Waterville USA, or simply known as Waterville, is a water and

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

located a quarter-mile from the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

in the city of

Gulf Shores, Alabama Gulf Shores is a resort city in Baldwin County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 9,741. Geography Gulf Shores is located on the Gulf of Mexico at 30°16'4.069" North, 87°42'5.285" West (30.267797, −87.70 ...

, on Gulf Shores Parkway (

Alabama State Route 59 State Route 59 (SR 59) is a state highway in Baldwin and Monroe counties in the southwestern portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. The highway extends from Gulf Shores on the Gulf of Mexico coast to Uriah in rural southwestern Alaba ...

). The park opened in 1986, and since then has added numerous water and amusement attractions.

Water park

The

water park A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming, and other baref ...

is the original section of the park. All of the original slides and attractions have been removed or replaced, except for the

wave pool A wave pool is a swimming pool in which there are artificially generated, large waves, similar to those of the ocean. Wave pools are often a major feature of water parks, both indoors and outdoors, as well as some leisure centres. History T ...

and

lazy river A lazy river is a water ride found in water parks, hotels, resorts, and recreation centers, which usually consists of a shallow () pool that flows similarly to a river. There is generally a slow current, usually just enough to allow guests to g ...

attractions.

Amusement park

Former rides and attractions

Over the years, Waterville has had to remove and replace attractions due to hurricane damage and the passing of time. In September 2004, the eye of

Hurricane Ivan Hurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The cyclone was the ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlan ...

passed directly over Gulf Shores and the surrounding areas. Due to the park's close proximity to the coastline, Waterville was severely flooded by storm surges, and experienced damaging winds that severely damaged two of the water park's attractions. Repairs went on during 2005 and 2006, and the park fully reopened in 2007 with replacement attractions. In 2013, two slides were removed to make room for a new slide.

External links

Waterville USA
at Ultimate Waterpark
Waterville USA Official Website
* {{RCDB, 4603 Buildings and structures in Baldwin County, Alabama Water parks in Alabama Amusement parks in Alabama 1986 establishments in Alabama