The other parks at Walt Disney World
- planmydisneyholiday
- Sep 7, 2019
- 6 min read
I have written about all the theme parks at WDW, but there is two more. These other parks are the two water parks; Blizzard beach and Typhoon Lagoon.
Like the theme parks the two water parks have their own design and story.
Blizzard Beach:
The story is that a freak snowstorm hit central Florida therefore some developers created a ski resort with chair lifts and ski slopes on Mount Gushmore. Unfortunately, due to the Florida heat the snow started to melt and the owners decided instead of closing the ski resort they opened a water park. Legend has it a blue alligator dressed in a red scarf and golden rubber ring was skiing down the mountains and jumping into the pools of melted snow, therefore the Ice Gator became the mascot.
Like a ski resort the attractions are sorted by different colours: Green Slope, Purple Slope, Red Slope and Ground level.
Firstly, the Green Slope is at the peak of Mount Gushmore with the attractions being: Summit Plummet, Slush Gusher, and Teamboat Springs.
The signature attraction is Summit Plummet which is 120 feet tall and has a height restriction of 48 inches. It is one of the tallest and fastest water slides in the world and a great thrill.
Next to Summit Plummet is Slush Gusher which is often overlooked, again it is for 48 inches or taller, with some bumps on the 90 foot slide.
Teamboat Springs is a 6 person raft ride down a 1,200 foot slide. It has high corners and like a rapids the raft rotates randomly.
Next, the Purple Slope has 3 slides, Toboggan racers, Snow Stormers, and Downhill Double Dipper, but each slide can have multiple riders. They are a great laugh with the family to race against.
Toboggan Racers is a 250 feet slide where you have a toboggan style mat to ride on. You slide down on your belly, head first, and you race the other 4 racers.
Snow Stormers is very similar with toboggan mat and going down on your belly, but is an extra 100 feet so is a 350 feet slide. It is slightly different to the Toboggan Racers because it has twists and turns where as Toboggan Racers is straight down, this slide has two other racers.
Finally on the Purple Slope is Downhill Double Dipper which has two racers race each others in a rubber ring down an enclosed slide with a 50 foot drop. This has a height restriction of 48 inches as well.
On the Red Slope is Runoff Rapids which is at the back of the park. It is made up of 3 different slides with 2 or single riders on a rubber ring. Each slide is around 600 feet and has high speeds and tight corners.
Finally there is the attractions on the ground level. Firstly, there is the chair lift which takes you up to the top of the Green Slope. The other way up to the top is by walking so this is useful if you want to get off your feet.
There is a 'Lazy River' all the way around the park with entrance and exits near different attractions. The Cross Country Creek is a shallow, slow moving river which has loads of rubber rings in and is a great chilled place.
In the middle of the park is Melt-Away Bay with a short-wave pool great for a swim or a paddle or sunbath on a lounger on the white sandy beaches. There is places all around the park with sun chairs and loungers to set up camp the closer to the pool the busier it is.
For the smaller and younger guests there is a couple of areas, firstly there is the Ski Patrol Training Camp it has obstacles and 3 different small slides, there is a zip-line for 5 feet and under to drop into an 8.5 foot pool.
Finally there is Tike's Peak which is for anyone smaller than 48 inches. It has water jets and a paddling pool to have fun in as well as 4 small slides.
Around the park there is a range of food and drink spots. I.C. Expeditions, Arctic Expedition, Cooling Hut, Polar Pub, Mini Donuts at Blizzard Beach and Frostbite Freddy's Frozen Freshment serve a range of snacks and drinks. You can pick up some meals at Avalunch, Warming Hut, and Lottawatta Lodge for something larger to eat.
Like any other Disney park there is options for shopping if you need anything for your time at the water park, swimwear and towels or you can even pick up some souvenirs. There is Beach Haus as you first enter, and Shade Shack has toys and pins for sale before you get to the beach and water areas.
Typhoon Lagoon
Like Blizzard Beach this park has a little story. A typhoon caused chaos to this tropical paradise. It destroyed the local factories and threw boats, fishing gear, and surfing equipment into central Florida, the typhoon was powerful it carried a boat called Miss Tilly all the way onto Mount Mayday.
Like all the other parks we have different areas with different attractions. The different areas are: Mount Mayday, Hideaway Bay, and Typhoon Lagoon.
Around Miss Tilly is the Mount Mayday area which is home to the signature slides of Typhoon Lagoon: Humunga Kowabunga, Storm Slides, Gangplank Falls, Mayday Falls, Keelhaul Falls.
Humunga Kowabunga is 3 214 feet enclosed slide at a 60 degree angle. Supposedly, with speeds up to 39 mph. It also has a restriction of 48 inches.
Next to Humunga Kowabunga is the Storm Slides there is a choice of 3 slides Jib Jammer, Stern Burner, or Rudder Buster. Each of the slides has great twists and turns.
On the other side of the mountain is Gang Plank Falls, it is a 300 foot 4 person raft slide and Disney describes it as a "medium intensity ride" but it is great fun.
In the same area there is also Mayday Falls, which is a a single rubber ring slide which starts at the top of the mountain and zooms though caves, under bridges and by waterfalls Disney describes it as the most intense ring ride in this area.
Finally, in Mount Mayday area is Keelhaul Falls which is also a single rubber ring slide but milder in comparison to the other slides.
Hideaway Bay is a small beach area with two attractions: Crush 'N' Gusher and Miss Adventure Falls.
Crush 'N' Gusher is like no other water slide I have ever experienced. It is based in an abandoned fruit processing plant, it has 3 slides, Pineapple Plunger, Coconut Crusher, and Banana Blaster. They are 400 feet long and is describe as a "water coaster" it is made up of twists, turns, drops and at some points the slides go upwards. They are single or double rubber ring slides, but I cannot remember which slide is for pairs and which is for singles unless they have changed it since I last went and all three slides are for both single and double riders. This is a must ride!!
Miss Adventure Falls is owned by a treasure hunter whose haul was scattered around the tropical paradise by the typhoon. It is a 4 person family raft ride with high corners and you are taken to the top of the slide by a conveyor belt.
The final area is around the Lagoon.
Firstly, the Lagoon in the middle of the park is a surf pool, a wave pool with 6 feet waves, you can actually have surfing lessons in the lagoon when the park is closed.
Like Blizzard Beach, Typhoon Lagoon has a lazy river attraction as well called Castaway Creek which goes though caves and past other tropical locations.
For the younger children there is some small attractions: Bay Slides and Ketchakiddee Creek. Ketchakiddee Creek is a shallow pool area with slides, fountains and water guns, and Bay Slides is based at the side of the lagoon where there is small waves.
For when you want a bite to eat there is a range of counter service restaurants around the park: Lowtide Lou's, Snack Shack, Typhoon Tilly's, Funnel Cakes at Typhoon Lagoon, Let's Go Slurpin', Mini Donuts at Typhoon Lagoon, Leaning Palms, Happy Landings Ice Cream.
Of course there is also opportunities for a little shop at Singapore Sal's where you can pick up anything you need to enjoy your time at the water park.
To get to the water park you can catch a bus from some hotels if not there is buses from Disney Springs, there is also car parks at both parks if you are driving (I do not know if there is a cost to parking because my last few visits have been at the Disney resort, so I have been catching the Disney buses).
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