VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — A new 40,000-square-foot outdoor inflatables park that markets itself as the “World’s Biggest Bounce Park” is ready to pop up outside Lynnhaven Mall.
The park and other locations are franchised through a company called Funbox, based in Southern California. Similar parks have popped up outside of more than a dozen malls nationwide, including those in Atlanta, Chicago and Houston.
Local couple Andrea and Kevin Morris will operate Virginia Beach’s franchise, which is set to go up in the mall’s parking lot off South Lynnhaven Road, next to the AMC Theaters. It’ll take up about 142 parking spaces.
“We’re really excited. We have young children and they’re really excited. They think we’re really cool,” Andrea Morris said at a recent planning commission meeting. “So we think this is going to be really great for the community.”
Virginia Beach City Council approved the project unanimously on Tuesday through their consent agenda. It was previously greenlighted by the city’s planning commission in a 10-0 vote.
The park will operate seven days a week from March to September, with the hours of 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
There will be four different inflatable structures in the park, including a 15,000-square-foot bounce house. There’s also an obstacle course, a “ninja wall,” “battle beam” and more.
Pricing on weekends will be $22 per 80 minutes in the park, with a lower rate of $18 per 80 minutes on weekdays.
“We strive to create affordable and accessible experiences that bring joy and wonder to families from all walks of life,” Funbox says on its website.
The park is set to open on Friday, May 3 to the public with a discounted price of $18 per 80 minutes. Proceeds from ticket sales from that opening weekend will go toward Tidewater Friends of Foster Care.
For more information on the Virginia Beach park and other Funbox parks, visit their website.