WATER PARK
A water park or
waterpark is an amusement park that features water play areas, such as swimming
pools, water slides, splash pads, spray grounds (water playgrounds), lazy
rivers, or other recreational bathing, swimming, and barefooting environments.
Water parks in more current states of development may also be equipped with
some type of artificial surfing or body boarding environment such as a wave
pool or Flow Rider.
Water parks have grown
in popularity since their introduction in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The
United States has the largest and most concentrated water park market, with
over a thousand water parks and dozens of new parks opening each year. Major
organizations are IAAPA (International Association of Amusement Parks and
Attractions) and WWA (World Waterpark Association), which is the industry trade
association.
Water parks which
emerge from spas tend to more closely resemble mountain resorts, as they become
year-round destinations. For example, Splash Universe Water Park Resort, a
member of the WWA, is themed to match the community in which it is located. The
theme is intended to enhance the community's destination appeal. Therefore, the
amusement and leisure-time industry is becoming more concentrated, as winter
sports are becoming common themes in summertime water recreation.
An unusual feature at
a water park is ice skating. Deep River Water Park in north western Indiana
features ice 2 skating made possible by cooling pipes installed under their
massive plaza during a recent expansion.
