Visiting the College Basketball Experience
One of Kansas City’s super exciting attractions that may sometimes be overlooked is the College Basketball Experience.
We recently visited the College Basketball Experience for the first time, and we had a blast!
Keep reading to find out exactly what I thought of it as well as some tips for your visit.
Location
The College Basketball Experience is located inside of the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City.
The building and doors to the College Basketball Experience are labeled well and easy to find.
You will need to go through security in order to enter this attraction.
Parking
There is a parking lot right next to the College Basketball Experience. We visited during the week and were able to find a spot in this lot very easily.
You will have to scan the QR code on the signs in the parking lot and can then register your vehicle and pay online.
One great thing about the online paid parking is that it will text you when you are close to your time being up and you can easily add more time from your phone.
There are additional garages and parking meters in the area if you need more parking options.
Best Ages to Visit
Our whole crew of boys–ages 9,7, 3, and 1 visited the College Basketball Experience. I will say that this attraction is best for ages 6 and above.
I felt like my 3 year old and 1 year old were kind of in the way and that was a little stressful for me.
This is a very active and hands-on place which is great overall but can make things difficult with toddlers especially when it is busy.
The College Basketball Experience has numerous basketball courts with different challenges such as free throw shooting, dunking, last second shots, and more.
There are a couple of activities geared to the younger crowd but for the most part, to truly enjoy this place, you need to be a bit older and maybe even have some basketball skills.
Activities at the College Basketball Experience
Lower Level
- Get In The Zone This is very much like your typical basketball shooting game at an arcade. The goal is to try to make as many shots as you can before time runs out.
- Kids Court As its name implies, this is a basketball court especially for the younger kids. They even have a giant sized basketball that the kids can shoot into a humongous hoop. It’s super cute and thrilling for the youngest visitors.
- Call The Highlights This was my favorite section. Here you can feel like a sportscaster as you read and announce the play by play of the last moments of a basketball game. The kids LOVED this exhibit as well!
- Gallery of Honor In this area you can see and learn about the many coaches and players who are a part of the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
Upper Level
- Center Court This is a full size basketball court that is open for free play. There are bleachers on the sides of the court for people to sit and watch. Luckily it wasn’t super busy when we visited so the kids had a great time playing on this large court.
- Beat the Clock This is an exciting court where you try to make the game winning shot before the buzzer goes off. It even lights up a spot on the court each time where you have to make the last minute shot. This is super fun to try to do!
- Step up to the Line Here you try to make as many free throws as you can in a certain amount of time.
- Shoot from Downtown At this court you try to make as many three point shots as you can at different positions along the three point arc in a set amount of time.
- Throw it Down There are six basketball hoops set at different heights for visitors to try to slam dunk. My kids used one of these hoops just to shoot at since they were lower than the full sized ones.
- Measure Up This is another fun area for kids where you get to compare your height, wingspan, and shoe size against that of college players.
Best Activities at the College Basketball Experience for the Younger Kids
If you have kids 5 or under, here is a list of activities that are best suited for them.
- Kids’ Court This court is especially geared towards the younger visitors so kids 0-5 will really enjoy this area.
- Call the Highlights Younger kids can sit in the announcer chairs and pretend they are talking or announcing the game. This is also a good photo opportunity.
- Center Court Depending on how busy the College Basketball Experience is, the younger kids may enjoy playing on this big court. If it is busy, you may want to keep them away from it so they don’t get ran over or hit with a ball.
- Measure Up The younger kids may also find it fun to compare their size to that of college players.
Tips for Visiting the College Basketball Experience
- Wear athletic shoes
- Wear clothes that you are able to be active in
- Be mindful that there isn’t a whole lot for younger kids to do
- Check the website for when the College Basketball Experience is open
My Overall Opinion
We had a super fun time at the College Basketball Experience. I am glad we got to see what it was all about.
I would probably not go back again until the boys are a bit older. I do think that the College Basketball Experience is best suited for older kids.
To enjoy ALL of the activities at the College Basketball Experience, kids should probably be about 10 and have an interest in basketball.
When you are making your decision whether to visit or not, first, think about how important it is to you. For example, I LOVE college basketball and I LOVED participating in all of the activities. Taking my kids out of the equation, I would go to the College Basketball Experience just on my own.
Then consider the ages of your kids and their interest in playing basketball. If your kids really enjoy basketball and are going to get excited about it, then it might be a great idea to take them!
If you have super young kids who may make it stressful for you to be there as my one year old did, I may consider waiting to visit until they are a bit older. Then everyone can enjoy it so much more!
I hope this post gives you an idea of what it is like to visit the College Basketball Experience. Hopefully, it also gives you some beneficial tips and advice when you decide to visit.
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For more family friendly attraction recommendations, read my posts on Science City and the Money Museum.
May you love your adventure. KW
