Saco, ME Indoor Activities

At each bowling center, balls hurtle down smooth, polished lanes as LCD screens keep track of scores and shimmering party lights illuminate the faces of determined bowlers. After lacing up some slide-enabling shoes and clearing the gutters of deciduous pins, bowlers set their sights on toppling 10-pin clusters. Carpets bedecked with psychedelic swirls lead to shelves stocked with neon-colored balls, which proffer their pin-busting talents to bowlers of various sizes. Fingers can warm up by mashing buttons in an arcade full of entrancing video games or bench-pressing french fries at the onsite grill and pub.

While Pilates classes provide hundreds of health benefits (relaxation, flexibility, occupying time that could be spent eating or smoking), they primarily focus on strengthening core muscles (abs, lower back, and pelvic). Besides the obvious improvements to physical appearance, there are many other benefits you can get with Pilates:

Click above to buy tickets for the Boston Derby Dames August 15 games. Click here to buy tickets for the Boston Derby Dames July 18 games.

At Paradise Mini Golf, friends and families guide colorful golf balls through an 18-hole oasis of zigzagging putting greens and tropical obstacles. The course’s river exposes orbs to the treachery of a flowing stream on multiple holes, and a 35-foot-tall tree house gives local birds a chance to cheer on putt-putters or stock up on nourishing golf balls for winter's hibernation. After a round, golfers can stop by the koi pond and feed the fish at the feeding station or visit the ice-cream stand. Visitors looking to expand their golf game beyond the mini domain can drop by the Paradise Driving Range to hone lengthier swings.

Chunky's Cinema Pub has been mixing the polished glimmer of modern technology with the gauzy glow of yesteryear for almost two decades. Eight screens mingle first-run blockbusters with themed throwback classics catering to children of the ’50s or ’80s. There, in the glow of the previews, is another testament to the melding of time—a contemporary dinner-and-a-movie setup brings with it the nostalgia of old-school drive-ins. Instead of traditional cinema chairs, individual cushy Lincoln Continental surround communal dinner tables, and the seats roll and recline to let guests maximize their comfort and customize their sightlines as they catch the onscreen action and pretend to be backseat drivers. At their tables, American pub snacks and entrées from the extensive menu spread out, combining movies with burgers, quesadillas, and steak tips.

While the theater blends old with new, Chunky's Bio Truck zooms into the future with a gas tank full of the 100% trans-fat-free canola oil used for cooking in the kitchen. The bio-fuel reduces the truck's greenhouse emissions and helps to decrease its carbon footprint, spreading an eco-conscious message to the community.

The year 2000 brought big changes to Gloucester Harbor. Nearly 300 Cape Ann residents came together to rehabilitate a neglected area of the waterfront. They broke ground on the Gloucester Maritime Heritage Center: an educational outpost that would transform one acre of the harbor into a living classroom. The project turned the old icehouse into a science-teaching center, transformed dilapidated buildings into exhibit spaces, and completely rehabilitated the pier—it now stands as the largest public wharf in Gloucester Harbor.

But perhaps the biggest transformation took place in the minds of visitors. In just a little over a decade, the educators sparked scientific interest in countless kids through educational programs at the elementary, middle school, high school, and collegiate levels. Many of these young minds now work as high school and college interns, and have gone on to pursue graduate degrees at institutes of higher learning such as Columbia University.

Admission to the museum packs a maritime wallop, giving visitors access to boatloads of exhibits and attractions. The Sea Pocket aquarium, for example, encompasses saltwater tanks with specimens of local marine life. At Gorton’s Seafoods Gallery, educators bring Gloucester's rich maritime heritage to life through ship models and artifacts like old foghorns. The interns and experts also take visitors into the Dory Shop, where fisherman Geno Mondello builds wood sailing and rowing dories before their awe-widened eyes. One of the most popular attractions occurs out on the water. Captain Burnham sets sail in the 55-foot Schooner Ardelle, a replica of a schooner built in 1845—the same year the underwater blimp, The Hindensplash, horrified onlookers by losing control and floating violently to the surface.