The Year of the Waterpark?
K. F. Moffett, editor, Waterpark Report

As a contributing editor to Funworld and longtime Waterpark Report columnist, allow me to make one modest pronouncement: 2004 is the year of the waterpark. I might not have hard data to back me up and I’ll freely admit I’m a partisan, but the label rings particularly true. Maybe it’s because I’m writing this a mere two days before Memorial Day, when most U.S. waterparks are opening their gates and turning on their chlorinators for the season. Or because every week, news of another exciting waterpark project is announced, another funnel slide or interactive play area.

To wit: Cedar Point’s waterpark, Soak City, which opened with 10 slides on 18 acres in 1988, has made several improvements in the off-season, adding a huge new interactive play area called Splash Zone, and now offering private cabanas. Splash Zone has more than 100 water gadgets (geysers, squirt guns, slides) and a 1,000-gallon bucket as a centerpiece that pours out its contents on guests below every 10 minutes.

Guests who want to take a break from mingling with other guests will now be able to do so in the privacy of their own cabanas. Located next to the Breakers Bay wave pool, the new rentable cabanas will feature four chaise lounges, a dining table with umbrella and four chairs, four wave pool tubes, and a lockable storage drawer. The best part: Cabana-ites can also order food and beverages, including “adult” beverages, which will be delivered by a walk-up server.

“I think they’ll be very popular additions,” says Bryan Edwards, Cedar Point’s public relations coordinator. How does Edwards know? He says that the majority of the improvements and additions at Cedar Point are done at the behest of guest comments, through the park’s web site and at the park itself. “We focused on families this off-season,” he says, pointing out that Cedar Point added three restaurants, three live shows, and two new stores.

These are telling improvements at a park known for its mega-, giga-, hyper-coasters. Last year, of course, Top Thrill Dragster debuted.

“One of the things that makes Cedar Point successful,” Edwards says, “is that we try to focus on all of our customers, especially families with younger children. Some people might not be as excited by a new roller coaster as others. Their Top Thrill Dragster might be a new restaurant or a new live show.”

And this just in . . .
The Mississippi Business Journal has reported that the Grand Casino Resort in Tunica, Miss., will be building a $65-million, 30-acre waterpark. Called Grand Waterpark and scheduled to open in June 2005, the new park will feature indoor and outdoor pools, slides, and rides, along with food and beverage facilities.

The Grand Casino Resort, owned by Caesar Entertainment, is reportedly adding the waterpark in hopes of transforming itself into a more attractive regional destination for families. Construction will begin in the fall.