Indoors

BOLA Batting

Name: BOLA Batting
Address: Ravenscourt Rd, Patchway, Bristol, BS34 6PL, GB
Telephone: 0117 235 8846

Bristol

Courtesy of BOLA Batting

SETTING

Indoors

WHERE

Bristol

What it’s like

Face real bowling machines with animated bowlers on screen, batting practice booked in minimum 30 minute slots.

This is batting practice, but not against a bloke lobbing balls underarm. You're facing a bowling machine, either the TrueMan or the Merlyn, both with an LED animation of a bowler running in so it actually feels like you're reading a delivery rather than just reacting to a ball popping out of a box. It's a clever bit of kit and it's the whole reason to come.

Sessions are booked in advance and run a minimum of 30 minutes, so this isn't a wander-in-and-see kind of visit. First timers get an induction before they're let loose on the machines, which adds a few minutes on but means nobody's swinging blind. There's no meet and greet laid on, so it's less about a big welcome and more about getting straight into the nets.

There's a café and indoor seating if you've got someone watching rather than batting, which makes it easier when you've only got one bat between two kids and someone's waiting their turn. Being indoors, it's not a session you need to worry about rearranging if the weather turns.

Worth knowing this is squarely about the batting itself rather than a day out with lots to see. If your kid is happy standing in and facing balls for half an hour, they'll get plenty out of it. If they want variety, this is a shorter, sharper visit than a soft play or activity centre.