Which waterpark?

[eileen2664]

So dh just mentioned the possibility of adding a waterpark to our trip next month, the question is which one? And really, would it even be worth it? We've never been to either.

The kids are 17 and 7 (turning 8 2 days after we get back home). The 7yo is tiny, I just measured him and he's right at 48"....how accurate are WDW's rulers? He got turned down at the local pool's slide last week that has the same height requirement, but he really is 48". He can swim, but he's not the strongest (can swim about half the length of our 36' pool before he needs a rest). We're beyond the preschool pool areas, but not sure we're quite to the big slides (depends on how brave he's feeling that day). I'm not into thrill slides, I'll go down basic ones but anything that says I have to cross my legs to protect my bits are not my gig. I doubt dh will do any slides. The 17yo is a wild card, he may or may not do them, he'd probably just do whatever his brother does.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

So dh just mentioned the possibility of adding a waterpark to our trip next month, the question is which one? And really, would it even be worth it? We've never been to either.

The kids are 17 and 7 (turning 8 2 days after we get back home). The 7yo is tiny, I just measured him and he's right at 48"....how accurate are WDW's rulers? He got turned down at the local pool's slide last week that has the same height requirement, but he really is 48". He can swim, but he's not the strongest (can swim about half the length of our 36' pool before he needs a rest). We're beyond the preschool pool areas, but not sure we're quite to the big slides (depends on how brave he's feeling that day). I'm not into thrill slides, I'll go down basic ones but anything that says I have to cross my legs to protect my bits are not my gig. I doubt dh will do any slides. The 17yo is a wild card, he may or may not do them, he'd probably just do whatever his brother does.

I am a waterslide wimp but enjoyed Typhoon Lagoon last month. There are a lot of family raft slides and the body slides didn't seem too bad, so I think your 7 year old would be able to do most things there. We loved the lazy river, but the wave pool is no joke (I already knew that since I had an incident there when I was little ).

 

[myjourney]

Something I didn't know until recently is that you can add water parks to your tickets a lot cheaper than buying a one day waterpark ticket. And you get as many days as your park tickets.

 

[eileen2664]

Another question: we already have parkhoppers, can we add the "plus" at the resort, once we have a better idea of the weather and such? And, I know it's a long shot, but neither park has a "scuba-like" thing do they? For some reason my boys are obsessed with trying out suba-ing

 

[supitscarrie]

Another question: we already have parkhoppers, can we add the "plus" at the resort, once we have a better idea of the weather and such? And, I know it's a long shot, but neither park has a "scuba-like" thing do they? For some reason my boys are obsessed with trying out suba-ing

Yes, you can upgrade tickets to park hopper or park hopper plus at the resort (did exactly that on my last trip - very easy!).
To my knowledge, neither park has anything close to scuba on site. It's all slides, lazy rivers, wave pools, etc. I've only been to one of the water parks once - Blizzard Beach... 17 years ago! But I enjoyed it quite a bit. I would've been at an age between where your two kids are at. These days I don't usually go at a time of year when hitting a water park is much of a viable option, but I'd love to do Typhoon Lagoon at some point.

 

[Klayfish]

We love both water parks, we were just at both a few weeks ago. No, to my knowledge neither has scuba. I think Typhoon Lagoon used to when they had the Shark Reef, but it's closed anyway.

As to which one, honestly you can't go wrong. This question is asked a lot here, and the general consensus is it's about 50/50. They both have really fun "big" slides. TL has something called Crush N Gusher which is sort of like a water roller coaster. You sit in a tube and jets of water propel you up small hills (then of course you go down via gravity and water, like any other slide). It's a ton of fun and I'd bet even your 7 year old would enjoy it. BB has mat slides, TL does not. They both have lazy rivers which are fun and relaxing. BB has an area called Ski Patrol which your 7 year old would like. It has small zip lines and an iceberg crossing challenge that kids like. It's designed for kids roughly ages 4-11.

The biggest difference between the two is the wave pool. TL wave pool has very large waves. They only come once every 2 minutes or so, but they're big. Really big. They're a ton of fun, but if you go into the deeper end of the pool you need to be a strong swimmer. It's OK if you aren't, just stay in the shallow end...it's a zero entry pool. When the waves get to the shallow end, they're gentle enough that even a toddler can stand. In fact, one of the little kiddie areas is in the shallow end of it. BB wave pool is non-stop small waves. It's like being in a very choppy ocean. They have tubes in there that you can float on. I enjoy it, but actually start feeling seasick after a while, as it's nonstop bobbing up and down. Some people feel BB wave pool is less dangerous, but I'd strongly disagree. They're both quite safe if you use common sense, and both can be dangerous if you don't.

I'd recommend going to one if you can. They're a ton of fun. Shaded chairs are easy to find, so you can have a place to relax.

 

[BrianL]

Another question: we already have parkhoppers, can we add the "plus" at the resort, once we have a better idea of the weather and such? And, I know it's a long shot, but neither park has a "scuba-like" thing do they? For some reason my boys are obsessed with trying out suba-ing

There is an experience at Epcot in The Seas pavilion that has snorkeling and scuba diving, but I believe you must be scuba certified to do the actual dive. The snorkeling tour has no such requirements. Here is the official information on these activities:

Snorkeling:
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/epcot/epcot-seas-aqua-tour/
ETA: It looks like the minimum age is 8 years old for this one.

Scuba:
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/epcot/epcot-divequest/

 

[SuperPreparo]

We've been to both several times. I prefer the theming, family raft rides and food options at TL and the pool and kiddie area at BB. The waves at the TL pool are pretty strong. I actually got caught in the undertow sitting in the shallow area with my granddaughter and scraped up my elbows on the concrete bottom.

 

[Ronda93]

Second the strong waves at TL....if you are standing in the shallow part of the wave pool and a wave comes in you can get knocked off your feet. And then you get dragged on the bottom. It is very rough and will scrape you up/draw blood. Even if you start out in water over your head, it's a possibility as you are carried to the shallower area by the wave.

That said, I love Typhoon Lagoon.

 

[OFF2NVRLAND]

I would say TL. It has more tube rides for all ages. Maybe it would help if you checked out some YouTube videos. We had a 4 yr old with us last summer that was skiddish and ended up doing all the tube rides multiple times with no problem. Miss Adventure Falls is a fun raft ride for the whole family. The waves are big at TL but it’s really not that bad IMO. The pool was a favorite for the 4 & 5 yr old in our group.

 

[PollyannaMom]

We love both, but have kind of alternated over the years based on DS's age. I'd say BB has the better "older kid" area for your 7-year-old.

 

[Klayfish]

Second the strong waves at TL....if you are standing in the shallow part of the wave pool and a wave comes in you can get knocked off your feet. And then you get dragged on the bottom. It is very rough and will scrape you up/draw blood. Even if you start out in water over your head, it's a possibility as you are carried to the shallower area by the wave.

That said, I love Typhoon Lagoon.

Yes, to this day I have a scar on my left knee from 2 years ago in the TL wave pool. But that was my own fault, doing something silly. If you get dragged on it, it'll scrape you. However I don't think people realize that the wave pool in BB has the same floor. If you're in the shallow end, there are some pretty strong currents flowing there because of all the waves constantly coming through (and the rebound off the wall in the shallow end). You can get dragged there pretty easy. You just don't hear about it much because people don't body surf or do crazy stuff like that as much as they do in the TL pool.

 

[rentayenta]

We prefer TL. We like the theme better plus the bright white at BB tends to give me a headache.

 

[sweetnjmom]

We're going to Blizzard Beach next month because my son (almost 9) -- who is NOT a strong swimmer -- loves wave pools and I heard the one at TL is pretty intense. Plus I read there is a nice "tween" area at BB for kids who are past the toddler area but not really strong enough swimmers for the grown up stuff. I've never been there and I've only been to TL once, probably 20 years ago.

 

[WRLeGrand]

We just did Typhoon Lagoon this past Saturday for the very first time. My boys are 6 and 4, and both love water and are good swimmers. I will say that we really loved it. It felt like a small/big park if that makes sense at all. By that I mean it is clearly a big park, but it feels very manageable in a day. There is a wide variety of family slides that I think you age range would love.

The one caveat is the wave pool. The mega waves are really just that, MEGA. Personally I found it a bit unnecessary and borderline dangerous for a family friendly wave pool. If you stay in the shallows, its not a big deal at all. They also did alternate to times of "rolling" waves, which were fun and small. To my understanding, Blizzard Beach just has these continually, which I would have personally preferred (both for myself and my little boys).

In summation, I think you will find both to be really fun, but I can recommend Typhoon Lagoon!

 

[BrianL]

At the Typhoon Lagoon wave pool there is a section of the shallows off to the side where the big waves won't go. It's like an artificial harbor. It's not very deep though, but for those with smaller kids who are uncomfortable with the big waves, this section may be of interest. They sound the siren before the big waves start, which I think every hour, and after the wave sequence, it will go back to the gentle rolling waves for a while.

 

[Wesam Abdallah]

We're doing TL.

 

[abarriger]

I LOVE the water parks at Disney. They just don't compare to waterparks anywhere else. I would advise you to watch Tim Tracker's youtube videos from both parks-- that will give you a sense of which is more your style. I prefer TL (I'm a slide wimp and love Crushin Gusher) but that's just my opinion.

 

[MinnieMSue]

I prefer TL - bigger wave pool and to me better theming. My teen prefers blizzard beach. She likes bobbing on a raft in the wave pool and the downhill double dipper is her fav. The family raft ride is actually pretty awesome there. She is mad that she is too tall for the tween area. She loved that so much when she was younger. She really wanted to do the zip line type thing again but she is 4 inches too tall

 

[Goseethemouse]

I would get the plus feature so you can do both water parks if you want to (you could just do a couple of hours each).

Personally, I felt that the kids areas are better in Blizzard Beach than Typhoon Lagoon. My kids are a bit older now but I remember when they were littler TL was difficult (one kid was too big for the toddler area, the other too small for much else and there didn't seem to be too much in-between). We really enjoyed BB (TL is great otherwise though).