The Houston location of the famous Great Wolf Lodge indoor waterpark chain opened its doors for a sneak preview on Thursday, letting press and some visitors try out the amenities.
“Things are going really well,” says general manager Keith Furnace. “We’re testing the slides and are just three weeks away from the August 7 opening day. Things are on track and looking good.”
Located in Webster, Great Wolf Lodge broke ground in September 2022. The park reportedly costs $200 million to build and is only the second location in Texas. It is competing with numerous other waterparks in the greater Houston area, but has the advantage of being entirely indoors. Considering that Texas summers have made even walking across concrete at a waterpark unbearable, this could give Great Wolf Lodge an advantage over places like Schlitterbahn and Hurricane Harbor.
Photos from the sneak preview look stunning. As CultureMap reported in May, the play structures and waterslides are enormous, reaching at least four stories into the cavernous main area. Visitors will be able to climb, slide, and traverse various structures across the pools, rain or shine.
The slides and water areas are mostly fully functional now, with only some minor tweaking needed to complete the look. Meanwhile, the resort side is preparing its 532 rooms for the guests that will be arriving next month.
Waterslides are not the only activities available. Great Wolf Lodge also has ziplines that span the entire structure, as well as places to eat, and the MagiQuest arcade. The latter is the chain’s augmented reality game where visitors complete quests using magic wands similar to the recently-shuttered Department of Wonder in Sugar Land.
The Webster location will also debut a new virtual reality game called Spirit Water Forest starring the Lodge’s mascot, Oliver Raccoon. Guests can also play a 9-hole miniature gold course, pan for gemstones to take home in a sluice, bowl, and visit the 24-hour arcade.
The people who had a chance to try out rides at the Great Geyser Water Park all certainly seemed to be having a good time, though having a bad time on a waterslide is generally pretty difficult. With the paint still fresh and the fixtures sparkling, Great Wolf Lodge looks ready to welcome people who want relief from the oppressive summer heat.
Tickets are currently available via the Great Wolf Lodge’s website.
Photo couresy of Great Wolf Lodge
The slides are working!
