SplashDown Waterpark: What to Know Before You Go

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Dubbed “America’s biggest little waterpark”, our family spent a beautiful summer day at SplashDown Beach in Fishkill, New York. We all enjoyed the water slides, lazy river, wave pool and beach like atmosphere surrounded by the scenery of the Hudson Valley. Here is our review on the top things you should know when visiting SplashDown Beach.

First of all, I would like to thank Dutchess County Tourism for providing tickets for our family to enjoy the waterpark. If you would like to read more about other fun activities for the family around the Hudson Valley, click on this link – Dutchess County Family Fun. All opinions given below are my own.

How to Get Here and Admission

SplashDown Beach is located in the Central Hudson Valley in Fishkill, NY – Click on the map below for directions:

Regular admission is $34 if you buy online, and $38 at the entrance if you are over 42″ tall. If you are under 42″ or if you are a senior, then you pay $27. They often have special offers, so try to check those out before you visit. Also refer to their calendar and operating hours prior to going. They do a great job of making you feel as if you are in a beach setting by having sand in many areas and lounge chairs all around.

Attractions at Splashdown Beach Waterpark

There are 15 different water attractions at SplashDown beach. Our family of 2 adults and 2 kids (ages 8 and 10) did most of them (except for the kiddie areas). We had a great time on many of the water slides and rode them over and over again! Click on SplashDown Beach to see the full list of water park rides and height requirements.

Arctic Mammoth

This is a family 5 person raft ride. It is huge! It stands almost six stories tall and 600 feet long. It is one of the biggest family raft rides in the Northeast! We had a blast on this ride and enjoyed the twists, turns and dips. The water temperature was in fact arctic!

Megalodon

This slide just opened Summer of 2018. I was really looking forward to riding this one, but my daughter chickened out, so I went to ride some milder slides with her while my husband and son braved the crazy drop and zero gravity ascent. They loved it and while I wanted to ride it with my son later, the lines were too long and I decided to cool off riding other slides a few times in a row.

Arctic Plunge Racers

We rode these slides 5 times! You pick up a mat at the bottom and climb up to the 4 slide options when you reach the top. The line moves pretty fast and the attendant was quick and helpful on how to get on. All of the water slides zip you pretty quickly and have a gentle descent to the bottom. Warning – they are much faster than you think!

Croc Creek Lazy River

This lazy river was quite unique. Most lazy rivers I have been on let you float aimlessly around as many times as you please. This one, however, had rules. First off, you must stay on the tube. There were many lifeguards making sure that riders were safely on a tube and not floating around alone. The next thing we found a little odd was that you could only float around the loop once. They have a lifeguard at the end of the lazy river who makes you leave your tube and walk out of the pool. If you would like to go around again, you have to go to the specific lazy river entrance. I am not sure why they do this, but we obeyed their rules anyhow. The lazy river itself was enjoyable as it had many water spray features and a wavy section to bounce around in.

Water Whirler, Splash Works, and Shipwreck Lagoon

This was the kiddie area that we only walked through. Both my kids are over 48″ and are technically not allowed to play in that area. There were many families playing and toddlers having a great time splashing around. They have smaller slides for 2-4 year olds and plenty of water fountains and sprayers. They even have a huge pirate ship playground area that seemed to be a hit. The one thing my kids did enjoy was the Water Whirler ride which was a circle tub with water guns, and you go in a circle and shoot other riders or unsuspecting people walking by (they specifically loved that part).

Cowabunga Falls

These were a set of 3 colored body slides for guests 36″ or taller. They were not very fast, but still enjoyable. We did all 3, but my kids found them too tame. I would say these slides are good for anyone who does not like the speed of the other slides or just isn’t tall enough to ride some of the bigger slides.

Humunga Half Pipe

This ride is intense! It is either a 1-2 person raft ride that is 4 stories tall and has a zero gravity element to it. My thrill seeking husband and son rode it while my daughter and I watched in awe. They both loved it and thought it was the best ride in the park. Another cool aspect is that it is located right behind the wave pool, which means you can be enjoying the water and watching/hearing the riders dropping and screaming very close by.

Coconut Pool

This is just a regular pool with lounge chairs located around it. It is a great place to just relax and enjoy the water.

Monster Wave Pool

Although small, the waves in this pool were pretty good. We all enjoyed bouncing around on the waves, yet it became too packed by 1pm.

Bullet Bowl, Pirate’s Plunge, and Pirate’s Revenge

These 3 slides were my favorite! You must be at least 42″ and can choose to ride a raft alone or with a partner. Let’s start in order from left to right…Pirate’s Revenge is the tamest of the three. It is a long, twisty slide that has some little dips and is fun, but is overall tame. The middle one, Pirate’s Plunge, is short, but has two drops (one at the start and one at the end). This water slide was very enjoyable. I rode it at least 5 times (3 alone and twice with a child). The last one is called Bullet Bowl. In this slide, you drop down rather quickly into a large bowl where to spin around once or twice and then drop into another area into the larger pool. The ride was the family favorite as we all rode it 5-6 times (alone and/or with each other).

Tips to Know Before You Go

1. Bring your own towel and water shoes

The website does not tell you this! At the entrance of the park is a giant store with towels, sandals/aqua socks, and sunglasses. I highly recommend that you bring a bag with your own towel and water shoes (the floor gets pretty hot). Oh and if you have a child 2 and under who is not potty trained, they require you purchase a reusable swim diaper ($9). If you bring it in next time, the child can enter for free.

2. Bring a change of clothes

This one is a personal preference. Some people come in a bathing suit and use their towel or air dry. They do have changing stations near the front of the park and they were very convenient. They also have lockers to rent where you can store your bag or personal items (keys, wallet, phone).

3. Bring your own sunscreen

On a hot summer day, wearing sunscreen is a must. Be sure to buy one before you arrive, as they will up charge you at the park if you choose to buy some there.

4. Ride Arctic Mammoth and Megalodon first

These rides are very slow to load. When you arrive at the park (which is hopefully when it opens at 10AM), go straight to the back and ride both rides before they fill up and the wait becomes eternal. We did this and still waited 20 minutes for each ride!

5. Set up a central home base

We left our change of clothes bag and towels on a table with chairs near the center of the park as a home base. We walked by it often to “check up on our things” and to have lunch (although it seemed pretty safe). We also sat down to rest and used it as a check in spot when our kids were at the wave pool next door.

Looking for more family fun around the area? Check out – Things to do in Dutchess County with Kids.

Save 42% or more on New York’s 6 best attractions with CityPASS – Shop Now!

Hotels in Fishkill NY

We had a free night stay that was going to expire soon, so we stayed at a beautiful Marriott Springhill Suites 5 minutes away in Fishkill. We loved this hotel. Not only was it close to SplashDown Beach, but it was brand new! The rooms were spacious and the breakfast was free. In addition, some fantastic outlets (Woodbury Commons) were about 30 minutes away. If you are looking into how to get free hotel stays, check out my post where I detail the credit cards we use to help us save money on travel.

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