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 [Read more…]