this time to the brand spanking new Calypso waterpark in Limoges, Ontario.
That's right...Canada's largest theme waterpark a half hour from my door...how cool is that?
well, if you ask my big kids...very cool, indeed.
i am not a huge waterpark fan. to be honest, i have only ever been to a few, and have never partaken of the offerings, much past standing on the usual bridge, overlooking some fast moving current, allowing myself to get doused by whatever splash was happening.
well, there was no bridge today. what met us was a solid collection of rides, varied enough to meet the needs of everyone in our little group.
my guys - a collection of three 9-11 year old girls and two 14 year old boys tried every single ride between the group of them several more than once. the overall winners??
the wave pool was great. it scared the crap out of me. my daughter is so brave and was right at the top of the crowd, riding out the biggest waves in the pool. craziness. the boys loved it as well. our not so strong swimmers (and you do need to be quite a strong swimmer to get enjoy the deepest/highest waves) hung back and still squealed their way through smaller waves and a gentler undertow. the water was wonderfully warm, there was tons of seating and a solid crew of lifeguards keeping everyone safe. and believe me, there are rules for this wave pool - no sunglasses, loose t shirts, kids in life jackets past a certain point...and the life guards were incredibly vigilant.
lifeguards! there are lifeguards. everywhere. 130 of them, hired locally, from ottawa, cornwall and montreal...this is the job to have this summer. even the ride attendants have lifeguarding credentials. this made me feel better...as i can be a little nervous at times,lol.
the double toilet bowl ( and i am not even sure if that is the real name...) was the sure fire hit with the boys.
best.
ride.
ever.
must be freaking scary;).
the pirate play area, the boomerang, the hot and cold single toilet bowl rides (again, that is what the kids called them...), the family canyon raft ride (i actually did that one), the lazy river...we filled close to 4.5 hours with waterlogged fun.
the park is spread out luxuriously...wide pathways, plentiful seating, picnic tables galore, large washrooms (remember to wear your flipflops...), a locker area...it is a simple plan to navigate, which is awesome for kids and parents alike.
my one major suggestion would be to pack a lunch. the only place where the park really fell down on it's face was the food service. they were clearly overwhelmed ( and there were not that many people there today...no wait at all for rides. like not even 5 minutes...). but for food? the boys stood for 45 minutes to get hotdogs at the cafeteria style grill and we ( after i decided that junk was in order as i did not want to waste precious park time on eating...) waited close to 20 minutes for nachos and drinks. which were limited due to a slushie machine being down and another concession stand not being open yet.
i would suggest a big old cooler filled with something yummy and to grab one of the many tables decked out with large umbrellas in lieu of trying to eat at the park. just not worth it at this point. sorry calypso...that part of the day really sucked. hopefully they will get their food staffing right soon.
so? a success.
5$ for parking. 30$ a pop to get in. too much money on nachos and cotton candy. no visit to the souvenir store (the kids missed it!!). and a gaggle of exhausted tweens (the teens were ready for more,lol). happy sunkissed faces. perfect day.
okay...the faces below are actually happy...just dramatizing the near death ride they had just had;).
http://www.calypsopark.com/
2 comments:
Did you actually go in? Where did you leave your camera?? I'd hate to go to some place that awesome and not take my DSLR, but would be afraid of it walking off if left with our stuff...
i did go in, but my girlfriend and i took turns watching our cameras ( she had her dslr as well ). our kids are bigger so we did not have to go "in" as much as you would;). they were very happy being on their own! however, if i was to do it again? i would just bring my G10 ( point and shoot ).
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