“The Taj Mahal of bounce houses” is on its way back to New Orleans — and it’s bringing a new friend.
In addition to a newly expanded version of the World’s Largest Bounce House, The Big Bounce America 2024 Tour features four other unique bounce attractions, including a new addition — a giant octopus foam party called OctoBlast.
The all-ages event will be held at the University of New Orleans over two weekends — April 13-14, and April 19-21.
Spanning 24,000 square feet (equal to lining up about 100 school buses in grid formation) the World’s Largest Bounce House is a child’s wildest dream come true.
From giant slides to climbing towers and ball pits to basketball hoops, this house has it all. And at the center of the madness sits a custom-built stage where dance music curated by a live DJ is interspersed with games and competitions.
“The World’s Largest Bounce House is my favorite,” said Noa Visnich, tour manager of The Big Bounce America, produced by XL Event Lab.
The all-ages bounce house event has special times for kids, little kids and adults.
“It’s one thing to see pictures and video online and another to experience it in person,” Visnich said. “I never get tired of hearing the kids singing along to the songs while they play. This house has it all — including confetti, bubbles and even a snow machine.”
A magical centerpiece
Like the Magic Castle is to Disneyland, The World’s Largest Bounce House is the centerpiece of this bouncy wonderland, but it’s surrounded by a wide array of similarly impressive inflatable ‘‘lands,” each with its own personality.
The Giant is a 900-foot-plus obstacle course.
First, there’s The Giant, a more than 900-foot-long creation packed with 50 obstacles designed to bring out the inner ninja warrior in children and adults alike. The race is on to make it to the grand finale monster slide.
Next up is Sport Slam, a customized sports arena where family and friends can show off their skills on the climbing tower, fight it out at the “battle zone” or compete to score on every type of goal imaginable with a wide array of balls.
OctoBlast is an enormous inflatable octopus joined by its own resident DJ who hosts an underwater-themed foam party fed by colossal foam cannons.
Then there’s the newest addition to the nationwide touring event, OctoBlast, an enormous inflatable octopus joined by its own resident DJ who hosts an underwater-themed foam party fed by colossal foam cannons.
Finally, there’s airSPACE, a space-themed monstrosity that spreads across three different inflatables. Highlights include a 25-foot-tall inflatable alien overlooking three ball pits and an out-of-this-world five-lane mega slide.
The local connection
Bringing a giant space-themed inflatable to New Orleans is especially fitting, considering it was a NASA engineer from Shreveport named John Scurlock who invented the first bounce house.
Scurlock’s company, Space Walk Inc., crafted space-themed bounce houses out of a New Orleans warehouse in what became a family affair. His wife, Frances, started the world’s first-ever inflatable rental company in 1968 in New Orleans. Their son, Frank, founded Fun Factory, the first all-inflatable indoor play park in the world in 1986 in Metairie.
A 25-foot alien overlooks ball pits in the airSpace bounce house, one of five on the bounce house tour.
For parents, especially of little ones, who may be concerned about safety at The Big Bounce America, Visnich noted the tour’s multiple efforts to keep bouncers of all ages happily in party mode.
Tickets to each three-hour session are limited to 450 people, Visnich said. Advance purchase is recommended.
Bouncing sessions are also available just for specific age groups. On Friday, April 19, at 10 a.m., the toddlers will have the event to themselves with a special session only for ages 3 and under.
Slide and bounce
“The only things (toddlers) will not have access to are the features that are too big for them, the giant airSPACE slide and The Giant — the big obstacle course,” said Visnich. Toddlers must be accompanied by a ticket-holding adult over the age of 16.
There are also junior sessions for ages 7 and under (adults welcome but not required), bigger kids sessions for ages 15 and under (adults welcome but not required), and three adults-only sessions (ages 16 and up) that start at 6 p.m. or 6:30 p.m. depending on the day.
Tickets are $22 to $45 depending on the session and include a 45-minute session in The World’s Largest Bounce House and unlimited access to all other attractions for three hours.
Organizers said the attraction is rain or shine, but storms or lightning may cause it to be rescheduled or even canceled. Keep an eye on the company’s Facebook page for updates.
Besides a camera and maybe a change of clothes (hello foam party), what’s the one thing you don’t want to forget for an experience at the largest inflatable event in the world?
“Socks!” said Visnich. “We require them for bouncers of all ages so don’t forget to pack a pair.”
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Big Bounce America
WHEN: Saturday and Sunday, April 13-14 and April 19-21.
WHERE: University of New Orleans, 2000 Lakeshore Drive.
TICKETS: $22 to $45, depending on the session booked.
INFO: thebigbounceamerica.com