KidsDunya – Is It A Place Worth Visiting?

Ever since its opening, there has been much hype about KidsDunya. Before visiting the place, I ran a search on Facebook and found reviews by people who had commented on its educational concept and its attractions for children. They say the concept is copied from a popular place in Dubai. So, I decided to give it a shot. Here is my honest review of KidsDunya for all those parents who have still not visited.

What is it?

It does less than half justice to its name: Kids Dunya. Yes, it is supposed to be a “dunya” for kids where kids rule. You have to pay an entry fee to enter the place. Rs.500 for a kid and Rs.250 for an adult. The receptionist will give a KD check with the name of the child. The child has to visit the bank first to draw the check and collect his KDR cash. They have their own KidsDunya currency that the child has to use while he is doing activities inside.

What Kind of Activities can you expect?

Job Activities

There are jobs available which include Police, fire fighting, hospital and dentist. The concept is to give children an idea where they can earn from and where they can spend. You just have to stand in the waiting line to get hired for these jobs and they will give you a job to do.

In the case of police, you have to run after a thief and catch him, put handcuffs and drag him to the jail. Thinking about that “pakram pakrai” game you played as a child? Well, it is actually that. The only difference is, they give you actual police uniforms to wear and the handcuffs and jail look real. Well, it would have been more interactive if there was something more to it than just catching the thief.

In firefighting, you have to run towards the site where something is on fire and you have to put down the fire by directing the water through a pipe in the glass wall ahead. Again, the uniforms are more interesting than the actual fire fighting scene. I find the water games in Sindbad more interactive and interesting.

We did not do the hospital and dentist jobs so can’t review those but what I saw going on there, it was pretty much the same boring and same stuff every time. The child would easily get bored with the same activity and would not want to go back.

When your job is done, you get a 100 KDR as your salary.

Paid Activities

Then there are other activities which are paid. You can spend your money doing those activities. These include:

Drawing and painting

This will be interesting if your child has never laid his hands on paint, pencils and colors. Oh come on, this is what kids do all the time at home and in school. What is so interesting here? There is even nothing new in it. There should be some art teacher doing some craft activities with them and guiding them. Seriously, my son went inside (parents are not allowed in the activity room) and came out with a paper which had a square, two apples, one pineapple and a circle. I asked him who made this, he said the man made it and he just colored it. WOW!

Build a bear

You have to stuff a teddy bear with cotton or whatever goes inside. It’s all automatic and there is a machine there, which does all the work. You only have to press the foot pedal for the machine to work. That’s it!

Football

This is better because children can finally find some real activity to do. But the football field is ridiculously small and if several children are playing there, your child might never get a turn with the ball. My son plays better football at home.

Paddle Pop Ice cream Factory

This is the only activity that offered something new. Children learn how to make ice cream in this colorfully designed ice cream factory. But to add more excitement and anticipation, they get an ice cream in the end to eat.  

Pizza Hut Pizza Baking Activity

This one requires you to pay real money because it gives a real pizza in the end to eat. Children get to put toppings on the pizza and then bake it. It’s interesting but nothing new for me. Whenever I am making homemade pizza, I always let my son put on the toppings.

Is it Worth Visiting?

Yes, but only once just to get a taste of what the hype is all about. It is very boring for a parent to roam around that ridiculous KidsDunya with a child. Since it is a KidsDunya, they should offer enough security for parents to send their children alone.

It is a bit educational and that’s the reason you should visit once. You would not want to do the same boring activities again.

Overall, I feel it’s too boring and there should be something more. I was expecting activities like puzzles, block building, sand art, and something more creative. Also, there should be more sports activities as well like basketball, baseball, and cricket.

For me, this role playing concept was nothing new because this is what my son does all the time at home and I am sure no child is different. Even I did that when I was young. Remember that doctor set, kitchen set, and police set we used to own when we were kids?

My son does want to go back but I am sure he will get bored after his second time.