Welcome, Foolish Muggles! IoA/US/MK/SW *July 2013 Trip Report Link*

[natebenma]

great comparison!!
You are so helpful. Have you ever thought of being a travel agent?? I think it's your calling
The CS looks pretty good. If we ever make it there I would definately consider it especially for the $$$ you save.
But the view from Atlantis- OMG it is gorgeous!!!

I haven't figured out what I want to do when I grow up, but that is an excellent suggestion!

When we were making the decision about CS vs. Atlantis, my husband said he would be willing to pay the extra if he KNEW we would have that view. It was just incredible.

Love the comparison! How do the rooms compare to a Disney room?

Amanda

I would say the rooms were fairly comparable to a Disney (Beach Club) room. Both had the desk, similar bureaus (but not the standup bureau). There was a single sink around the corner, but outside the bathroom. It is nice to have the sink both outside, and "hidden"

It seemed like there was more space in the "sitting area" part of the CS, but some of that came at the expense of the double vs. Queen Beds at the Beach Club. There was a coffee table at the CS.

No balcony at the CS- that would be pretty comparable to a Juliet balcony. A full balcony to me counts for a lot.

Dee- enjoying the comparisons. Loved that view from your previous stay! So.peaceful. look forward to reading more and of course that food porn as promised. Glad you are sharing again

Thank you. I just had to post pictures of that view from Atlantis. I could not believe how wonderful it was- always interesting and beautiful.

 

[natebenma]

OK readers- it is time to put on your swimsuits and sunscreen because we are going to start exploring the waterpark-

Aquaventure: Non-stop water. Non-stop fun.

This 141-acre world of water includes a mile-long river adventure, nine screaming-fast water slides and over 7 million gallons of water fun.

Today’s journey will take us to The Current and Rapids


Best. “Lazy” River. EVER!


This mile-long river journey serves up waves, rapids, tunnels and other surprises.

Mark and Ben timed how long it took to go through the whole river from beginning to end- it is around 30 minutes. We didn’t often complete the whole course since there are a couple of exit points that take you to rides in the Power Tower.

There are lots of entrances and exits along the river, but for the most part, this is the “start”:

There is a small drop, you go through a tunnel and there is a small stretch of rapids.

Following that, there is a gentle current:

Soon you arrive at the Power Tower. You can bailout here to access either the Abyss body slide or the Surge tube slide or you can continue to float down the river.

There is another stretch of rapids taking you through a cave. New on this trip was a red light and smoke, simulating a dragon. I think.

More gentle water, as you pass by the climbing wall.

Continued in Next Post…

 

[natebenma]

Continued From Previous Post…

Just around the corner is the wave generator- every few seconds, gallons of water are pushed out of this building with a “WOOSH”- creating HUGE swells for the next stretch of river.

So fun!!!

As I mentioned in my preview, I actually got flipped out of my raft once and on another occasion my raft ran into someone else’s and flipped her over. Sorry!

The waves were biggest along the wall, so riders would try to get to the sides for a bigger lift.

The water calms down and you float until you get to a cave with two conveyor belts. Not sure what the point of this is- you are carried up and back down again.

At the exit, you come to a fork in the “road”.


Going left will keep you on the river and back to the beginning.

Taking the corridor on the right brings you to another long conveyor belt into the Power Tower where you can go on one of the two tube slides- these are both rollercoaster slides like CrusherGusher at Typhoon Lagoon. More about these later. These slides exit back into the Current.

That concludes our ride on the river, but I have a few additional comments.

Flashback:

Shockingly, I did not do a lot of research into the waterpark attractions before our first trip, so I had no idea that this amazing “crazy” river existed or that it was so huge. That turned out to be a costly mistake- within minutes of getting onto rafts in the river, Ben and I got separated from Mark and Nate. With so many exits to the river, and not knowing how long it was, there was a lot of confusion. They were waiting for us where we entered the river, I think Ben and I bailed out early and couldn’t find them in this huge park.

We finally all figured out that the best thing to do was meet back at the chair where we had left our stuff.

Important lesson learned- have a meeting place!!! We always make the chairs with our towel and stuff our home base. I have since revised this strategy and in my beach bag I have a notepad and pencil. That way, if someone stops by, but doesn’t want to stay, they can leave a note letting the others in the family where they are and when they are coming back.

For you traditionalists, there is an old-school lazy river near the Beach Towers of Atlantis. We did try this when we first arrived on the afternoon of our trip in 2009- before we knew anything about The Current.

We never saw many people using this and in my humble opinion- I don’t know why anyone would!


Next up: The Mayan Temple

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Oh Dee your latest update was exactly what I needed on this wet and windy day Love, love, love the look of that lazy river-especially the fact that it takes you onto the coaster type slide (how lazy is that lol).
My daughter would adore the climbing wall-she always has to have a wee go on them when she spots them. She climbs at an indoor wall here and has qualified to teach others how to climb at various outdoor activity centres here
Cant wait to hear more

 

[jenseib]

The lazy river is my kind of water attraction!

 

[mickeystoontown]

What I wouldn't give to be on that lazy river right now instead of sitting behind this crummy old desk. I love how you took pictures of all the different "sections" of the river and gave us all the details. When you mentioned having the note pad and paper in your bag, it made me remember a tip that someone posted before about keeping in touch at the water parks. She took a Magnadoodle and kept it in her bag on their "home chair".

 

[DrMomof3]

What an awesome lazy river!!! I wish I were there right now!

Amanda

 

[natebenma]

Oh Dee your latest update was exactly what I needed on this wet and windy day Love, love, love the look of that lazy river-especially the fact that it takes you onto the coaster type slide (how lazy is that lol).
My daughter would adore the climbing wall-she always has to have a wee go on them when she spots them. She climbs at an indoor wall here and has qualified to teach others how to climb at various outdoor activity centres here
Cant wait to hear more

It is a miserable wet day here, too!

The conveyer that takes you to the ride DOES promote laziness. That was new this trip. 3 years ago, you had to walk up the stairs with your tube to do these rides. This is actually pretty helpful to folks who have mobility issues. They can enjoy the lazy river and the two slides.

I believe there is a charge to use the climbing wall. I don't know what it is. I never saw anyone using it while we were there

The lazy river is my kind of water attraction!

It is so fun! Appropriate for all ages, but it would be a good idea to put little ones who are not strong swimmers in a life jacket, just in case they are tipped from the raft during some of the rapid sections.

What I wouldn't give to be on that lazy river right now instead of sitting behind this crummy old desk. I love how you took pictures of all the different "sections" of the river and gave us all the details. When you mentioned having the note pad and paper in your bag, it made me remember a tip that someone posted before about keeping in touch at the water parks. She took a Magnadoodle and kept it in her bag on their "home chair".

Soon, soon, soon, you will be in a better place(s) than behind your desk!

My descriptions remind me of someone else's photo walks through CBR.

What an awesome lazy river!!! I wish I were there right now!

Amanda

Me, too!!!

 

[bstarprincess37]

Hi! I am pretty new to the DIS boards but I just finished reading some of your trip reports and I just have to tell you -- they are great! Thanks for posting!!!

 

[natebenma]

Hi! I am pretty new to the DIS boards but I just finished reading some of your trip reports and I just have to tell you -- they are great! Thanks for posting!!!

to the DIS and to my reports. Thanks so much for reading and for your nice comments!

Do you have upcoming trip plans?

 

[MHTeacher]

Sounds like so much fun! The beach condo where we stay in the summer with the extended family, has a lazy river around the pool, but it's nothing like the one at Atlantis!

The thing I always find funny is is how floating all day in a lazy river can wipe you out! (literally and figuratively!)

 

[bstarprincess37]

to the DIS and to my reports. Thanks so much for reading and for your nice comments!

Do you have upcoming trip plans?

Thanks for the welcome!

We have a short trip planned - heading off for 2 days at the World and 2 for US and IoA. After reading your TR I am sooo excited! It will be the first trip to Disney for my DH and only my second since I was younger.

 

[JanetMom]

Great report on the lazy river. (Oh to be there!)

You need to tell your husband that you NEED another camera because so many Disers value and appreciate that you fill your reports with pictures!

I love the tip about the note pad in the meeting place bag. Such a simple idea, but I wouldn't have thought of it.

 

[natebenma]

Sounds like so much fun! The beach condo where we stay in the summer with the extended family, has a lazy river around the pool, but it's nothing like the one at Atlantis!

The thing I always find funny is is how floating all day in a lazy river can wipe you out! (literally and figuratively!)

Love resorts with lazy rivers!!!

The Current at Atlantis is in a league of its own. It is great for my personality. A little calm, followed by a lot of turbulence and then lots of different routes to take- more floating, rides...

The only problem with the Current is that all other lazy rivers are dead to me. They are just not the same.

Thanks for the welcome!

We have a short trip planned - heading off for 2 days at the World and 2 for US and IoA. After reading your TR I am sooo excited! It will be the first trip to Disney for my DH and only my second since I was younger.

If you have any questions about your upcoming visit, I would be glad to help, along with the others here on the board!

Great report on the lazy river. (Oh to be there!)

You need to tell your husband that you NEED another camera because so many Disers value and appreciate that you fill your reports with pictures!

I love the tip about the note pad in the meeting place bag. Such a simple idea, but I wouldn't have thought of it.

I'll pass along your message to Mark.

Make sure you pack your notepad and pencil in your drawstring bag.

 

[HockeyMomR]

Amazing lazy river. And a rainy day in Maryland today too. Thanks for stealing me away for a few.

 

[natebenma]

Amazing lazy river. And a rainy day in Maryland today too. Thanks for stealing me away for a few.

You are welcome!

Are you going to have another day or so of rain? Today is our drencher of a day.

 

[natebenma]

The Power Tower is a 120 foot tower featuring 4 adrenaline-inducing slides: The Drop, The Falls, The Surge and The Abyss.

My favorite part of the Power Tower, though? The amazing views from the top!

Atlantis Beach-the pink buildings way in the back are the Beach Tower rooms where we stayed in 2009

Downtown Nassau

Downtown Nassau in the background, waterpark in the foreground

The Cove

The Cove Beach

Mayan Temple (Challenger Slides) and Main Buildings of Atlantis

I’ll go into more details about the rides in the next post


.

 

[natebenma]

The Drop and The Falls are two tube slides near the top of the tower. When we visited 3 years ago, you walked up the stairs in the Power Tower to these two slides, but now the rides are accessed by the conveyor belt we saw in the lazy river post.

When you get to the end of the belt, there are a couple of channels. One takes you to the left to the open-air The Drop. The other takes you to the right to The Falls which starts off with a drop in the dark.

Opening at the left is the conveyor belt, opening to the right is The Drop. The opening to the Falls is to the right of this picture.

Heading to The Falls


Here is what it looks like at the end of the ride- you ride in a little river that connects back to The Current.

 

[natebenma]

There are two rides that start from the top level of the Power Tower- The Surge and The Abyss.

The Surge is a coaster-like tube slide similar to Crusher Gusher at Typhoon Lagoon.

End of the ride- you also end up on a short course that takes you back into The Current.

Nate's braces paid off. Look at that Million Dollar Smile!

.

 

[natebenma]

The Abyss is a steep body slide. You enter into a crypt like structure. The first park of the slide goes through the dark. There is a brief opening, I think it gets dark again, you go through a waterfall and end up in a cavern with tanks of catfish and alligator gar.

Blurry picture of Nate- didn’t know he was here, I was just taking pictures of the exit area

None of us tried this slide back in 2009.

Nate was behind me as I attempted this for the first time. What little respect my son had for me disappeared as it took me Too.Much.Time. to get started as I inched down waiting for gravity to take over. Finally, I started the plummet. I swallowed some water along the way and came up choking.

“Mom, you are really bad at the Abyss!”

This was my one and only ride on this.

Nate, on the other hand, must have gone on this 30-50 times! We cut him loose quite a bit on this trip. We would give him an hour or hour and a half to go off and do what he wanted to while the 3 of us did something else. He was always back at our meeting spot on time, usually before we arrived. Most of the time when we asked him what he did, he said “I went on the Abyss a few times”

Mark liked the slide too, and went on a few times with Nate.

The rides in the Power Tower are really fun, but probably my biggest complaint is the access. You can only get to The Falls and The Drop by going through the Current and up the conveyor belt- the lines here can get long and backed up as you wait for the belt. This part of the river also did not propel you along, so you actually had to get out of your tube and walk along until you got to the conveyor. Although I did enjoy the views you get when you are riding on the belt, I liked it better when you could walk up the stairs to these rides.

Lines for the top Power Tower rides probably ranged from 5 minutes to about 20 minutes, depending on the time of day and how many cruise ships were in port. The lines were really conducive to conversation- I met a nice mom and her daughter from Portland Maine who were visiting Atlantis for the day. They were staying downtown at the British Colonial Hilton. I saw Nate talking to quite a few people when they were waiting to ride Abyss- if this was their first time, he would explain what the ride was like and reassure them or tell them that if they wanted to “get air” they should push off on the overhead bar.

I'll take his word for it!

.