I booked at birthday party for my 7 year old at Urban Air in Daytona Beach. Our party package included 10 children but I added 14 more guests, plus pizzas, chicken strips, and drink pitchers. Our bill was around $700. Totally fine if the experience was worth it.
Unfortunately, we were EXTREMELY disappointed.
I’ll preface this by saying that every year for the past 6 years, I’ve done birthday parties at different places: a zoo, museum, trampoline park, etc. I know exactly how the birthday party process should go.
I booked my party online and spoke to someone about a week or two before the party to update the guest count and add food to accommodate the additional guests.
Upon arrival, we were told that we’d need to pay for an extra party room or table because we exceeded the amping of guests allowed in a room.
I was extremely frustrated that this was not communicated to me when I spoke with Urban Air on the phone before the party. Especially since the original Party package was $329 and we paid $680 total after all the add-ons! We were then told they’d “let us just stay with what we had and not pay more”.
Suffice to say, this was a horrible first impression.
We met our host and he brought us to the room. I immediately noticed that my son’s name wasn’t written on the dry erase board outside of the party room, like with literally every other party that was happening at that time. That was a small detail that disappointed me. It stayed this was the whole time, just saying “happy birthday” with a blank space underneath. This made it confusing for our guests and didn’t make us feel like our son was special at all.
To add, our host brought the pizza and handed out a few slices. He stopped halfway through handing them out and left the room. I waited 10 mins for him to Come finish and he never came back so I ended up serving our guests the rest of the pizza. The chicken tenders we ordered came 15 mins later, leaving some children (who didn’t want pizza) hungry. Mind you, these were ordered weeks ago. He also didn’t serve drinks at all to the guests.
Our host didn’t come in to serve cake or announce its cake time. He didn’t pass out the scratch off cards to the kids. He just dropped everything off and left the room.
I had guests showing up and nobody was greeting them at our door because our host kept disappearing.
Also, He ended up giving a wrist band to a sibling who wasn’t included in our party so one of the invited children didn’t have a band. When I mentioned it to him he told me to go find the kid and he will take his wrist band from the kid (absolutely not). We had to go buy a regular-priced band for that child because they wouldn’t add anyone else to the party!
Then, in the middle of us all eating pizza, the party manager came in, interrupted the party and asked me in front of everyone how everything I was and how the host was. That was extremely uncomfortable and unprofessional to do in the middle of the party.
Also, our host mentioned multiple times in the middle of the party that we need to go check out and pay our balance. No, we would not be leaving the party to go pay the balance that we tried to pay in the beginning but they told us not yet.
Also, we had multiple children in our party told that our ULTIMATE PARTY PASS didn’t include the zip line, yet other children in our party were able to zip line.
Also, the host tried taking the 2 liters we Ordered when the party was over and he took the rest of the socks that we ordered. We told him no to the two liters and didn’t notice that he took the socks til after.
The host didn’t offer a cart for the gifts and cake at the end either, we had to remove all the food from it so we could use one.
Also, my son was supposed to receive a pass to return to urban air (as included in the ultimate package) but we never received that.
I DO NOT AT ALL recommend a party at this location. It was extremely disappointing, especially for the price we paid. It wasn’t stress-free for me as a mom at all. I’ve never had a poor party experience...
Read moreFrom the moment we walked in the door it was a disaster. The front desk directed us to room 1 only to find it occupied by another party already in process. No big deal, we can find our hostess and find out what room to set our stuff in. Well she had no idea either. She was completely unorganized. I had to keep asking her to give my guests socks and a wrist brand and she kept disappearing! We purchased the platinum package and had some parents who wanted to participate. She counted them as children and gave them their wrist bands. The party room was hot so we had to keep our doors open to allow for cool air to flow through. Our food didn't come until 5:45/5:50. With our party room booked until 6 pm. Then we were rushed out from the room around 4 minutes to 6. She packed up our bday desserts onto the cart before we even got to sing happy birthday! Then upon settling the bill the girl at the counter was complaining about our hostess dropping off her clipboard and walking away. That girl complaining also left me standing there while she waited on at least 8 more people before I finally asked to speak to management. She responded with a "what's the problem?" And I told her I'd like to speak to a manager and she told me she was a lead. So I asked for a moment of her time but she blew me off and proceeded ringing even more guests after she finished with the one she had. Imagine, with that type of leadership what the rest must be like! Overall, I was highly disappointed with both the service and the quality of attention we received. It seems like everyone there just had an attitude problem. The guy at the go carts yelled at the kids to step back even though the people behind them refused to move. He could have asked everyone pollitely to move back instead of threatening our guests with getting kicked out if they didn't move back. It seemed very rushed and unorganized. Our hostess didn't even realize there was a parent jumper price and was going to charge me for more kids. Not once did she give us a breakdown of what time the food would be there, (until we finally asked her), when we could sing happy bday, or even where the kids could play or how to get into everything. She rolled her eyes behind our backs according to other parents attending when we asked her what time the food would arrive. I definitely expected more for $579! I'm so very disillusioned with the place! We left after getting rushed out of the room even though they have a stay and play policy. She even cleared off the table as people were still eating. So much food wasted! Needless to say, we barely got anything above the bare minimum. They handed us what looked like a used return ticket for the birthday girl to return. I literally chucked it on my way out! I would never go back! Even her complimentary tshirt had a food stain on it when she handed it to me! Dissatisfied is an understatement. And yes, I addressed my issues to a manager on duty. I was offered a credit for two of the 2 liters we asked for! Thanks. But no, thank you! I'll go back to Sky Zone next year! I'd give this place 0 stars for parties.
As far as attractions go, though, the place is pretty neat. There's a lot to do for everyone! There are plenty of seating areas, and the ambiance is cool.
It's a shame we had such a horrible experience. I've had several parties at Sky Zone and ice skating rinks, and this was the only place I've ever felt rushed and like we were an inconvenience. It's also one of the priciest places to have a party!
Definitely go play for a few hours, but don't waste your money on a party there. 25 bucks per kid, and you got a slice of pizza, full access to activities, a water bottle, and no souvenirs, goodie bags, or anything special to commemorate the event. Just some frustrations and disappointments! Seems like their staff dont want...
Read moreFACILITY DID NOT SHUT DOWN 8/4 but school hours M-Fri 4pm-8pm We hosted my Grandson's 9th Birthday party at "Urban Air" in Daytona Beach end of June. First Impressions are VIP since it's a happy day to celebrate a birthday & everyone is excited to go play. We arrived 20min early of our 11am-1pm time slot & waisted valuable time on "waivers" that were already in their system! There was NO wait at 10:40am. The staff at the front desk are very young teenagers, not very helpful & inexperienced and directed us to the kiosk to "print" out the waivers that ALL the parents had already completed in advance "online" before the Bday party (it was a weekday, we explained the parents weren't there). We did NOT have all the guest ph#'s to do so, which was VERY Frustrating when you pay alot of $ for a "PLATINUM" Party with a HOSTESS to assist our every need. Instead, they should have reached out to the Mgr or Savannah (hostess), since ALL of the attendees were on a "list" attached to the hostess clipboard, she already had the required waivers!! Savannah was attentive & friendly. She explained everything & gave out the bracelets to the kids to go play. Once we got into the party room, the table was decorated, but 10 water bottles were missing. (I asked Savannah, our Hostess for them & she apologized & placed them there immediately). For the money you pay for a "Platinum" the time was NOT nearly long enough and should be atleast 3hrs. I did request Savannah ask the Mgr for another 30minutes to stay in the room (it's very loud outside the party room) - it was a WEEKDAY & there were No other parties going on in the facility and the Mgr only agreed to extra 15minutes. We still had to eat pizza, sing "Happy Bday", eat cake & open presents. BAD BUSINESS!! We had to move ALL of our items to an undecorated white table in the center of the facility, taking valuable time away from the party & our guests..how embarrassing!! I would NEVER recommend spending this much money to be treated in this manner. There are so many other options in central florida. Despite all the obstacles, the kids had fun on the go karts, laser tag, zip line, rock climbing & trampolines. Kids wanted to keep playing after the party, which ended up being nearly 5hrs (they can stay as long as they'd like with the wristbands on). There wasn't supervision everywhere as the same kids stayed forever in the dodge ball trampoline that our party of 10 didn't get a turn. This was our 1st time and just wanted to make others aware of what to expect (& this was a weekday). Idk how long this place has been open, so maybe the young staff are still learning their jobs. Platinum costs $415 + $50 for party room (plus hostess tip) you just expect it to be a seamless process & it...
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