Laser tag has made its return to the peninsula with the arrival of Laser Quest.
On Friday, Sept. 29, the laser tag company Laser Quest opened a new location in San Carlos allowing a much closer option for those who enjoy the activity.
Laser tag is a sport where players are equipped with infrared laser guns and targets that are worn on the body. The players are then put into a dark, maze-like arena where they gain points by tagging other players with their laser beams and lose points by being tagged.
The closest Laser Quest location to the San Carlos area was in Mountain View until it closed about two years ago. After that, a new location was established in San Jose, which took nearly twice as long to commute to.
“We chose San Carlos because we wanted to replace the Mountain View location without being too close to the original,” said Jasmine Partida, manager of the San Carlos location. “We also wanted to service San Francisco and the East Bay so the people wouldn’t have to drive so far.”
Laser Quest is known for being a popular place for teens and pre-teens to host birthday parties and other social events. However, they also offer corporate events and day camps as well.
“We have 20 employees including the manager. Their jobs are to host the birthdays and corporate events and to be the marshals who keep the games safe, orderly, and fun,” said Partida.
The Laser Quest employees are tasked with creating a fun engaging environment for all players.
“I see my employees as ambassadors of fun,” said Partida.
Word of this new location has been slowly spreading because Laser Quest doesn’t have an official form of advertising.
“We don’t do any advertising on the radio or commercials on TV,” said Partida. “All of our major advertising is done by word of mouth.”
The new Laser Quest has gotten off to a slow start, but as it gains traction, it could be the next big hang out for Carlmont students.
“If you’re looking for some good competitive fun, then you should try laser tag,” said Partida.
Shuchi Mehta • Sep 15, 2019 at 7:47 am
Chaos Central STAY AWAY
I have been to multiple parties at Laser Quest. My twins wanted a party there, so we decided to throw it there.
It was the worst experience for us and our guests, and sadly some of the guests felt so overwhelmed that they even left without spending any time. This is why?
1. Starting when we took the package we were not informed well about the differences in the party packages and the reasons we should pick one over the other. We should have picked a party with a host. The place is a MAD house, the acoustics of the site is BAD when they are making announcements you cannot hear.
2. When we got to the venue, no one knew what is happening? We did not have a place to keep our gifts, or food or stuff, it was weird to attend the guest and organize a locker and put our things in the fridge and figure out when people should come to get their kids and figure out what needs to be done with the kids or who is a kid in our party or not.
3. When we finally got a party room, it was so cramped. We were told that we would have a bigger party room as we were celebrating two kids it was super narrow room, with the hostess not showing up or serving or helping out.
4. They did not even spell our kid’s name right!!
5. Lastly, there were closets in the room, and they were unlocked, so we kept our stuff and gifts in there only to know that they had 2 sided door and ultimately our gifts got mixed up with someone else
the hostesses told us we have 5 mins to leave without helping us pack, which increases confusion we could not correctly wish our guests goodbye.
Overall re-living the party through this review is giving me a headache. Save your dollars and find alternative party places. Pump it up is twice as much fun for kids and grown-ups.