The 7 Best Paintball Places for Hours of Shooting Fun

Are you ready to learn the key aspects of a great paintball experience?

Let's start with the location. If you can't get to it, it's not a great place. Most people go paintballing with their friends. But the problem is that getting everyone together into one place, on the same day, is like herding cats. All the stars need to align. If the place you want to play at is miles out of town, the odds of friends skipping out increases.

That's why you want paintball to be close by.

Which brings us to the next point. Space. You see, no matter where the facility is, they need to have a lot of space. Specifically, an outdoor field should have a minimum of ten acres. Meanwhile, indoor facilities need at least 20,000 square feet of space. Anything less and things get crowded real fast.

Next, the hosting company needs to provide gun rentals and ammo refills. Believe it or not, but quite a few places require you to bring your own guns and paintballs. Remember what we said about friends? Not everyone will have their own gear, and the ability to rent goes a long way towards having a fun day with everyone.

Finally, you need to think about safety.

Get this. The most common injuries in paintball are eye-injuries and leg injuries (sprains, breaks, dislocations). Thus, the facility needs to have qualified first-aid employees. If they have a first-aid area where the injured can wait for an ambulance, that's even better. Most importantly, they need to be insured specifically for a paintball business. A quick email to the facility will answer these questions for you.

Why Indoors is Better

Have you ever planned a big day outdoors only to have it rain? Of course, we all have. So that's why you should go with an indoor paintball facility. Namely, the weather has no impact on your game. Best of all, you can even play in the winter!

But that's not all. Indoor paintball offers a faster pace. In other words, everyone is confined between four walls. Which means you're going to find your opponents rather quickly. And shoot them. Also, the best paintball places that offer indoor fun include plenty of rooms, corners, obstacles, and even balconies and stairwells to shoot from. If you loved the old Nintendo 64 "007 Goldeneye" game, then you'll love indoor paintball.

Finally, indoor paintball is better because you can find a decent facility in almost every city. Above all, you don't have to drive far out into the country. Just head over to the local paintball warehouse and have at 'er!

Why Outdoors is Better

On the other hand, there's nothing as epic as an outdoor game of paintball.

With acres of land to utilize, operators can set up any scenario they want. Villages, bunkers, forests, and trenches. I even once played on a field where they had an old Vietnam-era Huey helicopter. It sat on the ground on an angle; all the windows were busted out as if it had crashed. Let's just say our game turned into the adult version of King of the Hill around that chopper.

Also, with all that space, games turn into massive hunts. Snipers can stay hidden, and you can even deploy paintball bazookas and paintball grenades! You can't do that indoors.

How Much Will it Cost?

The best paintball places are fairly affordable. In fact, you'll find that the good places have the same prices as the not-so-good places.

Like with everything in life, prices depend on several variables. Are you bringing your own equipment? Or do you need to rent a gun? What about refills?

You can expect to pay between $ and $ to play in an outdoor facility, and between $ and $ for an indoor one. If you need to rent a paintball gun, add an extra $-$. Ammo refills will cost between $ and $ per 100 paintballs. All told, budget between $​$and $​$ for a day of fun, including food and drink.

First up is The Paintball Park. The Paintball Company owns and operates several massive paintball complexes on both coasts. They've got three in California and one in Quantico, VA.

Why are they so good? Well first off, they've got an actual Blackhawk helicopter on the ground! Also, each park has more than 30-acres of land to roam across. Then, there are the props. Each park has castles, tanks, villages, and even dinosaurs! You can bring your kids for light paintball, called "Kidsplat" and they'll never forget it.

You can expect to pay between $35 and $50 for an all-day excursion with a gun rental. That includes up to 1,000 pellets. If you bring your own gear, it's only between $ and $ to enter. Additional ammo costs between $ and $ depending on how much you need.

Next up is one of the most highly-rated paintball facilities in the northeast, according to customers. Skirmis​​h USA is just outside of Albrightsville, PA. Here's what makes them premier: Specifically, they've got 750 acres of land spread out across forest, meadows, and even mountains! Skirmish USA is the world's largest paintball field.

In fact, while Skirmish USA is primarily a paintball facility, they also offer whitewater rafting, horseback riding, and hiking adventures. But let's get back to paintball.

You see, at Skirmish USA, you get tons of different maps. To illustrate, there's castles, forests, and even a model city. They even have bunkers! But it gets even better. That's because your gun rental and unlimited N2 cartridge refills come with the price of admission. You're looking at between $ and $, depending on which package you choose and whether or not you book online. Then every 1,000 additional paintballs cost between $ and $.

All in all, plan on spending between $ and $​$ for an awesome day out.

Head out west to North Scottsdale, Arizona, and you'll find Westworld Paintb​​all. What's great about Westworld is you can choose between the outdoor Splatter Ranch or the indoor Xtreme Pursuit facility. Also, these guys have been in business for 32 years, so they know their stuff.

If you want to play indoors, then WestWorld is the place to go. Xtreme Pursuit is the largest indoor paintball facility in the southwest. There are 33,000 square feet of space, complete with obstacles and all the fun stuff. Meanwhile, the Splatter Ranch gives you 30 acres of land to play on, from desert to woods. One thing you'll love is the on-site refill stations. You don't need to run back to the pro shop to restock your N2 and paintballs. Just find the sandbagged kiosk, and you're good to go!

You're looking at between $ and $ to play for the day, including gun rental. 1,000 rounds of ammo will cost you between $ and $.

Next up is the PaintballPlex in Laotto, Indiana. While not as big as some of the other operators, PaintballPlex definitely has quality going for them. They've got nearly 12 acres of land, with a couple of two-acre scenario fields set up. Each scenario field has foxholes, sandbags, tunnels, and even a maze!

These guys host a lot of tournaments. They've got such a great field for setting up different scenarios that paintball leagues across the US and Canada come here. Expect to pay between $25 and $60 for a full day, including gun rental and a starter pack of pellets.

Head a little further south, and you'll find the best paintball facility in Texas. We're talking about Texas Paintball, located in Jonestown, TX. These guys have ten different fields spread out over nearly 100 acres. They've got trenches, Normandy, Vietnam, and you can even storm a crack house!

And get this: Texas Paintball has 21 years of experience in the business. One look at their facility and you can tell they've put their heart and soul into this operation, in true Texan style. A day here will cost between $ and $, which includes a gun and 500 rounds of ammunition. Every extra 1,000 rounds will cost you between $ and $, so bank on spending between $​$ and $​$.

For you paintball-loving Yankees, check out Pain​​tball Sports New York. You'll find them just outside Clintondale, NY. They've got 130 acres of beautiful New York terrain, including a road, a fort, some ridges, a massive maple and pine forest, and even a Hudson River crossing!

What makes Paintball Sports New York so fun is the massive wilderness you get to play in. These are some serious woods. And have you ever tried to cross a defended river? Good luck! That's just pure fun. You'll pay between $ and $ for the day, depending on whether or not you need to rent a gun. When it comes to ammo 1,000 rounds will cost you between $ and $. Best of all, they sell paint grenades. Fun!

Next up is Jaeger's Subsurface Paintball, the only underground paintball facility in the world! They're based right in Kansas City so it's easy to find if you're in the area.

Now, let's get to the underground facility. When you enter, you immediately think of Wolfenstein. There are cement walls and bare light bulbs lighting the way. You've got hallways and doors, and random obstacles. There may not be Nazis, but your friends will do.

But that's not all.

You see, Jaeger's also has a large outdoor facility. There are several fields to play in, including a Civil War-themed field (we don't suggest marching shoulder-to-shoulder), a landing zone, and a wooden town. Like most of the other paintball facilities in the country, expect to pay between $30 and $80 for a day of fun, with equipment rental.