Expansion Turns Atlantis Aquaventure into Mega Water Park

Dubai’s Atlantis Aquaventure water park was always big. But a just-completed expansion has increased the size of this property by one-third, making it into one of the world’s mega water parks. There are now a total of 28 new water slides and attractions at Atlantis Aquaventure, bringing the total to a whopping 105 slides, attractions, and experiences. With the assistance of supplier ProSlide, the collection now includes one of the world’s tallest water slides and longest family water coasters of their kinds.

“With the launch of ‘Trident Tower,’ ‘Splashers Lagoon,’ and ‘Splashers Cove’ on March 1—the biggest water park expansion in history—Atlantis Aquaventure is officially one of the biggest and best water parks in the world,” says Sascha Triemer, vice president of marine and water park at Atlantis, The Palm. “‘Trident Tower,’ our newest and tallest at 48 meters, is home to 12 record-breaking slides and attractions, some of which cannot be found anywhere else globally. In addition, ‘Splashers Lagoon’ and ‘Splashers Cove,’ along with ‘Splashers Island and Mountain,’ form the biggest kids-only water park experience in the Middle East, with 16 new slides and attractions.”

Going Big

Aquaventure Atlantis added 17 ProSlide water rides during the expansion. Among them, the themed “Trident Tower” structure features several water slides. Triemer says “Odyssey of Terror” is one of the world’s tallest Double TornadoWave slides, and “Shockwave” is one of the longest family rafting water coasters in the world using ProSlide’s Blast water propulsion. The water park also includes “Medusa’s Lair” dueling slide; “Blackout,” one of the tallest FreeFall slides in the region; and “Hydra Racers,” where four racers can challenge one another to be the first to reach the bottom of the tower.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to once again work with Atlantis and, together with the project team of global industry professionals, help them to realize their amazing vision for this extremely significant expansion project,” says Philip Baker, vice president of business development MENA (Middle East and North Africa) at ProSlide. “Atlantis Aquaventure sets a new water park standard for Dubai, the Middle East, and the world.”

The selection and implementation of Atlantis Aquaventure’s new water attractions were based on a very close collaboration between the water park and ProSlide. According to Triemer, “Our executive vice president and managing director, Tim Kelly, was very involved in the brainstorming process and drove the vision of creating never-before-seen attractions, not only in the Middle East, but globally.”

Planning the Expansion

The decision to substantially expand Atlantis Aquaventure reflects the water park’s ongoing response to evolving market demands. “We always focus on customer needs and demands, and constantly evolve to ensure that each and every experience is unique, with all our visitors making memories that last a lifetime,” explains Triemer. “With Atlantis, The Royal underway, we had a unique opportunity to connect the space between the two hotels, resulting in one of the largest integrated resorts in the world. It just made sense to expand Atlantis Aquaventure and evolve it into an even more spectacular water park.”

Atlantis Aquaventure’s expansion didn’t just include new rides. Planners took time to consider all relevant aspects of the water park and then aligned them fit its mega-park footprint, which included doubling the length of its beachfront to 1 kilometer. As a result, “Atlantis Aquaventure is [now] home to 1,000 sun chairs spread across 22.5 hectares,” says Triemer. “This amount was determined by the available space we have in the park, while still ensuring guests have enough room to maintain social distancing guidelines.”

Construction during COVID-19 wasn’t easy, but there were instances when the pandemic worked to the water park’s benefit. For example, there were times when the water park needed to block off certain areas during construction to maintain a safe environment. This was executed with minimal disruption due to the lower attendance in the water park.

Marketing the Park

“Atlantis Aquaventure remains a unique selling point for Atlantis, The Palm, so our ROI (return on investment) involves more than just footfall to the water park because it also drives bookings to the resort as well,” says Triemer.

Meanwhile, the fact that Atlantis Aquaventure has grown by one third does not mean that its expansion phase is over. “Atlantis Aquaventure is now on a journey of innovation so that every time guests visit the water park, there will be something new and exciting to experience,” Triemer says. “Our ultimate vision is to become the largest aquatic theme park in the world, and we have a plan in place to get there toward the end of 2021.”