Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive 2012 Construction Report North America21 Hotel Waterpark Resorts Opened in 2012 in USA
By Jeff Coy, ISHC March 2013 For the parents of young children and hotel-resort owners, 2012 was a good year, not a great year, but a good one for hotel waterpark resorts.
Twenty-one (21) waterparks opened in the USA during 2012 compared to 27 in 2011, 20 in 2010 and the record high of 40 in 2007. While money is just beginning to loosen up for families and hotel developers, new hotel construction is still rather flat, but resort acquisitions and expansions are rising.
Of 21 projects opening, only two were all-new construction: Soaring Eagle Inn & Waterpark in Mount Pleasant MI and Holiday Inn Express WaterZoo in Clinton OK. Nineteen (19) projects were acquisition and/or expansion projects. For example…..
- Great Wolf Resorts of Madison WI is no long a public company. The leading brand with 11 hotel waterpark resorts was acquired by Apollo Global Management, the private equity firm that owns Caesar’s, Harrah’s and wants to acquire SeaWorld.
- Kalahari Waterpark Resort in Sandusky OH, already among the largest in the country, doubled the size of its huge convention center to 215,000 sf and added family villas. And the Kalahari resort in Wisconsin Dells WI expanded its indoor theme park to increase the adventure.
- Wilderness Resort in the Smoky Mountains TN, another giant waterpark resort, added a 25,000 sf Indoor Adventure Forest — leading the trend of resorts adding adventure sport facilities such as ziplines and rope challenge courses.
Hotel Waterparks Opened In 2012
Many hotels, resorts and outdoor waterparks have ups and downs. They are seasonal properties with high periods and low periods from month to month and from weekday to weekends. Hotel waterparks are popular with families and hotel owners because they fill empty rooms 24/7/365 at higher room rates than hotels without indoor waterparks.
Hotels with indoor waterparks have outgrown the general hotel industry every year for over a decade, reaching peak growth of 34% in 2006 but slowing to admirable growth of 10.2% in 2011 and 7.2% in 2012 —compared to the overall hotel industry supply growth of 2% to the current growth of 0.7%. But acquisitions and expansions are accelerating — because they are less expensive and easier to finance. Here’s what opened in 2012:
USA
Hotel Waterpark Resorts Opening in 2012
Location
Rooms
OWP
SqFt
IWP
Sq. Ft.
Open
Date
Kalahari Resort’s Doubles Convention Center, Adds Family Villas
Sandusky
OH
30
201203
Jay Peak Hotel Adds Conference Center
Jay
VT
201203
Gaylord Palms Resort Adds Slides/Splash Structure to OWP
Kissimmee
FL
201205
Soaring Eagle Inn & Waterpark
Mount Pleasant
MI
244
45,000
201205
Darien Lake Theme Park Resort Adds 15 Cabins
Buffalo-Batavia
NY
57
201205
Maui Sands 300-room Hotel & Indoor Waterpark – Renovation
Sandusky
OH
136
55,000
201205
SeaWorld San Antonio Adds Aquatica Waterpark, Hotel UD
San Antonio
TX
871,200
201205
Kingsmill Resort Adds CC & Pool & Lazy River; 210 Rms UD
Williamsburg
VA
425
201205
Waylon’s Water World OWP at Z Fun Factory
Yuma
AZ
1,045,440
201206
Lost Island Waterpark Adds Bamboo Ridge Campsites & Cabins
Waterloo
IA
174
201206
Fort Hall Casino Adds Hotel, IWP UD & Golf UD
Pocatello
ID
156
201206
Bolivar Indoor Waterpark with OpenAire Retractable Roof
Bolivar
MO
27,000
201206
Mt Olympus Adds 3-Acre Giant RainFortress
Wisconsin Dells
WI
130,680
201206
Courtyard Hotel + Sailfish Splash Waterpark
Stuart
FL
116
201207
Holiday Inn Express Adds Water-Zoo IWP with OpenAire Roof
Clinton
OK
28,000
201209
Wilderness Smokies Adds 25,000 sf Indoor Adventure Forest
Sevierville
TN
25,000
201209
Kalahari Resort Adds Long Necks Bar & Grill
Sandusky
OH
201210
Bavarian Inn Lodge Phase VI Adds Two 4-story slides, golf
Frankenmuth
MI
201211
Sahara Sam’s Indoor WP Adds Body Slide & 8,000 sf
West Berlin
NJ
8,000
201212
Homestead Resort Adds 3 Slides, Lazy River
Hot Springs
VA
201212
Kalahari Adds Swim Up Bar, Whirlpool & Indoor Theme Park
Wisconsin Dells
WI
201212
Total Opened in 2012
21
1,338
2,047,320
188,000
Grand Rios Waterpark Resort Closed
Brooklyn Park MN