The waterpark resort industry has come a long way from the rectangular hotel pool of days past. Today’s hotel guests can enjoy everything traditional waterparks have to offer, from slides to wave pools to spraypads — all under one roof. With a little bit of everything for each member of the family, guests of all ages continue to return year after year, in winter or summer, to build a tradition.
This is something that the best resorts understand: what’s important to their guests, what brings new ones in and old ones back. These resorts work hard to make each of their properties unique and rewarding. What makes them so successful is in the details, everything from theming to safety. The evidence is in their gross revenues and attendance — earning them a spot in our it Book’s “Top 10 Waterpark Resorts” for 2007-2008.
Each of these resort’s secrets for success are brought to light in the profiles on the following pages — what makes them tick, what drives their growth and what fuels their enthusiasm. With the help of Hotel & Leisure Advisors, we identified the top-performing waterpark resorts in the United States by room revenue in 2006.
1. Wilderness Hotel & Golf Resort, Wisconsin Dells, Wis.
2. Nickelodeon Family Suites by Holiday Inn, Orlando, Fla.
3. Kalahari Resort, Wisconsin Dells, Wis.
4. Great Wolf Lodge, Poconos Mountains, Pa.
5. Kingston Plantation Resort, Myrtle Beach, S.C.
6. Kalahari Resort, Sandusky, Ohio
7. Great Wolf Lodge, Wisconsin Dells, Wis.
8. Great Wolf Lodge, Williamsburg, Va.
9. Splash Lagoon, Erie, Pa.
10. Great Wolf Resort, Sandusky, Ohio
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Waterpark Resorts Today's first ranking of the highest-grossing resorts across the nation — and what put them there.