Malibu Jack’s is an indoor family entertainment center in Kentucky with two locations- one
in Louisville and one in Lexington.
This complex includes all the usual FEC offerings such as go karts, miniature golf, and an arcade,
but it also includes a roller coaster and a few other amusement rides.
So in this video, I will review Malibu Jack’s and explain why you should pop into this place
for a few hours.
Before delving into the review, I want to note that I have personally only visited the
Louisville location.
However, the attractions between the two are nearly identical so I suspect the experience
at the Lexington location would be similar.
The first Malibu Jack’s opened in 2013 in Lexington, Kentucky and a second one opened
in Louisville shortly thereafter.
Both locations were extremely successful, but the owners were out of space to expand.
So the owners made a bold move.
They closed both their original locations and moved them.
The Lexington location moved into a former K-Mart in 2018 and then the Louisville location
moved into a former Walmart in late 2019.
And for the latter, you can still tell it was a Walmart from the building’s blue exterior
and some of the internal signage that has remained.
But the inside looks better than a Walmart.
The outer perimeter of the building has hardwood flooring and the center has carpeting.
Then the walls have different California murals on them.
Malibu Jack’s has free admission and then you pay per attraction.
All of the rides, attractions, and arcade games are paid for with a plastic card.
Many of the card stations were broken during my visit, so the best place to purchase one
is the front desk.
Most of the rides and attractions cost between $5-$7, which is typical for a FEC.
And then the arcade games cost $1-$2 each, which is a bit higher than the arcades I typically
visit, but the complex does have an extensive fleet of new games.
Some of which I have yet to find elsewhere.
If you visit on Wednesday, you get half price arcade games, which is the same day as Dave
and Buster’s does their same promotion.
You do get bonus bucks if you spend a certain amount as well.
Malibu Jack’s has long hours.
During the summer season, it’s open until 10 or 11 pm every night.
On off-peak days, you will likely find rotating ride ops for some of the attractions, but
that’s completely understandable and a few of the attractions had schedules posted in
front of the attraction to let you know when they’ll run next.
Speaking of attractions, the main draw for coaster enthusiasts is Twist-N-Shout, an off-the-shelf
SBF Visa spinner.
This one runs an extremely long cycle and operates next to a mural of the Santa Monica
West Coaster.
But the best ride in my opinion is Wave Rider, a wild Himalaya.
This one seems to be manually controlled and the operator would accelerate and decelerate
the ride based on the tempo of the song in the background.
Between the booming music and flashy lights, this ride had a lot of energy.
And this one runs both forwards and backwards.
In fact, I think it ran twice as long backwards as forwards which is rare.
And this is a pretty fast Himalaya too.
It delivered crushing laterals and itty bitty pops of airtime on the humps.
The other two flat rides are a kiddie swinging ship and bumper cars, neither of which I saw
operate during my visit.
The most popular attraction is the Hollywood Speedway go karts.
While the track has a relatively simple layout, this one is notable for a turbo boost button.
Every cycle, riders get three turbo boosts.
So you really need to strategize when to use them so you can pass the other drivers and
avoid log jams up ahead.
Malibu Jack’s also has two dark rides- a Triotech shooter and a 4-D motion simulator.
Then the park has a few other attractions to round out the layout such as mini golf,
laser tag, bowling, and a giant area filled with inflatables.
So do I recommend Malibu Jack’s?
If you’re a coaster enthusiast, I think this is an easy pit stop after a day at Kentucky
Kingdom since it’s just 15 minutes away and typically open after it closes.
If you’re a local, this is a solid FEC with a mix of rides, attractions, and arcade games
that would appeal to guests of all ages.
So those are my thoughts on Malibu Jack’s, the family entertainment center in Louisville
and Lexington.
What are your thoughts on Malibu Jack’s?
Have you been there?
I would love to hear what you think about the complex.
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at Canobie Coaster.
Thanks for watching!