CoCo Key Ohio

The CoCo Key Resorts in Ohio are very similar featuring the same attractions with one exception.  The Columbus resort has 3 water slides and the Cincinnati has 4 - with the addition of Shark Slam.  

Cherry Hill (Newark) Columbus attractions:

Lazy River:  Coconut Grove Adventure River: Recommended for all ages. Coconut grove is a fast-paced tube ride around Parrot’s Perch with splash surprises along the way (2’6” deep).

Kiddie Pool: Recommended for our littlest swimmers. A zero-depth entry with slides for our smallest guests (under 48” tall) and small tipping buckets.

Play Area:  Parrot's Perch: Recommended for ages 3-8. A multi-level interactive play island with 4 slides for younger children, water cannons and a huge bucket that dumps hundreds of gallons of water every few minutes.

Activity Pool:  Coral Reef Cavern : Recommended for ages 6 & up. A pool featuring water basketball and a lily-pad adventure (3’6” deep). 

Water Slides:  Gator’s Gush, Barracuda Blast & Pelican Plunge: Three 40-foot body and raft water slides. You must be 48” tall to ride down these water slides, even when riding with an adult.

Whirlpools: Palm Grotto: 16 and over only. You can get to the outdoor whirlpool via a swim-through passage!

Cincinnati attractions:

Lazy River:  Coconut Grove Adventure River: Recommended for all ages. Coconut grove is a fast-paced tube ride around Parrot’s Perch with splash surprises along the way (2’6” deep).

Kiddie Pool: Recommended for our littlest swimmers. A zero-depth entry with slides for our smallest guests (under 48” tall) and small tipping buckets.

Play Area:  Parrot's Perch: Recommended for ages 3-8. A multi-level interactive play island with 4 slides for younger children, water cannons and a huge bucket that dumps hundreds of gallons of water every few minutes.

Activity Pool:  Coral Reef Cavern : Recommended for ages 6 & up. A pool featuring water basketball and a lily-pad adventure (3’6” deep). 

Water Slides:  Gator’s Gush, Barracuda Blast, Shark Slam & Pelican Plunge: Four 40-foot body and raft water slides. You must be 48” tall to ride down these water slides.

Whirlpools: Palm Grotto: 16 and over only. You can get to the outdoor whirlpool via a swim-through passage!

Hygene and Illness - doesn't Chlorine kill everything?

Unfortunately no:  Chlorine doesn't kill everything. There are germs today that are very tolerant to chlorine and were not known to cause human disease until recently. Once these germs get in the pool, it can take anywhere from minutes to days for chlorine to kill them. In August 2001, 358 patients were infected with cryptosporidium from one water park even though the chlorine records were checked and showed adequate chlorination.  Many people across the nation have diarrhea after visiting any water park.
Swallowing just a little water that contains these germs can make you sick.
Recreational water illnesses (RWIs) are caused by germs spread by swallowing, breathing in mists or aerosols of, or having contact with contaminated water in swimming pools, hot tubs, water parks, water play areas, interactive fountains, lakes, rivers, or oceans. RWIs can also be caused by chemicals in the water or chemicals that evaporate from the water and cause indoor air quality problems.

In the past two decades, there has been a substantial increase in the number of RWI (recreational water illness) outbreaks associated with swimming. Crypto, which can stay alive for days even in well-maintained pools, has become the leading cause of swimming pool-related outbreaks of diarrheal illness. From 2004 to 2008, reported Crypto cases increased over 200% (from 3,411 cases in 2004 to 10,500 cases in 2008).
Although Crypto is tolerant to chlorine, most germs are not. Keeping chlorine at recommended levels is essential to maintain a healthy pool. However, a 2010 study found that 1 in 8 public pool inspections resulted in pools being closed immediately due to serious code violations such as improper chlorine levels.

Who should think twice before swimming for their own safety?
The very young especially if not vaccinated,  the elderly, pregnant women, and most importantly - immune-compromised - those with a decreased ability to fight off infections.

Who should not swim to protect the health of others?
Those who have diarrhea should not swim for as long as symptoms persist and 2 weeks afterward.  Some illnesses can live even longer but this is a good rule of thumb.

How can you protect your own health?  This link to healthyswimming.org is run by the CDC.
Don't drink the water!  Don't open your mouth when you might get splashed.  Try to explain this to your children.
Check diapers often and change diapers in the bathroom not poolside and wash hands after changing. 
Remind and encourage your children to take bathroom breaks in the restrooms.
Shower with SOAP  BEFORE and AFTER swimming and wash the crotch area well before and after.

Food and Drink

Swimming makes you hungry and thirsty but most parks prohibit outside food and drink.  It may be a ploy to force you to eat their food at inflated prices or it may be for sanitary reasons or it may just be that the cost of cleaning up and disposing of waste from food wrappers is such that for a park to pay custodial employees and waste management they have to charge higher prices.
If you haven't resigned yourself to paying $10 for nachos and a soda then what can you do?  One option is gathering your sopping wet little clan and heading out to the car for a drive through lunch at a fast food chain.  This is only tolerable during the warmer months as wet hair and skin can really chill you or even cause frostbite in winter.  This involves more effort than it first appears:  there are life jackets to take off, car seats to buckle and then there is a return to the park.
Staying more than one night at a resort?  Then, it is easy to go back to your room and shower/change to go out or order pizza from an outside chain for delivery. 

Cooler car camping:  Don't forget napkins!
Eating food from home or grocery can be fun and a bit healthier. 
If you plan ahead with a large cooler and dry or wet ice you can keep drinks and lunches cold.  Hungry kids will eat carrots and apple slices or celery with peanut butter and raisins that they would laugh at if served in front of the television.  Or you can pick up deli or subway sandwiches on the way in.  There are many foods that are inexpensive but are festive:  Otter pops which you freeze at home will likely stay frozen in a cooler and even if they don't kids enjoy drinking them just bring scissors.  Refrigerated pudding and yogurt are tasty deserts which have calcium and protein.   There are 100% juice boxes and capri suns.  Little children like the apple juice sippers with the novelty toys on top like Thomas, Mickey, or Clifford.  Save those plastic (never reuse Styrofoam) cups from kids meals at restaurants with the lids.  They are safe to wash in the dishwasher.  Bring reusable lidded cups and fancy novelty bendy straws or paper umbrellas from a grocery or party store.  You can serve juice mixed with sparkling or seltzer water to lower calorie count and give it fizz.  Another beverage option is packaged milk.  In the grocery you can find shelf stable milk in drink boxes which will give your kids calcium and help their muscles recover after working out.     
If you want to save money a large pitcher of pre mixed Kool-Aid and bags of chips and cookies are cheap snacks that will satisfy as long as you eat a good breakfast lunch and dinner that day.

If your kids are WHINING for snacks inside the park ask yourself - is it the packaging - does something light up?  Is it the novelty - we don't eat funnel cake and cotton candy at home?  Or is my child hungry?  A hungry child will eat carrot sticks and a thirsty child will drink tap water.  Or is my child TIRED?  It can be exhausting to splash and run around.  You don't have to stay 8 hours to get your money's worth - just stay until your children have done everything they want to.  If everyone leaves happy and wanting to come back then it was a good day.

Final but IMPORTANT note:  Wash your hands before you touch your food or your mouth.  A pediatrician at Dayton Children's Hospital has warned me about all the bad things that can spread at water parks. I won't name individual parks here that were implicated because I don't think the blame rests with the parks themselves.  Swim diapers keep poop from floating in the pools but they are designed to be nonabsorbent so they aren't keeping any pee in.  There are lots of little kids who are having such a good time they need reminders to go to the bathroom and may pee in the pool even if they are out of diapers. 

Columbus, Ohio

Columbus has 2 indoor hotel resort water parks and 1 outdoor zoo water park.

Zoombezi Bay is associated with the Columbus Zoo and has daily and seasonal admission.  Admission is required for ages 2 and up but is discounted if you are a Columbus zoo member or ages 2-9 or over 60.  1 day will run between $25 and $33.  A season pass just to the water park is $80 online right now and a gold pass which includes water park and zoo is $100 online. 

Fort Rapids is an indoor water park resort.  Registered guests are admitted free but day passes are available and range from $25-$30  Spectators are $10.  Children 3 and under are free.

CoCo Key Cherry Valley Lodge (in Newark) is free to registered guests but day ($20) and annual passes ($60 with New Years eve and day blocked out) are available.  There are also discounts for grandparents and military.

Toledo, Ohio

Splash Bay Resort associated with a Holiday Inn is indoor and open Friday-Sunday and select weekdays.  Day passes are available for around $20 for anyone over 1 year old but only $6 for spectators (supervising adults not getting wet).  Some hotel rates include the water park but not all - you have to get a specific package. 

While not really a waterpark resort, I think the Maumee Bay State Park Resort deserves mention here because the pool features a splash area with waterfall and cute fixtures.  Not for thrill seekers but fun for young children.  The location offers a lot of entertainment for the whole family as it is located in a State Park.  All Ohio state parks are free to everyone but the pool is only for hotel guests.  There is also lake swimming.