VANCOUVER, Canada – From the Americas to Europe, from the Middle East to Asia, WhiteWater is pleased to announce over 60 projects anticipated to open this year across its product portfolio, covering water slides, aquatic play, and surf for a variety of venue types.
Here are the highlights by region.
The Americas
Earlier this year in March, Aquatica Orlando in Florida added new life to a much-loved slide by retrofitting covers and visual and audio effects to its popular Super Bowls and turned them into a one-of-a-kind immersive experience called, “Tassie’s Underwater Twist.” In April, Schlitterbahn New Braunfels in Texas opened its new kids’ area, “Schatze’s Storybrook Park,” with an AquaPlay 550 and children’s slides, the highlight of which is the world premiere of Mini Blaster, the junior edition of WhiteWater’s popular Master Blaster water coaster.
Summer in Georgia will see Margaritaville at Lanier Islands present the latest additions to its Fins Up Water Park: four inner tube rides, including Blasterango—a Master Blaster + Boomerango Fusion that will be the first water coaster in the state. Over in Mississippi, Hattiesburg Zoo will unveil Serengeti Springs, where guests will have hours of fun on the new animal-themed FusionFortress 10—a giant interactive aquatic play structure with nine slides, 280 features, two tipping buckets, and is surrounded by Life Floor®.
Heading north, Hurricane Harbor Maryland at Six Flags America will open “RipQurl Blaster,” the tallest water coaster in the mid-Atlantic—a thrilling Master Blaster with three AquaLucent hairpin turns. Meanwhile at Hurricane Harbor New Jersey at Six Flags Great Adventure, a RainFortress 5 with seven slides and over 180 features will open as “Splash Island.”
At the same time, Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park in Wisconsin Dells will be making headlines when the Rise of Icarus opens with five body slides, including North America’s tallest, a Freefall at 145 feet, to the delight of thrill-seekers. Not forgetting the little ones, the park will also open a new kids’ area with 10 water slides, AquaSplash toys, and Life Floor.
Across the border, Canada’s Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario, will introduce the country’s first 6-person Boomerango. Not too far away, Jellystone Park™ Niagara will open a pirate-themed AquaPlay 1050 with Life Floor.
When summer ends and families are seeking weather-proof entertainment, Bavarian Blast at Bavarian Inn in Frankenmuth will open the biggest indoor water park in Michigan, complete with inner tube slides, raft rides, and a kids’ area.
In Latin America, three new body slides have been added to the high-end property, Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. In Olímpia, Brazil, Thermas dos Laranjais, the most visited water park in South America, will open Nações, a tower with two epic six-person Family Master Blaster rides. Earlier in the year, Vallarta Adventures, a premium tour operator in Mexico, opened a FlowRider® Single on a private island.
FlowRider has proven to be a must on cruise ships. The year opened with a FlowRider Wave-in-a-Box Double on Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, and her sister ship, Utopia of the Seas, will have one too. Over at Carnival,the Legend will come out of dry dock with newly refurbished aquatic attractions.
Europe
Making the biggest waves in Europe will be O2 SURFTOWN MUC in Germany, marking the debut of Endless Surf. Featuring 34 wave-generating caissons that will offer powerful and customizable surf, this will be the first state-of-the-art surf lagoon on the continent and will transform the location-based entertainment scene in the region.
In Croatia, Aquapark Dalmatia by Amadria Park in Šibenik is making a large expansion to both its indoor and outdoor areas, with two slide towers launching five slides, an AquaPlay 250, a wave river, wave pool, and more.
Also expanding is Fårup Sommerland, Denmark’s beloved amusement and water park, with a slide tower hosting the world’s first Boomerango + Tailspin Fusion plus Parallel Pursuit dueling slides in addition to a new kids’ area.
In France, Futuroscope, a futuristic theme park in Chasseneuil-du-Poitou, will open an immersive indoor water park experience called Aquascope, which will include kids’ slides from WhiteWater.
Middle East
In Kuwait, Messilah Beach Club became even more upscale with the addition of an AquaPlay 1750, AquaSpray toys, kids’ slides, and a wave pool. Over in the UAE, Grand Hyatt Dubai will open a new water park with three slide towers, AquaPlay 1050, FlowRider Triple, a wave pool, and more. Centrally located near the airport on the way to Burj Khalifa, this hotel will become the city’s premium urban resort. At Yas Waterworld in Abu Dhabi, a new splash pad will provide fun for younger children as well as accessible play as the park expands with fresh, thrilling attractions.
WhiteWater will be announcing more exciting developments in this region in the coming months.
Asia Pacific
Several prominent projects will open in the Asia Pacific. At SnowStar in Shanghai, China, a water park will open as part of the entertainment complex that is home to the world’s largest indoor ski hill. The water park’s architectural design as well as all 15 of its attractions, both indoor and outdoor, are supplied by WhiteWater, including a six-person Blasterango. In Chongqing, Dream Space Water Park will open—with all water attractions supplied by WhiteWater—as the biggest water park in this city of 32 million people. Still in China, Aranya Resort in the picturesque town of Beidaihei will open an AquaPlay 650 and a splash pad—the first for this well-known luxury brand.
Eastward in Japan, two repeat clients are expanding their water parks. Tokyo Summerland will open an extreme river called, “Monster Stream.” And Nagashima Spa Land will open the world’s largest funnel slide—the Mega Abyss, whose diameter will be 15% larger than the next biggest one. Heading to Japan’s southern paradise island, Grand Mercure Okinawa Cape Zanpa Resort will be adding three water slides as part of the property’s rebranding and remodelling.
Much further south, at Waterbom Bali in Indonesia, the world’s largest modular interactive aquatic play structure—AquaForms 16—will impress with its 16 platforms, four slides, and over 130 features to discover along the myriad of paths.
Trusted Partner for All Venue Types
“This year is shaping up to be one of WhiteWater’s busiest,” said Onno Meeter, President, Water Parks. “We are not only helping established parks upgrade their entertainment offerings, we are bringing creative, world-class attractions to growing markets such as Saudi Arabia and South America. With the ambition of our clients and the trust placed on us, we’re able to bring extraordinary guest experiences to not just water parks and theme parks, but also hotels and resorts, surf parks, cruise ships, and mixed-use developments.
