Toddler Soft Play and Ball Pit Hire in Auckland
Most people booking a first or second birthday start by looking at bouncy castles, and a castle is usually the wrong unit for that age. Toddlers get knocked over by bigger children, the walls are too high to see out of, and the parents end up standing inside it. Low soft play is the answer.
Ball pits
We hire 3m x 3m ball pits in pink and purple and in red and blue. They are $200 for a half day and $250 for the whole day. At 3m square they fit a courtyard, a deck or a small central-suburbs lawn, and they will go inside a hall or a garage if the weather turns.
The 4m x 4m play parks
A step up from the ball pit, the play parks are enclosed soft play areas with low walls, built for the under-fives. There are three themes in the fleet: farm yard, jungle and unicorn. They fit a standard back lawn and give a bigger group of little ones room to spread out without being in with older kids.
Why low walls matter
The point of a toddler unit is sightlines. An adult standing outside can see every child in it, and a two-year-old inside can see their parent. That is what stops the crying, and it is the main practical reason these work at ages where a full castle does not. It also means one adult can supervise properly rather than climbing in.
Running a party with a wide age range
If you have a two-year-old and a seven-year-old at the same party, hire two things rather than compromising on one. A ball pit or a play park for the little ones and a castle or the Giant Super Slide for the older group keeps both happy and stops the small children being flattened. It costs less than most people assume, and it is the single most common piece of advice we give over the phone.
Indoors in winter
Toddler units are the easiest things we hire to put inside. They need far less ceiling height than a full castle, so a lounge, a garage or a small hall will usually take one. If you are booking a hall, get the ceiling height anyway and send it through and we will tell you what clears it.
What else works for this age
Face painting suits two-year-olds less than people expect, but balloon twisting goes down very well and we book twisters from 90 minutes. Bubble machines are cheap and work on any age. Kid-height tables and chairs are worth adding if you are feeding them.
Booking
Pick your date online and enter your suburb at checkout to see delivery before you pay. Most of Auckland is $35, Kingsland is $30 and the CBD is $50. If you want a hand choosing between a ball pit and a play park, call 0800 859 837 and tell us how many children and how old.