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NSW Rhodes

**UPDATE** Renovated Baby Oasis for Ikea – Rhodes Shopping Centre, Level 4, 1 Rider Blvd, Rhodes Sydney

Hi mums and dads!

Ikea Rhodes has given the Baby Oasis a makeover. Check out the new photos!

The private feeding cubicles are bigger, and each one has powerpoints!  The toys in the kiddy corner are alot safer than what was in there before. We like the bag hooks on the walls, so you can rest the nappy bag without putting it on the floor.

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Reviewed by B

Overall: Nappy change, feed, rest and play. Great! Lovely play area, with comfy couches and good little feeding cubicles.
Good Points: Right next to food hall; You don’t have to do the Ikea circuit to get to it – just straight up in the Ikea lift just inside the store entrance; Lots of fun things to keep your little ones entertained.
Bad Points: A couple of small planks of wood with screws sticking out were lying on the floor – not good!!!!! Nappy changes have to be done in a separate room – signs requesting this due to hygiene (fair enough I guess, but kinda inconvenient when we’re use to doing everything in the one place); The ‘duress’ button in the nappy change room – i’m thinking ’emergency’ might be easier for the general public to understand.

So my princess & I decided to tackle the wonderful world of Ikea last Wednesday. We haven’t been there in ages!! Main reason for the lag between visits is the time it takes to walk around the place. Crazy!! BUT we have since discovered the express route to the Parent Room – hooray!!!!
Just to the left of the grand escalator leading you to home improvement paradise, you’ll see the lift. Press the Up button, get in, and head to Level 5. Ta dah!!!! You’ll arrive at the Ikea Restaurant/Food Hall. Out of the elevator You’re faced with the seating area of the food hall, and to the right is the Feeding & Play area for little ones. It really is great.

There are 3 feeding cubicles, with curtains for privacy. Each has a comfy armchair and some shelves, plus a HUGE poster to let you know not to change nappies in there. This must be done in the Baby Change room, located down a small hallway along the side of the food hall/restaurant. Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve always thought Ikea smells like a nappy bucket anyway so I don’t see why they don’t want nappies changed in this room. Being right next to the seating area of the food hall/restaurant could have something to do with it (der!).

For little ones there are colourful rugs, chairs and cushions. Shelves, mini kitchen utensils, little sink etc to keep them well entertained. The flat screen television is real, but some wires have been pulled out underneath so….it’s not working. The microwave is also real and……it works!!! Yay!!!
So remember when you are in this particular room, you can feed, rest and play……but NO NAPPY CHANGES! (i’ll show you the room for nappy changes in just a sec).

Okay! To change nappies, you have to leave the feeding & play area. Annoying I know, but who wants to get kicked out of Ikea?! Could be a fun story to tell afterwards though hehehe. Anyway, right next to the food hall/restaurant is a hallway. It’s between the foodhall/restaurant and the awesome kids furniture/accessories part of Ikea. So head up the hall, and to your left you’ll find a door with one of those stick figure pictures of a person changing a baby. Stick figures must be a universal language.
You’re not going to have much room for a pram, unless it is an umbrella stroller. If you’re happy to do a 50pt turn with your pram in this room, then go for it! Otherwise, just leave it outside the door – or use it to chock the door open! That way you can keep an eye on it.
Toilet, nappy dispenser, paper towels, change bench, bin, sink, soap – all there. You really don’t have space or any reason to want to stay in this room for any longer than is necessary, except to read the ‘What We Do For Kids’ promo or the ‘Kids Menu’ poster. Got to have some reading material while you or your little one is on the loo.
There’s one loo. Above it is the sanitising spray thing, where you put paper underneath it, push the unit and sanitising spray spritzes out. Give the seat a wipe down and off you go.
Now, do you see the BIG RED BUTTON?
Yep, the button that’s bright and big and just the right height for little people to be able to whack it. Well, it’s the ‘duress’ button (more commonly known and understood to be the ’emergency’ button). Alot of us would know what ‘duress’ means, but I reckon it’s safe to say that there’s a whole lot of people who don’t know what it means. You could be forgiven for giving it a belt just to see what happens. Seriously, going to the loo or changing nappies should not require an advanced level of English. Just put ’emergency’ on the button!! And put it higher up the wall, away from curious little hands.
If your little person is mobile, you’ll probably need to keep a close eye on them in here. For such a tiny room there’s a bit for little people to get into. The big red button, for starters. The waste paper bin lid doesn’t sit properly on the unit, and would easily hit the floor with a gentle nudge. The paper towel unit above the sink was open and spilling towels when we visited. Just another play area really.
Personally, I’m not a fan of the position of the change area. It’s a bit difficult to change bubs when she’s lying crossways. Maybe it’s just me. The raised side is great, however, as it helps keep bub in place during the nappy change. If it means bubs doesn’t fall into the nappy bins below, I am happy.
So the Parent Room/s in Ikea are pretty good really. Not the best but not the worst either. And for place that does a $1 hot dog…………what more could you ask for?!! I like it 🙂