Jay Makes Fitness Fun at HudsonPLAY

Jay Batra / Co-Founder, HudsonPLAY

HudsonPLAY Activity Center

Your own local Ninja course!

Fun, family, fitness and recreation collide at HudsonPLAY, a unique and innovative indoor activities center designed for all ages. HudsonPLAY is dedicated to facilitating positive and safe indoor activities year round, for everyone seeking creative and interactive adventures.

What is HudsonPLAY?

HudsonPLAY is a very unique play space for all ages with a focus on interactive entertainment and fitness. Families can play, all ages can play, kids can have a great time, adults can have a great time.

Why did you create it?

HudsonPLAY was driven by my own needs. As a single parent of a 7 year old boy, I wanted to have a family workout facility where both him and I can have a great time, and have a work out together. Traditional gyms were not the best option for me.A facility like HudsonPLAY actually gives you that additional option where you can come in as a family and have a great time playing, and have healthy nourishments afterwards in our Healthbar Cafe.

Learning to play is a skill in itself – what we have at HudsonPLAY with our Ninja Warrior Course is an ability for kids to come in and try the course. They're not able to do all the activities, all the obstacles in the first few tries. But they learn to do those activities over time and they get stronger. Every time a kid comes in here they leave stronger after a 2 hour session.

What kind of feedback have you heard from parents and families?

What I hear from families is that the child went home and talked about it, talked about strategy how they're going to come back and do a certain set of activities all over again to master them. It is making kids think about strategy, a way of becoming more efficient on the course, which is another way of exercising their mind. There is a sense of accomplishment at the end of their session.

What else do you do?

It is also our way of engaging the Jersey City community more – partnering with non-profit organizations, giving back to them, making it the go-to place for families for fitness, play, after-school enrichment classes and special events.

We're planning to start unique activities that families can enjoy, for example a science or arts expos, a family music dance party, kids disco party, teens night with music without alcohol so parents can feel comfortable that their teens are going to come here in a safe place and have a great time.

What do you love about HudsonPLAY?

I love the fact that the togetherness time is still focused on not only families interacting with each other organically, having laughs together, doing a challenge together, be it the ninja course, building something in the imagination playground area or playing table games. I also see kids that come here regularly, forming friendships on their own, setting playdates, playing board games, solving puzzles, older ones helping the little ones.

How would you make learning awesome?

We need more of those options as families. Our near term vision is to make HudsonPLAY the go to place for Play based learning and fun for kids of all ages.

Ian checks out the course and shows us what it's like!