Oceans of Fun
After spending the morning at Worlds of Fun, I headed over to the neighboring Oceans of Fun water park around noon. The weather was expected to get worse later in the afternoon, so I decided to move my visit to the water park forward a little.
The entrance to Oceans of Fun is located right next to the Fury of the Nile rapids ride. This is also where the large Monsoon spillwater ride once stood, and I still walked past the now abandoned ride during my visit. What made Monsoon particularly interesting was the way it was integrated into both parks: the ride could be accessed from Worlds of Fun as well as Oceans of Fun, essentially making it part of both parks. Quite a clever idea – it’s just a shame that the ride hasn’t operated since 2022.
My first stop inside the water park was Castaway Cove, where I set up camp for the next few hours. The adults-only pool is a nice little oasis within Oceans of Fun and I liked it right away. The swim-up bar built directly into the pool is also a great feature and fits the area perfectly.
Aruba Tuba, Coconut Cove and Typhoon
From Castaway Cove, I eventually made my way to the first slides. I started with Aruba Tuba, a classic tube slide featuring two separate enclosed courses winding their way down the hillside. The ride itself isn’t particularly spectacular, but the numerous turns make it a fun way to start exploring the water park.
Right next to the slide’s runout is Coconut Cove. The large pool area features several water play elements and is mainly aimed at families and younger visitors. After a quick look around, I continued straight on to Typhoon.
Typhoon is a classic kamikaze slide and definitely takes a little courage. The slide runs down the hillside over several large humps, gradually building up speed along the way. You can even get a little airtime over the crests, which makes the ride surprisingly wild. Add in the age of the slide and the whole thing somehow feels just that little bit more daring. I really enjoyed Typhoon.
Riptide Raceway
Riptide Raceway is a much more modern addition. The large mat racer has been cleverly built into the natural hillside of Oceans of Fun and features four different courses. Rather than simply running parallel to each other all the way down, the individual lanes wind their way through numerous turns before eventually meeting again for the final race to the finish.
You ride headfirst on a mat, picking up plenty of speed as you race through the turns. With four different courses to choose from, there is also a good reason to ride Riptide Raceway more than once. The different layouts in particular make it one of the more interesting mat racers.
Caribbean Cooler and Hurricane Falls
After the first few slides, it was time to slow things down a little on Caribbean Cooler. The classic lazy river runs through a larger section of the water park and is a good place to simply lie back in a tube and float around for a while. The course itself isn’t particularly spectacular to look at, but after several slides, the relaxing lap came at just the right time.
Next up was Hurricane Falls, a classic family raft slide where, of all places, I encountered the longest queue of the entire day. Luckily, I had received a Fast Pass for Worlds of Fun when I bought my Cedar Fair season pass. At the time, I wasn’t even sure whether it could be used inside the water park. There was no harm in trying, though – and sure enough, it was accepted, cutting my wait considerably.
Hurricane Falls sends riders down the wide channel in large rafting boats. The raft rocks back and forth through the turns, making the experience slightly different depending on where you are sitting. All that swinging around makes for a really fun ride.
Surf City Wave Pool
I also spent some time in the Surf City Wave Pool, which has been part of Oceans of Fun since the water park first opened in 1982. The generously sized wave pool is therefore one of the park’s oldest surviving attractions. Once the waves start, there is plenty of movement in the water. I enjoyed the Surf City Wave Pool – for me, a good wave pool is simply part of a good water park.
Predators’ Plunge
The next slide tower is home to Predators’ Plunge, a classic speed slide with a drop-floor start. After climbing roughly 20 meters to the top of the tower, you step into the launch capsule. Door closed, arms and legs crossed, and then all you can do is wait for the floor to suddenly disappear beneath your feet.
You immediately pick up plenty of speed and shoot down through the enclosed tube. And it isn’t simply a straight drop: several fast turns keep the pace high all the way to the runout.
I really enjoyed Predators’ Plunge. The drop-floor start provides just the right amount of suspense and makes it one of the better slides at Oceans of Fun.
Shark’s Revenge
Shark’s Revenge is a tube slide on the same tower that starts off rather innocently. Several turns take you down through the enclosed tube, gradually building up speed along the way. The real highlight, however, is waiting right at the end.
Suddenly, the tube opens up and a surprisingly large drop appears directly in front of you, leading down towards the runout. It’s quite a breathtaking moment and makes for a great finale. That unexpected final drop makes Shark’s Revenge one of my favorite slides in the park.
Constrictor
Constrictor is another tube slide, but what makes this one particularly interesting is its unusual series of turns. The individual curves are extremely tight and sometimes follow each other almost immediately. As a result, the tube repeatedly climbs high up the walls before being thrown straight into the next turn.
It makes for a pretty wild ride, with plenty of swinging from side to side. This unusual layout makes Constrictor much more interesting than your average tube slide and certainly made it one of the more memorable rides of my visit.
Pictures Oceans of Fun
Conclusion Oceans of Fun
Overall, Oceans of Fun was a pleasant surprise. The water park first opened in 1982 and certainly shows its age in a few places, but some of those older slides are also among the most fun. I particularly enjoyed Typhoon and its slightly daring ride over the large humps. At the same time, newer additions such as Riptide Raceway ensure that the slide lineup doesn’t feel outdated.
There is also plenty to do away from the slides. Castaway Cove and its swim-up bar made a nice place to retreat to for a while, while Caribbean Cooler and the Surf City Wave Pool offered a chance to relax between rides.
In the end, I had much more fun at Oceans of Fun than I had expected before my visit. In fact, I almost spent too much time in the water park and eventually had to hurry back to neighboring Worlds of Fun to keep up with my roller coaster schedule. Considering that I had originally planned Oceans of Fun as little more than a short detour into the water park, that says a lot about the quality of the place.
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Click here to get to the overview page of Oceans of Fun.
