During a recent visit to the Walt Disney World Resort, I sought out some new and different experiences, beyond the theme parks. This note is part of that series-
It is easy to forget that in addition to FOUR theme
parks, the Walt Disney World Resort also has Downtown Disney, ESPN Wide World of Sports, Richard Petty Driving Experience, and several other fun and unique
offerings like fishing, horseback riding, bicycle rentals, boat rentals,
campfires, wagon rides, carriage rides, hot air ballooning, gaming, regular
golf, miniature golf, archery, parasailing, wake boarding and tubing,
waterskiing, lots of pools and TWO awesome water parks: Blizzard Beach and
Typhoon Lagoon!
The water parks are easy to skip, but I would say that at the right time of year, they should be on your "don't miss" list!
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| Justin and Carson check out the old toboggan at Blizzard Beach |
The story with Blizzard Beach is that a freak snowstorm
hit Orlando and so Disney built a ski resort, but then the snow melted, leaving
exciting slaloms and toboggan courses behind as an amazing water park.
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| Justin is excited to be at Blizzard Beach |
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| Race you to the bottom! |
Theming is what Disney does best and Blizzard Beach really
reflects the story line, complete with a chairlift to the top of Mount
Gushmore.
From there choose a family raft ride or brave one of the world’s
tallest and fastest free fall body slides! A lazy river runs around the park
and makes for a relaxing way to get around between the different “slopes” of
the mountain, while enjoying Christmas music intermingled with Beach Boys
classics. In the middle of it all is a one-acre wave pool surrounded by white
sand beaches and plenty of chairs and loungers.
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| The wave pool is just like being at the beach! |
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| View from the chair lift to the Ski Patrol Training area |
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| Riding the chairlift up "Mount Gushmore" |
My kids loved the Ski Patrol Training Camp area which
included some smaller slides as well as a challenging rope and iceberg hopping
course. There’s also a tiny tots area with a snow castle fountain and zero
depth pools and slides. Adjacent to Blizzard Beach is Disney’s Winter
Summerland Miniature Golf where the theming continues through 36 holes of “sand”
and “snow”.
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| Ski Patrol Training Camp |
I loved the theming of Blizzard Beach, but Disney’s
Typhoon Lagoon was hands-down our favorite water park – EVER!
The centerpiece of Typhoon Lagoon is the huge surf pool –
North America’s largest, with Mount Mayday towering above. You can book surfing
lessons on the giant swells, do some body surfing, or wait for calmer waves. If
you’re feeling adventurous, Humunga Kowabunga lives up to its name with a
near-vertical, five story body slide in the dark!
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| playing in the "surf" |
Like Blizzard Beach, there is also a large, long lazy
river (Castaway Creek) which allows one to circumnavigate the park and plenty
of sandy areas and seating in either the sun or the shade. Both parks also
offered locker rentals and the dining venues participated in the dining plan,
although we brought in outside food without trouble. Adult beverages are also
available, but not so easily or cheaply that there was anyone intoxicated that
I saw.
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| Getting LAZY |
A four person tube ride in a giant tube is also a ton of
fun, as are Keelhaul Falls and Mayday Falls for single riders. There are lots
of sprinklers, sprays, and smaller slides for smaller kids too, but what really
sets Typhoon Lagoon apart is the Crush ‘n’ Gusher water coaster and Shark Reef!
The Crush ‘n’ Gusher is actually three slides that use a
combination of gravity as well as shoots of water to move one, two, and three
person tubes through the “ride”. I say ride because it is more like a ride than
a slide, but you still splash out in a pool and it is a ton of fun!
Shark Reef is an amazing (FREE) snorkeling experience in
a salt water shark tank. The water is cold and tastes terrible but if you can
get past that, you’ll have the opportunity to marvel at stingrays, tropical
fish, and sharks too.
My 9 year old, Justin, had no trouble navigating the
swim, and he went back for more. Shark Reef also has a really neat underwater
viewing area (inside the big red boat thing) if you don’t want to actually swim with the sharks, and it is also
a great spot for people watching.
We got to watch a rescue in action. One of the challenges for the lifeguards is that there were a lot of international visitors - not all of whom spoke English. One guy apparently didn't understand the safety and snorkel instructions, but the experts saved him quickly.
At Typhoon Lagoon it seemed like there was something new
to try around every corner and given the choice between one of the theme parks
or Typhoon Lagoon, the kids voted for the water park every time. (Although we
usually managed to do both.)
The waterpark add-on option to the WDW Park Hopper ticket is pretty inexpensive, and if your visit is anytime other than in the dead of winter, plan to allow time to check out both of these great waterparks.
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| great beachy area for catching tan and people watching |
More travel tips available on my blog.
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| Disney Water Parks are AWESOME! |