Traveling with Kids: Explore KidZania in Mexico City

The Mommy Files. August 14, 2013. (English) by Shannon Gosney. –I recently had the opportunity to attend a Family Media Trip in Mexico City, Mexico. This was my first time visiting Mexico City and I was really impressed with the safe feeling of the city and the kid-friendly activities we were introduced to on our trip! One of the first stops we made was at KidZania Cuicuilco.

I had never heard of anything like KidZania before and let me tell you, I was really impressed! The idea behind KidZania was to offer activities that combine education and entertainment for kids. KidZania allows children to spend the day having fun and learning in a city where they could play and adopt adult roles and norms. The goal of KidZania is to give kids the opportunity to reinforce basic skills such as autonomy, self-knowledge, self-care, artistic competition, and to become prepared for a better world! Children typically visit KidZania either with family or in school groups.

KidZania is definitely family friendly. On your way into KidZania, each child is given a bracelet and cannot leave without the parent that belongs to that bracelet. You also have the opportunity to rent either a baby carrier or stroller if you have a toddler or infant with you.

Once your ticket is purchased, each child is given a KidZania Passport. They receive stamps for different activities they complete throughout the day. They will also receive kidZos based on the number of stamps they receive in their passports.

KidZos can be used for various activities throughout KidZania. Some of these activities include soccer, crafts, and other activities throughout KidZania.

Before kids can start receiving stamps in their passport and earning kidZos, they have to find a job. To do this, they register at the Manpower Employment Office in KidZania. They have a wide variety of jobs they can choose from.

Jobs are chosen by the children and include a variety of positions. There were children working for the city (utilities, police, and government), for cosmetic companies (Jafra), dog kennels (Pedigree –oh and the poop is fake– lol!), mechanics, and more! The kids that I saw looked like they loved wearing the uniforms and working on various tasks like the adults in their lives do. Heck, there were times that I wanted to jump into one of the uniforms, get my passport stamped, and earn kidZos I could spend at KidZania!

Like any real life job, the kids even had to pay taxes on their earnings. Oh yes –they sure did! Let’s just say that the looks on the kids’ faces weren’t those with smiles as they headed out of that building –much like that of the real world.

Not only did I love the idea behind KidZania, but I loved the way it was set up –modeled after Mexico City! There were a variety of statues throughout KidZania that were kid-inspired. There were also buildings replicated after real-life buildings in Mexico City (i.e. the University, Court House, Bank).

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fkaXSIV5q4?list=UU0fi6HgamqUthJrn1NqnzZQ]

Not only do the kids get to play, work, and spend kidZos in KidZania, but they also have the opportunity to participate in a parade. I got a little clip of the parade at KidZania. The kids were having a blast as they participate in the parade!

At the end of tour of KidZania, we were provided with some really yummy snacks! This included sodas, water, potato chips and popcorn. On the chips were lime and Salsa Picante Para Botana. Oh my gosh –it is so yummy! It’s not spicy at all, but has a smokey flavor. We also added the Salsa Picante Para Botana to the popcorn. What a great ending to a fun day!

What would your child’s favorite thing at KidZania be?