Has Anyone been to Coco Key Resort?

[DebMcDonald]

We're going to the one in Danvers, Mass this weekend and I was looking for anyones first hand experience. We're only staying one night, but will take advantage of the water park both Saturday and Sunday all day.

 

[MKCP5]

It's a nice place, but it all depends on how old your kids are. Mine are 12 and 14 and they are too old for it. It's definately geared to younger kids and they will love it

 

[cinderellamom123]

My kids who were 5 at the time loved it. My only complaint was that it was a little chilly. Kids over the age of 10 would probably be a little too old

 

[naynay80]

We have gone to the one in KC several times and my kids love it. They are 6 & 8, ours seems to have more big kid stuff instead of little kid things.

 

[mudman]

It's definitly for the under 12 crowd. It's LOUD in there. All that water running is incredibly annoying after too long. It's good fun though!
The hotel lobby has recently been updated, but the rooms are lacking and need some updating (at least the room we got needed some).
Also--they say no outside food allowed, but we saw lots of people with outside food. This rule was not enforced. The arcade is fun too. They use a card system instead of cash. I remember being charged $1 for the card itself which I think is rediculous.
Have fun!

 

[arielsleepingbeauty]

We have been 3 times. My girls love it. It is perfect for us. We are going again in Feb and they will be 9 and 7. It is loud, but so are my girls so it's not such a big deal to us.

 

[megthewonderful]

We went to Coco Key in Danvers during the recent ice storm. The hotel was sold out with people like us, who wanted somewhere fun to go while they were waiting for power to be restored. We had a blast! My kids are 5, 4, and 20 months. Here's a good tip for you: The water park opens at 11 on Sundays. You can ask at the front desk for a pass to the gym on site and take the kids swimming in their pool until the water park opens. The food prices are ridiculously expensive, so bring some snacks from home!

 

[twinmomplus2new]

I have been once For the twilight swim. it was just enough time for my Boy's.
i like it but am not in any particular rush to go back.

My cousins little one. got something through the heel of her foot. requiring her to have surgery to repair a tendon/muscle there. it happened coming down the 2 smaller slides in the center of Cooc key, there is a big parrot i think and maybe dumping buckets there. they never were able to determine what cut her. (it happened coming down the slide.)

This was last April vacation for them.. I am now paranoid about it. but they went the week before Christmas and were not nervous so maybe its just me!

 

[camdensmom]

You'll be right up the road from me.

Unfortunately though I don't have good things to report. They have been closed down several times by the board of health. There was an additional claim recently that is being looked into after some more people ended up hospitalized with infections after visiting.

 

[PatsGirl]

We were there just last week with two almost 12 year olds and they loved it. These are kids that have been to many, many waterparks including Water Country, Cape Codder, and of course, the Disney parks. Does this rate up there with Blizzard Beach? No. Water Country? No. But it was alot of fun for them for a two-day mini vacation. We also ordered room service for dinner which I thought was very reasonable (kids meals with drink were $6). I had a French Dip with ff for $11 and we rented a movie in the room for $12. The rooms were just so-so but clean. It's easy on and off Route 1 in Danvers. My only concern was the infections, etc. that I've heard so much about but we figured we'd take our chances and the kids are fine. Very noisey and lots of unorganized chaos throughout the hotel -- lobby, arcade, restaurants, etc. There's a Starbucks in the lobby too and a bar at the waterpark with big screen televisions. We spent a couple of hours sitting there late afternoon having a few drinks while the kids finished up. We went back again to the waterpark the next morning at 10 am and stayed until 1 pm. I thought 4 hours one day and another 3 or 4 hours the next day was plenty. Have fun!

 

[DebMcDonald]

You'll be right up the road from me.

Unfortunately though I don't have good things to report. They have been closed down several times by the board of health. There was an additional claim recently that is being looked into after some more people ended up hospitalized with infections after visiting.

OMG, we have my BIL's visiting and we thought it would be a fun weekend with them and their neices, but if I send them home with an infection I will never hear the end of it.

Thanks for the warning.

 

[DebMcDonald]

We were there just last week with two almost 12 year olds and they loved it. These are kids that have been to many, many waterparks including Water Country, Cape Codder, and of course, the Disney parks. Does this rate up there with Blizzard Beach? No. Water Country? No. But it was alot of fun for them for a two-day mini vacation. We also ordered room service for dinner which I thought was very reasonable (kids meals with drink were $6). I had a French Dip with ff for $11 and we rented a movie in the room for $12. The rooms were just so-so but clean. It's easy on and off Route 1 in Danvers. My only concern was the infections, etc. that I've heard so much about but we figured we'd take our chances and the kids are fine. Very noisey and lots of unorganized chaos throughout the hotel -- lobby, arcade, restaurants, etc. There's a Starbucks in the lobby too and a bar at the waterpark with big screen televisions. We spent a couple of hours sitting there late afternoon having a few drinks while the kids finished up. We went back again to the waterpark the next morning at 10 am and stayed until 1 pm. I thought 4 hours one day and another 3 or 4 hours the next day was plenty. Have fun!

Would you say it's in the same category as the cape codder for water fun? Better/Worse?

 

[Pea-n-Me]

My answer probably won't be popular with those that enjoy the resort's indoor water park, but in the interest of public awareness, here's what I found when I researched going there with a group of friends and our kids. (We were scheduled to be there right after it was closed down last year.)

I'm going to paraphrase but will provide links at the end for verifcation/further research.

The problem with indoor water parks is that 1) there are very high levels of chlorine used to kill the mulitude of germs that develop in the water from the hundreds of people who use them every day - including lots of children. High chlorine levels can result in skin burns and rashes; and 2) there are germs, spores and other microbes that live in the air in such a humid environment which may also contribute to health problems.

But what is less well known is that when chlorine combines with organic material in the water, a gas is released, which, when inhaled, can cause respiratory problems (such as coughing or wheezing), some of which can be very serious (such as an asthma attack or an injury to the lining of the inside of the lungs).

There is an actual medical condition called Lifeguard Lung which refers to the physiological problems of lifeguards exposed to these toxins.

In comparison to Coco Key, the Cape Codder's pool uses ultraviolet light instead of high chlorine levels to clean their pool water. (I give them a lot of credit for their forward thinking on that.) Sure, it's not quite as much fun to the kiddos as Coco Key is, but they will still have a good time, and there's a lot to do for the parents there, as well. From the Cape Codder website:

we have been thrilled with the success of our new High Intensity Ultra-Violet Light System. This revolutionary system (which is not required by state or local laws) uses ultra- violet light to destroy living organisms present in the liquid being treated.

What it really boils down to, to me: Chances are, kids will be fine at Coco Key. But is it something you want to take a chance with, especially with very little ones?

Happy and safe swimming, everyone!

What happened last year: http://wbztv.com/local/Danvers.Indoor.Water.2.670301.html

Chlorinization: http://www.straight.com/article/healthy-pools-mean-healthy-swimmers
Interesting tidbit from this article:

In Europe, ozonation has been the preferred method of sanitizing pools for 50 years. Ozone technology reduces the amount of organics in the water; chlorine must still be used, but in greatly reduced quantities. Chemicals are added to surge tanks and then put through a filtration system before the “drinking-water standard” water is funnelled into the pool.

Some of the largest pools in North America, including Disney’s water parks, use ozonation. In Vancouver, the YWCA and Century Plaza Spa pools are ozonated.

Air quality at indoor water parks: http://www.eriecohealthohio.org/downloads/environmental/barryrice.pdf

Ultraviolet water technology: http://www.watertechonline.com/article.asp?indexid=6634595