Top 5 Attractions for Family Entertainment Centers

Add these attractions to boost sales and increase traffic

RCI Adventure Products works with family entertainment centers, arcades, movie theaters, bowling centers and other family-focused entertainment destinations all over the world. We help them build out their attraction offering, not only to maximize every visitor experience, but to take full advantage of their facility’s space. Adding a Sky Trail® ropes course or Clip ‘n Climb™ climbing walls gives our customers added attractions to market, increases visitor stay times, improves repeat visitor rates and boosts secondary sales for things like food and beverage. Customers also find that word-of-mouth increases, as does their social media exposure as visitors do the work for them, posting videos on Instagram, TikTok and Facebook. 

Spy Ninjas HQ, which opened in 2024, is a great example of a course maximizing the facility's square footage as the course stands over the arcade games and other ground-based attractions.

1. High ropes course over arcade games

A ropes course makes you money 10-20 feet in the air! While you’re likely to find a lot of ground-based attraction offerings, such as arcade games, mini-golf, go-karts and slot machines, a ropes course is positioned high over those. Clearance on a typical Sky Trail® ropes course is 9-10 feet and features low profile, easy to work around, columns. For facilities with 20 foot or higher ceiling, this allows you to maximize that square footage and have two or more attractions sharing the same space. RCI even offers a table design that wraps around the columns, giving your customers a gathering area to enjoy a drink and snack.

Clip 'n Climb climbing walls have a low profile as they can be installed along the building parameter.

2. Low profile climbing walls

While the walls themselves are bright, dynamic and engaging, the required square footage can be minimal. Clip ‘n Climb climbing walls can be installed along the building interior parameter. Each wall is approximately 4-feet wide and can be between 20-30 feet in height. The Bavarian Inn in Frankenmuth, MI, recently had 3 walls installed. The total area was approximately 400 square feet, which includes the padding at the base of the walls. The climbing walls themselves can be installed close to the facility wall and give FEC owners another attraction that utilizes a building’s vertical space.

Human mazes are a popular attraction, often made in cornfields or from hay bails. RCI offers a permeant option that is high capacity, but require minimal staffing.

3. Get lost in a human maze

One common request from FEC owners is for an attraction that requires minimal staffing. RCI Adventure Products manufactures and installs Amaze’n Maze, a giant, customizable human maze. While corn mazes in the fall are great, Amaze’n Maze is a permanent structure that will make you money year round. Better yet, it requires minimal staffing and maintenance. The maze is also a high-capacity attraction, allowing large groups to enjoy it at one time. RCI offers different configuration options including a viewing platform where parents can keep an eye on, and even help guide, their kids.

Adventure Trail® is a net-play course with fun tower design options, challenging bridge obstacles and spiral slide options.

4. Unharnessed ropes course

Again answering the call for an attraction that requires minimal staffing, RCI has developed Adventure Trail®, a net-play ropes course with fun and challenging bridge, bean and rope obstacles. RCI has designed, manufactured and installed multiple Adventure Trails® at various Great Wolf Lodge locations around the country. Like many of our products, we were able to customize the design to fit Howler’s Peak play area design. Because it’s an unharnessed course, participants can move on-and-off the course as they desire. RCI can incorporate a variety of fun entrance and exit options, including ramps, net elevators and spiral slides.

RCI doesn't want to forget about our littlest adventure seekers, as we offer several products specifically designed for kids aged 4-and-under.

5. Low ropes course for little adventurers

RCI designs it’s products with the whole family in mind and we certainly do not want to forget about our littlest thrill seekers. RCI offers Sky Tykes® and Adventure Tykes™ for kids aged four and under. Sky Tykes® is a harnessed ropes course, similar to a Sky Trail® and can include a Sky Rail® ziprail. This allows kids to experience a ropes course while also allowing parents to stand next to them to help them navigate the course. We always recommend adding the Sky Rail® as kids will circle back through the course over-and-over to experience that thrilling ride. The Adventure Tykes® is an unharnessed net-play course, similar to Adventure Trail®. Again, the course is designed for shorter participants.