Things to Do in Orem

Classic Fun Center's Layton facility shelters its various attractions in a pirate-themed playground. Guests can rack up strikes on the mini-bowling lanes or ascend a three-story rock wall. The park also hosts a bounce area with inflatable slides and obstacles courses, as well as an arcade with more than 50 games such as skee-ball and Deal or No Deal, where kids teach the computer how to pinky swear. Guests at Classic Fun Center's Riverdale location can cool off on the water park's four 300-foot slides, super-sized "fat" slide, kiddie splash ground, or inflatable slip-n-slide.

As one of America's oldest and final bastions of the pizza, arcade, and animatronic-variety-show trifecta, Chuck E. Cheese upholds an important entertainment legacy. Though their core philosophy and slogan, "Where a Kid Can Be a Kid," sounds like a simple-enough mantra to maintain, many years have passed since Atari inventor Nolan Bushnell opened the first location in San Jose.

Despite the ever-changing nature of entertainment consumption, Chuck E. Cheese has done nothing but flourish. Intrinsic to this continuing knack for capturing kids' imaginations is its incorporation of modern entertainment and adherence to the robotic act that got it started in the first place. Chuck, Jasper T. Jowls, and Helen Henny are all still there, suspending a new generation's disbelief in gargantuan singing animals. Their charms, though, have been bolstered for the appetites of modern kids with more immersive games, wilder rides, and sweeter prizes.

Skytubes traverse the ceilings as an oversize human Habitrail, offering fantastical escape for energetic kids above the lights and sounds of the arcade. Staples such as skee ball and hoops now stand alongside sense-saturating simulator rides and the latest video games. At many locations, even the variety show has been modernized for the digital era. In its place is an interactive experience dubbed Studio C, where, thanks to bluescreens and video cameras, kids get to jam with Mr. Cheese himself.

Cascade Golf Center pairs an 18-hole golf course with 54 holes of miniature golf, inviting golfers of all stripes to enjoy the challenges of the game. Sculpted into the rolling terrain of surrounding foothills, the 6,055-yard course begins with the relatively flat land of the front-nine Valley Course before plotting an oscillating path over the back-nine Mountain Course, where clubbers must contend with elevation changes and the shrill tones of displaced Bavarian yodelers during backswings. As golfers traverse the course, crests give way to scenic views of snowcapped mountains and distant Utah Lake.

The Center’s miniature-golf courses include two obstacle-ridden, 18-hole courses and an 18-hole, natural-grass putting course designed for focused practice. Those looking for conventional putt-putt pleasure can steer shots past the waterfalls and streams that hug The Falls, or sink two-putts among the inventive rock formations and evergreen corridors of The Arches. The natural-turf putting course eschews exotic obstacles in favor of sloped greens hemmed by a cut of rough that, combined, resembles a small golf course or the front lawn of an overenthusiastic landscaper.

When a great white shark approaches with opened jaws, the last thing you want to do is swing a golf club. But when that same scenario presents itself at Laser Assault, swinging a golf club is exactly what you should do—the path through those jaws leads to one of nine holes on the black-light mini-golf course. Other menacing creatures such as snakes and T-rexes guard the remaining eight holes, which wind their way through murals of aquatic critters and verdant jungle brush.

More creepy neon wall paintings illumine Laser Assault's two-level laser tag arena, whose labyrinthine corridors twist and turn past clusters of barrels and through clouds of fog—a one-minute video grants a vivid tour. Outside the arena, only an air hockey table glows inside the arcade, a non black-light space with classic games such as Hoop Fever—the more exciting sequel to Hoop Indifference.

Seven Peaks' multiple locales thrill guests with attractions ranging from water slides to go-karts and bowling. At Seven Peaks Waterpark Provo, the aquatically inclined can cascade down water slides, seesaw around the mammoth half-pipe tube ride, or ride the crests of the 400,000-gallon wave pool. Guests can scan the attractions at Seven Peaks Waterpark Salt Lake City, such as unique water slides and the Amazon River, then plummet off the Cliffhanger, a curvy slide that ends with a sudden 5-foot drop into a pool. The Lehi and Orem locations house an assortment of waterless excursions, including mini golf, go-karts, batting cages, laser tag, and laser golf carts. The Utah Pass of All Passes lets guests use the Fun Centers’ bowling lanes to show off elite bowling skills developed from years of rolling watermelons into doghouses. Pass holders also receive: access to skating at Peaks Ice Arena, admission to events at Rocky Mountain Raceways, and admission to baseball and arena-football games.

In the Chase the Mayor 5K, Provo Mayor John R. Curtis will have a one-minute head start as throngs of citizens pace and roar with anticipation behind the starting line. After these 60 seconds are up, participants burst forth and book it 3.1 miles along University Avenue, hoping to stride past the finish line before the elected head of Provo does. If any entrant does beat his honor, they will win a custom window sticker commemorating the victory, as well as a lifetime pass to swim in any public fountain. Otherwise, the signature Provo City Marathon—a USATF-certified marathon and a Boston Marathon qualifier—sends runners on a rigorous, yet fun jaunt downhill toward postrace festivities. It is these types of exciting flourishes and thrilling stakes that form the principles of Run13’s mission to “make road races an event.” Run13 also organizes several other races, including half marathons, 10Ks, and 5Ks.

For each race, the organization designates a charity to donate its proceeds to, often taking suggestions from its fans or the magic 8 ball that presides over all affairs.