KidZania – Give Kids a Chance to be “Grown Up” #Travel

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As parents, we all struggle to get our children to understand that money doesn’t grow on
trees. We want them to be responsible, work hard, and learn to save a few bucks. But
these lessons are among the most difficult to teach. Enter KidZania, an internationally
acclaimed—and truly unique–children’s theme park that makes life a little easier for
parents, and learning a whole lot more fun for kids of all ages.

KidZania is not a traditional theme park in almost any sense of the word—there are no
roller coasters or merry-go-rounds in sight. There are, however, plenty of attractions and
activities that will keep your children busy, active, engaged, and excited all day.

According to the company, “KidZania provides children and their parents a safe, unique,
and very realistic educational environment that allows kids between the ages of four to
twelve to do what comes naturally to them: role-playing by mimicking traditionally adult
activities.” Unfortunately, that doesn’t come close to capturing the essence of KidZania.
What makes it so much fun is that it’s a kid-sized city—complete with restaurants,
banks, grocery stores, and hospitals—where the kids get to be adults, doing the things
most of us do on any normal day.

They start by picking one of nearly 100 “careers” and learning about it. Then, they put
on their uniform and are ready to work—and to earn KidZania dollars (“Kidzos”).
Most activities are universal (such as firefighters, police, and reporters) but some are
localized to reflect the distinct flavors and personality of the country and region where
the park is located and to keep it real and authentic for the kids.

Kids get paid for every job they do, which helps them explore the mysteries of managing
money. Kidzos in hand, they can spend it save it. If they run short of money, they’ll have
to find a way to earn some. Kids can also create bank accounts (for Kidzoz), file taxes,
and get tax refunds, and even decide how KidZania’s tax revenues are spent. There’s
even a court system, run by KidZanians. If I hadn’t seen it myself, I would never have
believed that it was possible to introduce kids to politics and government without boring
them half to death.

Each KidZania city is planned in amazing detail, even including real world brands that
help sponsor the city and keep it running. I was a little wary of all the popular corporate
logos, but the brands weren’t pushed at all (or even mentioned). They were there to
reinforce the “real city” feeling by populating it with things kids recognize. Kids rode
Yamaha motorcycles to get their “motorcycle license,” and Domino’s Pizza made their
signature cinnamon dessert with the children who chose to participate.

Kids are encouraged to independently explore the whole city (little ones stick with their
parents, while older children can wander at their leisure). Parents of older children can
relax at the internet cafes, food areas, or in the parent’s spa if they should so desire
while their children are enjoying the city. Safety is a big concern, so children and their
parents (everyone in the party) must wear tracking bracelets, which allows staff to
locate both parent and child should one lose the other. No one can leave the park with
another person unless their bracelets match.

KidZania is one of the fastest growing kid’s interactive entertainment brands in the
world—and it’s easy to see why. To start with, the staff is carefully screened (many are
pursuing careers in education, child psychology, and other child-related fields), and
are there to promote the learning, nurturing spirit of the environment and encourage
children to take the time they need to concentrate on completing their goals and tasks.
While still in the design stage, educators and developmental specialists were employed
to make sure children and families had the very best edu-tainment experience possible.

Their customer-service training was pretty impressive too, and it’s obvious from the
moment you walk into the park. Each person we came in contact with did his or her best
to make us comfortable and be helpful in any way possible, which I’m sure was extra-
challenging as our language was limited (my Spanish was more than rusty).

KidZania also employs senior citizens who give the park a homey feel and help put
children at ease. Management also employs the differently-abled, such as blind, deaf, or
wheelchair-bound. Besides making for a more realistic city, this teaches children about
those with different abilities and gives them an opportunity to spend time with people
they might otherwise have stared at or treated less-than-kindly. Socialization is an
important part of KidZania, just as it is throughout childhood. The KidZania experience
empowers kids, giving them the confidence to be their best selves, and the inspiration to
be great global citizens. And it’s part of what makes KidZania such an amazing place for
families and children.

Kidzania was also astoundingly clean. With the amount of children and families
wandering the city, one would expect more than a few messes. However, the place
seemed to almost clean itself. One could watch a child spill popcorn as he ran by, turn
around to sign your child up for an activity, turn back and the mess was gone. I have
never been to a children’s park, or even touch and play museum that was as clean as
Kidzania was. The park itself s environmentally friendly and children are encouraged to
recycle, not only on the premises, but they can also bring in their own recyclables from
home. The staff both puts their respect for the environment into action by working with
the kids to make recycled paper and helping them design energy efficient projects and
electricity.

With 11 locations in eight countries, KidZania has won award after award for ingenuity,
education, and entertainment. New locations will be opening in the USA (in 2015), as
well as Cairo, Mumbai, and Bangkok this year.

For more information, and to book your next vacation at a location of your choice, go
to http://kidzania.com/