This review is part of a series of posts sponsored by Schlitterbahn. Complimentary tickets to Schlitterbahn were received in exchange for these posts. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
You might remember a few weeks ago that I was professing my family's love of water parks all over the internet - well we've had a family four pack of Schlitterbahn tickets burning a hole in our pockets for a while now. Yesterday was the day - we finally packed up and headed down to Galveston for a relaxing and family fun day in the sun.
We go to Schlitterbahn a few times a year so we are very familiar with the park and the typical summer crowds. We had hoped to visit during the week in order to avoid the slew of people that come in on the weekend but our schedules just weren't going to allow that. Instead we chose to arrive around the time that the park opened on Sunday. I was quite pleased when we arrived to find that the parking lost was not at all full yet. Always a good sign!
At only 10:30 a.m., the park wasn't crowded at all - it was heavenly!
After spending a small fortune to rent a locker (a necessity) we enjoyed about two glorious hours of no lines or crowds. We took full advantage of being the "early birds" and enjoyed almost every attraction Schlitterbahn has to offer.
My family has two favorite attractions at Schlitterbahn Galveston: The Wolfpack and Thunder River. We spent many hours laughing and screaming along these rides yesterday.
Our overall experience at Schlitterbahn was great, as it usually is. However, I did learn two lessons yesterday. When I gave you tips for surviving a day at the water park I told you that it was absolutely necessary to wear shoes. I said that water shoes are best but that flip flops would do. I would like to formally announce that I was wrong. You see, after we finished up lunch at the table we were leaving our cooler at for the day, my husband decided to leave his flip flops behind as well while we got back into the the thunder river. When we came back - they were gone. Yes, someone stole my husband's $2 Old Navy flip flops. This wouldn't have been so bad except the ground was burning hot and my husband now has blisters on the bottom of his feet. My point? Wear water shoes and don't take them off because foot blisters suck and so do people who steal.
I also learned that Schlitterbahn participates in some sort of international exchange program. A lot of the employees at Schlitterbahn are from foreign countries. Sounds pretty cool right? I think it is too. However, there is apparently a huge language barrier and it makes for a bad experience at times. On more than one occasion yesterday and during visits in the past, we have felt like the lifeguards were incredibly rude at Schlitterbahn. We had an incident yesterday that really upset me but I'm not sure if the lifeguard in question was part of the exchange program. A nice woman was walking the park asking visitors to fill out a survey and she mentioned the exchange program to me and that guests of the park often felt the same way I was feeling about the guards. I felt a bit better afterward knowing that these lifeguards weren't just total jerks, but I still feel like this is an issue that needs to be addressed.
By around 3:30 in the afternoon the crowds were getting thick and my husband and I had endured about all that we could take.
After a fun and excitement filled day, it was time to pack it up and go home. We had two exhausted kiddos on our hands who passed out before we even made it to the freeway. This exhausted mommy was ready to pass out in the passenger seat but I had to keep Daddy company on the long ride home.
We truly love going to Schlitterbahn and we're considering going during the indoor heated season this Fall/Winter to avoid the large crowds. It's something we haven't done before and we hear that it is a much different experience!
Have you ever been to Schlitterbahn in the Off Season?
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We're trying to decide whether to go on the weekend or during the week. It will be our first trip to Galveston's park. So GLAD we won tickets!
ReplyDeleteUnless you plan on waiting until the off season I say definitely go during the week if your schedule allows it. Plus, school will be starting back soon and during the week will be so much more enjoyable! If it were just the two of you going, the weekends are so bad - but with little ones - it's more enjoyable with less crowds ya know?
DeleteI can't wait to hear about y'alls trip - I hope you have a blast :)
Looks like yall had a blast! I can't wait until I get a chance to bring JJ he is dying to go.
ReplyDeleteglad you had a good time, other than the rude lifeguard!
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