Introducing Aquatica San Antonio

Aquatica San Antonio opened to record crowds this weekend, and my family was privileged to be one of the first to enjoy the new water park.  With the promise that Aquatica would be a water park that only SeaWorld could create, I had high expectations for the park.  I have been anxiously watching the progress of the park on the Aquatica Facebook page, as steamy San Antonio was transformed to a South Seas Island paradise.  As I stepped through the gates, I was excited to see if the transformation really lived up to the hype.

Unique Attractions

Aquatica San Antonio has two signature water slides that are unlike anything else in North America, and definitely set the park apart from other water parks in the area and even across the country. One of the hallmarks of Aquatica is unique animal interactions, and Stingray Falls delivers with a thrilling family water ride that ends with a leisurely float through an underwater stingray grotto, where you can marvel at the graceful stingrays gliding overhead.   

Stingray Falls made a big splash in capturing the heart of Aquatica’s mission-to bring families together and give visitors one of a kind animal encounters.  I was pleased that the height restrictions allowed for younger kids at 36 inches and that the trip through the grotto was slow enough to really give us a chance to see the animals.

Wallhalla Wave is the other signature attraction at the park, and it steps up the excitement for the thrill seekers in your group.  After rapid twists and turns, your four person raft shoots straight up a wall of water and then drops, giving you a gripping feeling weightlessness.  (Here’s a little secret: It’s not as scary as it looks, so go on and get in line.)

The pristine white sandy beaches are another part of the park that set it apart.  Now San Antonio has everything, including its own South Seas beach with waving palm trees.

Beaches

Speaking of beaches, this was one area where I felt Aquatica didn’t quite make the mark.  I’m not sure if the beaches were too small, or if it was just that they were really packed with lounge chairs to accommodate the crowds.  The beach next to Big Surf Shores made a great family meeting point, but lacked the relaxing ambience or any real room for the kids to spread out and enjoy the sand.  I would love to see Aquatica decrease the number of lounge chairs set up in this area, to create a more resort beach atmosphere.  

Crowds

One of the things that I was most excited about with this new park is that they limit the number of guests that can enter each day.  On opening weekend, the crowd was certainly at maximum capacity and then some, so we had an opportunity to see how the park would operate when full.  Happily, the park was easily able to accommodate the crowd.  Lines for Stingray Falls were about 50 minutes, while lines for Wallhalla Wave were around 30 minutes.  Lines for the other rides were between 10-15 minutes and the lines for food were never more than a few people long.   Best of all, there were plenty of places for the kids to play that didn’t have lines and weren’t overly crowded.     From the looks of the crowds, I had my doubts, but the park design proved to be efficient for even maximum capacity.

Animal Encounters

Visitors to Sea World have come to expect lots of water and lots of animals, and Aquatica has both.  Animal encounters were plentiful and the staff was knowledgeable.  During our visit we petted stingrays, macaws, a rosette spoonbill, and a baby alligator.  These up close animals experiences added a bit of education to the park and offered a welcome diversion from the non-stop splashing fun.

The Heart of Aquatica

The heart and soul of any organization is the people who work to make it happen.  The employees of Aquatica were easily the best  part of our visit.  They were obviously excited and energetic about their jobs, offering playful splashes to the kids and talking about their favorite parts of the park as they shared their knowledge.  Most importantly, every employee I encountered exuded a sense of pride about their new park and was excited to share it with the people around them.  That level of excitement and ownership from the employees  trickles down to the guests making us all feel like a little piece of Aquatica belongs to each of us.

~ Aquatica San Antonio hosted me and my family during opening weekend.  They did not require that I express a particular viewpoint and all opinions are my own.~