Waves: A Water Park Stalwart
When you daydream about a fun-filled day spent at a water park, one of the classic images that comes to mind is floating on top of the rolling water of a wave pool. A fundamental anchor attraction for any water park, wave pools function as central meeting places for guests with queue-line free and high capacity fun for all ages and abilities.
While water slides may garner all of the attention, don’t underestimate the wave pool’s appeal or ability to generate revenue from cabana rentals, food and beverage stalls, and gift shops strategically situated nearby.
Consistently ranked as one of the most popular attractions at any water park, there’s a wave pool option to suit the needs of every park and their guests. From gentle waves to high thrill, there’s a solution to meet the needs of your park’s demographics, sometimes, even in the same attraction. Here’s a guide to the 3 main types of wave pools:
Family Wave Pools are the easiest to build—they’re simple, cost-effective, and low maintenance. The pneumatic waves in these pools are created by wave fans blowing air into chambers at the deep end of the pool. These chambers have underwater openings, so when the air is blown into them, the water level in the chamber is pushed down to create a surge in the pool outside the chamber.
By having a series of chambers across the back of the pool and alternating air flow into the different chambers, various wave patterns can be made. This pneumatic technology requires minimal maintenance, is easy to install, and offers variable heights, wave patterns, and wave frequency.
Children’s Wave Pools offer safe, playful waves that entertain the youngest of swimmers. They have a shallow water depth and zero-entry beach areas for kids to wade in. Similar to Family Wave Pools, they use the same reliable, efficient, and versatile blowing air technology to generate a variety of wave patterns that keep kids of all ages splashing all day long. Children’s Wave Pools can be added to Family Wave Pools, creating a separate section that young kids can play in.
Surf Wave Pools feature bigger, more exciting waves that are ideal for surfing and boogie boarding. However, they are also lots of fun for guests who are more inclined to appreciate thrills. Surf Wave Pools create surges generated by the hydraulic equipment, and huge swells that carry people, boards, and tubes towards the beach. They are also a spectacle to watch, thus offering both active and passive capacity.
Surf Wave Pools are available as a combination system to include pneumatic wave equipment for flexibility in operations. The hydraulic wave equipment is made up of multiple pumps and can be operated using them all, or only a few to reduce operating costs on a slower day, but still creating epic waves.
It goes without saying, that although we’re always dreaming up ways to create the most exciting new rides, we’ll always take pride in the reliability of our wave pools. Their popularity stands the test of time, and no matter young or old, guests never tire of bobbing up and down in a good ol’ wave pool.
