Typhoon Lagoon

[lisatx04]

Planning our trip to WDW for July. Kids want to go to a water park. DS (11) is not the strongest of swimmers, so I decided on Typhoon Lagoon. Have not been there in many years so I don't remember it at all. Do we need to bring towels there? Could we spend an entire day there without getting bored? I also have DD (13) who loves water rides. Any info would be greatly appreciated!

 

[psherman42wallabyway]

There are towel rentals at the Lagoon, but there is a small fee (around $2 per towel). You can also purchase them at stores. Typhoon Lagoon is such a fun waterpark. my favorite of the two. Amazingly themes. You will NOT get bored. You may also not fit in all of the fun slides in one day!

 

[Morganw42]

We love Typhoon Lagoon, it's our favorite park of the two. However, it is a more challenging park for a weak swimmer. Typhoon's two best features are the wave pool and the lazy river. Both require much more swimming proficiency than their counter parts at Blizzard Beach. This is not to say that a novice swimmer wouldn't enjoy Typhoon Lagoon, in fact the amazing atmosphere and superior theming might just motivate your child to "sink or swim" and build the confidence to try more advanced swimming.

 

[Faithful_Tink]

Agreed that Typhoon is my favorite of the two! The atmosphere is just awesome.

Considering your son isn't a strong swimmer I would definitely proceed with caution in the wave pool. Even if you don't go too far in the deep end the undertow is strong and more over the amount of people being swept into you by the massive waves can be a bit scary for novice swimmers. BUT after getting used to a couple waves I think your son would have a blast!

As for your daughter she'll probably really love the rides, especially Crush n' Gusher. Blizzard Beach does offer a wider variety for the slide enthusiasts but if that's not your focal point I would definitely suggest Typhoon.

 

[HopperFan]

My first thought is that I wonder why Typhoon Lagoon for a not strong swimmer. The wave pool is incredibly powerful even for excellent swimmers. The one at Blizzard Beach is enjoyable for all and the slides are so much better for your daughter. I think your son would enjoy the Ski Patrol Area as well and it is very well supervised with guards. Just my opinion.

 

[smidgy]

i think typhoon is prettier, and I love the giant wave pool. blizzard only has a bobbing pool (which might be beter for your son).
but blizzard has a MUCh better family slide... teamboat springs. it's really long.

 

[ilovejsparrow]

Typhoon Lagoon is the best! You can definitely spend a day there. If you get there early, you can snag some beach chairs under trees for a good mid-afternoon nap. Plenty of slides for your DD. Have fun

 

[lisatx04]

Thanks so much for all the replies! I am so torn as too which one to go to. They both have so much for everyone. DS (11) is not a bad swimmer, just not a strong swimmer. He loves wav pools but with reading that the bottom of the wave pool is course textured and you can get scratched up,may sway me to BB.
One question, how is the wave pool at BB? I herd it is a bobbing pool, but I am not sure what that means. Also, the kiddie section-for what ages is it? Very small kids?

Thanks for all the input!

 

[Faithful_Tink]

The pool at BB is more like being out at sea - a lot of small waves bobbing every which way.

Ski Patrol Camp at BB is for bigger kids - under 48 inches. There is also Tike's Peak but that is for the smaller kids.

 

[lisatx04]

We looked at both on the Disney site and DS wants to go to BB. So that looks like where we will be. Thanks everyone!!

 

[Deb & Bill]

The bobbing pool at BB is a waste of water and concrete. Wave pool at TL all the way!!!!!

 

[sympatico]

There's a calm pool area at Typhoon over by the Crushin Gusher. It's zero entry and probably only 5 ft deep. The water slides come out on one end but it's divided from the main pool area. Nice relaxing area.

 

[duketennisgal]

The bobbing pool at BB is a waste of water and concrete. Wave pool at TL all the way!!!!!

I thought the bobbing pool at BB was much more difficult to deal with than the wave pool at TL. I'm a pretty good swimmer but the constant bobbing in the pool at BB can make it very difficult, especially if you head out a bit deeper. Now with TL I would venture out into the 6 ft + area and not feel in danger at all.

Plus the wave pool at TL is just so much larger, you don't feel as crowded by people and tubes (which were everywhere).

We spent the whole day at TL, probably half of it in the wave pool. I loved crush n' gusher as well as the other slides they had around the park. I did like the slides at BB but the wave pool is the deciding factor for me on which park we would go back to.

 

[bleeps]

Our advice about towels:

While it is easy enough to rent a towel for the day, the downside to doing so is that anyone else can grab your towels (accidentally?) and you have to re-rent replacements (at least this is what we were told). We brought old beach towels from home -- NOT with Disney designs (so that they weren't attractive to anyone) -- which made it very easy for us (and also we didn't have to wait to get towels to start the day).