How to Build a Funfair for Different Age Groups
A good funfair doesn't have to be filled with the biggest rides you can fit onto the site. In fact, one of the most important decisions is working out who is actually going to attend. A primary school celebration needs a very different collection of attractions from a university event, while a public festival may need to entertain toddlers, teenagers, parents and grandparents at the same time.
At We Are Tricycle, our range of event attractions covers everything from traditional children's rides and gentle family attractions to arcade games, competitive activities and major thrill rides. That means we can help organisers put together a funfair with different levels of activity rather than expecting every visitor to enjoy the same thing.
Start with the youngest visitors
For family events, the youngest guests need to be considered from the beginning rather than being given whatever space happens to be left after the larger rides have been positioned. Our children's fairground rides and attractions include plenty of options specifically suited to younger audiences.
Classic examples include the Children's Victorian Carousel, Tea Cups Funfair Ride, Toy Town Merry-Go-Round, Aeroplanes and Flying Elephants. There are also attractions such as the Helicopter Ride, Mini Chair o Planes and Monster Trucks Merry Go Round.
These can create a clearly identifiable children's section at a larger event. If you're organising something primarily for younger visitors, our guide to children's fairground ride ideas provides further inspiration.
Give families attractions they can enjoy together
The next layer is particularly important at community festivals, council events, shopping centre promotions and large family days: attractions that appeal to a broad mixture of visitors.
Family funfair attractions and rides can help bridge the gap between the children's section and the more intense end of a funfair. A traditional Victorian Carousel is an obvious example, while the Vintage Ferris Wheel combines a fairground attraction with views over the event site.
There are plenty of alternatives too. Depending on the event, we can look at train rides, Helter Skelters, roller coasters and other attractions with different styles and capacities.
Teenagers may want something with more pace
At school celebrations, festivals and public events, teenagers and older children often want something different from the attractions aimed at younger visitors. This is where a funfair can gradually increase in intensity.
Our children's thrill rides can sit between gentle rides and the largest adult attractions, while older audiences can be catered for with equipment from our thrill and white knuckle funfair rides range.
Depending on the audience, site and event, possibilities can include the Modern Waltzers, Miami Trip, Freak Out Hire, Loop Fighter, Star Flyer and Pirate Ship.
For events where major rides are part of the brief, take a look at our big funfair rides and ideas for adult funfair rides.
Not everyone wants to go on a ride
This is easily overlooked. Someone can enjoy being at a funfair without wanting to spin, swing, drop or travel at speed. A varied event should therefore contain things to do at ground level too.
Fairground side stalls and games are particularly useful because guests can join in for a few minutes before moving on. Traditional options include the Hook A Duck Side Stall, Tin Can Alley Side Stall, Hoopla Side Stall and Coconut Shy Side Stall.
For a different style of entertainment, organisers can incorporate arcade game machines, sports games, garden games or our mini golf experience.
Think about older visitors as part of the audience too
Multi-generational events shouldn't assume that every adult wants a high-speed ride either. Traditional fairground attractions can provide a completely different experience and often become visual features of the event in their own right.
A combination of traditional and vintage fairground rides and attractions, classic stalls and quieter activities can give guests choices about how they spend their time. Someone might watch the carousel, play Hoopla, sit with friends, have something to eat and then take a ride on the Ferris wheel.
Providing places to stop is useful too. relax and chill out zones, deck chair hire and picnic benches can be incorporated into a site so visitors don't have to be participating in an attraction every minute they're there.
Use games to bring different generations together
Games can be particularly effective when you're trying to entertain a mixed-age audience because the emphasis can shift from age to ability, luck or friendly competition.
Our Giant Connect 4, Giant Jenga, Giant Chess and Giant Draughts can be used as part of a quieter games zone. Alternatively, attractions such as Batak Pro, Catch It Reaction Ring Game and Arcade Basketball Machine introduce faster challenges.
This makes games particularly useful for team building, company fun days and corporate events, school events and university and Fresher's Week events.
Food creates a natural meeting point
Another way to bring different parts of the audience together is food. Rather than treating catering as completely separate from entertainment, organisers can build a food area into the overall layout.
Our event catering solutions include traditional fairground favourites as well as substantial meals. Depending on the event, you could combine rides with Candy Floss Food Vending Tricycle Hire, Ice Cream Food Vending Tricycle, Burgers & Fries, Loaded Hot Dogs, Chinese Noodle Box or Fish & Chips.
Our food vending tricycles are particularly useful when organisers want catering to become part of the appearance of the event rather than simply adding a conventional serving counter.
Mixed-age events need a sensible layout
Choosing the attractions is only one part of the job. Their position can make a considerable difference to how the event feels.
A children's ride positioned immediately beside one of the loudest thrill rides may not create the most comfortable children's area, while quieter games and seating can benefit from being positioned away from the busiest ride queues. Catering needs enough space for customers to order and move away, and popular attractions need appropriate queuing areas.
Our guides to placing funfair rides around an event site and managing queues at funfairs provide more information for organisers working on the layout.
Match the funfair to the people attending
There is no universal list of attractions that makes the "perfect funfair". A council and local authority event may need to accommodate an extremely broad demographic, while a office entertainment event could concentrate on adult games and social activities. A charity event might place greater emphasis on games and participation, and a music, arts and cultural event could use rides as part of a much larger programme.
This is why audience, capacity, venue, available space, event duration and expected visitor numbers are useful starting points. Our guide to choosing the right funfair rides and games explores these considerations in more detail.
Funfair hire for events around the UK
We can build different combinations of rides, games and attractions for events throughout the country, including London, Greater Manchester, West Midlands, Cambridgeshire, Oxfordshire, Kent, Surrey, Nottinghamshire, West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, Scotland and Wales.
Whether you're planning a small private event or a large public funfair with attractions for several generations, we can help you choose an appropriate mixture from our fairground rides, games, activities and catering options.
See our delivery areas for more locations, browse ideas for funfair and fairground hire, or contact us to discuss the audience, venue and type of event you're planning.
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