Amusement Parks in Dominion

Combining food, drink, and live entertainment for an outdoor festival benefitting local charities, Leon Springs Night allows party-goers to celebrate spring in style while helping out the community. Attendees can settle belly debts with fare from local eateries such as Fralo's Pizza, Scenic Loop Cafe, and Rudy’s Bar-B-Q and grease gullets with a range of potables—though Groupons cannot be used for alcoholic beverages. Festivalgoers can also feast their ears on the live music of Loose Endz and Beau Walker and feast their consciences on the knowledge that proceeds from the festival will benefit local charities, including Leon Springs Elementary School, the Methodist Children's Hospital of South Texas, the Leon Springs Fire Department, and Rotary International.

For the drivers at Alamo Karts, the 1/3-mile track can go by in a flash. Their propane-fueled go-karts can reach speeds of up to 35 miles per hour. Hairpin turns challenge the drivers to keep their karts under control, and straightaways give them the chance to open the throttle. A typical race lasts 10 minutes, encompassing 12–15 laps depending on the driver's speed and whether they find the shortcut disguised as a parking lot.

Encompassing an 11,000-square-foot indoor batting arena, an air-conditioned clubhouse filled with training videos, and an outdoor plot of screen-enclosed batting cages, Power Swing's facilities help train baseball and softball players of all ages and skill levels. Instructors train students in four private pitching tunnels and let them practice on a turf infield or field hits from regulation-size pitching mounds. Outside, players swing at four T-ball cages, or return machine-pitched volleys from 10 baseball pitchers and nine softball pitchers that launch balls and unwanted vases at up to 80 miles per hour. A team of coaches, many of them former athletes, can also help students hone pitching and hitting skills in private, semiprivate, and small-group lessons, and lead instructional clinics and athletic afterschool programs.

An electrifying array of games, golf, and high-speed competition cater to adrenaline aficionados of all ages at Malibu Grand Prix’s bustling amusement center. Lead-footed motorists can experience unlimited access to Malibu's high-performance go-karts, zipping around hairpin turns, picking up speed on straightaways, and flying over banked curves with a passenger in tow aboard Malibu's safe and speedy four-wheeled chariots. Like the violent water warfare portrayed in Monet's Water Lilies, aqueous enthusiasts can hop aboard bumper boats to execute broadside collisions or blasts from the onboard water cannon to drench dry loved ones. A variety of electronic entertainment populates the game room, while the thoughtful, zen-like meditation that is miniature golf makes for a relaxing way to cap off an afternoon of speed.

At Boomers!, thrill-seeking families and fun-enabling friends can attack a variety of appealing attractions, including mini golf, batting cages, bumper boats, and the button-mashing joys housed inside the exhilarating game room. The Vista location entertains families of sharpshooters with a blacklight-illuminated laser-tag arena before little ones climb and crawl through the Kidopolis play area. The El Cajon and San Diego locations let rivals celebrate the spirit of competition as they fly past each other in speedy go-karts or have a snail-paced Ferris wheel race at the kid's county fair. Unlimited pass holders at the El Cajon location can also scale the 32-foot-tall climbing wall, which, like America, enables citizens to climb to the top via myriad routes.

Though it's only about 25 minutes outside of San Antonio, Enchanted Springs Ranch transports its guests to a totally different world—and to a totally different century, for that matter. Considered an enchanted place by early Native Americans for its rolling hills and flowing rivers, the 86-acre working ranch serves as a living, breathing reincarnation of the Old West. It bustles with activity and has been recognized by Oprah as one of the country's best "Wacky Family Attractions."

Rugged structures, lush pastures, and trickling springs surround guests while they explore the property. Perhaps the best way to do that is not by tossing a saddle on a rocking horse, but by climbing aboard tractor-pulled wagon rides. These tractor tours tote passengers across the premises and past a collection of wildlife that includes longhorns, buffalo, deer, and zebras. On foot, guests may encounter pistol twirlers, bull whip champions, trick ropers, and real cowboys and cowgirls that populate the ranch. Such an authentic experience hasn't been overlooked by film creators or party planners, either: the ranch doubles as a movie set, and can also be rented for wedding receptions, birthdays, and other special events.