On a weekend visiting my boyfriend in Norwich, we found ourselves with loads of free time on the Sunday before my train and not much to do. After having lunch at Wetherspoons, we decided to have a couple of games of bowling at Hollywood Bowl due to it just being across the way.

I had never been to a Hollywood Bowl before but as we got there and asked for a lane, I decided I was glad for this. For 2 games each at around 1pm, it cost nearly £20. The bowling alley I have been to in Nottingham costs around £15 for us both for 3 games on a Saturday night. Hollywood Bowl does have offers on for different days and times but unfortunately there was none for a Sunday afternoon for us. I don't know whether this is just me thinking it is expensive in comparison with Nottingham though or whether it is expensive to others as well though.

After getting ourselves a lane and our shoes (hire is included in the price) we headed over to start our games. Starting a game means having to put in your names/ initials on the computer but unfortunately, ours didn't want to let us. We had to call someone over to reset the lane so we could actually play for what we paid for. The staff were quick and efficient in doing this and it makes me wonder if they have this problem a lot. Even though each side of our lane was empty, the rack was filled with different coloured bowling balls so we had to get rid of most of them as none were what we wanted to use. Just behind the lanes though are racks of bowling balls so it wasn't far to take them but it was a bit annoying when no one else was playing in that area.

What I didn't realise about Hollywood Bowl is how much they have to offer apart from bowling. In the Norwich branch, there is also pool, a small arcade, a café, a bar, they play sports on big screens and much more. This particular Hollywood Bowl also has a Costa Coffee. Although we didn't use any of these extra things, I thought it was great that there was a lot to do. Some children might get bored of only bowling so it was good that there were arcades and air hockey etc to keep them entertained. I wouldn't like to take a guess at what these extras cost though.

Unless going at night, I'm generally not a fan of eating where I bowl but I did have a look online at their menu for food and it doesn't look too bad. There are plenty of offers on drinks and food. For £9.95 you could get either 4 burgers or 4 hot dogs with chips and a jug of soft drink which would be fantastic for a family and it would be easy to eat as well. You can also get a jug of coke for £3.99 which I would do if I was going with a few people. That would be cheaper and easier than buying individual drinks. If you don't want to eat from the café though, there are also vending machines even though the prices are insane. My boyfriend bought a Mars Bar and it cost 75p!

Although we didn't have too much interaction with the staff at this branch, apart from someone coming to sort out our computer, they were friendly enough. When booking our lane and getting our shoes, the staff did their job but didn't go out of the way to make us feel welcome and they weren't all that cheery either. I think if the staff was a bit more enthusiastic and happy it would make the experience here a lot more enjoyable. While I enjoyed my couple of games of bowling, I have been to better and nicer bowling alleys and would prefer not to go here again.

Address
Riverside Centre
Wherry Road
Norwich
Norfolk
NR1 1WZ

Opening Times
Monday 10am - Midnight
Tuesday 10am - Midnight
Wednesday 10am - Midnight
Thursday 10am - Midnight
Friday 10am - Midnight
Saturday 10am - Midnight
Sunday 10am - Midnight