Aquatica Revisited: An Honest Review

Over the years, I have had the pleasure of visiting several different water parks, both indoors and out. I have visited the largest outdoor water park, Noah's Ark in Wisconsin Dells, which is an amazing water park. The largest indoor water park, The Kalahari in Sandusky, Ohio; it may have size but that's about it. A few mom and pop water parks that had two slides at the most and are no longer in business, and some major park chain water parks. I have also visited all of  the water parks Disney World has had, River Country  included. It pretty safe to say, I like water parks and enjoy going to them and on my last trip to Orlando, I revisited Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach. I also recently visited the AquaVenture at Atlantis in Nassau.  The visits to those water parks made me really appreciate Aquatica.

Aquatica.... you have arrived

Aquatica is a water park that is part of the SeaWorld Orlando park complex that includes SeaWorld and Discovery Cove. Aquatica opened in 2008 billed as a whimsical, one-of-a-kind waterpark unlike any you've ever experienced, immersing you  in the playfulness of the sea. This park heavily relies on the uniqueness of water park attractions with animal interactions.

The star attraction of this park is  Dolphin plunge, a water slide that send you through the home of  black-and-white Commerson's Dolphins. When I heard about this attraction, I was sold and dead set on getting to this water park. I went into this park with high expectations and was really looking forward to the animal interactions like those of the Dolphin Plunge would have to offer.

Hello little guy, is there someone in that slide?

Look you have a friend also!

As always when heading to a water park, I plan on getting there at gate opening, crowds are generally smaller, lockers and chairs are easier to find, plus you can usually get a decent amount of slide time in before the afternoon showers interrupt the day and gates are closed because the parks are at capacity. My expectation grew as we entered the park with all the lush foliage and theming that is present around the Dolphin Plunge slide and the Commerson's Dolphins.  The kids excitement grew as well; we just had to get on that slide. So we got a locker that just happened to come with a "free" souvenir towel then headed straight for the Dolphins Plunge.

 Our  excitement turned to frustration because as soon as we got to the top of the slide, my daughter, who wears a shirt over her swimsuit to help from getting badly sun burnt, was told she couldn't ride with the shirt on and had to exit the slide and put it in the locker. This after walking past several park employees that monitored the line for the slide and no signage indicating shirts were not allowed. So, instead of walking all the way back to the locker, I had my daughter take the shirt off and I went and waited for her to ride, then gave her her shirt back after her journey through Dolphin Plunge(this was the only slide the unposted rule was enforced on). At the end of her ride, her reaction to the slide was rather lackluster.  So it was my turn to ride and I will have to say, I too was disappointed. The problems with this slide is the tube that goes  through the tank with the dolphins was cloudy and hard to see out of, plus you actually go through that portion of the slide so fast, it is hard to see the dolphins. The dolphins would have to be literally right next to the tube to actually see them.  Needless to say, out of the 4 of us that rode it, none of  us saw the dolphins while on the slide, and none of us liked the slide. The dolphins are best viewed from the underwater viewing area near the entrance of the park. Now the themeing and foliage that are around Dolphin Plunge is very detailed and also has some nice bridge overlooks for those long waits to use the slide.It is a decent experience with a lackluster slide, if you are more interested in just seeing the dolphins, skip the slide and head over to the underwater viewing area. Sporadically throughout the day there were trainers in the underwater viewing area to educate about the Commerson's Dolphins. Now to be fair over down at Atlantis's AquaVenture they had the infamous Leap of Faith Water slide through a tank of sharks. It has the same lackluster type slide that speeds your through the tank so you can't see the Sharks. The other tube slide that went through the tank was slower and more unique experience!

The best view for the Commerson's dolphins
is the underwater observation area off the slide

After spending our time at the Dolphin Plunge we headed over to the newest addition to the park at that time, Omaka Rocka. Since our visit Ihu's Breakways Falls has opened and I eagerly want to experience those new slides!
Omaka Rocka is a tube slide with sections that are half-pipes.  My family loves the half pipe/funnel slides and this one had several sections that fed into smaller versions of  half pipe slides, so it was bound to be a hit. It ended up being pretty boring. The reason this was boring, the half pipe sections of the slides became mini-splash down pools and did not allow the experience that larger half pipe slides offer.(google a youtube video of Michigan Adventure's Funnel of Fear for a good idea of what large half pipe slides are like)  So the first two slides of the day were not home runs.  So we decided to hit Roa's Rapids.

Roa's Rapids is a fast moving river with water falls, rapids and lush foliage all around. Roa's Rapids far exceeded our expectations and was by far the star of the park for my family and myself. We spent hours floating this river. My wife and I had to drag the kids out of it.We loved that it was a free of  inner tubes and you could opt in to wearing a FREE personal flotation devices. While there were no animal interactions on this river, unlike the lazy river Loggerhead Lane, giggles and cheers filled this area of the park. A special note about Loggerhead Lane, while it is the a lazy river, one can easily miss the fish tank on this river because of the split in the river and placement of the tank. Also be forewarned, to access some of the water slides(just a couple), you have to walk through Loggerhead Lane to get to them. This can be very confusing if you don't follow the signs.

The rest of the water park  had standard water park slides, kid's slide& splash complex, and a well themed, but tame wave pool with a sandy beach.  The animal interactions were just ok.  We loved Roa's Rapids, and it was interesting to see Commerson's Dolphins in a water park(just not the water slide affixed to them). Aquatica is a nice small water park and is well worth a visit. If you can, definitely look for a deal where you can get a day at SeaWorld or Discovery Cove that includes admission to Aquatica(currently those deals are available but could change at anytime). Aquatica has it picturesque areas but still has room to improve.Roa's Rapids made up for the shortcomings of Dolphin's Plunge. This is still a young park and a new concept for SeaWorld, I hold hope out that this park can be expanded and improved upon. Aquatica is probably one of the better Water Park in Central Florida. It's hard to live in the shadows of Wet n Wild, Typhoon Lagoon, and Blizzard Beach, but  Aquatica has stepped out from the shadows and become a force in Central Florida.We will come back to the park over the years because over all, it is a really is a nice park.

Aquatica is neatly placed behind Seaworld, as you can see it behind
Journey to Atlantis here.

Staying On-Site at Disney World: A little known but important benefit

There are many benefits that Disney publicly advertises to entice guest to stay in the on-site resorts, but there are some benefits Disney doesn't advertise. One of these unadvertised benefits is a great perk that gives on-site guest an advantage they may not even know they are receiving. That benefit kicks in when the parks reach capacity.

How does it work?
When a park reaches capacity, Disney goes into what as know as Phase Closures. There are 4 Phases of closures that have been determined to try to maintain guest satisfaction. Notice I mentioned the word try because when a park gets to these levels, there will be dissatisfaction resulting from the waits for rides,food, restrooms, and attractions. Some people have been able to get their hands on the actual policy Disney has and implements when capacity is reached and phase closures kick in. Others, like myself, have learned from experience what is part of a phase closure and who will benefit and who will be denied entry.On-Site Guest will be some of the last people affected by the Phase of Closures.

Why is this important?
Well we are quickly approaching the Holiday season and the Grand Opening of the New FantasyLand. During the Holiday season (especially New Year's Eve) the parks are sure to reach capacity. These next few months is also the time of year several families book their Spring Vacations. The Spring break time is another time when parks tend to reach capacity. It is important to note that phase closures also apply to the Water Parks and the Water Parks generally reach capacity much quicker than the 4 major parks!(It is no fun at all to be in the water parks when they are at capacity, if there is a phase closure, hit the hotel pool instead.)

Below is a breakdown of what happens for each Phase of Closure based on experience and what has filtered out to travel agents by those that have seen the actual policy.

Phase 1
Guest will be turned away at the Parking Lot Toll Plaza if they have:
A 1-Day 1-Park Ticket
No admission ticket
Cast Members using Main Gate &Silver Passes
YES DISNEY WILL TURN YOU AWAY!!!

Guest that can enter during Phase 1 are:
Those with multi-day or multi-park tickets
Those staying at a Disney Resort(including the Walt Disney World Swan and
Dolphin, and guests arriving by bus from the Hotel Plaza Boulevard
hotels)
Annual Passholders and Premium Annual Passholders
Those re-entering the park that day.
Those "hopping" from another park.
Those with in-park reservations or reservations for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique or
The Pirates League.
Those arriving via Disney transportation

Phase 2
Guest that will be allowed to enter a park include:
Disney Resort Guests (including the Walt Disney World Swan and
Dolphin, and guests arriving by bus from the Hotel Plaza Boulevard
hotels)
Guests with dining reservations
Magic Kingdom Guests with reservations for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique or
The Pirates League
Guests using Walt Disney World Resort Transportation will be admitted.
Annual and Premium Annual Passholders

Phase 3
Admission is limited to:
Disney Resort Guests (including the Walt Disney World Swan and
Dolphin, and guests arriving by bus from the Hotel Plaza Boulevard
hotels)
Premium Annual Passholders
Guests with dining reservations
Magic Kingdom Guests with reservations for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique or
The Pirates League

Phase 4
Closed to all guests.
Aspect of these closures can be changed at anytime by Disney.

What is important to note is, if you are traveling to see all that Disney has to offer and can't pass up that great deal to stay at an off-site location; the only thing you might see is the toll plaza and cast member telling Sorry Folks We're Closed. Please don't go Clark Griswald on that poor Cast Member! So if you are planning to head to a Disney Park during the busy season, plan on experiencing crowds and rest assured it is a very wise choice to stay at an on-site resort.

Sorry Folks We're Closed

Have you ever been at a Disney Park when it was in a Phase Closure? Tell us your experience.

HolidayWorld......World class Coasters, Water Park, and Staff

HolidayWorld and Splashin' Safari, you have probably heard of this amusement and water park if you have ever seen any of the Travel Channel's amusement park shows or even on National Geographic's Tough Fixes. This small amusement park located between Louisville, KY and Evansville, IN in the hills of the Ohio river valley, is the major highlight of Santa Claus, Indiana. Even though it is in a small town in Indiana, this park should be a highlight for any family, amusement park industry worker, or amusement park owner across the United states. Why you might ask? Just for starters, at this park,the owners greet guests on the way in and thank them for visiting upon exiting the park.....IN PERSON. Something that only Walt Disney had been to known to do at Disneyland when he was alive. The hospitality doesn't just stop with the owners, all of the employees seem genuinely glad to work there are take pride in keeping the park "the cleanest amusement park in the world."

Beautiful Saturday afternoon, not a cloud in the sky!

Matt's Firehouse Family Vacation Troop posing for a Picture.

HolidayWorld is smaller than many Six Flags or Cedar Fair parks(Cedar Point, Michigan Adventure, or Knott's Berry Farm) that dot the the United States, but they have world class coasters and record breaking water rides that make any journey to this park worth the trip.This park is divided up into the holidays of Halloween, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, and Christmas; all the rides are themed to the specific land they are in.

The Raven

HolidayWorld's star attractions are their three World Class Wooden Coasters, The Raven, The Legend, and the wooden Roller Coaster with most airtime in the world, The Voyage.  Guests catch their first glimpse of  The Raven at the entrance of the park. This coaster is very well laid out and a nice jaunt through the woods and over a small section of a lake. This coaster starts out kind of okay, but once you hit the second hill, this coaster shows why it was voted #1 Wooden Roller Coaster between 2000 and 2003; a very nice accomplishment for a small amusement park to have for its ride inventory!

HolidayWorld didn't stop with The Raven; The Legend was the next coaster to be built, running through the woods and beneath the water park attractions with amazing tunnels and tight turns. This coaster was able to lay claim to the #1 wood roller coaster graciously borrowing the title from the Raven. This is a truly amazing coaster. The tunnels add dark thrills and as an added extra touch, there is a wolf howl as you crest the first hill. The Legend truly lives up to its name, this coaster is legendary.

The Legend

The Legend's reign as #1 wooden coaster was short lived until The Voyage arrived in the park. This is truly one of the best wooden roller coasters in existence.  The combination of extreme air time, speed, forest environment, 90 degree banked curves, and massive tunnels easily lets this coaster top any coaster enthusiast list (I am going to have to update my list!), and that is just the first half of the coaster! The return trip is just as exciting and  when you catch a glimpse of the station and think the ride is over, you are surprised with another tunnel and more 90 degree banked turns. This Coaster takes hold of you and doesn't let go of you until the final brake run. These coasters are something any coaster fan should not miss!

Add the element of the dark night sky or silhouette of a full moon and you have pure coaster magic!

The Voyage #1 wooden roller coaster in the United States if not the world.

Matt's Firehouse Family Vacations Coaster Crew having a blast on the Voyage.

Now in the valley of the hills of HolidayWorld is Splashin Safari. In the shadows of the Voyage and over the top of the Legend lies this world class water park which is included in your admission.  There are many standard water park slides and attractions here, all of which are worth riding. The stars that have graced this valley in recent years are the brand new water coasters. That's right water coasters! They aren't just any water coasters either; they are longest and second longest water coasters in the United States! Wildebeest was the first built and held the title of the longest water coaster for about  2 years until its big brother Mammoth opened right next to it this year(2012).  Both of these rides are marvels to look at and a marvel of technology using LIMS to power riders up hill in rafts. We were only able to ride Wildebeest this trip because of the long lines both of these rides quickly gained once the the water park opened; at one point Mammoth had a mammoth of a line at 2 hours long. A nice tip if you are going to ride either of these water coasters, wear a pair of goggles so you can see where your going. Also in the water park is ZOOMbabwe, the World's Largest Enclosed Water slide. This was a treat to ride and there are interesting holes punched into the slide's enclosure that make different  masks designs that zoom by.

The Voyage as seen from the water park, Tubes are free also!!!

One of two wave pools, man this place is clean

Wildebeest is hiding behind Bakuli , it is the red and yellow slide in the background. 

Entrance to one of the two lazy rivers. Notice how clean this park is?

One of the several kid's areas Kima Bay

 The water park and amusement park share a record breaking ride that can be accessed from both parks. It is the world's tallest water ride; The Pilgrims Plunge. It is in the Thanksgiving area of the park kind of off by itself currently(maybe that will change with future expansion of the park). It has a very unique look to it and fun elevator ride to the top. The splash down is disappointing, but you will get wet. The view of the park is spectacular from the top and it is worth riding just to feel the un-natural tilt of the boat on the lift to the top. If you don't want to get your belongings wet there are free lockers available, all of the coasters also had free lockers to store stuff as well, another perk this park offers that many other parks don't.

Pilgrim's Plunge the world's tallest water ride

Disappointing Splash down, I was hoping to get more wet than we did.

Looks more spectacular than it is

Long lines were not generally present on either of the 2 days we were at this park. As matter of fact when we arrived at the park on Friday afternoon, we had absolutely no wait on any of the Roller Coasters in the amusement park section. The longest wait we had was for the Turkey tilt-a-whirl and Hallowswings because of load times. We didn't attempt to go to the water park on Friday at all to use the water slides, but did a quick walk through on our way to ride The Pilgrims Plunge.The lines appeared short and manageable at that time. Saturday was a different beast all together. Locals from Louisville, Evansville, and surrounding areas descended on the park quickly filling the water park and lines got long within a half hour of the water park opening( the water park opens an hour after the amusement park). We were able to ride several of the water  slides but eventually gave up and headed back into the amusement park. The lines in the amusement park for the Roller Coasters were about a half hour wait and the other rides were pretty much walk-on until the water park closed. Another great tip about this park, visit during the week, the crowds should be shorter.

So you’re not a roller coaster or water ride fan? HolidayWorld, which is built on a hillside, has something for everyone in the family. Relaxing antique cars, classic swings, merry-go-round, many children's areas, live shows (music and diving show), FREE soft drinks, shaded pathways, home-made fudge, bumper cars, Santa Claus, FREE soft drinks, train ride, water splash areas,a dark "shooter" turkey ride, turkey tilt-a-whirl, and did I mention FREE soft drinks? For you entire stay at the park, you get FREE unlimited soft drinks and Gatorade!!!!At other amusement parks you are lucky to walk away with an overpriced $6 small pop. Oh and if you forget your sunscreen, they've got you covered there as well with FREE sunscreen.



Lodging can be an issue when it comes to HolidayWorld if you plan on visiting for more than a day. We made the mistake of choosing to stay in Jasper, Indiana. Jasper is about 30 minutes away and there is no need to travel to this town for lodging. Located right next door to HolidayWorld is Lake Rudolph Campground. This campground offers many different lodging options from tent camping sites, RV sites, and  nestled amongst the woods very nice cabins. The cabins can be kind of pricey but are worth every penny. We have stayed in similar cabins at Cedar Point and enjoyed them very much.You can walk or take the shuttle from Lake Rudolph to the front gates of HolidayWorld, which is a great convenience. Just down the road there is another establishment called Santa's Cottages, these also are cabins/cottages that are pricey, but well worth it for any family. Both Lodging locations book fast, so make sure you get those reservations in early! We will be staying at one these establishments on our next trip to HolidayWorld(yes we will be going back there again; the 7 hour drive for us, is well worth it). There are a few other lodgings near HolidayWorld which we didn't have time to check out, but once again there is no need to head Jasper for lodging.

If you haven't heard about HolidayWorld by now, that may change in the near future because they were shooting a 'Sizzle" reel recently to possibly have a reality show filmed there. Film crews and TV shows will continue to showcase this place based on its record breaking coaster collection and water rides. The theme park industry as a whole can learn from HolidayWorld and follow their examples in hopes to win some of the awards they have won. Here are few examples of what has been bestowed upon them:

Friendliest Park1998–2008,
Cleanest Park2000–2011
Best Wooden Roller Coaster 2000–2003 The Raven
Best Wooden Roller Coaster 2007–2011 The Voyage
Best New Ride 2006 he Voyage
Best New Waterpark Ride 2006 Bahari River
Best New Waterpark Ride2007 Bakuli
Best New Waterpark Ride 2010 Wildebeest
Best Waterpark Ride 2003 Zinga
Best Waterpark Ride 2010–2011 Wildebeest

We truly enjoyed our visit to HolidayWorld and plan on returning to not only enjoy the parks, but to explore many other of the area's attractions. Seeing this park on TV really doesn't do the park justice.Their collection of record breaking rides, scenic location, and amazing hospitality needs to be experienced in person to understand how amazing this park really is.

Enjoy some of our other pictures and share your stories about HolidayWorld! 

Scenic drive from the Louisville area to Santa Claus, IN

We are almost there!!!!!

Our first view of the Voyage and Pilgrim's Plunge! Two Record breakers soooo close!

Once in the entrance it becomes Christmas... Look how clean this place is!

Granny tells you how to call turkeys in the "shooter" dark ride

Pilgrim's Plunge splash down pool and station

Turkey Tilt-a-Whirl, our girls decided to name their turkeys...yea they are weird like that.

Holidog!

Splash area for kids.... and adults

Nicely themed bumper cars

The Sparkler New for 2012

wow, this place is clean!

HallowSwings nicely themed to Halloween

It is always Christmas at HolidayWorld.
Hope you enjoyed our pics.

How to choose your tickets at DisneyWorld. It can be confusing

********* A VERY IMPORTANT NOTE WHEN CHOOSING TICKETS: If you are looking to experience to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter™, This is at Universal Orlando's Island of Adventure and NOT at Walt Disney World. Many people have mistakenly thought this is at Disney's Hollywood Studios(we encountered several people asking cast members at Disney's Hollywood Studios where it was in that park)and end up angry when they find out that it is not there.********

Choosing how you want to enjoy the magic at DisneyWorld includes determining what type of ticket is the best value for your family. Disney gives you plenty of options when it comes choosing tickets, but some people unknowingly purchase something they don't want, need, or don't get the right ticket for what they want to do.  Choosing the wrong ticket easily raises the cost of your vacation and can even put it out of your budget; it may even leave you feeling disgruntled during your stay at Disney World. Here I will try to explain the current(2012/2013) theme park, add ons, and annual passes that can be purchased without going into pricing just to give a general overview.  This broad overview will serve as a guide to help you understand the options you can choose, so you can experience most of what Disney has to offer based on specific ticket types.(There are other admissions, special tours, experiences, shows, events, and programs that are offered that are not part of  normally purchased tickets or vacation packages.)

The tickets have evolved and changed over the years, but make great souvenirs after your visit.

Theme Park Tickets

For 2012/2013  Tickets for Walt DisneyWorld are being called Magic Your Way Tickets.

Basic Ticket

The most basic form of these tickets are called the Magic Your Way Base Ticket.

Disney tickets use to be paper like this one.

Each Magic Your Way Base Tickets gives one person entry to one Theme Park per day for each day you have purchased for your ticket. Once you enter that park, your "stuck" in that park. You can enter and leave that same park as many times as you like during the regular operational hours of that park. This is a ticket that I would only recommend to someone that has no problem staying in one park for each day their ticket is valid. It is important to note the more days on a ticket you buy, the cost per day goes down.

Park Hopper Option 

The Park Hopper option is an up charge add on to your Magic Your Way Base Ticket. With this add on you are not stuck in the same park each day  your ticket is valid.  You have the flexibility to enter and leave  the Magic Kingdom Park, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, and Disney's Animal Kingdom on the same day for the entire length of your ticket. The Magic Your Way Base Ticket with Park Hopper is the ticket I recommend to everyone. It opens Walt Disney World up in so many ways allowing freedom to choose where you want to go based on crowds and where you would like to dine. Even with the best touring plans and itineraries, you may feel the need to deviate from the plan and just go where you feel like going. This ticket gives you that option.

Water Park Fun & More Option

This use to be the Water Park Fun& More option and had less restrictions

This up charge to the base ticket can be a great value or a tremendous waste of money; plus there is a lot of small print with this up charge. One would really have to consider how often they would like to visit the water parks or other offerings that this up charge offers.  It may prove cheaper to just purchase tickets individually to each offering than to add this up charge to your entire ticket, it just really all depends on your length of stay and an important side note to this up charge is  the Number of visits depends on number of days purchased on a Magic Your Way Ticket. This is where a travel agent like myself really comes in handy to help with the price break down and comparisons. This option includes includes entrance to Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park ,Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park, DisneyQuest Indoor Interactive Theme Park, Disney's Oak Trail Golf Course, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, Disney's Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf Course or Disney's Winter Summerland Miniature Golf Course. All of these extras for this up charge do have a significant amount of fine print and restrictions.

No Expiration Option

If this ticket had not expired. Disney would have had to honor it.
This ticket is from 2003 and no longer offered.

In theory, if you purchase this option, your unused Theme Park days that you have purchased and Water Park Fun & More option that have been added on to those days never expire. Your Magic Your Way Tickets will expire 14 days after first use otherwise. As I said in theory because Disney can change their policies at anytime and laugh all the way to the bank with your money in hand. Back in the day, when a park ticket was bought, the ticket never expired. Someone decided along the way that this notion was a bad idea. So now Disney makes you pay to have that option. Honestly, unless under special circumstances, this option is a waste of money.  Why? Well when you book a package or buy your tickets you can choose the number of days you have on the ticket, so in theory you only pay for the days you are going to use in the theme parks, there is no need to buy more days than that. Unless you intend to spend single days at different times of the year at the park, even then if you go more than 10 days a year, it maybe worth purchasing an annual pass...See below. This is another place where a Travel agent, such as myself, comes in handy to help you figure this out.

******Warning Scam Alert***** Some agents may suggest you buy the no expiration option on your ticket and suggest you sell your remaining days on your ticket to a business that re-sells tickets or is a discount ticket seller. DO NOT DO THIS YOU WILL END UP IN JAIL AND FINED HEAVILY. If you buy a ticket from one these sellers, Disney will not honor it. You are out the money, you may even end up in jail for purchasing these tickets and fined also. ONLY BUY TICKETS FROM A DISNEY AUTHORIZED TICKET AGENT.
 

Let The Memories Begin tickets

Annual Passes

Basic Annual Pass

For really Lengthy stays, if you make several trips a year, or are a local(ish) type person; a Basic Annual Pass may be the best deal for you. The Basic Annual Pass provides a full year access to Disney World theme park with park hopping, "free" theme park parking, discounts on Resort Hotels, dining, and merchandise. Also occasionally there will be exclusive Passholder special events and privileges.
In the past there have been blackout dates with this Basic Annual Pass when you wouldn't be able to enter the parks. Currently there are no blackout dates listed but as always the fine print says "Pass types, entitlements and prices subject to change without notice." So yea Disney covers their butt on that one if they should again decide to implement black out dates.

Premium Annual Passes

The Premium Annual Pass is a great option if you plan on spending great lengths of time not only at the theme parks but at the water parks and golf courses etc.  What you get with this besides a large price tag is 365 days of access to all of the Disney World theme parks on the same day,"free" theme park parking, Access to Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park, Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park, DisneyQuest Indoor Interactive Theme Park, Disney's Oak Trail Golf Course, and ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. You also get discounts on Resort Hotels, dining, and merchandise. Also occasionally there will be exclusive Passholder special events and privileges. Again though, there is the nice small print "Pass types, entitlements and prices subject to change without notice."  Greens fees for one round of golf; tee times are required and are subject to availability and some events require an additional admission charge."



There are other tickets  like the Water Park Single Day Tickets and DisneyQuest Single Day Tickets, both of these tickets have there pluses and minus, but then again it all depends on what your looking for out of your vacation.

When it comes to Universal Orlando ticket options, it becomes a whole different ball game. So stay tuned as we explore those options in a future blog posting.

 How many of you save your Tickets as a Souvenir from your trips?

Indiana Beach Amusement Resort.... An Oasis in Corn Country

The Norway Dam that creates Lake Shafer

Indiana Beach Amusement Resort, maybe you have heard of it, maybe you haven't. It has been in  Indiana's corn country and out in the middle of nowhere since the 1920's. It sits next to and on top of Lake Shafer, an artificial lake that was formed with the creation of the Norway Dam on the Tippecanoe River. With the formation of this lake, an oasis rose in an area full of corn farms, drawing many families to the area to snap up this newly created waterfront property for summer vacation homes. Back then one family saw the potential of this newly created water front property and literally built a beach to provide a place for people to enjoy water activities. This was the modest beginnings of Indiana Beach, which since then has grown into "Indiana's largest Resort and Vacation Playground" advertising over 40 rides and attractions, games, fine dining, dancing, an exciting Waterpark, and six roller coasters.

One of the few highlights of the trip to Indiana beach

As mentioned before, Indiana Beach is in the middle of nowhere, making it a boring trip through corn country on two lane roads and through small towns. Occasionally in the small towns there will be interesting sites or signs. One that stood out was near Knox, Indiana  pointed out it was 1080 miles to DisneyWorld. Wish we would have gotten a picture, but we were on limited time and on a mission to see what has made Indiana Beach thrive in the middle of corn country.  Adding to fuel the desire to visit this amusement resort is that this park could easily be on the verge of extinction.

Corn as far as the eye can see

This assumption  is based on the sudden closure at the end of the season of 2011 and protest by former employees claiming the new owners are being lax on safety and maintenance of the rides. I will get to that more later.

After making our voyage through the back country roads and small towns we arrived at Indiana Beach about an hour after opening and had no issues finding parking. As matter of fact, we had our choice of parking spots on this sunny and hot Saturday Morning. The empty parking lot lead us to believe this place was going to be deserted, but as we were stepping out of the truck, buses began to arrive. My  wife quickly got sun-blocked up and we made a bee line for the ticket booths.

Nice picture spot, love the t-shirt

We were warmly greeted  near the ticket booths and directed to specific lines because certain booths could  take cash only due to debit/credit card machines not working. Machines like that go down all the time so no big issue. A major issue we found out later in the day, there are no working ATM machines at Indiana beach, there haven't been for sometime. So if you want to play the carnival games, bring cash.
 Stepping up to the ticket window,  there was a sign posted that The Splash Battle was not working along with the parks signature coaster, the Hurricane Hoosier. So in theory, there were 38 other rides and attractions and 5 other roller coasters we could challenge. We had decided earlier in trip that we were not going to go to the water park because of time constraints and really wanted to explore the rest of the park because there was the real of threat thunderstorms ending the day even earlier than we had hoped. So we purchased our pay one price for rides only wristband which was decent value of $24.95. To include the water park the price would have been $34.95 or if you didn't want to do either the rides or water park, you could purchase a $2.00 boardwalk admission. Wristband on, we head through the south entrance to the park.

The south entrance to the park is across a suspension bridge(the longest in Indiana, or so Indiana Beach claims)  making for a very picturesque view with the Hurricane Hoosier roller coaster that dominates the shoreline. As a matter of fact, this is the view given in  brochures making the park look amazing. The Hurricane Hoosier looked like a fantastic out and back roller coaster over the water making  it unique, but as the sign stated at the ticket booth, it was closed.  After crossing the bridge, it became obvious how old the park was and we got  our first glimpse of how it would prove very difficult for people with mobility problems to enjoy the park. In our opinion, this park needs to work harder on being ADA compliant, it looks like the very minimum has been done just to pass guidelines. To reach the park from the south entrance over the bridge there is very steep slope on to the ground of the park.This would be very difficult for someone in a wheel chair or on crutches.

This picturesque view from the south entracnce

We did quick size up about the lay out of the park heading from the south end to the north end and the layout is a jumbled mess. Space is limited and rides are shoe horned into odd places. It felt and looked like a carnival came to town and this was were the rides came to die. A coat of paint can go a long way. We began to think the former protesting employees were right about there being safety issues in the park. Rides were rusty and signage out of date. It literally looked like a project was started and left unfinished.

A solitary hole from a golf course that has vanished.

To cement this opinion, a few of  the biggest signs were, signage laying all over the place, one hole, presumably the last hole, of a miniature golf course, just left to sit all by itself, and also signs that could have been easily painted over that had old information stating in order to ride the ride proceed "across the street to purchase tickets". There have been no single ticket sales in nearly 2 years.

The Hurricane Hoosier  is built over the water in places.

In all, there were some really decent hidden gems in this park. The Cornball express and Steel Hawg where very nice roller coasters. The Cornball Express has some great pops of airtime in its tight configuration. This would easily be a great wooden coaster if it were maintained better, it was by far one of the roughest roller coaster I have ridden, but not the roughest in the park. The Hurricane Hoosier did indeed open later in the day, but besides it being scenic and unique by being built over the water, it was very rough(the roughest in the park) and boring.  Steel Hawg was short, but enjoyable steel coaster with an fun 111 degree beyond vertical first drop. It definitely is re-rideable but with it's relativity short ride time and lack of excitement after the first drop, it could get boring quickly. A classic and must see attraction here is Dr. Frankenstein's Haunted Castle. This is a very nicely done haunted house that uses black light and the element of surprise to send chills, giggles, and screams through this haunt. The downsize to Dr. Frankenstein's Haunted Castle it is an up charge attraction.

Dr. Frankenstein's Haunted Castle it is worth the up charge to experience

The largest attraction to Indiana Beach is by far it's location on and over Lake Shafer. Now that we have been here, we won't make a special trip out of our way to go back. If for some reason when we are traveling somewhere and this is somehow on the way(it is out in the middle of nowhere), we would stop because it could make a nice break in the day. I must mention, based on what we saw. We would never pay for the water park. It was very small, the slides looked beat up, and lack variety. We easily did this park in a few hours and missed out on two of the six coasters because of thunderstorms. The thunderstorms also brought to our attention that there may be poor policy for weather. We saw lighting and it took them over 15 minutes to spread the word to all of the rides to close.We were in line for a coaster and were the last ride shut down, the other coasters and rides had closed long before the one we were at did. Instead of the employees seeking shelter from the intensifying storm, they huddled together in the middle of the street to talk. Not much longer after our ride was closed, lighting hit so close to the boardwalk, it took out their security radios and computer systems for the stores, it also had people screaming and hitting the deck. I would agree that this park could use some better maintenance on their rides which could increase safety. There is potential here to be a great small town amusement park as is there the equal potential of this park closing it doors forever.

 Here are some more photos for your enjoyment of Indiana beach

It's not every day you can have a party in the water next to
a roller coaster.

Welcome

Steel Hawg's beyond Vertical drop

The kiddie area at the water park.

Could someone please fix this sign,it is supposed to be a historic place to eat

This must be in the doghouse,
 it was separated from the rest of the park

Cabanas for purchase.

Na, I will pass.

The Original since 1975...and good

Bumper Cars

Tilt-a-Whirl

Nice old fashioned dark ride, updated with a shooter game.

Inside the Den of Thieves 

Backside of the water park.

The Sea Dragon

Rides out over the water.

Skeleton Band From the haunted house

There is a restaurant under that coaster.

Flume in between Cornball Express and Hurricane Hoosier

The beach at Indian beach, ith the water park in the background.

Steel Hawg. Nice Drop

Tilt-a-whirl from up above.

more aerial views

aerial view of part of the park.

How many roller coasters can you count?

very nice, unique family antique cars over the water. 

Aerial view of Splash Battle that  has not operated in some time. 

carnival bi-planes for kids.

Kiddie ride cars...paint please?

Kiddie Ride shoe horned under a roller coaster, some steps and behind a cookie vendor.

Kiddie land stuck under the coasters.

Kiddie ride

The train, there really is no line here just some paint  to show you  where you should stand.

It is a pizza place, no its a hot dog place, oh forget it  just leave the sign we will get it next year.

Up charge Ropes course at the south end.

Hope you enjoyed our photo journey, tell us what you think about Indiana Beach.