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Last week, for our Hakuna Mawednesday article, we were talking about taking a break from the Parks for the day, recharging your batteries and spending some quality family time in Walt Disney World. We said a great place to do this is Typhoon Lagoon. This week we travel down the road a ways and spend another day away from the parks, at Disney’s other Water Park, Blizzard Beach. Opening in 1995, Blizzard Beach is the newer of Disney’s Water Parks. The Back story for this park is that there was a freak snowstorm that blanketed Florida with a lot of snow.What else should be done, but make a ski resort, of course the builders didn’t think this through, because as fast as the
snow came, it melted. The Ski Resort idea was abandoned, but there was an alligator that enjoyed the slushy slopes as much as the snow bunnies enjoyed skiing them, thus the park was changed into a water park, with the Ice Gator as its mascot.
Blizzard Beach offers some of the same amenities as its sister park, Typhoon Lagoon. You can rent lockers and there are food stands, offering everything from light snacks to dinner. There are also Merchandise shops and you can get complimentary life jackets. The one shop, the Beach Haus shop has ski equipment and cold weather type decorations. They even have pot-belly stoves. There are also wooden decks like they have in Typhoon Lagoon, but here they are called “Polar Patios”. Each “Polar Patio” comes with an umbrella for shade and a cooler stocked with ice and bottled water. You also get all-day drink mugs, towel service for 6 and your own private locker. Each patio also comes with a personal waiter to make sure you have everything you need.
The rides and slides here are all Winter Themed, things like Toboggan Racers,
Snow Stormers, and the Chair Lift. The Slush Gusher is a 90 foot tall water slide, but the Grand Daddy of all the Slides in Disney is called Summit Plummet. This slide is 120 foot high, and has a 12 story drop. You end up going really really fast! Disney says 50-60 MPH, that’s awesome! Blizzard Beach isn’t just about the big slides though, it is all about family. There are Teamboat Springs, which is a family raft ride; Tike’s Peak for the little ones and even Ski Patrol Training Camp for bigger kids (preteens) who are a little too old for the kiddie area.
Another great way to relax while you are here is to walk over to Winter
Summerland Miniature Golf, which shares a parking lot with Blizzard Beach. This mini-golf complex offers 2 eighteen hole courses; both are influenced by Santa Claus. One of the courses has a winter theme and the other a summer theme. Another great thing you can do while you are at Blizzard Beach, to enjoy a Hakuna Mawednesday kind of vibe, is to jump on the bus for Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort (one of the closest Resorts to Blizzard Beach) and have some lunch at the Pepper Market. The Pepper Market is a food court styled restaurant and a great place for a meal. They have quite a few different “stations” where everyone in the family can pick something different
to eat. Once you’re done eating, you can jump right back on the bus and head back or you can explore the Coronado Springs Resort and all that it has to offer.
Remember the idea of Hakuna Mawednesday is to take a break from the rushing around and all the crowds and to enjoy yourself and your family, while recharging those batteries; there are a lot of ways to do this, but none offer you a better way to cool your heels, than Blizzard Beach.
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