Leading Edge Award Winner: Island Waterpark
October 25, 2023 – Island Waterpark at Showboat was awarded a Leading Edge Award by The World Waterpark Association. These awards are given to parks for creativity in the development of new themes, facilities, programs, services or operational concepts in the water attractions industry; and to suppliers who have developed new concepts, products or services to the benefit of park members, their customers and the water attractions industry.
At 100,000 square feet this $100 million investment is the world’s largest indoor beachfront water park—and the largest indoor water park in North America under a single retractable roof. The interior recreates the shops, amusements, and vibes of the famous boardwalk. Together with aquatic thrills and plenty of space to relax and socialize, Island Waterpark is a destination with true multi-generational appeal. It has kid-friendly attractions and at the same time, allows adults to enjoy unique leisure activities in Atlantic City that are different from the offerings of a casino.
Island Waterpark is designed to be a happy year-round destination. The entire building is aluminum, which is the perfect solution for the corrosive ocean environment outdoor as well as the corrosive aquatic environment indoor. Its glass walls and polycarbonate roof allow plenty of natural light in.
The OpenAire roof not only shelters guests from inclement weather, it can be retracted to draw in fresh air for organic ventilation and let the guests feel like they are not missing out on a nice summer’s day. Not only that, the opening on the boardwalk end of the building allows for an unobstructed view of the ocean from the infinity edge adult pool.
OpenAire worked with the teams from Martin Aquatic and Whitewater West as well as the architectural team from SOSH Architects.
Quick Facts:
- The length of the building is 520 feet, with 30 bays (space between columns).
- The width of the building on the Atlantic City Boardwalk side is 160 feet; the opposite end is 175 feet.
- An 80-foot wide and 24-foot-tall high door opens to the infinity pool and bar on the inside and affords the guests there a view of the ocean and boardwalk.
- There are two retractable roof cupolas, at 77 and 73 feet high
- The entire building includes 25 motorized pivot windows around the perimeter for airflow. When the roof is open, the opening is 80 feet wide and 410 feet long.
- Two colors of polycarbonate make up the roof: opal (frosted white) for the fixed panels and clear for the moving ones. Light through the translucent roof allows for natural vegetation to be planted inside the water park.
- The water park is attached to the hotel tower via a 22-foot by 300-foot aluminum flat roof enclosure. This ensures that the corrosive environment is kept away from the hotel.
- The water park building has been engineered to support a possible future attraction hanging from the roof.
Island Waterpark was the most highly anticipated water park opening in North America in 2023. Atlantic City, legendary as it is, needed to transform its tourism offerings, and this water park helps accomplish that. It provides a great mix of attractions for both families as well as for adults seeking non-gaming entertainment. The success of this water park will serve as an example for other cities and developers looking to diversify their economies.
