Please tell me about SAB

[crisi]

I think one of the strongest messages from this though is that you should take your kids to lessons such that they can be reasonable swimmers. I had lessons from a very young age so although mum still watched like a hawk there was some confidence there.

My kids are strong swimmers - my parents live on a lake so we started swim lessons at two. That still doesn't raise me to the comfort level of having kids in that 'in between' age here unless I'm willing to trail them. Say six to ten or so.

Home for us is BWV. Starting around five, the kids could get in the pool themselves. (Before that, I pretty much had to be in the water with them - too deep and they lacked the common sense to keep enough energy to be able to swim back if they got out too far). I'd have a swimsuit on, and a book, and get a drink from the pool bar, and look up and be able to spot them. Or sit and chat with my husband. That sort of half an eye on the kids thing you do when they are that age. If you want to let your kids go free range, but you still want to be able to look up and spot check, SAB isn't a good pool - regardless of how strong they swim. Also, its pretty easy to get lost at SAB if you don't know it. Its easy to get a little turned around in there - and for pre-tweens, they could just have a hard time finding you and panic.

My kids are now ten and eleven, and now I don't have an issue with it.

 

[jade1]

My kids are now ten and eleven, and now I don't have an issue with it.

Great reply crisi. And that's the thing, time does fly by and the older ours got-the more they wanted SAB-not splashing up to there waist with a bunch of little kids, but room to stretch out and get away.

 

[toniosmom]

My son will be 6 when we travel to BCV for spring break 2011. At the age of 4-1/2, he can swim in water way over his head with no trouble. He will continue to swim between now and then, strengthening his skills with lessons and summer 2010 of almost-daily swimming. While I am currently comfortable with him in the water and I know his skills will improve between now and then, I'm starting to get a little concerned about SAB.

Should I be worried?

 

[crisi]

Great reply crisi. And that's the thing, time does fly by and the older ours got-the more they wanted SAB-not splashing up to there waist with a bunch of little kids, but room to stretch out and get away.

We are really looking forward to switching, if we can, for SAB. I know that at this age (and they'll be almost 11 and 12 by the time we go) they will LOVE it. And you have to let go sometime, right? (If we can't, there are other resorts - we've been BWV bound for a bit and want to stretch, I think my husband is still hoping BCV will be full and he'll get "stuck" at VAKL or WLV). And at this age yet - it isn't Typhoon Lagoon, but it might save us ONE day at a waterpark.

But I sure don't regret not having it available to them last year or the year before. I would have done a lot less relaxing. However, everyone is different, and I know there are a lot of DISers that would let their kids enjoy SAB a lot younger, and probably as many that think I'm nuts for letting them run around that pool barely supervised by me at ten.

 

[Sammie]

My son will be 6 when we travel to BCV for spring break 2011. At the age of 4-1/2, he can swim in water way over his head with no trouble. He will continue to swim between now and then, strengthening his skills with lessons and summer 2010 of almost-daily swimming. While I am currently comfortable with him in the water and I know his skills will improve between now and then, I'm starting to get a little concerned about SAB.

Should I be worried?

I would say the 8 foot swift current would be the area to be most cautious of. I would definitely make sure he knows this is way over his head and is very swift.

The other areas will be ok for his ability. It just a very large area and due to the design can not be watched from one place on the deck.

 

[crisi]

My son will be 6 when we travel to BCV for spring break 2011. At the age of 4-1/2, he can swim in water way over his head with no trouble. He will continue to swim between now and then, strengthening his skills with lessons and summer 2010 of almost-daily swimming. While I am currently comfortable with him in the water and I know his skills will improve between now and then, I'm starting to get a little concerned about SAB.

Should I be worried?

Really, it depends on how involved you want to be. At that age I really LIKED to sit back with a umbrella drink and just be able to WATCH kids from a chair. And you can do that at SAB, if you restrict your kids to the part of the pool where your chair is (and then move if they want to move).

But I have two to watch, and my son is definitely a free ranger....My daughter would have wanted to be on the sand bar at one end while my son wanted to be going down the slide at the other - can't see them both from one spot at SAB. And, while my son is a pretty responsible kid, by free ranger I mean that he'll go down the slide three times, get bored, look for me to tell me he's going somewhere else (I suspect not too hard) and then just disappear. And I'll find him chasing lizards somewhere. Or in the hottub. ("But I looked for you, Mom!") My daughter is much less of a free ranger, but much more of a ditz....she'll just get bored and wander.....

 

[Deb & Bill]

I would say the 8 foot swift current would be the area to be most cautious of. I would definitely make sure he knows this is way over his head and is very swift.

The other areas will be ok for his ability. It just a very large area and due to the design can not be watched from one place on the deck.

It is so easy to get caught up in this current and be in water over your head, even for an adult. I am 5'11" and nearly lost my footing as I was walking from the spot where persons in wheelchairs can enter the pool trying to get over to the hot tubs. I wasn't aware of this depth and current and was very concerned when I couldn't get my footing easily and quickly.

If your children have not been in this pool before, you need to walk around the pool with them, whether they are good swimmers or not, and point out areas where it gets deep fast and the current pulls you into the deep water. In the sinking sands area, it can be difficult to get your footing, so that area should be pointed out as well.

No matter the age of your children, you are responsible for them at this pool and not the lifeguards. And I know I am speaking to the choir here because the majority of you will watch your kids. Just make sure they know about some of the dangers of SAB.

 

[toniosmom]

Thank you all for the advice.....I feel better. He is at the age where I am not comfortable letting him go in the pool alone, so as long as I am with him, we should be fine. I'm really looking forward to it -- the photos I have seen look so inviting!

 

[JandD Mom]

I just returned last week. We are also BWV owners and love it there as our "home". Our stay at the BCV has not changed that. We are happy we tried BCV because of SAB, but probably won't stay there again. I think Crisi summed up the issues with the pool perfectly.

If you like to be able to keep tabs on your kids, it's just not possible. There are too many places they can go, and too many things they find to do (and too many people) that it's just not possible to sit on a lounge chair and watch them. Keep in mind also that the entrance to the waterslide is actually out of the pool area, across a walkway, toward the lake on the beach. The entry point is the closest pool to the BC. That is the most crowded area.

So to say you will keep your child in one area is unrealistic because (a) it does get very crowded, no matter when you go, and you are not guaranteed to find a chair in the area where your child will want to swim (for 6 of the days of our vacation the only place we could get chairs was on the Yacht Club side, by the sand pool where all the little kids played); (b) it's so large there is no way your kid will want to stay in one place. If they do, why go here?

So unless you plan on getting in the water with your child, or moving repeatedly, you'd better be comfortable having the child out of your sight if you use this pool. As I said before -- why go here if you plan on confining the child to one small area of the pool?

 

[Jillpie]

So unless you plan on getting in the water with your child, or moving repeatedly, you'd better be comfortable having the child out of your sight if you use this pool. As I said before -- why go here if you plan on confining the child to one small area of the pool?

I have to disagree here a little bit about the "confining" part. Well, if you want some relaxation time on the lounge chair, (nothing wrong with that) and your child wants to stay in the water, I would confine them to stay in the general area in front of me. That would just be my rule, no question. Then, we can explore together when we both get in the water. Thats half the fun at this pool, as there are so many places to go, but do it together! Now I have three teenagers now, but I can put myself back to those years in a second, and yes, as little kids, I would tell them they cannot go out of my sight while I'm not in the water with them. I was at SAB this past April, and I saw something that I will not soon forget and ended up reporting it to the lifeguard. As I entered the jacuzzi, I saw two very small children, about the ages of 4 and 5, ALL ALONE. They had the jacuzzi to themselves, it was going full blast. I looked all over the place for their parents, no where to be found. I got out of there, and found them in the main pool, oblivious of where the children were. I just couldn't believe the neglect. But I digress. SAB is a blast, but just stay with your kids in the pool, its fun!!

 

[liznboys]

Already in planning mode for our next trip and am considering trying for 2 nights at BC specifically for the use of SAB. Can anyone give me specifics? Is it as great as it looks? Will the kids be happy I booked us 2 nights there? Is it worth the hassle of another split stay for the experience? We walked by it last trip and it does look awesome! TIA!

Hi J!

We did the one night at BCV and enjoyed SAB over the two days we were there. It was wonderful!! I was worried about it being too big, too spread out, too dangerous, etc... But we didn't have any troubles.

We stayed together for the most part (a few times my dh took 1 or 2 one place while I took the others another place), and we all enjoyed the different areas. My older two are great swimmers and they loved the deep area. They would swim down to the bottom of the 8 feet. My younger two would wear their swim vests and just float along. It was great!

So yeah, we had no issues, we loved it, and can't wait to go back!!

 

[islandtimect]

bump

 

[BarrerasFamily]

SAB is wonderful!!! My 7 year old DD has begged me to book at BCV next October so she can use SAB. She loved everything from the slide to the whirlpool to the sandy pool area. We (my DW and I) liked it because it was all nicely contained in one area.