Water World, Stoke-on-Trent
Waterworld is a water park located in Festival Park, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The park attracts 400,000 visitors per year.[1] The park first opened in 1989 and is generally open year-round, but is closed for a few days of the week during term time. In the holidays they put the prices up because of the expected large number of visitors.
| Waterworld | |
|---|---|
| Slogan | A great family day out whatever the weather |
| Location | Festival Park, Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 53.0274°N 2.198°W |
| Owner | Mo Chaudry |
| General Manager | Tim Kiely |
| Opened | 1989 |
| Pools | 3 pools |
| Water slides | 9 water slides |
| Website | http://www.waterworld.co.uk/ |
History
In 1999 Mo Chaudry's family trust bought Water World from Rank Leisure for £1.5m, at the time the park was operating at a loss. Early in the 21st century WaterWorld began turning profits. In summer 2019, four new rides came to Waterworld as part of their 30th anniversary and Stormchaser and Hurricane opened on Wednesday 21 August while the other two, Thunderbolt and Cyclone opened on Saturday 24 August. the tallest rides in Tornado Valley overtake the Twister and become the tallest rides in the park.
Rides
The park's rides and attractions include: Black Hole, The Nucleus, Space Bowl, Super Flume, Twister, Python, Rapids, Medium Sized Flumes, Toddler Slides, Bubble Pools, Outdoor Pool (seasonal), Interactive Jungle House, The Lily pads, Racing Slides, Wave Pool, Toddler Slide and the Assault Course.
The Nucleus
The Nucleus is an indoor water rollercoaster which transports the ride participant through 375 feet of ups and downs in a rubber ring. You must be 1.1 metres to ride the Nucleus. You climb the stairs after you've queued to collect your rubber ring and the lifeguard will then push you off and down you go. a blaster boosts you and you enter a tunnel before a drop into a second blaster which sends you up and over, through a tunnel and down to the final drop where a water blaster slows you down and if there's a queue, you hand your ring to another person.[2]
Space Bowl
The space bowl is themed inside the water park acting as a UFO. The ride takes you to the UFO that is a spiral leading to a drop into a 2-meter tub of water. It is said to be only for strong swimmers. It depends on how you'll drop out of the UFO, sometimes you might drop out head first and most of the time you fall out of the UFO on your side. However, some people come out feet first but it's quite rare.
Rapids
The rapids make you feel like you're in a current. It's formed in a shape like a circle and has a pirate theme. It's also only for strong swimmers aged over 8. You can try to escape the strong current by holding onto bars but sometimes the rapids will overpower you.
Twister
The Twister was the tallest flume at Waterworld until 2019 when four new rides (Stormchaser, Hurricane, Cyclone and Thunderbolt) were built for Waterworld's 30th anniversary. You climb a ladder to a platform where the entrance to the Twister is. Goggles are not permitted to be worn on the Twister and you slide down a tube at a fast speed twisting around the corners where a mini water effect might catch you by surprise. you end off creating a tidal wave of water that falls into a pool beneath the exit to the Twister. At the end there's a sign that says run because sometimes they might want to speed up the operating faster. It used to have a skull for the entrance to the Twister but that was removed in 2017.
The Three Flumes
The Three Flumes are the Super Flume, Python and Black Hole and they are slides that are next-door to each other and they end up in the same pool.
Tornado Alley
Tornado Alley opened in 2019 and consisted of four new rides. Stormchaser, Hurricane, Cyclone and Thunderbolt. Stormchaser and Cyclone have an optional choice on riding with a single rubber ring or a double ring making it easier for families.
References
- "Waterworld Staffordshire". Evening Telegraph. 23 August 2006. Retrieved 5 January 2009.
- "The Nucleus". Retrieved 17 February 2018.
External links
- Mo Chaudry's website (owner of WaterWorld)