Hollywood Bowl and Puttstars Mini Golf in York – Review

A new Hollywood Bowl and Puttstars has opened at the Vangarde complex next to Cineworld and where the community stadium will be. It’s very swish, with great music and lighting.  There is a bar and restaurant area to one side:

Video of Puttstars and Hollywood Bowl at Vangarde York

We’ve put a video together if you’d like a look!

The Bar at Hollywood Bowl, York

There’s also a huge amusements area with all sorts of video games. You can also win tickets to cash in on prizes (I think you might need a lot of tickets though!).

The tech is good too, it’s straightforward to set up for your game, and easy to add your names. You can also specify which players would like bumpers and which wouldn’t, as well as right and left handers.

We tried out the VIP lane which is a bit more private than the other lanes and features a comfy sofa to relax on while cheering/jeering the other players.

Puttstars York

After our bowling, we headed upstairs to Puttstars – the new mini-golf place. It’s owned by the same company as Hollywood Bowl, but of course you pay separately.  There are three mini-golf courses, that are all different, and we tried Pinball.

When you pay, you are given your club and ball and a pin number.  At each hole there is a screen where you add your pin.  The first screen lets you set up your names and explains that after each hole, you can re-enter your pin to add in your scores.  There are also two ‘Joker’ cards to play – which I think doubles your points for the holes you use them on (make sure you use them as it’s a fun little addition).

The holes are great – much more interesting and fun to play than your bog standard mini-golf with no obstacles.  There are often two routes too, so adults can take a more challenging route than younger kids.

At the end the scores are totted up and a winner declared!

There is a cafe and bar in Puttstars too – I took photos of the menu if you’d like a look at what they offer (something I didn’t think to do while downstairs in Hollywood Bowl).

Menu and Prices in the Cafe at Puttstars York

There is a great arcade in Puttstars too.  Again you can build up tickets to exchange for prizes – it’s worth noting that they are different systems and you can’t pool tickets from one to the other.

It’s a great addition to York’s leisure scene.  There are lots of restaurants for dinner at Vangarde too and more coming!

Have a look at our other post on Things to do in York.