Sky Zone Van Nuys Trampoline Park: 120 Minutes for $41.99

Sky Zone Van Nuys sells one kind of single-day ticket, and it is generous: $41.99 buys 120 minutes on every attraction in the building. The trampoline park sits at 7741 Hayvenhurst Ave, Van Nuys, CA 91406, in the industrial grid of the central San Fernando Valley, and it opens at 11am Monday to Friday and at 9am on Saturday and Sunday. The park's listed phone line is (213) 204-1870, and jump times are booked online in advance.

When this park opened in April 2013, it was Sky Zone's first location in the Los Angeles area. The San Fernando Valley Business Journal reported at the time that the chain had signed a 10-year lease worth more than $3 million for a 39,000-square-foot industrial building on Hayvenhurst Avenue, and that the space would be turned into an all-trampoline, walled playing facility. That footprint still made it one of the larger parks in the chain.

The brand itself started as a failed sport. Sky Zone's founder, Rick Platt, opened a 17,000-square-foot arena in the Las Vegas Valley in 2004 for a game played on trampolines with rotating hoops. The sport never took off, but local skateboarders found the building and started paying to jump, and the trampoline park business grew out of that. More than a decade later, the Van Nuys building is the Valley's version of that accident.

The Van Nuys park lists more attractions than many newer suburban sites. Alongside Freestyle Jump, the main open trampoline court, there is a Ninja Warrior Course and a Warped Wall, the curved ramp that rewards a running start. There is also FreeClimb, a climbing wall, the iWall interactive game, a Zip Line, SkySlam basketball lanes, Ultimate Dodgeball, SkyJoust and a Drop Zone. Smaller children have a Toddler Zone and a Soft Play area, and the Air Court sits in the mix as well.

Our honest advice is to skip racing from attraction to attraction in the first 20 minutes. The ninja course and warped wall get queues fastest because each runner takes a turn, while the open trampoline court absorbs a crowd. Start on the ninja course if there is no line at all, then move to Freestyle Jump and dodgeball once the court fills, and save the zip line for the end, when tired legs welcome a ride.

Weekday mornings are the quiet window. From Monday to Thursday the doors open at 11am and the park closes at 8pm, so a late-morning visit while most children are in school gets you the floor nearly to yourself. Saturdays open earlier, at 9am, and run to 11pm, and Friday also stays open until 11pm. If you have teenagers, the late Friday and Saturday hours are when the park feels most like a night out.

Birthday parties are the main source of crowds on weekend afternoons, because the park runs party packages with private party areas and hosts. Booking the first jump time on a Saturday or Sunday at 9am is the simplest way to stay ahead of them. On busy weekend afternoons, a walk-in visit can mean a later start, so it pays to reserve online. If the slot you want is gone, the park's Torrance sister site in Gardena is the nearest alternative in the chain.

Every jumper needs a signed waiver on file before entering, and the park's own pages make clear that guests without a valid waiver cannot go in. Grip socks are also required. Sky Zone sells its own SkySocks at the park for safety and cleanliness, and you keep them afterward. Bring them back on your next visit and you can reuse them as long as they are in good condition, which saves a small but repeat cost for regulars.

Children under 13 cannot be left in the park without a parent or guardian, so this is not a drop-off spot for younger kids. There is no upper age limit, and plenty of parents jump alongside their children. The Fuel Zone counter sells snacks and drinks between sessions. Age and height limits can differ by attraction, so younger children may be steered to the Toddler Zone rather than the zip line or the ninja course.

If you live in the Valley and expect to come back, the numbers favor a membership quickly. The Extra Play Monthly Membership costs $36.99 a month plus a one-time $10 activation fee, and it covers unlimited weekday jump time, two hours on weekends, a monthly buddy pass, free GLOW access and 20% off food and parties. A parent add-on is $16.99 a month. The Extra Play Annual Membership is $279.99 for a full year, with no recurring billing.

For a one-off visit, the 120-minute ticket at $41.99 is the only single-day option listed, and two hours is more than most young children can manage. Plan a water break at the halfway point and you will get far more out of the second hour. A family coming twice in a month already spends more on tickets than a monthly membership, which is worth knowing before you reach the checkout page.

Hayvenhurst Avenue is a car-friendly street of warehouses and light industry, and the park has its own parking, which makes it easy on a weekend morning. The 405 and the 101 are both close, and the Van Nuys Airport area is part of the same stretch of the Valley, so it is common to see small planes overhead on the drive in. Public transit is possible by bus along the main Valley boulevards, though most families drive.

After two hours on the trampolines, the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area to the south is the natural place to cool down, with wide lawns, bike paths and the Japanese Garden, a quiet contrast to the noise of the court. For food, Van Nuys Boulevard has a long run of taquerias and diners. If the children still have energy, the basin's sports fields give them open grass to run around before the drive home.

Address: 7741 Hayvenhurst Ave, Van Nuys, CA 91406. Phone: (213) 204-1870. Hours: Monday to Thursday 11am to 8pm, Friday 11am to 11pm, Saturday 9am to 11pm, Sunday 9am to 9pm. Single ticket: 120 minutes for $41.99. Monthly membership: $36.99 plus a $10 activation fee. Annual membership: $279.99. Required: signed waiver and grip socks, sold on site. Supervision: children under 13 need an adult in the park. Opened in April 2013 as Sky Zone's first Los Angeles park.