Indoor Waterparks near Cleveland

[Buckeye Princess]

We have decided to take DD to an indoor water park for her second birthday at the end of this month. We live in Cleveland and there are so many options and have never been to one. For those of you have visited one or a few, which would you recommend?

Kahlahari in Sandusky
Great Wolf Lodge in Sandusky
Castaway Bay in Sandusky
Splash Lagoon in Erie (this has the advantage of being a closer drive for the grandparents are live in PA)

Mostly we are interested in a great area for little ones. She will go down simple slides on her own.

Thanks!

 

[Colleen27]

We haven't been to any of them except Kalahari, and that one is really fun but more geared towards bigger kids. They have a nice kiddie area but most of the waterpark is slides and the wave pool. It is awesome for my crew because there's such an age gap between my kids (they're 12, 9, and 2), and because DH & I love the waterparks as much as they do. But I'm not sure it would be my first choice if I was only thinking about DD2; it is more expensive than most of the other indoor waterparks we've been to and a lot of what they have to offer is lost on her.

A few pics of the kiddie area:

 

[Cogswel_Cogs]

We have stayed at Castaway bay twice.Kids love it but if they are under 54 inches(I think) they have to wear vest in some of the pools.
We almost awitched to Kalahar for a day last trip but didin'ti, Kalahari will give you a pass for like 20 minutes if you want to seee it first. I cannot see it filling up unless it a big weekend, it is huge. IAge order I would say, Great Wold for the Youngest , then Castaway , Kalahari.

 

[Buckeye Princess]

A swing in the water? That combines two of her favorite things! She'd be in heaven.

 

[KellyWasHere]

A swing in the water? That combines two of her favorite things! She'd be in heaven.

That was my thought too!

We went to Castaway Bay last year with a 16-ish month old and a 3.5 year old. Both loved the kiddie area (zero entry to maybe a foot?, one water slide, some sprinklers and fountains). That's all there is for the littlest kids, but it was plenty for my 2, they were in heaven.

It was nice having a TGIFridays attached and my kids got to meet Snoopy too, which they enjoyed.

Those pics for Kalahari look awesome, totally makes me want to go there!

 

[AlohaPolynesian]

My sister loves to take their kids (7, 3, and baby) to Great Wolf Lodge.

 

[Pembo]

We've been to Great Wolf and Kalahari. I preferred Great Wolf when my kids were little. It is smaller and easier to manage. DD was 2 when we went and she loved the kiddie slides.

 

[Denine]

We have only been to Kalahari and hated it!!! We will never go back. The water was absolutely freezing. DD ended up getting sick. All the little kids we saw had lips that were turning blue from the ice cold water. At least half the attractions were closed including the little kid area. But DD didn't want to do that much since the water was so cold. Who wants freezing water dumped on their head?

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

We have only been to Kalahari and hated it!!! We will never go back. The water was absolutely freezing. DD ended up getting sick. All the little kids we saw had lips that were turning blue from the ice cold water. At least half the attractions were closed including the little kid area. But DD didn't want to do that much since the water was so cold. Who wants freezing water dumped on their head?

The little kid area is not where the bucket is that dumps on your head. It is another area little ones can go to, but it is a totally seperate area from the pictures the pp posted.

When the census is low, some of the waterpark may be closed. Usually it is some of the old section. (There was a Kalahari expansion a couple years ago)

There are actually 2 kiddie sections, 1 in the old section that consists of 2-3 little slides and a swing area. And the other kiddie section in the new part . That is the area in the pictures. The area where the bucket is, are some smaller body slides and some guns that shoot water. Yep, that area is cold. I sit on a lounger while my kids play in that area. I am always cold and have not had a problem in any of the other areas. But it seems the old section is a little cooler than the newer one.

For your daughter there is also a lazy river and a wave pool, but she will have to wear a life vest for both. Under 48" vest.

She will confined to the kiddie area. All the bigger slides are 42-48" to ride. Never been to the GWL in Sandusky but the one in Mason will let the smaller kids ride on some of the bigger slides with a parent.

My kids love Kalahari