25 things to do at The Red Dragon Centre this summer to celebrate its 25th birthday

Paid collaboration with The Red Dragon Centre

The Red Dragon Centre celebrates its 25^th birthday this year! This summer marks 25 years of Cardiff’s premiere entertainment destination, and one of the first attractions in the incredible regeneration of Cardiff Bay.

Like lots of you, I remember when it first opened, back in August 1997. It was called Atlantic Wharf Leisure Village back then and was officially opened by Louise (then Nurding, later Redknapp) of Eternal fame. My first visit was to Evolution nightclub (where you’ll currently find Simply Gym) closely followed by a film at the cinema multiplex, which was like nothing we’d ever had locally before.

Since having children, it’s been the location of many a family day out. We’ve watched goodness knows how many films at the 12-screen Odeon Cinema, and put our 10-pin skills to the test at Hollywood Bowl. We’ve enjoyed family meals at everywhere from Bella Italia and Five Guys to Volcano Japanese, Spice Route and Oriental Garden. Plus there have been a lot of ice creams at Cadwaladers. We’ve met everyone from the Batman, Buzz and Woody to the Easter Bunny, and made all manner of crafty creations at their free family fun events.

The Red Dragon Centre was one of the very first local attractions that I worked with on Cardiff Mummy Says, way back in the early days when I was writing about life with a baby, toddler and pre-schooler in Cardiff. I’m delighted to still to be collaborating with them on showcasing all the fantastic things they have going on.

As you can imagine, there’s plenty happening at The Red Dragon Centre to celebrate it being 25^th years since the centre opened. In fact, here’s 25 things you can do at The Red Dragon Centre this summer to celebrate its milestone birthday.

You may also like my Red Dragon Centre 25th birthday Reel over on the Cardiff Mummy Says Instagram page.

Let me know your memories of The Red Dragon Centre from the last 25 years and if you’ll be visiting this summer. Check out The Red Dragon Centre website here.

25 things to do at The Red Dragon Centre this summer to celebrate its 25th birthday

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1. Play it cool and enjoy 25% off bowling at Hollywood Bowl when you bowl before 11am during the summer holidays. Enter the code ‘SUMMERFUN25’ at the checkout hollywoodbowl.co.uk (See website for T&Cs.)

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2. Make kids’ celebrations a breeze and book a party package at Hollywood Bowl – with packages available for young ones and teens.

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3. Test your skills and have fun in the fantastic arcade amusements. You could even win some prizes.

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4. Enjoy a Family Feast at Hollywood Bowl’s Diner, where you can enjoy two adult meals and two kids meals, four soft drinks, plus onion rings all from only £20. (£20 when booked online and £30 if purchase in the Bowl.)

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5. Beat rainy days and catch the latest blockbusters at ODEON – Minions, The Railway Children Return, DC League of Super-Pets. And best of all, grown-ups pay kids’ ticket prices with ODEON kids – every day during school holidays.

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6. Immerse yourself in the ultimate cinema experience at South Wales’ only IMAX screen.

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7. Feel like you’re visiting Naples at Bella Italia where kids eat for £1 with every full paying adult Monday to Wednesday 4.30pm-6pm and Thursdays 4pm-6pm.

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8. Enjoy a sweet treat at Cadwaladers. Will it be one of their many flavours of ice cream, an indulgent cake, or perhaps one of their picture perfect sundaes?

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9. Sink your teeth into your own customised burger at Five Guys – with over 250,000 burger combinations, make yours unique.

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10. Enjoy 50% off the a la carte lunch menu at Volcano, with over 100 dishes to choose from.

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11. Enjoy meal-time deals and unlimited free refills on soft drinks when you dine at Spice Route all summer.

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12. Let your children build their own meal with the Cardiff Bay Tavern’s pick’n’mix menu. Little eats from £2.99, big eats from £3.99.

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13. Share your #RDCTasteofSummer snaps when dining at the Centre for a chance to win a treat.

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14. Embark upon a journey filled with spices at Zaika, an Asian and grill restaurant serving up a variety of regional and traditional dishes native to the Indian subcontinent.

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15. Enjoy a roarsome bite to eat at the RDC before seeing The Lion King at Wales Millennium Centre or wind down and refuel after a visit to the Aqua Park or Cardiff Bay Fun Park with a hunger-busting lunch at The RDC – and enjoy up to six hours free customer parking. See website for parking T&Cs.

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16. Chill out and read a story book on the comfy cushions in the Green Zone, and take a selfie under the birthday rainbow banner.

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17. If you managed to pick up a pack of the free birthday sunflowers that The Red Dragon Centre have been giving away, don’t forget to plant your seeds at home and tag them #RDCBirthdayBloom so they can see how you’re getting on.

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18. Get the kids’ creative juices flowing with colouring activities on Cadwaladers artificial grassed island.

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19. Wave to Josh and Kally in the centre as they host Capital FM Drive Monday to Friday 4-7pm.

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20. Book a babysitter and savour your date night: meal for two followed by the latest blockbuster.

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21. Hop on the Minions ride after checking out the film at Odeon

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22. Sprout a pair of wings at the Be The Dragon graphic next to Five Guys

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23. Join in the Centre’s 25th celebrations! Famous Welsh artist Nathan Wyburn is creating an exclusive art installation to celebrate the 25th anniversary, made entirely out of customer photos and special events at the Centre over the years. Whether you’re eating out, bowling or at the cinema, as long as you’re at the Centre they want your snaps. Comment, DM or email  info@thereddragoncentre.co.uk to submit your photo for use in the mural.

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24. Celebrate the Centre’s 25th birthday with a fun weekend of free activities on 28 and 29 August. Dive into the birthday ball pit filled with 25,000 balls – find the special silver ones for a chance to win prizes. Have your face painted for free, plus artist Nathan Wyburn will be inviting children to create their own self-portraits using unique and unusual ingredients. See website for timings.

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25. Wish The Red Dragon Centre a happy birthday and share in the celebrations on social media, as well as sharing your memories of the RDC. More events are yet to be announced, so by following The Red Dragon Centre on social media, you’ll be the first to know. 

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Follow Cardiff Mummy Says on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more information on special events at The Red Dragon Centre, as well as many more ideas for family fun in Cardiff and beyond this summer.