From iHealth Travel

In some ways the Caribbean is one huge water park, with azure seas, waterfall hikes, river rafting and surfing. Sometimes, though, a vacationer is looking for that extra level of water-based adrenaline. That’s where water parks come in, with their free-fall slides delivering unexpected twists and turns. While water parks are constantly trying to outdo each other with the level of excitement they provide, they also take time to make sure the littlest members of the family have a great time, with zero-entry shallow pools with plenty of whimsical features to delight children.

Most of the water parks in the Caribbean are affiliated with a resort, although day passes can usually be had based on availability, with resort guests getting first priority. So, if water park action is at the top of a traveler’s vacation list, the safest choice is staying at one of the resorts with onsite water parks.

Kool Runnings

Many of the Caribbean’s finest water parks are connected with a resort, which puts non-resort guests at a disadvantage. Happily, Jamaica’s Kool Runnings in Negril is freestanding. The water park is easy to access with convenient parking, which isn’t always the case for resort-based water parks.

The five-acre park has 10 water slides (the largest is 40-feet high), with colorful names like Duppy Conqueror and Kick Puppalick. There’s also a play area for the tiny tots and a lazy river with waterfalls. Kool Runnings also has a juice bar, sports bar and three restaurants. Try the Sweet Potato Grill, where guests can dine on Jamaican jerk chicken. Visitors to Kool Runnings can get a special price when they combine their ticket with the adjacent and affiliated Adventure Zone, where they can indulge in paintball battles, laser tag and go-kart races.

Pirate’s Island

Over the last decade or so Beaches Turks & Caicos has been setting the bar for family vacations. Little kids stop in their tracks when they encounter life-size Sesame Street characters, while teens peel off to disappear in the resort’s xBox lounge.

One place they all come together is the resort’s 45,000-square-foot Pirate’s Island water park. There are lots of exciting features that will keep kids on their toes, including ten water slides, water cannons, and spray features. Those looking for a gentler diversion can float down the park’s 650-foot Lazy River and there’s a zero-entry pool for the littlest ones just learning to walk, let alone swim. The park also a waterfall pool and a tweens-only pool. The Sky Slide is 42 feet high, making it the highest waterslide in Turks & Caicos. The “wow” factor attraction at Pirate’s Island is the Surf-Simulator, which allows surfers of all experience levels a chance to hang ten on a variety of recreated wave conditions.

Beaches Turks & Caicos is an all-inclusive resort, which means all of the water park activities are included. This also applies to food and drink. Kids love having their own swim-up bar and 50s style diner and ice cream parlor, all within the waterpark. Those who want to take a break from the water-filled action can head over to Pirate Island’s Rainforest Gameroom.

Aquaventure

Atlantis Paradise Island is a destination unto itself. Visitors approach the resort via the Paradise Island Bridge, Nassau, The Bahamas. Once they reach the other side, they’re in another world. The sprawling resort complex contains the 141-acre Aquaventure, a huge water park playground of 12 pools and nine waterslides. There are even water escalators for kids who want to save all their energy for the twists and turns of the water slides.

Additional features at the Mayan-themed water park include a snorkeling lagoon, a mile-long lazy river, and a kids-themed water fort. Friendly competition can be had on the Challenger Slide, where two people can race each other down the twin slides and then see who was fastest by comparing speeds on the slide’s time clock.

The pièce de résistance at the park is the Leap of Faith slide, featuring a 60-foot drop into a clear acrylic tunnel where you can watch sharks swim in a lagoon on the other side of the acrylic wall.

A change of pace can be had on Aquaventure’s Paradise Island’s Climber’s Rush, a rock climbing wall with a variety of surfaces presenting different levels of difficulty. There’s also an adults-only pool for those who need to bring the action down a notch, complete with daybeds and DJs.

Admission to Aquaventure is complimentary for guests staying at Atlantis; day passes are on sale for those not staying at the resort but availability is sometimes limited. Those under 18 years old must be accompanied by an adult.

Sirenis Aquagames

The all-inclusive Sirenis Punta Cana Resort Casino in the beachfront destination of Punta Cana, in the Dominican Republic, recently made a stay at their resort even more appealing. They now include free admission for resort guests to the adjacent Sirenis Aquagames. This is a nice perk, especially for families with more than one kid, since they’ll also be able to eat for free at the water park.

Sirenis Aquagames has ten water slides, including the Aquaracer, a high speed, four lane slide; and the Stuka, where a sensation of free fall provides a real thrill. The littlest kids can cavort in the Babies’ Animals Area, where they’ll find a zero-entry shallow pool, animal slides and ultra-safe conditions. Kids a little older, age four to 11, tend to cluster in the Pirates Area, which also has a shallow pool complete with aquatubes, mid-sized slides and water cannons.

Adults can take a break at the main pool, where they can commandeer one of the hammocks or relax with a cocktail by the park’s waterfall.

CocoLand

St. Lucia is one of the Caribbean’s most scenic islands, lush and tropical. Coconut Bay Beach Resort & Spa is tucked away on the island’s south coast. The resort is actually two resorts in one, with one side designated adults-only, while the other side, called “Splash” caters to families with kids. Splash is also the site of CocoLand, the island’s largest water park. Here guests can cavort on a number of rides, including tubing along a lazy river featuring an occasional waterfall or racing through the Coconut Coaster slide, which hurtles riders along a twisting route before plunging them into a pool. The ride offering the biggest bang is the Coconut Cannon, the resort’s high speed water slide.

The Splash side of the resort has other water facilities that complement a family vacation, including Coco Kidz, a children’s club that includes a pirate ship water feature for children to play out their fantasies as pint-size swashbucklers

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