DreamPlay: Underrated or Overrated?
Dream Play isn’t any thing new, it actually opened its doors in 2015 at City Of Dreams. Yes, a children’s activity center is located at a casino, Manila does what it wants and it surprisingly works well. We first visited Dream Play in 2015 on a school field trip with Kuya Aaker. Wells was still a fresh little babe and Oz was an insanely cute toddler, both too small to enjoy Dream Play then. After almost five years we decided to go back for a visit. I was worried Dream Play was overrated and that is why it’s been so long since we visited but my perception is changed and I think Dream Play is totally underrated.
Kuya Aaker with Baby Wells 2015
Oz, Wells, Kuya Aaker 2019
Here are a few reasons why:
Price Point. Your bang for your buck goes a long way (680php). Mind Museum and Kidzania are two places that get the most hype in Manila for kids and I think they are both overpriced. That isn’t to say that I don’t think they’re fun or great family friendly choices, in my opinion though the price tag is too high for what you get in return. I bought our tickets for Dream Play on MetroDeal.com. I actually went a little crazy one afternoon on Metro Deal and bought almost a dozen passes to family friendly places in Manila. None of this is sponsored, I wanted to have places to go to get out of the house with my kids during the sem-break and Decem-break.
Activities Are Inclusive. Many places have an add price, at Dream Play it’s all inclusive, including the cookie activity. Our 2015 visit we didn’t make cookies with Gingy and this 2019 trip was so fun to participate as a family in the cookie baking and decorating. The activities for older kids such as ropes course and Po’s training can have long lines but at least you don’t have to pay an additional price.
Impressive Setting and Decor. Dream Play is extremely well done and so is the upkeep. Shrek’s house, the dragon slides and Gingy’s kitchen are all so impressive. The whole place is actually very impressive, it feels like a real amusement park without the large roller coasters. My only wish is that it had better lighting. I love natural light and Dream Play is quite dark inside. I also wish they weren’t so strict about riding the slides, you have to wait for an attendant to monitor the slide as riders go. It’s a slide, please for the love, just let the kids slide down at free will.
Decent Food. The food at Dream Play was delicious. We had great pizza, fries and ice cream. The food court has ample seating and the ordering process is smooth and efficient. If you go on a busy day you may have to wait but that’s due to high volume of orders.
Low Volume. Depending on when you go, the timing of your visit can make or break it. We happened to visit when there were 3 school field trips and it was far too many people. As soon as they left however, Dream Play felt dramatically more enjoyable and roomy. If you planned your visit on a low volume day you really could have the place all to yourselves!
All in all, buy your passes on Deal Grocer and enjoy a day at Dream Play! I think it’s an underrated place for families to visit, especially if you go on a slow day. Enjoy!