Paintball & Laser Tag Sutherland Shire

Across the Sutherland Shire, from Cronulla and Caringbah through Miranda and Sutherland, plenty of group outings are family ones: kids' birthdays, sports team get-togethers and school holiday catch-ups. For that crowd, the team shooting game on Party Hero for the Shire so far is laser tag rather than paintball, at Underworld Laser in Menai. Laser tag keeps the tactics and the running around but swaps paint for infrared phasers and sensor vests, so there is no physical contact, no bruises and no upper age limit. For parents weighing up a paintball day for a mixed-age group, that tends to settle it.

A quick guide for Shire groups:

• Getting there: trains run through the Shire and parking is easy outside the beach strip, and the arena in Menai's Club Central precinct has plenty of undercover parking.
• The experience: a dim, air-conditioned maze of ramps, glowing walls, fog and loud music, played in missions of about 15 minutes including briefing and debrief.
• Group size: up to 25 players at once, which covers most birthday parties and sports teams in one booking.
• Booking lead time: every booking, casual games included, has to be made in advance.
• Food and drinks: birthday packages include hot food, soft drink and water, chips and lollies, and alcohol is not allowed on site.

Casual play starts from $20 per person, and birthday packages for eight guests run from $349 for Echo on Thursdays and Fridays to $479 for Bravo, with four missions over two hours. Each party gets the arena to itself with a host and a party room. Beyond birthdays, the venue can be booked out for corporate groups, team-building days, scout groups and Christmas parties, which gives Shire workplaces a local option that does not involve a trip into the city.