The Enchanted Island Amusement Park is a small "kiddie-land" type ride center meant for children aged 2 to 10. It features nine rides, four of which can accommodate adults. There are also arcade games, coin-operated rides (of the variety found outside of some grocery stores), and a snack bar. In addition, the little amusement park is set within the much larger---and free---Encanto Park (run by the city of Phoenix). So you can combine a trip to the rides with a picnic lunch and some playground time, if you wish. Enchanted Island may not be large, but it's important, nevertheless. Phoenix is a city that REALLY needs more family activities---from tots to teens. (What in the world is a metro area of several million people doing WITHOUT a major amusement park??? I'm a new resident here, and this is something that really irks me!) But at least we have Enchanted Island, a cute little place that opened in 1991.
The nine rides are:
(1) the train, which is a one-third replica of a real steam train, the C. P. Huntington. It takes a 7-minute scenic-overview tour of Enchanted Island and the adjacent Encanto Park. Adults are permitted.
(2) The Encanto Carousel was built in 1948. Adults are permitted.
(3) There is the Parachute Tower, which lifts the kiddies up into the air and brings them down again slowly and gently. Adults are permitted.
(4) The Bumper Boats are similar to standard bumper boats, but smaller. These are made for the 48-inch-and-under crowd only. They operate in an 18-inch-deep pool with staff supervision.
(5)The Dragon Wagon is a mini-roller coaster for kids.
(6) The Kiddie Cars move around in a circle while the little tykes beep horns and flash lights.
(7) The Rock-n-Roll is a spin-the-car type of ride on the order of Disneyland's Mad Tea Party ride. Adults are permitted.
(8) The Red Baron airplane ride has little red-and-white planes that "fly" in a circle while the children "steer" them to fly high or fly low.
(9) In the Mini Enterprise, kids "fly" a little helicopter around in a circle. And that ends the list!
All-day passes are $10 for kids under 54 inches or $6 for those over that height. Individual tickets are also sold. We had a buy-one, get-one-free offer for children’s all-day passes, so both the grandchildren rode as long as they wished for just $10. The BOGO offer came from the Entertainment coupon book for Phoenix, which is actually a book nearly 2 inches thick and stuffed with coupons of all sorts, especially for dining. If you're coming to Phoenix and plan to dine out or do several activities, you may save money by ordering this $30 book before you come. (You can preview all the coupons and order at Entertainment.com.) In summary, my 5-year-old granddaughter was completely thrilled with Enchanted Island. My 9-year-old grandson at first declared, "This is baby stuff!" but then he went on to have a good time as well.