Play City — Attraction in Chula Vista

I have brought my children here for a few months now. I would start by saying that a month membership (Mon-Thur @ $45) is probably the best deal for you or $65 to also include Fridays. UPDATE They DO NOT offer the Mon- Thurs membership anymore, sadly due to lack of sales for them. They, however, still offer a month but got $65.

The atmosphere at Play City is a good mix of liveliness and hospitable from what I have witnessed so far.

Although there are some toys scattered in the toddler area meant for children 5 and under, the workers seem to have a good understanding of when to organize. There is a section in the play area for babies ( 18 months and below ). I have to say that the toddler area is a big hit for the small children as it boasts a wide array of toys and imagination seeking from cooking, shopping, building blocks, farm, and so much more. Plus, the couches in the toddler area are VERY comfortable for you to relax as you watch your child explore and play their heart out.

Thro ughout your visit, you will hear upbeat music to match the tempo of adrenaline running through your child's body as they explore the whole city. It does get turned down for birthday songs if you do decide to have a party there.

Plenty of tables and chairs in the center of the city for those tired parents who need that break from chasing their child from toddler area to the Fire Station to the bounce houses, to the everywhere else. The snack area is as is, snacks. Chips, drinks, and even some ice cream or refreshing Popsicles are there, though, and prices are fair. Bring your own food and relax!

Workers will answer help with whatever questions you may have. Also, restrooms are always clean... so BIG PLUS.

Overall, Play City has been an amazing experience every visit. From the smiles you see entering, to the cries you hear when it's time to go. Either way, it will be memorable for your children and hopefully a relaxing time for you as the parent. I highly recommend it.

New update on 30Jan2024: They added a coffee shop. That now includes pizza, pastries, some fruit, and other goodies in the menu on the video listed below! I appreciate the addition catered to those parents who are tired and need some coffee or something other than chips and candy. They have updated the snack bar area to a cleaner and more organized station. This place is still as nice as I remember coming on weekdays. Still recommend it!

New update May 22, 2024: The coffee bar is gone?!?! And they added a Cotton Candy machine. I'm pretty confused on the direction this place is heading. The speaker was placed in front of the snack bar and seems to be a little loud. Music was softer than the usual upbeat songs but seems as if it was turned up a little higher. Still recommend though!

New Update 01OCT2024: 10 - 12 kids running up the slide posing a safety risk for the smaller children and no workers to enforce safety 😞 2 new pieces of equipment replaced.

Police your workspace and uphold the standard so ALL children may be able to play safely.

Parents, please watch your children!!!

One female worker sat in the bus looking section, at the bottom of the slide and was on the phone curled. Don't know if it was her break time but pretty unprofessional.

Please do...

My husband and I really like Play City, and our baby enjoys it as well. The baby play area is very safe, providing a sense of reassurance. The staff regularly checks for any potential concerns, and the restroom is very clean and tidy. Everything is satisfactory.

However, there are some concerns, especially considering our baby is just over a year old. Firstly, there is not enough space to park strollers. Having designated stroller parking spaces would provide more peace of mind. Secondly, despite the requirement to wear slippers to enter the children's play area, many parents still wear shoes and walk on the carpets where children often lie, completely ignoring the rules. Thirdly, there is insufficient table space, and the seating arrangements can be chaotic. On weekends, many families visit, leading to crowded conditions during snack or meal times, with most people waiting for a table. However, some parents do not share this perspective. While the parents I encountered at Play City were very friendly that day, unfortunately, we faced a very challenging situation.

I brought my over one-year-old baby and encountered a difficult moment. Although we don't mind sharing a table with others, we met a quite unreasonable and confrontational mother. She insisted that her absent son needed a seat, and seats were only for those who purchased items from Play City. We tried to communicate with her, but she stated she didn't care and insisted it was her absent son's seat. She watched us struggle to feed our hungry baby and even attempted to have her husband force us to leave. I don't know if such incidents are common at Play City, but it's evident that this mother was completely unreasonable, even claiming she couldn't hear us when we tried to reason with her.

Perhaps we were among the few Asians there, and with a hungry baby, we seemed to have no time to argue with her. Or maybe this mother behaves like this regularly. After an hour and a half, surprisingly, I saw her finally leave Play City with her son, who, as expected, threw a tantrum on the floor, crying and rolling. I am not surprised that this happened based on his mothers behavior. In conclusion, while Play City is a popular place, be prepared, especially when encountering unreasonable parents. I can't imagine how this mother would handle disputes if children were involved in a commotion.

Additional note: Parents should be very cautious as there may be older children playing in the baby area. In particular, I witnessed an incident where an older child, possibly around 8-9 years old and showing signs of autism, roughly pushed down a baby over a year old. The little one couldn't walk well yet and couldn't protect themselves when pushed. The incident happened so suddenly that it caused a lot of anxiety, even though the pushed baby wasn't mine.

Furthermore, extreme caution is advised in the slide area. On the day of our visit, a serious incident occurred, prompting a father to run up the stairs to the top level to rescue his child within five seconds. Many parents were watching, and some even went up the slide themselves to bring their children...

I’m going to preface the review by saying, as a military family, we’ve visited indoor play areas for 10+ years all over the western US. This was one of the best indoor playgrounds we’ve been to, and by far, the best in San Diego. It was very well lit and CLEAN! I loved that they had an actual coffee shop, but it would have been nice if it had similar hours as Play City. Apparently, the lady who ran the coffee shop decided to leave at 5, but separate hours aren’t posted anywhere. I know a lot of the parents there were disappointed because they couldn’t get coffee. So here’s why I’m giving it 3 stars and not higher. I think it’s very odd that all the imaginative play stations (pizza kitchen, veterinary clinic, etc.) were only for under 5. After an hour or 2 of climbing, my kids (6, 8, & 10) wanted to play something calmer, but they weren’t allowed in there. Our 2 year old wanted big sister to play with him, but again, not allowed. I get having a “baby” area; but as someone with a degree in early childhood development, kids over 5 can get more out of imaginative play than kids under 5. It’s wild to me that there is no locking gate for the area designated for kids 18 months to five. Not even a latch. Kids can literally push it open! I’ll attach a picture. There’s WAY to much going on the 18m-5 area. There are WAY too many push carts, random toddler chairs, play food, etc. The little play structures are fine, but there’s too many cheap school bus toys junking up the area, making very overstimulating. We were there from 2pm-6pm. A lady came into the 18m-5 area and tidied up at 5ish. I’ll attach a picture of what the imagination areas looked like for the vast majority of our time there. I get it, toddlers make messes and that’s fine. But if older children were allowed to play in the grocery store, they’d replenish it as they play—toddlers do not do that. Also, there are literally no napkins to be found. We had dinner there, thinking there were napkins and nope. And all the paper towels were gone from the bathrooms. So, Play City, if you want to keep your tables and eating areas clean, I’d suggest providing napkins. All in all, I loved that there was an actual area to climb and not just inflatables. We will most likely be back. However, we truly hope you reconsider the age parameters of the imaginative play area and PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE put in AT LEAST a latching gate for the toddler zone. I don’t know one 2 year old with the self-control to not escape. I’ve attached pictures of the “gate” for the toddler zone, the coffee shop, and some of the “imaginative...