Mini City KidsZania Coming To American Dream Meadowlands

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — Kids will be able to role-play real-life professions at an experiential learning center that is tailored after a real city at the American Dream Meadowlands.

KidZania will bring an 80,000-square-foot educational center that will allow kids 4 to 14 to take on the role of a surgeon, baker, pilot, archaeologist, truck driver or any one of more than 100 professions in a mini city. The city will have paved streets, vehicles and a self-contained economy run on "kidZos" currency.

Companies like Honda, Sony, Kellogg's, Coca-Cola and others have sponsored businesses and landmarks in the attraction.

“We are thrilled to provide a new learning experience to families and educators throughout the New York metro-area,” said Keith Rubenstein, acting CEO of KidZania USA. “KidZania at American Dream will be a fascinating space for children to develop leadership, teamwork and financial literacy skills that will last a lifetime.”

KidZania was founded in 1999 on the idea that children want to learn by participating in the real world. According to the company, providing children with access to real-life activities that both entertain and inform, they will be better prepared to build life skills and stay focused in school. There are nine KidZanias in Dallas, Chicago, Canada, Europe, Asia and Mexico.

KidZania is the latest kid-friendly attraction coming to the $5 billion entertainment and retail center set to open in the fall of 2018. The campus will be broken up into five interconnected areas.

Attractions will include the largest indoor amusement park in the western hemisphere, Nickelodeon Universe. DreamWorks, owner of popular movie franchises such as "Shrek," "Kung Fu Panda," and "How To Train Your Dragon," is the official partner of American Dream's water park.

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A 1,500-seat, 4D movie theater will allow moviegoers to "smell" the film they're watching.

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The first Sea Life aquarium in New Jersey will feature a tropical ocean tank with a walk-through underwater tunnel. There will also be a 300-foot-tall observation wheel, a 12-story indoor ski park with an 800-foot-long hill.

American Dream was slated to open in the summer of 2017, but Triple Five pushed the open date back to the fall of 2018 because of difficulties securing the financing.

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Photos of children at other KidZanias participating in various vocations. — Courtesy of KidZania