Sahara Sams indoor water park in South Jersey, anyone been?

[lisaross]

my son wants to go to an indoor water park for his b-day - was thinking of coco key but this also popped up -

wondering if you've been what u think of it?

thanks

 

[amsafko]

I live about 10 minutes from there and went for the first time in November. It was nice but I'm not sure it is worth a trip that far. It has a lazy river, a few larger slides, a group slide, an area similar to Blizzard Beach (I think it's the Ski Patrol area), and they have a very small wave thing for surfing (I believe, my kids were too young). We were done in a few hours. I would check into Coco Key, that's about 20 minutes from me - I haven't been there but I have heard good things and you can stay in the hotel there if you want. There's no hotel at or near the Sahara Sam's. Hope that helps.

 

[shelly3girls]

We have been there twice. It is very nice but tends to get very crowded. If you buy tickets in advance you can get discounts. We went over Christmas break and paid $20/person. They are very strict about not allowing you to bring in food or drink which really runs up the cost. Also, if you plan to eat anything around lunch time realize that you will stand in line for 30-45 minutes just to get anything. They have two food lines for the whole place. Given that you live in NY I would really recommend getting a room at Great Wolf Lodge when you can use a code. For one night you get two days of waterpark. You can bring in your own food and there are several places to eat. The park is twice the size and much more enjoyable. Sahara Sam's is great for a couple of hours but I wouldn't drive an hour to go.

 

[billwendy]

Just so you can compare - we went to Coco Cay. It is nice, but how old is your son? There isnt much there for older kids, but my 3, 5, 7 year old nephew and nieces had fun - my 17 year old neice went back to texting after bout an hour - lol. there is a pool with basketball hoops, a lazy river, a kiddie structure with sprinklers and one of those dumping buckets and a few little slides on it, 3 bigger slides, some "stepping stones", a big hot tub and a little area for toddlers that was shaped like a boat with a little slide on it. All in all, its more like a few hour adventure.

Hope that helps!!

 

[bigmama67]

Interested in this too - we have booked 1 night at Coco Key in Mt. Laurel for Presidents' Weekend - DS7 and DD1 and hopefully we will bring one of DS' friends with us as the baby doesn't need a ticket (we get 4 with the room). I would love to go to GWL but I got a rate of $209 for the night including breakfast and the 2 day tickets so this was the best deal I found.

Rachel in NJ

 

[clj1410]

We have done both CocoKey and Sahara Sams, I prefer Sahara Sams. We are planning on doing DS birthday party at Sahara Sams.

 

[lisaross]

Was originally thinking of going to Coco - but the prices were $249.99- did not realize it includes breakfast - do u have a special code?

THEN I WAS SURING THE net and found the Sahara place - my boys r close to 8 and 10! I thought they had some hotels near Shara - they have pkg deals w/hotels so i can't imagine they are so so far? I realize they will both be crowded on a Weekend so now i'm thinking of taking them out of school on a Friday and going up friday morning and staying 1 night!

Interested in this too - we have booked 1 night at Coco Key in Mt. Laurel for Presidents' Weekend - DS7 and DD1 and hopefully we will bring one of DS' friends with us as the baby doesn't need a ticket (we get 4 with the room). I would love to go to GWL but I got a rate of $209 for the night including breakfast and the 2 day tickets so this was the best deal I found.

Rachel in NJ

 

[lisaross]

What do u like about Sahara Sams better?

We have done both CocoKey and Sahara Sams, I prefer Sahara Sams. We are planning on doing DS birthday party at Sahara Sams.

 

[loveysbydesign]

We loved CocoKey..but we had free tix. If you're gonna pay alomst $250 you might as well go to Great Wolf Lodge!

 

[clj1410]

What do u like about Sahara Sams better?

I found Sahara Sams to be a little bigger, so even on a weekend it didn't seem too crowded. My DS6 likes the flow rider that they have there. They both seem to have pretty much the same things, other than the Flow rider.

All the hotels are pretty close to sahara sams, maybe a 15 minute drive.

 

[ibela]

I've been thinking about going to an indoor waterpark for the weekend and love the comments on this thread so far, subbing for any more opinions/ideas.

 

[loveysbydesign]

just got an email for Great Wolf lodge...sale starting at $179 a night Jan-March.
Use promo code 48HOUR

 

[twinsgg]

Please help, I'm trying to make up my mind between Sahara Sams and Coco Key. We'll be 2 families traveling together with a 5 yr.old, 3.5 yr. old twins and an 8month old. Does one offer a better water area/more attractions for little ones? Is one cleaner than the other? Does one park attract more families with younger children than the other? Are both well staffed? Any feedback would be very, very much appreciated.

 

[uromac]

FYI I live 2 minutes from Sahara Sam's (Rt. 73) - I haven't been either of the waterpark so I cannot comment on them, but I can say the 2 nearest decent hotels by Sahara Sam's are the Wingate (which my parents prefer) and Hampton Inn - both are in Voorhees and approx. 10 minutes away. There is also of a mall (2 minutes from the hotels Echelon - not great but has a Macy's, etc and food court) near both hotels, as well as a great movie theater complex - Showcase at the Ritz. CocoKey (is also on Rt. 73) and it has a hotel attached and near the Moorestown Mall (better mall -5 minutes away) and both areas are about 15-20 minutes away from the Cherry Hill Mall (best w/Nordstroms etc..) as well as the Discovery Museum in Cherry Hill for kids and closer to main highways - 295 and turnpike - as well as a little closer to Philly.

If you need any other help regarding info on the areas just ask!!

Good Luck!!

 

[joliesmom]

We have been to parties at both with my 8yo DD and I have taken my DD to CoCo Keys many times. We just went to a party at Sahara Sams this past Saturday and it was a zoo. The party was not organized and for the $ that they charge I was surprised. There had to be about 10 ther parties at the same time plus all of the general public made it mobbed. IMHO CoCo Keys has a much nicer set up since the little kid play area is upstairs and the play area appears much nicer. I also like that CoCo has a seating area where you don't have to walk through the water area to get to. (I was a little put off at Sahara Sams because I saw 2 different people changing their kids diapers on the tables where people eat so I was skeeved. Plus there were dirty swimmies thrown on the floor in the bathroom).

 

[twinsgg]

Thanks for your detailed replies. Sounds like Coco Key in Mt. Laurel might be best for our family. Does anyone know if they offer discount coupons??? We'll be 4 adults, a 5yr.old, 3.5 twins and an 8month old. Thanks!

 

[Kim&Chris]

I've been to both CocoKey and Sahara Sam's (I went to SS just this past weekend) and I honestly prefered Sahara Sam's over CocoKey.

SS seemed to be cleaner and WARMER. For some reason, it was freezing in the building when we were at CocoKey. The kids were shivering, so we ended up leaving a bit early. I complained to one of the employees. He told me, and I'm not kidding, that management keeps it cooler to save energy.

I was also impressed by the number of employees that Sahara Sams had....probably twice as many than CocoKey had.

As far as the "attractions" go, both places are pretty much equal, except that CocoKey has a hottub, while Sahara Sam's has a wave rider.

 

[lisaross]

i am actually going to coco key next friday/saturday. i signed up for emails on their sight, and i did get a 20% off code - we will be staying 1 night - i think w/taxes and everythings its about 199.00!

can i ask what u guys wear when going into these parks - i've never been to an indoor water park! do u change when u get their or wear the bathing suits under your cloths? do u just bring in towels? thanx for any tips,

we're hoping going on a Friday won't be as crowded as the weekend, and we'll probably have lunch their and then for dinner change in the room andpick someplace close....

 

[lato0119]

When i attended a birthday party at sahara sam's both my kids and i had a great time... they were very attentive and helpful as far as the staff goes.. the rides and attractions kept all the children occupied for the whole time... as far as the bathrooms and diapers being thrown on the floor.. that is the doing of disrespectful guests... i know the bathrooms were clean when we were there and that the staff cleans them on a regular basis. Just surprised to here is all...