offers Jump-N-Art summer camps, where kids replicate Picasso's creative process of painting, then getting dizzy in an inflatable mansion.

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.