I learned more about my kid through play at KidZania Manila

KidZania Manila has been around for five years, and I’ve always been intrigued by its concept. Is it a theme park or a play area? What’s the deal, really? 

Continue reading if you want to know what to expect, where to eat and how to navigate your way inside these mini play city!

What is KidZania?

In a nutshell, KidZania is a mini-town for children ages 4 to 14. The kids could try different jobs and earn KidZos, Kidzania money if they are patient enough to wait in line to try the experience. So, you would know if the kid likes the pretend job if she’s willing to queue.

How to earn and use KidZos

The KidZos is Kidzania’s currency and kids could use it to pay for experience and skills or save them from buying souvenirs and gifts at the end of the play. But here’s the thing the kids could also earn monthly interests from their KidZos if they decide to keep their earnings which my daughter opted for hers.

How to get the tickets

It’s always best to purchase tickets online because queues could take forever. When you have a kid or lots of it, you’ll know that waiting in line is a bad idea. Good thing there are ways to purchase tickets online. For us, we got our Buy 1 Get 1 promo tickets on Klook.com for P 1,100. I’ve been earning points through the platform which later on I can use to get discounted tickets and more. It is easy and convenient to use. The transaction is paperless too!

Get your KidZania tickets or check discounted tickets here.

The Fire station was the first pretend job that Kerrigan tried. We waited for about 20 to 30 minutes before the shift started. You could see the number of kids allowed in a shift (8 pax), duration (25 mins.), age requirement (4 yrs old and up) and KidZos earnings (+8) from the photos above.

How to play in KidZania

Crew members dressed as an on-ground stewardess welcomes you as you enter KidZania. You’ll recognize Cebu Pacific airline as KidZania’s onboarding flight crew to the play city. And I get the whole point, though there’s no literal flying involved the idea is to transport the guests into this mini play city.

At the Fire Station, the kids undergo basic training on how to be a firefighter. There were stretching exercises involved, some crawling and aiming lessons for the children. And hey! I learned something too!

Believe me, after the check-in; my daughter was stunned. She was mesmerized with the place. And to make things even more challenging, the play city was like a maze. At one point I felt like we were going in circles.

The kids rode a mini fire truck complete with accessories. Kerrigan was quick to ring the bell. Watch the vlog here.

After putting out the fire at the Hotel Flamingo, the troop returned to the Fire Station to claim their earnings from experience.

After the first, your kid would pretty much know which experience to try next. I was practically following her around while she lines up for the Nursery.

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Watching your kid learns how to handle a baby was just too adorable. She carried the doll-like it was a real baby and was eager to tend to the other baby doll next to her.

Her third job was in a Construction Site. It has about three jobs: electrical work, painting job and window cleaning.

The Construction Site has insane detail. From the safety vest, hard hat to those tiny road cones, it was all there! 

The little painters wore a thick jumpsuit to protect their clothes from the paint. The paint was almost odourless, so you have that feeling that it is safe for the kids. After this job, my daughter was a bit tired, so we looked around to find some lunch.

How to buy food and what are the options

I thought about going to a restaurant nearby for a decent lunch but for some reasons guests weren’t allowed to return if they decide to leave the play city. It’s best to have brunch or lunch before the visit and purchase some snacks inside the park when hungry. There is McDonald’s, hotdog stand, popcorn, a Japanese restaurant, a mini 7’11 store and other snacking choices.

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The Operating Room was like a real mini hospital. The facility was for small kids, so my little girl could reach the table with ease. It was easy for her to "operate". I swear, seeing her with that level of focus was surreal.

After the break, my daughter told me she wanted to work in the operating room. We headed down to the Hospital and got in quickly. The Hospital has three areas for kids who want to try a career in the medical field – Emergency Responder, Operating Room and Baby Care.

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KidZania Manila is a three-level establishment. On the third-level were the Goldilocks Bakery, the KidZania Clock Tower, an ice cream shop and toddler play area among others. Kerrigan enjoys designing pastries, so she was eager to join the group of eight for the experience.

We were passing through the hallway on the third-level when I heard the crew calling for clock tower junior performers. I dragged her in and helped her with a suit. Before she knew what was happening, she was on the balcony dancing with the group. It was the only activity that my daughter didn’t choose. She hated it for a bit but eventually, she looked like she was having fun.

Watch the vlog here.

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About an hour and a half before KidZania close for the day, we found ourselves in an alley beside Hotel Flamingo, and there we saw Pet Express.

My little girl wants to become a vet. At around 18 months old, she said she’s Dr Kenggan. I think I saved a video somewhere. For her to try the hospital jobs was a dream and to become a vet was the cherry on top.

At this point, I was burning from fever, but Kerrigan was still eager to try as many experiences as possible. So, I was sitting in front of the stores while she continued with the eight job – Junior Dentist.

The average number of activities that a kid could try for half the day is 4 to 6 role-play jobs, but my little girl completed eight! It’s crazy!

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Last but not least was the Dental Clinic, and this time, she got the whole dental clinic all to her self. It was awesome!

It’s not just a theme park. It’s a play city!

So, are we returning to KidZania?

There are more or less 20 role-playing jobs to try for kids and adults too. Yes, grownups can enjoy the play city also for as long as a kid accompanies them. It just so happen that I wasn’t feeling well during the time so I didn’t get to join any activity. I say give us a great Buy 1 Get 1 promo again, and you would see us lining up eagerly. We can’t wait to try the remaining 11 activities on our list.

That’s it for now.

See you in our next adventure!

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