I took my kids and their 2 friends (11 and 13 year olds) on a 90 degree Tuesday in July. Here are some helpful tips:
1. Go early, get in line right away, apply sunscreen while you wait, etc… We got there about 20 minutes before the park opened, got thru security/bag check and got into the park right away.
2. Grab chairs immediately, if you want them.
3. Go on as many rides as possible in the first hour or two. The lines are smaller and you don’t have a long wait. My kids went on 4 rides in the first 15 minutes. As the day goes on, it gets very busy. I’d recommend a weekday.
4. Everything is crazy expensive but I’ve never been to an amusement/water park that isn’t. (ie: chicken strips and FF are $16. Dip and dots are $10) PACK A PICNIC and eat at your car.
5. No carry in’s allowed – not even water (my biggest complaint)
6. You don’t need to rent a tube, nothing ran out of tubes except for the lazy river.
7. The lockers are wonderful. $12 for the smallest but it fit a backpack and you can go in and out of it as many times as you want all day long. Highly recommend.
I was impressed with the amount of employees at the park, cleaning and maintaining the public areas. I was also impressed with the lifeguards. They were very attentive, especially in the lazy river and wave pool. The wave pool was our biggest disappointment. It was over-crowded and dirtier than anywhere else. The lazy river was also a bit crowded and the exit was annoying b/c everyone stood there trying to get tubes from you. We waited on average, maybe 10 minutes per ride but by late afternoon, we did wait for 30 minutes for one. Again, go early and do a lot! We spent 5 hours there and really enjoyed ourselves. I would like to try Hurricane Harbor in Chicago to compare the two. We did not try that one b/c we heard they were having staffing issues and trouble keeping rides open. Worth the 1 1/2 hour drive we took to get there!
