PART ONE of our Summer Adventure Guide: Fun & Games
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By Danielle Charbonneau
Some of the best advice I was ever given is,
“If you live like a tourist in your own town, you’ll never get bored.”
I have found this advice to be remarkably true. As an adventurer by heart and a columnist covering fun things to do in South Florida, I’ve spent the last several years exploring and experimenting. From kite boarding to scuba diving, wake boarding to cooking classes, sensory deprivation to turtle watching, indoor skydiving to high-speed go-carts — I have now tried at least four dozen of South Florida’s most entertaining activities. I have compiled a guide for your summer bucket list, broken into by category.
This is PART ONE: Games & Play
COMING SOON…CLICK HERE FOR…
PART ONE: GAMES & PLAY
PART TWO: EXPERIENCE NATURE
PART THREE: ADRENALINE JUNKIES
PART FOUR: CREATE & LEARN
PART FIVE: RELAX
PART SIX: ROAD TRIPS, DAY TRIPS & BEYOND
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CHALLENGE YOUR MIND: Try an Escape Room
When I first heard of escape rooms, I imagined something like a haunted house with live actors…scared souls scrambling to escape zombies, or run around like rats in a maze. I really had no idea what to expect, but the mystery intrigued me. What I came to find out is that escape rooms are not so much a horror experience, as they are an electrifying mental challenge. The basic idea is that participants enter a themed room — anything from the wild west, to zombies, mummies, bank robbers or murder mysteries — and are tasked with uncovering puzzles using the contents of the room (for example — the tee shirts hanging in the closet, the paintings on the walls, books, decks of cards and knick-knacks placed around the room).
The puzzles unlock a series of combination locks, each leading to more clues, puzzles, locks and eventually, additional rooms. Some escape rooms have only two rooms, while others have three or four, sometimes with hidden rooms, blacklight rooms or secret entryways. Get ready for your mind to go on hyper-drive as you focus on every little detail of the objects and room. Some puzzles might be physical (such as using a magnet to guide something through a maze, tossing a hook to retrieve a set of keys or pumping water to push out a container of clues) while other puzzles deal with numbers, making connections between objects, recognizing patterns, using logic or playing word games. Each clue challenges the mind in a different way. If your team gets stuck, a walkie-talkie is provided to ask the room operator for clues and hints along the way.
The idea is to beat the clock (generally 60 minutes) and make it out the other side (without killing your teammates or filing for divorce). Working with others, of course, can be challenging; so the experience can be a great team-building exercise.
SOME LOCAL ESCAPE ROOMS INCLUDE:
TRY-N-ESCAPE
Q-QUEST GAMES
ESCAPETOPIA
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DRIVE FAST: High Speed Go-Carts at Xtreme Action Sports
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STEP INTO A GAME TIME MACHINE: Silverball Museum
Don’t be scared off by the word “museum” and assume this place is a bore. This two story museum is really an arcade of pin-ball machines dating back to the 1950s, all the way through time to today’s most modern machines. Plus, there’s old classic video games like PacMan and Space Invaders. There are two full bars for cocktails, beer and wine.
The Museum sits on a municipal lot with 8-hour parking. Or, catch the Museum’s signature Katcha Ride, a golf cart service that runs up and down Atlantic Ave. and surrounding areas that provides transportation to and from the museum. Look online for the various Katcha Ride stops, or just look for the illuminated golf cart with a giant pinball sign on the roof traversing down Atlantic Ave.
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THROW AN AXE: POMPANO’S AXE THROWING BAR
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ESCAPE THE HEAT: Ice Skating at The Rink on the Beach
Put on your mittens and beanie and go ice skating at Pompano Beach’s Rink on the Beach. Normal admission during public skate times is $10. Check online at glaciericeandsnow.com for public skate hours. Skate rentals are $3.
Or attend one of the public “Cheap Skate” sessions, during which admission is $10 and includes skate rental. “Cheap Skate” hours are Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:20 to 10pm.
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CHALLENGE YOUR FRIENDS: Lazerland
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THIS SUMMER ADVENTURE GUIDE IS A SIX-PART SERIES…
Click below to find more great activities to add to your summer bucket list:
PART ONE: GAMES & PLAY | This part of our summer adventure series has adventures to bring out your inner child, challenge your mind and free you to play.
PART TWO: EXPERIENCE NATURE | This part of our summer adventure series has adventures that will get you in-touch with nature.
PART THREE: ADRENALINE JUNKIES | This part of our summer adventure series has adventures for adrenaline junkies.
PART FOUR: CREATE & LEARN | This part of our summer adventure series has adventures that will get you learning and inspire your creativity.
PART FIVE: RELAX |This part of our summer adventure series has relaxing activities to rejuvenate your mind, body & soul
PART SIX: ROAD TRIPS, DAY TRIPS & BEYOND | This part of our summer adventure series has day trips, road trips and a few travel ideas.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]