Dean Poling
The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA —
Labor Day may have unofficially brought summer to a close, but Wild Adventures is already looking forward to next summer with $4 million of planned expansions to Splash Island.
On Tuesday, the park announced it will add two major rides to Wild Adventures’ water park, as well as VIP cabanas, offering Splash Island guests privacy for an additional fee.
The park also hinted Tuesday at other coming attractions, such as the new concert season, for 2011.
“We aren’t releasing all of the details of the water attractions just yet,” Micha Hogan, a Wild Adventures spokesperson, said referring to the two new rides, “but what I can tell you is that one is a high-speed, triple-dip drop slide and the other has twists and turns. Both attractions accommodate up to five guests in family-sized rafts.”
Wild Adventures will expand the area of Splash Island to accommodate the two new rides and the VIP cabanas. This expansion will increase the size of Splash Island by three acres, Hogan said.
Splash Island has proven to be a popular part of Wild Adventures. “In this region, Splash Island is a very popular place to be in the summer,” Hogan said.
Splash Island has also received the lion’s share of investments at the park.
This expansion is Herschend Family Entertainment’s latest investment since purchasing Wild Adventures in 2007. In 2008, Herschend spent $4 million on the Wahee Cyclone water ride in Splash Island. The Cheetah roller coaster underwent a million-dollar renovation. Three new rides were added this year. More than 400 trees and water jets were added to cool park guests.
“With this Splash Island expansion, we will have invested more than $10 million in improvements and upgrades since 2007,” said Bob Montgomery, Wild Adventures general manager.
Construction on the two new rides and cabanas is scheduled to begin after Splash Island closes this season on Sept. 25, Hogan said. These new attractions are scheduled to open for Splash Island’s new season in April 2011.
The rest of the park is open until year’s end. It will close for several weeks during the new year and reopen in March.
Wild Adventures also announced the park would feature a concert season of at least 20 musicians/bands in 2011. Hogan could not release names Tuesday, but she hopes to announce some of the 2011 acts soon.
More information: Visit www.wildadventures.com.
