Family Fun Center

Family Fun Center has been part of south Lakeland’s entertainment scene since 1981, which makes it one of the longest continuously operating independent attractions in Polk County. Forty-plus years after opening on South Florida Avenue, the same locally run business still anchors an evening out for families who want more than a movie and dinner, without the drive to Tampa or Orlando that bigger attractions usually require.

The property centers on an 18-hole Adventure Golf course built with what the center describes as “undulating terrain, beautiful landscaping, and a natural pond complete with a waterfall,” a step up from the flat carpet-and-windmill mini golf layouts found at some competitors. Urban Attack Laser Tag runs in a dedicated arena for groups who want a more physical activity, and the arcade holds more than 100 video and redemption games for kids racking up tickets toward the prize counter. Funtasia, a padded play structure built for younger children, along with the Vault Assault and Beam Buster attractions, rounds out the options for family groups with a wide age range to entertain at once.

Birthday parties and group events make up a big share of the business, and CAP’s Pizza Cafe on site means a party can run from cake to laser tag to arcade tokens without anyone needing to leave the building. That one-stop setup, food, games, and an outdoor golf course all under one roof and one parking lot, is a big part of why the center has stayed relevant across four decades while plenty of other 1980s-era family entertainment centers around the state have closed.

Hours run Monday through Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 10:00 a.m. until midnight, and Sunday from noon to 9:00 p.m. Funtasia closes an hour earlier than the rest of the building each night, and two hours earlier on Tuesdays and Thursdays, to give staff time to clean the play structure between visits.

Because the center is independently owned rather than a franchise location, pricing tends to stay more flexible than at a corporate-owned entertainment chain, and the staff can put together custom packages for school groups, church outings, sports team celebrations, and corporate events without routing every request through a regional office. Longtime Lakeland residents often mention that a trip to Family Fun Center was part of their own childhood, and it is common now to see those same adults bringing their kids back for a round of Adventure Golf or a laser tag birthday party.

For a city that has added plenty of chain restaurants and national fitness brands over the past decade, Family Fun Center is one of the few entertainment options in Lakeland that has stayed locally owned since the early 1980s, and it remains a dependable choice for anyone looking for an afternoon or evening of golf, games, and laser tag in south Lakeland.