The Funplex, East Hanover, NJ

The Funplex Amusement Center is located in East Hanover, NJ at 182 Route 10 West. Their main phone is 973-428-1166. You’ll find them next to Bed Bath & Beyond in the same complex as Diamond Gymnastics. Drive around the rear of the building to their main entrance. There is also a Funplex Amusement Center in Mount Laurel NJ.

2023 Note:  “Please note that Magicquest is no longer at Funplex and there have been renovations that are not covered here. This review is from 2012 and pricing and amusements have changed.  We hope to update this listing in the near future. ”

The Funplex is family run and managed and has been in operation for 15 years. It recently won an award for the best Family Entertainment Center in North America from the IAAPA, the International Assoc of Amusement Parks and Attractions.

Coming in May of 2012 the East Hanover location will open the “Splashplex” a new outdoor water recreation facility that will include slides, elevated water blasters, hydro storm towers, loose water hoses, a water playground and a 5′ deep pool. We will be sure to update this post once it is open!

The Funplex is an amazing indoor (and outdoor) amusement center with a little something for everyone. The center in East Hanover features a large arcade with skill-based full redemption games and win to play games for the younger kids. There are also indoor “rides” like a 4D movie theater (must be 40″ or taller) two sets of bumper cars (one for those at least 36″ tall and one for those 42″ and taller) and “Free Fall” (38″ with adult, 42″ solo) and a new ride called the “Super Twister” for riders who are at least 43″ with an adult or 52″ on their own.

One of the center’s main attractions is it “Foam Frenzy” a three-story fully enclosed area where participants ages 4-12 can have tons of fun with baseball sized foam balls. Children under the age of 4 can go in too — they just need an adult with them at all time. In the foam frenzy you can throw, toss, gather and dump the balls on one another or use one of the many “shooters” and aim at various targets within the arena, including each other! Balls come out of multiple tubes and systems that run throughout the three stories and there are mazes and stairs to climb and navigate your way around. We’ve done this multiple times and usually end up fully exhausted and collapsing in giggles.

The center also includes an amazing indoor lazer tag stadium. The Lazer Runner (recommended for ages 7 and up) is a maze of hallways, doorways, ramps and bridges that provide a challenging forum for a competitive game of lazer tag. The entire stadium is lit with blacklights that make everything glow and music pumps vibrates off the walls. This is especially popular with pre-teen and teens and even adults!

The Funplex in East Hanover is home to MagicQuest which is almost like a video game that has come to life. It’s recommended for ages 7 and up. Someone needs to be able to read to play. Younger kids can do it with adult help and supervision. However, they may not have the attention span required to complete the quests.

When you play MagicQuest you rent or purchase a wand that you use at a computerized terminal to choose “quests” for various runes. As an example, you might decide to go on a quest for the “healing” rune. When you check in you receive a small booklet that gives you hints on how to find the items needed to earn each rune. Items are things like “moss on the wall of the castle.” You travel around the halls and buildings of Magicquest to find each item and when you find it you wave your wandat it. Your wand knows when you’ve collected each item and as you earn more items and runes you receive more instruction via computer terminal.

As you play MagicQuest inanimate objects move, pictures glow, treasure chests open and things like trees speak to you. It’s thrilling for the kids and educational at the same time. Gold found while playing can be redeemed for tickets to earn prizes like you would while playing arcade games.

Be prepared to become addicted. We now own our very own wand and wield it at home often 🙂

There are Go-Karts at The Funplex. Younger children who are at least 36″ can ride in the double Go-Karts with some one at least 54″ tall and 14 years old. To ride alone, you must be 54″ to operate at a reduced speed and 60″ to drive at maximum speed. I even think this would be fun for an adult party or moms night out!

The Funplex offers all kinds of birthday parties, venues for special events, camps, educational programs and field trips, pool packages and more. Besides all the private and shared party rooms there is a craft room that is used for camp programs and “create your own critter” birthday parties. The Funplex can accomodate groups of all sizes – even the very large – and is happy to help with fundraising too.

There is a cafe on site and all the cooking is done on premises. The menu offers typical fare and the cafe can also handle catering for special events.

The Funplex pricing is flexible. It’s completely free to go in and play in the arcade. You can also buy wristbands that include some or all of the attractions and pricing starts at just $15.95 on the weekdays. You can enjoy all the attractions or just play MagicQuest. You can also opt out of the wristband packages and pay per ticket prices for each attraction. Or, you can just buy tokens and try your luck in the arcade. Visit the website often for current pricing, specials and events. Check your KidStuff Coupon books for discounts too!

As you plan to visit The Funplex consider that it is a large indoor amusement center with many attractions and multiple party rooms. It will be busier on the weekends and during “peak” times like school vacations and holidays. The Funplex is also busier in the colder months than in the summer. If you have younger children you may want to consider visiting during the weekdays or other off-peak times (call The Funplex for guidance) unless you crave the excitement of the crowd!

Have you checked out all our other indoor play areas? We have included a map of all NJ indoor playgrounds, NJ children museums, including chuck e. cheeses in NJ and all your recommendations in one page. Check it out, and comment if we are missing something.