Monkey Joe’s of Fairview Heights

Had a very good time there with my daughter she ran around and enjoyed playing with the other kids. The staff kept control of the kids and I never felt like my daughter was unsafe or that she wouldn’t get a chance in a bouncy house. Great time

I understand the other reviews are lower than 4 stars and I understand why. I have 2 kids (5 and 3) and if this place was packed, I could understand how it would be a nightmare for parents; however, we went on a Sunday right when they opened at 11:00 and for almost an hour and a half, there were less than 10 kids in this place and it was great. The staff was nice and courteous and admission was fair. Again, I could see how this could turn into a parents nightmare during kid rush hour but our experience was great.

Cash cow. First thing you notice when you walk in is the chaos and madness of the kids running around. Some of those kids need a leash in my opinion. The others are free roaming and going nuts on the inflatables.
Monkey Joe’s has seven huge inflatables that are very tall and take up large amounts of space. The cost for one child is $ 10 on the weekend and $ 8 during the week. Kids under 2 cost $ 5. Pricey. Completely worth it if you want to tire your kids out and have them in bed before 8pm. Put them in here for 3 hours and you’ll succeed, but bear in mind it will cost you.
They do offer frequent passes which means you buy a pass for 10 visits and every time you go, they will punch the card up to 10 times. Twice punched when you bring your kid on the weekend, and only punched once when brought during the week. The child I brought had a frequent visitor’s pass and the passes cost $ 60.
For parents who do not care to watch every move their kids makes, Monkey Joe’s provides free wifi. The wifi turned out to be very beneficial. It seems like 1 out of every 3 parents in the place had their iPad with them or some sort of electronic device outside of their phone. I even saw one dad with a dvd player. He seemed quite into the movie he was watching basing on his facial expressions. I doubt he was watching Finding Nemo.
If you get food from here, don’t expect quality. Papa John’s delivers their pizza in the morning and they have that pizza sitting out from the moment it arrives til the middle of the afternoon when the sell the last piece. A cheese slice is $ 2, and a whole is $ 15.95 for a large. The rest of the food is overpriced too.
Monkey Joe’s serves it purpose. Entertainment for children under the age of 10. Make sure you bring socks since that’s what they’ll be running around in. Cubby holes for their shoes are provided upon entry. Don’t forget to fill out the injury waiver and get the wrist band on you and the child as well.

This must be like heaven for kids and hell for the parents.
In theory, I think it’s a great idea. Seven huge inflatables where kids under 12 can bounce, roll around, climb, race, and do the whole thing again… ALL DAY. Prices are $ 8-​$ 10 per child (depending on what day), and they can stay all day until they pass out from exhaustion. They give you a wristband to indicate that you’ve paid. Adults are free. However, babysitting is not included, and once you leave, you can’t come back in unless you pay the fee again. They make sure of that by snipping off your wristband as you leave. While the kids are playing, parents can sit and watch their kids or they can watch television on several of the flat-​screens scattered around the place or they can even try to get some work done using the free wi-​fi.
Why the low score? Because there are just SO many things wrong with this picture. First, I know they say they use something called the Swisher Hygiene to clean the equipment, but I cannot imagine the number of germs in a place like this. When I was there, I saw kids coughing, kids with runny noses, kids rubbing their eyes… it was like… DAYCARE gone wild. Secondly, it is LOUD. Super loud. Kids are screaming, the air pumps are going, and it really is just madness. It’s every kid for themselves. There are employees around, but it is up to each parent to control his or her child, but they rarely do because face it, you can’t watch your kid every second and you can’t see your kid most of the time while he or she is running around a huge inflatable.
Whoever came up with this idea though is pure genius. It’s a huge cash cow. Not only do they have inflatables, but they have carnival games and vending machines that cost quarters to play. In addition to that, of course, you cannot bring in any food or drink, and like other amusement parks, there is a huge markup on prices. They do not make any of the food themselves, but ship them in from places. The pizza is delivered from Papa John’s, for example. I was there to help out a friend with her son’s birthday party, and it’s easy to see that they have it down to a science. They let everyone play for 1 ½ hours, and then they congregate in a room. The birthday child is given a seat on the throne, and the party gets food and their own kiddie cup to prevent spills. Monkey Joe pays a visit, and then an employee wheels in a cart of birthday gifts that was strategically placed at the entrance for the guests to drop off their gifts at prior to checking in. The birthday child tears into their gifts while Mom and Dad get to take pictures, and the ever dutiful employee records them on a piece of paper for Thank You notes. Easy-​peasy, see you next year!
I think it’s hilarious that some of these places are advertising free babysitting and a place to drop off their kids while the parents can go Black Friday shopping. Who am I kidding… I just wish I thought of this first!

Great place for the kids to burn off energy, ecspecially when the weather is bad. The kids love it. Its all bouncy houses, inflatable obstacle courses, etc. I like that you only have to pay for the child to get in and that there are plenty of chairs, an area with a tv, wi-​fi and whatnot for the parents.

I was here with my children for a birthday party. As I was very discreetly nursing my daughter I was asked to stop because I was indecent exposed. I was mortified, and not to mention embarrassed. I explained that they had just broken the law, but they were also rude. I was only met with more animosity. Even when I threatened to talk to a lawyer, still nothing. It is just awful that a family place could be so cruel. All I was doing was feeding my daughter. But, the lady with the low cut shirt and cleavage hanging out and the large amout of butt crack popping out all over the place is apparently decent.

I took my nephew here when he was visiting us for the holidays. We went on a weekday and it was fairly crowded. There are pluses and minuses to the entire thing though. On one of the bigger inflatable bounce houses my nephew was practically run over because of his smaller size compared to some of the bigger kids. It’s not really policed by the parents and the workers who are supposed to keep these things from happening just watched it happen. What’s the point of having a staff to monitor the kids if all you’re doing is talking to each other the entire time.
We tried to put him on one of the smaller rides and a little kid bigger than him was trying to take the toys from him. As the employees again just stood there and watched.
So we decided to leave and get a ballon on the way out, but purchasing just one balloon was more than it should have been. We should have just drove around the corner to the party store to get a balloon for 25 cents. Never again. I have no intention of ever taking him back there, instead we’ll go to the park down the street.

I can’t help but think every time I walk into this place that it would be a blast if I could run around with the reckless abandon that all of the kids that love this place do. This is a place any child will love. Monkey Joe’s is filled with inflatable bounce house like structures. There are slides, obstacle course like structures and so many more that just look like so much fun. When just about every child you see is red faced and sweating you know that they are having a blast. Cost wise it is cheaper than going to the movies and much more worth your money. After taking your child to Monkey Joe’s they will be exhausted and will sleep soundly that night.
Unlike places like Chuck E Cheese, food is more an after thought at Monkey Joe’s. There is a concession stand, but it’s not a center piece of what the place is about. They host birthday parties and do a good job with those. Monkey Joe’s is a great place to take your child so they can burn off some of that energy that they have an abundant supply of.
I will definitely be returning to Monkey Joe’s in the near future to help my son burn off some of that energy he has so much of.