A Day At Typhoon Lagoon
On our recent Florida trip, Laura and I spent an enjoyable day at Typhoon Lagoon, one of the water parks at Walt Disney World. We had been there twice before, but the last time we were there was nine years ago. We had talked about going back a few times in recent years, but we hadn’t made it for one reason or another until this trip. I had forgotten just how much fun it was.
This photo is of the main wave pool, named Typhoon Lagoon. Which of course is not to be confused with the whole park, also named Typhoon Lagoon. Confusing, isn’t it?
Water Parks Are Interesting
Our day at Typhoon Lagoon reminded me of just how interesting water parks can be. It is interesting how people who usually wear nice clothes, makeup (that applies just to the women, I hope), and fix their hair will show up at a water park wearing not all that much, no makeup, and wet hair. And yet, it certainly is fun. The beach is the same way, of course. Except that you usually have to pay more to go to a water park than to a beach. However, if there isn’t a beach near you, then maybe it is worth it to pay for the water park.
It is also interesting to see people line up for 45 minutes or more to make a trip down a water slide that takes less than 60 seconds. Not only that, but they will also wait out in the sun for that length of time, which can make you pretty hot. Especially if you have to carry your own water slide raft up all those stairs. So I suppose the 60 second water slide trip in the cool water feels pretty good after all of that. At Typhoon Lagoon, we waited a maximum of around 20 minutes for the slides. And the only reason we waited that long was because the actual wait was much longer than what was posted on the sign. We got there not too long after the park opened, and we went on to the slides the first thing. They were fun, but they weren’t necessarily worth long waits.
Another interesting thing about water parks is people who haven’t used sunscreen. Especially at a park like Typhoon Lagoon in Florida, where the sun is probably more direct than it is back home where they live. I feel sorry for all the red people that we saw while we were there. I’m sure they felt sorry the next day, too.
Also interesting are the things people wear when they are there. And it is interesting how bikinis are okay for women, but speedos are definitely not okay for men. Trust me. Because I saw more than one speedo wearing man there. And it wasn’t pretty.
Typhoon Lagoon Favorites
Our favorite things at Typhoon Lagoon (the park) are Typhoon Lagoon (the wave pool) and Castaway Creek, which most people just call “the lazy river.” Castaway Creek is a great place to spend some time, especially right after lunch. Or especially during the heat of the day. The only problem is that it gets harder to find an inner tube in those popular times. But once you find one, it is worth it. We have been known to stay on our tubes for two complete trips around Castaway Creek. It is fun being lazy, after all.
And then the wave pool is all kinds of fun, too. Of course, the main fun is riding the big waves that come every minute or two. And you don’t really have an idea of how big those waves are until you are standing there watching one come toward you, engulfing all of the people in its path. It is almost like something out of a horror movie about a killer wave. The people are all there, and then as the killer wave comes toward you, you can no longer see the people that were once there, because they have all been eaten by the wave! Creepy!
After about 90 minutes of those big waves, they have small bobbing waves for about 30 minutes at a time. Instead of one big wave, these waves are smaller but constant, moving you up and down, over and over. And interestingly, the lifeguards (who have emergency stop buttons) have to shut things down and go help someone much more often during the bobbing waves than during the single large waves. Apparently, people have more trouble swimming against those smaller continuous waves, and they end up not being able to make it to the shallow water on their own. So then it takes about 10 minutes to get everything reset and get the waves started again.
But aside from riding the waves, just watching the big waves and everyone’s reactions to them are almost as fun as being out there. You know a wave is coming when you hear a big “WHOOOSH!” sound. And that sound is immediately followed by the sound of people screaming. Always funny to hear the screams of people, even though they know the wave is coming, and even though they have been standing out there waiting for it. There is then all sorts of activity as everyone moves around to try to find a place to meet the wave, so that the wave doesn’t push them right on top of someone else. Which it will, anyway. Because that is what big waves do. And it is fun. Really!
We really enjoyed our day at Typhoon Lagoon! Maybe it won’t take us nine more years to get back there.
About the shot:
A single RAW exposure, processed in Adobe Lightroom. Read more about the photo software and gear I use at the camera gear page.
Camera: Canon EOS-M
Lens: Canon EF-M 18-55mm
