Honeymoon to waterpark mecca, Poconos braces for big splash – Scranton Times

Variously known for nature, skiing, all-inclusive resorts and romantic getaways, the Poconos will now be known by many families as something else — indoor water park destination for the East Coast.

When the recession ended, the dam broke and indoor water parks have flooded into the area.

Earlier this year, officials cut the ribbon on Aquatopia, a $163 million project of Camelback Resorts. Aquatopia joined Great Wolf Lodge in Scotrun and H2Oooohh Indoor Waterpark at Split Rock Resort in Lake Harmony.

Aquatopia’s seven pools, 13 water slides and attractions under 125,000 square feet earns it the title of largest indoor water park in the Northeast, a designation that will likely be eclipsed. The gargantuan $350 million Kalahari Resort Convention Center opens July 1 and with the second phase of the construction already begun, it would drive the water park to 200,000-square-feet.

As if that is not enough, a developer has proposed an indoor water park on a campus that would include condos, hotel and high-end camping at the site of the Old Birchwood Resort in Pocono Twp.

With proximity to New York, Philadelphia and Boston, existing tourism infrastructure and available land, the Poconos became the target of the indoor water park industry. Taking advantage of an improving economy and low interest rates, water park developers have made the Poconos their new outpost to serve the East Coast.

“This year, the Poconos has become the big thing happening in indoor water parks,” said Aleatha Ezra, of the World Waterpark Association in Overland Park, Kansas. “People are saying the Poconos is the new Dells.”

She means Wisconsin Dells, the birthplace of U.S. indoor water parks and the first place to host a concentration of them. The only other region that can claim as many is Sandusky, Ohio.

In Sandusky, it started with Great Wolf Lodge opening its second water park in 2003. Ohio tourism people looked to Wisconsin Dells, and hoped the indoor water park craze would catch on in their part of the world.

It did.

In late 2004, Cedar Point amusement park, perhaps the largest physical attraction in the region with visitors in excess of 3 million annually, opened Castaway Bay. The next year, the Kalahari Resorts, with its 890 rooms, 215,000 square feet of convention and meeting space, and even a zoo, opened.

Two smaller indoor parks, the Maui Sands Resort and Rain Waterpark followed.

They all survive because they have all staked out niches, said Jill Bauer of Lake Erie Shores Islands. Great Wolf is the national chain that pulls in families with younger children. Kalahari, while a smaller company, is a bigger property for people who like vastness and options. Castaway Bay offer an adjunct to Cedar Point goers. The others offer a different scale, with different price points.

“When Great Wolf opened, it was such a big deal,” Ms. Bauer said. “We knew what had happened in Wisconsin Dells and we hoped something similar would happen here. We didn’t expect it to happen on such a large scale.”

Why the Pococos

The industry’s next stop is the Poconos, which has the attributes the industry needs to thrive.

Many markets host indoor water parks. But unlike the Poconos, they don’t have the tourism critical mass, available land, or proximity to major markets to become an indoor water park Mecca.

The Poconos also offers other things to do outside of the water park, from golfing, shopping, hiking or skiing.

“They are coming to an area where tourism is already the leading industry, with 25 million visitors each year,” said Carl Wilgus, executive director of the Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau. “The Poconos is already a place to go. Now, anyone in the mid-Atlantic region looking for water parks will be look to the Poconos.”

Water parks will have a huge impact on the tourism landscape, he said. The new additions help the region appeal to a greater number of people — much greater.

It’s estimated 1 to 2 percent of the general population are skiers, 2 to 3 percent golfers and maybe a few more percentage points are hikers and bikers, Mr. Wilgus said. But 85 percent are potential visitors to a water park. The indoor water park boom has the agency considering expanding its marketing efforts beyond the conventional New York and Philadelphia market, thinking Boston-area families would view the water park as an entry point to the Poconos.

“The further you travel, the longer you stay,” Mr. Wilgus said.

Water park traffic is driven by families, so they would be busy when children are available. That’s typically the Poconos’ already-busy July, August and September. But Mr. Wilgus expects indoor water parks, as weatherproof attractions, will increase visitors during school breaks and holidays and provide a weekend getaway for families at slower times of the tourism season.

Will help local business

Officials in Sandusky said the water park phenomenon has had a positive effect, making the area more of a year-round destination, Ms. Bauer said. While all properties do their best to keep families on site, people venture out to local restaurants and businesses, looking for a break from the swimming and sliding and seeking some local flavor.

“Businesses that had been closed for the winter began to open year-round, or at least remain open on weekends,” she said. “People come into the visitor’s center with pruney hands looking for things to do.”

That said, there’s a limit that will be struck, after which the indoor water parks will begin battling each other. In Sandusky, the industry probably couldn’t sustain another, Ms. Bauer said.

“Everyone we have now has a niche and an audience,” she said. “I don’t see another park coming.”

The Poconos, on the eve of its debut as an indoor water park destination, hasn’t even begun to consider that limit. Looking to the east, to nation’s most populous city less than two hours away, Mr. Wilgus won’t venture a guess.

Contact the writer: dfalchek@timesshamrock.com