If you have read some of my other reviews you know that my parents were recently in Williamsburg, about an hour from where we currently live, on vacation. We went up and enjoyed most of the two weeks they were here with them. One of the stops that was a must, according to my mother and four year old nephew, was Water Country USA.

Water Country USA is located in Williamsburg, Virginia, off of interstate 64 at exit 243A, and is just three miles from Busch Gardens Williamsburg. It was also rated one of America's Best Water Parks by The Travel Channel. It was number four actually. I watched that episode.

When we finally reached the park, we were in two cars because neither car was large enough for four adults and two kids in carseats to sit comfortably, we reaches a toll gate. You have to pay for parking. How much is it? Well, the prime parking is $10 per car, but if you are willing to walk a little bit it can be as low as $7 per car. My father so buying, so we got to walk a little bit. Since it was in the middle of the week and school wasn't out yet parking wasn't to much of a problem. Even the "cheap seats" were fairly close.

When we got to the main entrance we had to have our bag searched. Since we knew this in advance, and didn't want to carry more than we had to anyway, we left almost everything in the car. I gave my husband my wallet and my mom gave my dad her ID and we locked our purses in the car. If possible, leave them at home. No, our cars were not broken into, but it doesn't mean it can't happen. If you do lock them up in the car, hide them. Don't make it obvious by leaving them on the front seat.

Ticket prices. They had a lot of different types of tickets to choose from, but we already had a pass. When we went to Busch Gardens a few days earlier we purchased what is called a "Bounce" Pass. It allows you to bounce between the two parks, entering either park three times. The "Bounce" Pass was $59.95 per person, but they were running a special. The thing that aggravated me was that my 4 1/2 year old nephew and 3 1/2 year old son were counted as people, too. They do not give a discount for children even though they can't ride on a lot of the rides. That irritates me to no end.

Anyway, we entered the park, and as with any other theme park I have ever been to, there were 2-3 ridiculously chipper females all holding digital cameras so they could take your group's picture as you entered the park. For some unknown reason my mother decided it was ok and she might want a copy. Why? I have no idea. I wish she would have chosen to do this at Busch Gardens instead, because since I knew I was going to get soaked I didn't curl my hair. I was also wearing an older shirt in case it was lost or got bleached from the chlorine. Well, I sucked it up and smiled for the camera. We were given a number and told to check back any time after noon to view the pictures at the photo booth that is places near the exit.

After we got thru that we went and rented a locker. I can not remember for the life of me how much they were, but it wasn't cheap. There was a refund due of a deposit for the key, and I can't remember how much that was either. The money back was $1-3, but I can't remember which. My Dad rented one locker for all of us and I didn't pay that much attention to the sign. Bad me, I know.

The lockers are about the size you would see at a local pool, small, but we got all of our stuff stashed away in one without any problems. Right next to the lockers is a restroom where you can change if you don't wear your suit under your clothes, which I recommend. Makes it easier on you and it is faster. Also, we got there shortly after they opened and the locker area was crowded.

Next to the locker area, and all over the park for that matter, are life vests that you can borrow for children and adults. This is free. Children under a certain height, if I remember correctly, are required to wear a vest. We decided that the boys were going to wear them regardless, which is a good idea since on a lot of the rides there is a splash pool at the end that is at least three feet deep.

Ok, we got our locker and vests for the boys, now where to? The first ride my mom wanted to go on was Aquazoid She was sure that even my son would like this one, as my nephew did the year before when he was the same age. When we got to it I wasn't so sure.

Aquazoid is a ride where up to four adults sit in a large tube and go down thru the tubed ride. The problem is, the tube, for the most part, is closed. Meaning? The ride is dark. Pitch black. There is one place where it opens up and you see daylight as you round a curve, but then you are back in darkness again. Don't get me wrong, I liked this ride and so did my husband. Our son, though, freaked. I spent the whole ride hanging on to him for dear life as he was kicking and clawing at me to get out of that tube and off of the ride, screaming all of the way. The ride ends in a shallow splash pool. Needless to say Zack did NOT enjoy this ride and we didn't force him onto any others thinking, like the carousel at Busch Gardens, that he would like it once he got on it. Nope, didn't happen.

After we all got off of that ride we headed off to Meltdown. This is another tube ride, but only two people are allowed and sit one behind the other. Ok, for those that have read my reviews before, I am a wuss. I don't "do" heights. I was lucky that I made it to the top of Aquazoid and this one looked even higher. My mom offered to watch Zack (who was pouting in his stroller) while I went on the ride with my husband. Nope. Thanks but no thanks. I'll wait. So, they went on this ride as well. They all had a blast. Am I sorry I missed it? Yes and no. It was a long walk and it went up rather high. I was fine in the shade at the bottom.

Next we doubled back a little bit and went down Big Daddy Falls. This is also a ride for up to four adults on one tube, but this ride is open. I did make the hike to the top for this one. This ride was a lot of fun. I didn't care for the long walk up, or the height of the stairs we had to climb, but I made it thru and had a good time. I waited at the bottom for my parents to go and then went afterward while they watched Zack at the bottom.

Next they decided to let the kids have a turn, so we went to one of the many baby pools. We ended up at Cow-A-Bunga which features a large cow sitting in a speed boat in the center of it. There is also a small and short tube ride into the end of the pool that the kids can ride on. In the very center was an island with a couple of slides (very short and you had to be less than a certain height to be allowed on them) and the back of the slides had different spouts that water came out of. There was an employee with a yardstick to make sure that kids were not getting on the slide that were to big or to calm down kids that got out of hand. Adults are not allowed in the kiddie pools unless they have a young child with them.

When the adults got bored we decided to head over to Jet Scream. This ride features four pipes, two open and two closed, that wrap around each other. I elected to play wuss on this one as well. Oh yeah, I heard about it. Ever have a 4 1/2 year old call you a chicken? This ride each person got their own tube and all four pipes land in the same splash pool.

Next on the list to ride was the Malibu Pipeline. I didn't even walk around for this one but waited in the shade at the bottom of Big Daddy Falls. They did enjoy the ride (I was a chicken again, but the cool air was beginning to make me hurt) but I know my husband, who was on the tube behind my mom, flipped over her head at the end of the ride. No one was hurt and they all laughed about it, so I guess it wasn't a big deal.

After these we went to another baby pool, H2O UFO. It has a large - for lack of a better work - playarea in the center of the pool. The kids could climb on it, spray water at each other, and play with all kinds if different items on the structure. There was also a tire swing at the end. There were two employees walking around the pool at all times. The pool was round and there was always an employee at one end or the other, walking in circles around the pool.

My nephew decided he liked the Cow-A-Bunga pool better, so we headed back over there. While we were there my parents started nagging because I hadn't rode hardly any rides so sent Matt and I off to ride something. We ended up going down Big Daddy Falls twice and then went back and hooked up with the family again. That is my favorite ride.

Before going home the family decided to go on one more ride, the Nitro Racer. I skipped this one as well. No WAY I was riding this. I was a chicken and scared-y cat both, but I didn't care.

Nitro Racer is a ride where everyone lays on a mat at the "starting line", which is at the top of a platform. There are 5-6 lanes. This is basically a large slide with water at the bottom in each lane to slow and stop people as they come down. You ride belly first and whoever makes it to the bottom first "wins". My family went down once together and then my parents and nephew went one more time while Matt stayed with me and Zack at the bottom in the shade.

There were several rides that we didn't make it to. We were all tired and hungry so we decided to leave. Some of the rides we missed were Rampage, Atomic Breakers, Wild Thang, Adventure Isle (this is for kids to climb on and we skipped it on purpose), Surfer's Bay (this was also skipped on purpose - it's a wave pool), Kid's Kingdom (another baby pool featuring animals such as a whale), and then they have Caban-A-Rama Theatre where they have different shows. We were to tired to mess with this by the end of the day.

There are also various places to sit and rest or to eat, but we didn't want to pay the prices they wanted, so we just ate before we went and ate when we got home. We did have a cooler in the truck with some sodas so we could have something to drink on the way home.

At the end of every ride they had at least one employee to help you out of the splash pool and make sure no one got hurt. The tubes, with the exception of Meltdown, were all on a conveyor belt that carried them to the top for you so you didn't have to carry them. They were having problems with the one on Meltdown the day we went so they asked some people to carry the tubes up.

Water Country USA was a blast! My parents and nephew went back for the third day of the "Bounce" Pass, but my husband had to go back to work and I had a doctor appointment and we haven't gone back. We still have our passes, but I won't go alone and my husband won't be able to go again this season, which is all the pass is good for.

If you are in Williamsburg this is an excellent way to spend a hot day. We went during the week and school was still in session, so the lines were very short. During the summer I imagine they get quite long. I would suggest you buy some beach shoes (swimming shoes?) so that you have something to wear while in line for the rides. They have a place to leave your shoes if you are wearing tennis shoes, so you have to walk barefoot. The walkways get VERY hot, so you'll want something on your feet.

The park is from May 4 to September 15. The days vary depending on the time of the year. The park opens at 10am and the hour it closes at different hours depending on the time of year. The latest that they stay open is 8pm, but you will want to check ahead of time to find out the exact hours of when they close when you will be there.

As a side note, the pools are heated to 82 degrees during the cooler days.

Don't forget the sunscreen!

http://www.watercountryusa.com



Other reviews on things to do in Williamsburg -

Chowning's Tavern
http://www.epinions.com/content_67771272836

Busch Gardens Williamsburg
http://www.epinions.com/content_68195880580




Recommended: Yes