Candytopia- Is It Worth It?
I posted a photo of my family and I outside of Candytopia, and one more of us from inside, and instantly got the question:
“Is it worth the ticket price?”
So, yes the tickets are kind of pricey at around $80/each. But all the photos I saw of my friends and their kids made it look like they were having an absolute blast… certainly it was worth it?!
Perhaps we should start off with what IS Candytopia? According to their website:
“What if an eccentric chocolatier and a daredevil pop star had a whirlwind romance, got married while skydiving, and had a glamorous, glittering love child who grew up to rule a small nation? Welcome to Candytopia, where colossal candyfloss constructions meld with a tantalizing taffy twistedness!
Explore our sprawling sanctuary of confectionary bliss, tastefully curated by Hollywood Candy Queen Jackie Sorkin, realized by master fabricator Zac Hartog, and brought to life by life-long retailer, John Goodman. This four-month interactive art installation celebrates the vibrant colors and flavors of our favorite sugary delights across over a dozen environments, from flying unicorn pigs to a marshmallow tsunami. Bring your family, your friends, and your sweet tooth for an experience like none other!
If you ever dreamed of nibbling your way through Candyland or scoring a Golden Ticket, you’ve come to the right place. Treat yourself to Candytopia, and let your tastebuds and your imagination soar!
Candytopia is now open in Atlanta and Dallas!”
Ok so yes, that’s super fun to read- but what does it really MEAN?! I didn’t really know, but figured it couldn’t hurt to find out. Plus my kids were super excited to find out, also!
When you enter, you’re hyped up shortly thereafter. There are sculptures and “paintings” made of candy. One enters to the tune of music and kids doing the floss dance.
In the first room, we are told about the creation of Candytopia and everyone is encouraged to sing a song to get the clocks above to move down- displaying chocolate balls for everyone to take. (Not a cheap kind, either.) Is this possibly a little cheesy for the grownups? Sure. But, this world wasn’t necessarily created for us.
I read somewhere on their site that Candytopia is like a museum, with exhibits made of candy. This is probably a good way to think about it going in. I say this because with all the photos on social media of the interactive stuff- marshmallow pit (not real marshmallows), confetti falling from the sky- it’s easy to think of this as several rooms of interactive items. But a lot of the fun comes from looking at what all they managed to create out of candy. We really liked the replica of Van Gogh’s Starry Night.
Yes, there’s candy in each room to sample from. When I asked on my Facebook would my kids want anything AFTER the exhibits a friend said they handed out enough candy that her kids didn’t want anything. That wasn’t the case for mine, but I could see that working out with younger kids. Especially if they pause it eat the items along the way. Mine did not, they stashed these items straight to my purse as they ran from room to room.
So, what about those cool photos everyone is posting on social media?
Great question! You don’t get to these straight away, but they do explain to you up front how to sign up for a unique QR code linked to your email. It’s scanned from your phone at each stop, there’s a few of them, and those working there will help you come up with cute poses. Then you can go ahead and review from your phone or wait until they email you a link to download on another device.
There’s all kinds of fun things that are done not just with candy here, but with lights and mirrors and such. Yes, there’s a lot of opportunities for cool photos, and yes there’s candy to sample from and eat, but this is really more about a cool experience.
For me, it was a way to give my kids a little bit of a magical day. We will also likely use some of these photos on our Christmas cards!
We ran through the event in about an hour, it’s really fairly self-paced. I would probably in hindsight have moved through it slower but I really did follow the pace of my children.
At the end of the event, both of my kiddos expressed gratitude. And… they did want to buy goodies. As a note, they don’t take cash. You can also buy their water bottles for $2/each about half way through which was worth it to me because I figured we would be thirsty. (We were.) And yes, the marshmallow pit can be a little overwhelming and HOT but my kids super loved it.
After all, isn’t that what it’s really all about?
Love to all y’all,
Molly
PS: Also, everyone working there was SO helpful and looked like they were having fun, too.
