The new Sky Zone trampoline park in Gresham provides high-flying fun for kids of all ages.
Last year was the year of Sky Zone parties for my 11-year-old daughter, Adela. She bounced, flipped and flew at the Sky Zone Vancouver location at least three times between birthday parties and end-of-season celebrations. So when I heard about a new Sky Zone opening up in Gresham, I was excited to have a trampoline park option that was slightly less of a slog for us coming from Southeast Portland.
Adela, my 9-year-old son, Cruz and I headed to the new location on a soggy Sunday around noon. We checked in after a short wait. (The line was much longer on our way out.) I’d already purchased elite membership admission for all of us online. ($32.99 per kid with a $9.95 parent add-on.) It was actually cheaper than an all-day, one-time admission, which is $38.99. The membership is month-to-month, so if you are truly just planning to visit once, the trick is to cancel before being charged for the next month’s admission. (And whether or not the cancellation process is easy!) Pro tip: I set a calendar reminder on my phone.
Upon entering, I noticed that the Gresham location felt smaller than the Vancouver one. But surprisingly my kids actually liked that aspect. It didn’t feel as overwhelming to them. And while it was slightly smaller, it still packed in plenty of fun activities including: bouncy basketball courts, a dodgeball venue, a gated toddler zone, a freestyle jump area and a king of the hill battle area. The foam-block pits found at the Vancouver location were noticeably missing. This was both a pro and a con. Those pits are extremely fun, but the blocks break apart and little bits of foam stick everywhere on kids. Adela’s favorite pieces of equipment were the zip line and free jump (pictured top left). For both, the cushy landing for jumpers was a giant, squishy inflatable pad. And her younger brother, Cruz liked the Ninja Warrior obstacle course and Warp Wall. Adela also liked the obstacle course. “I liked that it was over a pad instead of webbing and that lots of kids could be on it at the same time,” she says.
Even though I had been to Sky Zone a few times, I’d never actually gone on the equipment. This time, I bounced around on the freestyle trampolines, scampered over the giant, inflatable boulder balls and even jumped from the Drop Zone onto the inflatable mattress after a few hilarious, failed attempts. (My brain just kept telling me “do not jump!”) I managed not to hurt myself, but I was pretty sore later in the day.
With our membership we could have stayed as long as we liked. But after about an hour and a half we were pretty hungry. The Fuel Zone offers concession-style snacks. We grabbed ice cream bars from the cooler and I ordered a soft pretzel. The good thing: our membership gave us a 20% discount. The bad thing: Hot food takes forever to come out. I knew this from previous experience, but had forgotten. Pro tip: If you even think you may want chicken fingers, fries, a soft pretzel or pizza, order it way before you and your kids are actually hungry. I waited half an hour for that one pretzel. I finally went to the counter and asked for it, waited another 5 minutes, and then got it.
After about two hours of leaping, falling, bouncing and swinging, the kids were ready to head home. On the way out, they said they liked the new Gresham Sky Zone even better than the Vancouver one. We might head back again before I cancel that monthly membership after all. And if you’re looking for more indoor fun options, check out out our comprehensive guide to indoor play spaces, gyms and pools!
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