Things to Do in Mason

Pump It Up's indoor inflatable arenas send sock-footed younglings high off the ground with a plethora of kid-friendly bounce pads. Trained, amiable staffers supervise fun-filled visits in which parents can leap around with their kids in gargantuan, air-filled bounce houses, skip down air-filled slides, and slither like snakes covered in bacon grease through an air-filled obstacle course. Attendees can also focus their free play for special events, such as custom birthday parties and private team parties. These themed soirees immerse children in a schedule of interactive activities befitting a pirate or a superhero while melting off youthful energy faster than ice cubes thrown into a running DVD player.

Train hobbyist Don Oeters founded EnterTRAINment Junction in 2008 to showcase railroading in an educational and amusing way. Two years later, his 80,000-square-foot facility was voted Ohio’s Best Family Entertainment Center of 2010.

At the centerpiece, a 25,000-square-foot indoor model train display dazzles visitors with 90 G-scale trains and 2 miles of track winding through handcrafted landscapes, including an 11-foot waterfall, thousands of trees, and scenes documenting railroad's early, middle, and modern periods. Each train car is the size of a loaf of bread, making it easier for groups to see it or break it into communal pieces, and Oeters and his staff continually tweak the locomotive's surroundings by adding seasonal touches and installing minor or major updates. Historical train artifacts, educational videos, and interactive exhibits await amblers in the railroad museum, and the Imagination Junction kids' area entertains youngsters with train-themed play structures, hand-cranked and electronic locomotive rides, and a section dedicated to Thomas the Tank Engine, the first train to successfully learn sign language.

At Gentle Breeze Hot Air Balloon Co., a team of commercially rated, FAA-certified pilots whisk passengers skyward on journeys over southern Ohio and northern Kentucky. One-hour flights take off from Warren County Airport and travel as high as to 2,000 feet, where visitors can take in panoramic views and snap pictures. Retrieval crews track each trek from the ground and transport guests back to their meeting location.

Along with standard flights, Gentle Breeze’s team hosts specialties such as private couples flights followed by champagne toasts, Hummer or Escalade limo rides to launch sites, and voyages over Cincinnati and Dayton’s metro areas. The captains also lead balloon rides over passengers’ houses and the homes of their enemies, and enliven soirees with brief sightseeing rides that reach 100 feet.

Kristi's Tumbling and Trampoline has cultivated stage performers, 81 Junior Olympic National Champions, and two national champions since opening its doors in 1994. The instructors, many of whom boast competitive backgrounds and multiple awards, help all levels of students build both physical skills and self-esteem. Beginning at two years old with parent and tot classes, they take little ones through courses that teach everything from basic tumbling to how to flip with the grace and beauty of a rainbow-sprinkle pancake. Kristi's Tumbling and Trampoline's facilities form a safe-haven for students to practice their skills with multiple trampolines that help them reach the sky and a nine-foot-deep foam pit that lets fledgling gymnasts show no fear. After making the journey from beginner to gymnast, students can join competitive teams and showcase their abilities to appreciative fans.

Though Master Sun Park's friendly demeanor doesn't suggest it, a powerful warrior lies behind his warm smile and crisp, white uniform. At age 11, Park earned a third-degree black belt in tae kwon do before continuing on to win numerous championship titles in Ohio state and national competitions. Now, with more than 43 years of martial-arts experience beneath his fifth-degree black belt, Park extends his expertise to students 4 and older at his private training studio.

Plush blue mats stretch across the studio's floor, where Park and his staff of WTF- and USAT-certified instructors lead tae kwon do and kickboxing classes for children and adults alike, in addition to personal-training sessions. They strive to promote physical fitness along with the values of discipline, responsibility, and confidence. Throughout the studio, students wallop punching bags, halve wooden boards, and carve the likeness of Jean-Claude Van Damme into stone with just their fists of fury.

A sea of beeps, lights, and pinballs fills the confines of Arcade Legacy's 7,800-square-foot game room. Here, 60 classic arcade machines, along with more modern virtual challenges, represent each era of video-game history. The digital heroes of games such as Donkey Kong, Mario, and Street Fighter grace brightly lit screens during open play or competitions. Elsewhere, 16 console stations let visitors wrap their dexterous toes around controllers from the Atari to the PS3, and two HD projection screens set a virtual stage for Rock Band performances. This electronic haven also plays host to special events such as birthdays, parties, and art shows