They’re jumping for joy.
To ward off the winter blues, New York adults are spending their nights springing around a $20,000, 70-foot-long rooftop bounce house — no kids allowed.
Bounce Lounge opened atop the William Vale hotel in Williamsburg in December. While children are welcome during the day, after 6 p.m. it’s adults-only, and the venue has been most popular with 20- and 30-something looking for an alternative to traditional bars, clubs and restaurants.
“Seasonal depression is a big thing,” said Myya Martin, 30, who lives in Bushwick and works as an events coordinator. “Everybody knows that doing activities enhances your endorphins and stuff.”
Last Thursday night, she and a friend checked out Bounce Lounge, which is inflated atop the 23-storey William Vale and boasts two slides and a ball pit. They were huffing and puffing by the end of their session. (Bouncers pay $20 for 20 minutes on the inflatable.)
“I usually go to the gym in the morning, but I skipped it today because I knew I would be jumping around this bouncy house,” she said.
While she was initially worried about being outside on a chilly night — temps were in the 20s — it wasn’t an issue.
“I am exhausted and hot from bouncing,” she said. “It’s even snowing right now and I’m not cold”
Whitney Green, 28, took her boyfriend to Bounce looking to fight off the January doldrums.
“We’ve been so bored this winter. We’ve been watching ‘Pirates of the Caribbean,’ and we are on number four, so that should tell you something,” she said, laughing. “I wanted to do something fun and have a break from that.”
Bounce proved to be a great diversion.
“It’s so cool. You can jump around and see all the New York City sights,” said Green, a 28-year-old who lives in Bushwick and works in financial services.
The idea for Bounce came to Marlene Leslie, Vice President of Food and Beverage for the William Vale, after attending a birthday party with her 6-year-old that had a bouncy castle.
“It’s just playful,” she said. “We want to give people an opportunity to be a kid again.”
The hotel had been looking for something fun to do on its roof to replace the artificial ice rink it’s had in years past.
“Obviously rooftops are very popular in the summer, but we wanted to take advantage of the real estate in the winter,” said Leslie. “We wanted something fun and whimsical and playful for the neighborhood.”
Leslie sketched out the design for the custom-made play structure herself. It is white, “to look like a snow castle,” she said, and has walls that are high enough to protect jumpers from flying over the edge but low enough to not obscure the views.
“We don’t want to put up anything on the roof that competes with the skyline,” said Leslie. “That is the main attraction.”
After bouncing, patrons can head to private heated chalets or the rooftop bar to eat fondue ($44) and drink warm cocktails such as the Double Cider ($22 with Patron reposado, Benedictine, Calvados, Punt e Mes and spiced apple cider) and Sweater Weather ($21 with Maker’s Mark, Clear Creek Cherry Brandy, Lo-Fi Dry Vermouth, Oloroso Sherry, Pecan, and Grapefruit).
Last Thursday night, Bella Flanagan was going to order a drink before she jumped, but she couldn’t contain her excitement when she saw the bounce house.
“I didn’t think it would be this big. It’s sick,” said the 28-year-old who lives in Williamsburg and works in fundraising. “The urge to bounce overcame me as soon as I saw it.”
