The eagerly awaited Island Waterpark at the Showboat Hotel Atlantic City is set to open on July 7th. (Note this was changed from June 30th). Yesterday I attended the preview party to see the amazing entertainment facility first hand.
Island Waterpark is a massive 120,000 square feet indoor structure offering a variety of waterpark attractions, restaurants, and bars.
If you remember, two months ago I had a private inside tour of the construction progress at the time, and I’ll share with you now that based on where they were 6 weeks ago, I am absolutely amazed the construction teams pulled this all together so quickly! It truly is a beautiful tropical experience.
The facility has been designed so that you visit distinct areas via walkways and bridges which makes the large structure feel a bit more intimate. It’s not simply a cavernous open arena space.
Philadelphia area developer Bart Blatstein owns the Showboat Hotel complex, and he and his team conceived and developed the Island Waterpark facility.
Blatstein acquired the showboat in 2016, and in a move that surprised many has chosen not to return it to a full casino. He operates it as a hotel and family entertainment facility, converting the large (former) casino floor into a family arcade featuring a giant collection of fun video games, pinball machines, games of skill, indoor miniature golf, a small bowling alley and an indoor electric go Kart track.
But that wasn’t enough it seems, as Bart went “all in” with the family direction of the former casino hotel by adding the $100 million Island Waterpark to the property, in an all new 120,000 sq ft glass enclosed facility.
An interesting side note to this is he reportedly paid $23 million for the entire hotel and casino floor complex in 2016… so the new waterpark alone cost four times the original hotel price!
It’s clear they are sparing no expense in making Showboat a premier family and adult destination for Atlantic City.
“Atlantic City has long been one of the most iconic destinations for entertainment geared for adults, but now the ISLAND Waterpark at The Showboat Resort will open up a whole new world of family entertainment on the boardwalk. When people see this they will be blown away; it is truly like entering a tropical paradise and the best part is that people–both kids and adults–will be able to enjoy it all year round.”
Bart Blatstein, Tower Investments CEO and Showboat owner.
In my Island Waterpark visit yesterday the entire featured glass enclosed structure and its interior features were 100% ready to go! All the water attractions had water flowing through them, and several were in use by the models hired for the preview party. Even the dedicated arcade area at the main entrance to the water park was complete.
More importantly…. all of the décor and landscaping is 100% complete, and walking through the space you will think you are in a Caribbean Island. And when the winter comes and it’s 22 degrees out, and you’re in your bathing suit in the warm tropical space… that’s when the amazing space will truly shine!
There is another area in the main hotel building that will also be a part of the Island Waterpark features, and it appears that is the only area getting the last bit of construction attention ahead of the opening next weekend.
Island Waterpark is set to open on July 7th, with general admission all day ticket prices starting at $89. Twilight prices start at $69 (4pm-8pm). (More pricing details at the bottom of this article)
The online ticket functionality actually starts with July 1st though, and the calendar based resercation system is typically showing weekend general admission prices at $99 through July.
Island Waterpark – The Attractions
The entrance to the Island Waterpark is at the rear of the hotel’s large main arcade area (furthest from the boardwalk). There is also an exterior entrance in the back.
You don’t enter immediately into the main glass and steel structure, as there are several large areas in the back corner of the hotel building that are dedicated to the waterpark.
In my visit yesterday I saw the waterpark lobby area which includes a bar, which then leads towards a dedicated new arcade area for the water park… full of Jersey beach town branded surfboards and boats!
The main archway entrance in to the main waterpark building is at the back of the new dedicated arcade area.
Honestly the variety of pre-entrance spaces gives the experience somewhat of a Disney World attraction vibe… where they typical have the preshow rooms to walk through!
When you walk through the archway that takes you from out of the hotel building and into the signature glass enclosed waterpark structure, you are greeted by the Blue Cascade Waterfall, which is man-made and one of the largest custom water forms in the world!
This entrance point is towards the rear of the structure with about 25% of facility to your left and 75% of it to your right.
Immediately to your right along that interior wall is a stretch of stores, restaurants, and bars created to resemble an old time boardwalk experience.
And spread throughout the facility are a variety of water attractions, bars, a dedicated adults only area at the front end, and even an island created by the circular path of the lazy river ride, which requires you to walk over a bridge to access!
The main glass and steel structure of Island Waterpark covers 120,000 square feet and holds more than 317,000 gallons of water within its various attractions!
The waterpark features 11 slides, including the Electric Eel, Sonic Serpent and Barracuda Blaster tube slides, full of tight corners and banking turns; three Tidal Racers mat racer slides for head-first excitement; and five waterslides suitable for younger visitors at Slide Island.
For several of the larger slides, while you start from inside the facility the tube slides actually exit outside of the glass structure! You twist and turn in the tubes (which are clearly seen outside of the building), before your watery passageway heads back into the water park building for your splash landing!
There is a 1,000 square foot WildWave FlowRider surf simulator which had demonstration riders on it all evening during the preview party. Island Waterpark even plans on hosting surfing tournaments and offering surfing lessons on the flow rider!
A center signature piece is the 30 foot tall indoor Treehouse which is two levels, features a bar and can be booked for private parties.
An adventure pool has a variety of sports activities including a permanent basketball hoop in the center of the pool.
There is a 6,500 square foot Island Drift Lazy River which extends through most of the park… and creates an island that has several smaller slides and the centerpiece treehouse.
The front portion of the facility (closest to the beach) is a 10,000 square foot space where only adults can enter.
It features the Bliss pool which is an adults only pool, featuring Atlantic City’s only swim up bar.
This adults-only area will feature peloton bikes, massage chairs, manicure stations commas and even cabanas.
All told there are total of 6 bars spread throughout the facility offering craft beers, wines and signature cocktails. At night Island waterpark transforms into a nightlife venue, also for adults only.
Still to come are the Coconut Zero Gravity Coaster which will be suspended high above the water park, and the 300 foot long Riptide Zipline.
The facility’s glass roof is retractable roof so that on nice days they can open the rook up and let the sunshine and fresh ocean breezes in. The flexibility allows them to make the Island Waterpark a year round destination.
Summer admission rates start at $89 for daytime general admission. Twilight Admission starts at $69 from 4 – 8 pm. For those wishing to experience Island Water Park in style, All-Access VIP admission starts at $119, which includes admission into the exclusive and luxurious Paradise Adult Island, Bliss Pool, and the only swim-up bar in Atlantic City. Members of the military and Atlantic City’s first responders received a $10 discount. Children under three are admitted free. For more details on admission rates and special offers visit islandwaterparkac.com
Links and Location
Showboat Hotel Atlantic City and Island Waterpark
801 Boardwalk
Atlantic City, NJ 08401
- Island Waterpark Website
- Island Waterpark Facebook
- Showboat Hotel Website
- Showboat Hotel Facebook
- Lucky Snake Arcade at Showboat Facebook
Also check out my earlier updates
- April 2023: Construction Update INSIDE TOUR!
- March 2023 Construction Update!
- October 2022: Intro Article
