Is It Snow or Sand at Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park
Written: Sep 03 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: great themeing, awesome slides, things to do for every age
Cons: seems to get more wear-n-tear than Disney's other water park
The Bottom Line: Want a little more speed? Blizzard Beach is the #2 water park in the country for a good reason!
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| AliventiAsylum's Full Review: Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park |
The Legend of Blizzard Beach
It was a meteorological phenomenon of the strangest order. One balmy day, a freak winter storm developed over the western end of Walt Disney World Resort and covered the area with a thick blanket of powdery white snow. Before you could say "hot cocoa," plans were underway for Florida's first ski resort.
Ski lifts were put up, toboggan runs were laid down and an entire resort area blossomed around the mountain of snow. Yet before the first skier could strap on a pair of boots and stick his poles into the snow, the temperatures returned to their normal Florida levels, and the powdery snow quickly turned into slippery slush. The ski resort operators saw their dream melting down the hillside. Yet that's not all they saw.
As the slush began cascading down and pools of water began to form, an echoing "yahoo" was heard from the summit of the mountain. Everyone looked up to see a playful alligator careening down the melting hillside. He slid to the base of the mountain and landed in a pool of water with a thunderous splash. They knew at once that they were back in business.
Slalom courses, bobsled and toboggan runs became downhill waterslides. The creek of melted snow that formed at the base of the mountain became a relaxing tube ride. The chairlift carried swimmers instead of skiers. The ski jump became the tallest and fastest water slide in the world. The ski resort became known as Disney's Blizzard Beach, the must slushy, slippery, exhilarating water park anywhere! © 2001 Disney
What sets just about everything in a Disney Park apart from rides and attractions in the rest of the world is its themeing. At the Blizzard Beach Water Park, Disney’s Imagineers worked overtime using the above legend to create a terrific water park, recently given the designation of the #2 water park in the country by The Travel Channel.
Blizzard Beach is located in the Walt Disney World complex near the All-Star resorts as well as Animal Kingdom. If you have teens, this is probably the water park at Disney you’d like to visit.
As we entered the park, right from the beginning it had the feel of a ski resort. Buildings looked like ski lodges and huts rather than the tropical theme of Typhoon Lagoon. Immediately upon viewing the expanse of this 66-acre park, you will see the difference in action factor as well. Instead of the focal point being a wave pool with a ship impaled on a geyser high above, the centerpiece of the park is a 120-foot high ski jump which also serves as an awesome slide.
We immediately stopped at the Beach Haus where I purchased forgotten items such as towels at $20 each. They are available for rental at $1 each for the day, but they seemed small to me, so I just decided that we probably needed some new beach towels anyway. We had also forgotten sand toys for my 3 year old son, so we purchased those at a cost of $8 for a plastic boat with a couple of shovels and $6 for three spongy balls.
Prior to settling in a spot to serve as base camp for the day, we also purchased a sticker for our refillable mug. We had purchased the mug at Typhoon Lagoon for $10, and only needed to purchase a sticker at Blizzard Beach for $5. The mugs can be used at either park just with the purchase of the sticker for daily refills at beverage stations around the park.
Lockers are available at at cost of $5 per day for small lockers and $7 per day for the larger ones. A key deposit of $2 is included in that price and is returned at the end of the day when you bring the key back.
Our base for the day was Tike’s Peak which is a really fantastic kids area for those under 48 inches and their parents. There is a body slide and tube slide that is just perfect for those about five years old. My three year old hadn’t experienced water slides until now. However, on the far side of Tike’s Peak is a slide which permits parents to ride down with their child in their lap. I think I burned off all my calories for the week following my son up the hill so we could slide down over and over again. Once he had a taste of it and felt secure being able to slide with me, he couldn’t get enough. At the top of the hill in Tike’s Peak is also an “igloo” which contains smaller slides which my son also became comfortable with.
The lazy river rides at the Disney water parks have spoiled me for anywhere else, and the one at Blizzard Beach is no exception. Cross Country Creek encircles the whole park with seven different places to enter or exit, making it an easy and cool way to get from one point in the park to another. There are places where water splashed me and was dumped on me as I floated around. Because of the themeing of this resort, the water “runoff” is icy cold. However, that felt good on a hot August afternoon.
There is a small wave pool known as Melt Away Bay at Blizzard Beach. However, it is nowhere near the caliber that the wave pool at Typhoon Lagoon is. The waves here are mostly of the gentle, bobbing type and the pool itself is not as large.
However, what Blizzard Beach has is thrills! The centerpiece of the park, Summit Plummet, was something I hadn’t tried before but I finally ventured on when I had to accompany my 12 year-old. There is a “chair lift” which brings you up to the line for this slide and two other attractions, but we went up the stairs instead. Above the chair lift there are still more stairs to reach the top of this 120-foot slide. The view from up here is incredible. I could see Epcot, Disney Studios, Animal Kingdom, and many of the Disney Resorts! I didn’t look over the edge before sliding, but just laid down on my back in the water, crossed my ankles, and inched my way over the side. The ride is thrilling and over in just a few short seconds! I’d gladly go on it again, but I wish I could find a way to prevent the major wedgie I received.
For those not quite as courageous, Slush Gusher is next to Summit Plummet. This one comes in at “only” 90 feet high and it doesn’t contain the same steep drop of Summit Plummet with two soft hills cushioning the ride down.
The entrance to Teamboat Springs is also at the end of the chair lift. This is a family raft ride much more thrilling than the one at Typhoon Lagoon. Here, instead of having to carry the round rubber rafts to the summit, they arrive up on a conveyor belt making things much easier. Up to six people can ride down 1,400 feet of rushing water.
On the left side of the summit are two terrific mat rides. Toboggan Racers has up to eight racers line up. When the lifeguard tells you to “go” the race is on! Here’s a hint: the more you weigh, the faster you will go across the finish line at the bottom. My daughters generally are last or don’t even make it across. Nest to this is Snow Stormers in which you take the same rafts sown a twisty course into a shallow pool at the bottom. Again, there is no need to drag the mats up a hill with you. Disney has provided a conveyor belt into which riders feed the rafts when they are at the bottom to be picked up at the top.
In the back of these two slides is Runoff Rapids. Here there is a selection of three courses which you can ride down in single or double tubes. Also over here is the Downhill Double Dipper which puts two riders against each other in a race to the bottom through a partially enclosed tube. If the scoreboard at the bottom is working, the results will show as if you are in a real downhill ski race.
Do you have a child who is too old for Tike’s Peak but maybe not quite ready for all of the action in the rest of the park? I do. My eight year old was intimidated by a lot of the rides in Blizzard Beach. To accommodate visitors in this age group, there is the Ski Patrol Training Camp. This area is for kids 12 and under. By far, her favorite was the walk across slippery “ice floes” where one misstep could mean she ended up in the water! There is a smaller tube slide and body slide here, along with a “ski hut” where she could grab hold of a metal triangle and slide down a rope to the point where she would bounce and let go of the handhold, splashing into the pool. The lifeguards here were very on top of things as some parents apparently weren’t capable of figuring out that their kids were too young to do this. While we were standing there I saw the guard go in twice, although in the August heat I don’t know if he minded that much!
Have you worked up an appetite? In addition to the various snack stands throughout the park, there is Lottawatta Lodge, serving up the usual theme park fare of hot dogs, hamburgers and pizza, along with a few healthier selections such as a Caeser salad. Children’s meals are also available here and come in a plastic pail perfect for using in the sand.
While we were here the sky clouded up and thunder began rumbling. I was surprised that at the first few rumbles, the lifeguards did not order people out of the water. Apparently the storms are so frequent during the summer that it takes a great deal for them to order people out of the water and shut down the park. Be prepared to use your own judgment should inclement weather blow in.
Blizzard Beach generally closes for rehab in the fall, while Typhoon Lagoon remains open during that time. In the months of January and February it is reversed. The water is always heated at Blizzard Beach (except for certain places) so quite often during the cooler months the water is warmer than the air and the park is still open. However, I have seen the parks close when it was estimated that it was cold enough that no one would be swimming. Generally this seemed to be when daytime highs were below 60 degrees.
Disney provides transportation by bus from all of its resorts to Blizzard Beach. If you are driving in, parking is free but the parking lot does fill up fast.
One day tickets to Blizzard Beach are $33.02 for ages 10 and up, and $26.63 for ages 3 to 9, including tax. Any kids under the age of 3 are admitted free.
I definitely feel that Blizzard Beach is the best water park I’ve ever been to. My family has enjoyed it every time we’ve taken a trip where it’s been warm enough for swimming. I think the park takes a bit more of a beating than Typhoon Lagoon simply because it gets more of the teen crowd and at times it does show that. However, Disney does make every effort to keep the park in good shape, and if you point something out that you think needs attention to a nearby castmember, they will take note of it.
I can’t wait to compare this #2 water park to the #1 water park (Schlitterbahn) next summer. For now, Blizzard Beach is #1 to me!
© 2003 Patti Aliventi
Recommended:
Yes
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Member: Patti Aliventi
Location: Mount Washington Valley, New Hampshire
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Now writing reviews to pay for the "out of network" costs of our health insurance...
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