Dust off your swimsuit and GO make a few waves. These super water parks could really warm up winter.
They really should call them “aqua cathedrals,” and America loves them! One estimate has over 1,100 water parks in the US. and in the depths of our dark, cold weather and giant snowfalls, there’s nothing like splash-splashing away, in 80+ degrees, climate-controlled, wave-making, tube-sliding activities. GO Airport Shuttle can recommend some of the best water parks in the country. Let’s dive in.
Sitting within easy access to the Dallas-Ft. Worth area is Epic Waters. Under a giant retractable roof, sits 80,000 square feet of water fun. There’s the Lasso Loop, Yellowjacket Drop, plus the longest lazy river in north Texas. Young kids will enjoy an epic splash pad, and from now until March 23, there’s even an indoor Epic Circus included with your ticket.
Not to be outdone, the Kalahari Resorts facility near Austin offers 350,000 square feet of water pleasure, both inside and outside. Slides, rivers, and pads abound. Kalahari offers an adult night (over 21) on March 14 and Duck Derby Day on March 22. This is a complete resort with special weekend packages. Stay a few days, or just for a few hours. Always fun!
Located in easily accessible East Rutherford, New Jersey sits the Largest Indoor Water Park in North America. American Dream Works Water Park gives you 81-degree tropical weather all winter long, giant slides (at last count 15!), with optional luxury cabanas for a bit of privacy, if you want. There’s also a new Gabby’s Dollhouse Splash Garden for young kids and a special sunset excursion trip through this indoor tropical paradise. After the recent east coast “snow-pocalypse,” Dream Works sounds like the perfect diversion.
Here’s a fun way to get a weekend getaway: Sahara Sam’s near Philadelphia is only open weekends during February and March, but you can pack a lot of wet fun into that amount of time. Raging River, Tiki Tides, Paradise Cove, Komodo Crossing, Mount Kilimanjaro, these are just a few of Sahara Sam’s wet and wild features. You get the picture: it’s jungle-themed fun with water, water and more water everywhere you look. Why “Sahara,” who knows?
Opryland has something a little different for you to enjoy: SoundWaves. Indoor and outdoor, covering 4 acres, this facility seeks to provide an upscale water park experience. Dedicated areas are defined for adults, young kids and families, for one thing. Guaranteed admission comes only with an overnight stay package. But the list of activities will keep you so active all day long, you’ll appreciate a good night’s rest right on the property. Here’s what you have to look forward to: the Up Tempo Rapid River, the Down Tempo Lazy River (Nashville is the Music City), Stage Dive (two slides in a translucent tube), plus a large raft ride called Rapid RemixTM and the Record LaunchTM for an intense centrifugal experience. Right next door is Gaylord’s Opryland, so we expect the piped in music will keep you smiling.
The Great Wolf option
In case none of the cities listed above fall into your travel plans over the next few months, there’s one company that offers a getaway water park experience with the largest family of locations in the country: The Great Wolf Lodge. Check here for a map of the country to find a specific location that matches your travel plans.
Each Great Wolf Lodge is a little different, but they all promise 84-degree temps and tons of fun water action, including slides, sprays, pads, tubes, fast and slow flowing rivers, pools, and cabanas. The largest water park in Georgia is the Great Wolf Lodge near Atlanta with its Slap Tail Pond and Crooked Creek. The Great Wolf Lodge near Cincinnati offers the River Racer, a 2-person speed float, and Fort Mackenzie, a towering, showering play structure. In Minneapolis (and you know how cold it is in Minneapolis about now), you’ll have a howlin’ good Great Wolf time on their speedy Crooked Creek tubing ride or even a wall climb.
And don’t miss the Spring Splash Fest this March and April at the Great Wolf Lodge near Boston or the Lodge located near Charlotte, North Carolina.
No matter where you find your water park experience, make sure it’s restful and relaxing from start to finish. GO Airport Shuttle can help you with transportation to and from the airport. Our destination cities are listed here, for a seamless excursion into America’s water park world, give us a call. Have fun!