4th September 2018
I knew this was going to be a good day. Although I never knew how good it was going to be. We were all desperate for the relaxed water to take us away to a peaceful planet. There is something relaxing about the water parks. Is it the rides? Music? Loungers? Or pools? I personally think it is the pools of water which create a stunning atmosphere for every person to enjoy. I loved the themes of Typhoon Lagoon & Blizzard Beach. These 2 parks last time built my confidence as a swimmer and as an adrenaline junkie. I was breathless & proud after taking the 121 feet plunge on ‘Summit Plummet’ – which was completed in 3 seconds by the way!!!
I never knew much about Volcano Bay apart from it had a beautiful Hawaii theme and a perfect scenery with the smooth sandy beaches and an enormous volcano. You can’t really film in this park due to Universal’s restrictions so everything was kept locked in a treasure chest from me.
Before heading to paradise, we went and picked up breakfast at Walmart. We all got croissants, a slice of vanilla cake and strawberry Twizzlers for later on. I noticed some strange foods like sweetcorn muffins! Ewwww! That is totally gross! Also pizza Pringles – which I actually picked up to try as “Hey, it’s pizza”.
Once we fed our bellies, we parked up in row Spiderman, then skipped over to the Volcano Bay bus. We were all excited about this voyage. The bus took about 5 minutes, giving us a detailed video on the ‘Tapua Tapua’ device. They are wristbands which need to be used at the park. They allow you to join a virtual queue, then it vibrates once it is time for you to join the ride. If it says ‘RIDE NOW’ just do what it says. You can also use it for interactive purposes like hidden Easter eggs around the park, entering your locker, taking photos and viewing them too. These are the future of theme parks.
Once past security – which my Dad surprisingly wasn’t beeped at (probably because the watch was the culprit) – we entered the wonderful world of Volcano Bay. As soon as I was in, I knew it was heaven on Earth! Volcano Bay is paradise. The water has flown down the volcano like a beautiful river of joy lifting the hearts of every person staring at it. The straw huts & smooth beaches made us actually feel like we teleported over to the west of America on the little island of Hawaii. Aloha everyone!
The rides at this water park were something else! The rubber rings went sliding down at some speed kicking water into our faces and they enjoyed making my Dad go down backward. These went that fast, some even lifted up of the ground!!!
The lazy pool was relaxing, but if you wanted more enthusiasm, then you should head to the ‘Fearless River’ this pool allowed my GoPro, but I did have to be careful. It was a river rapid pool which you needed a life jacket on, to help you float like a fish in the water. As soon as my Mum & I entered the fast-moving river, we were off like a jet ski. I couldn’t even wait for my sister or Dad, the push of the water made us go out afar. This attraction was great. The waves came in quick and made you move around, it allowed fun to happen in the water and meanwhile, you could still enjoy the view. If you wanted, you could stay in it for the whole day – I could have!
Another attraction I did was the wave pool. This gave you a tremendous view of the volcano but it isn’t as extreme as the waves of Typhoon Lagoon.
My favourite ride in this park is the aqua coaster (I don’t remember the name, as they are all Hawaiian) this was actually a rollercoaster on water. You sat in a vehicle which went down loads of slides; even lifting my booty right out off the seat. I had to hold on or I would have been a goner! This ride was epic, and my whole family said that. The ride did always have the ‘Tapua Tapua’ tap though. We went on 3 times and on average only had to wait about half an hour.
There were a few rides, I didn’t expect myself to even do. I never wanted to risk not experiencing them though. I took the flume down ‘Ohyah’ which drops you into a 10ft pool below. This was like entering hell. I don’t think I enjoyed it as water shot up my nose, but at least I can say I tried it.
Another ride that was astonishing was the ones up at the top of the volcano. It was a flume, but instead of yourself pushing you down, the lifeguard would. You had to sit up straight in a tilted tube, like a test dummy in a science experiment. The floor would then drop you to your doom. Or not exactly. I was down in a few seconds, but I wasn’t glad the flume joints hurt my back a little. After celebrating the thought of doing that ride, I glanced back up and saw another one. A red tube, that dropped you straight down. It was another ‘Summit Plummet’ which I had no idea was in the park.
I had to think fast. I decided at the end of my holiday last time. I only had a few minutes to decide my fate for this one. Lauren told me she was out, along with both my parents. “Cowards,” I thought. “No way was I letting myself turn this one down”. I told them I would do it, maybe without much thought. This was terrifying. Each step out of the 209 made me want to just run back down. But something kept me going. Something kept me together. Something kept me sane even though I was about to do something insane. Once I made it to the top, I saw a girl a little bit older than me, panicking. She was only halfway in and was wanting to turn back. This pained me too. Should I have turned back? She wanted me to go 1st. I delayed my drop by asking questions about the ride. “How fast it? Is it a straight drop? Would I die?” This gave the girl time to process the situation and she went straight for the plunge.
If she could do it, so could I. I sat in, crossed my ankles, held my nose, then closed my eyes as hell was approaching. The tube filled with the noise of the volcano preparing to explode me to the bottom. Boom! The floor let me go, I dived right down to the bottom, shooting down like a bit of lava. This was 125 feet high. This only lasted 5 seconds. A true celebration was in order once I came off of this. I did it.
Once we left paradise, we went to Universal Studios, for nighttime. We stayed at Volcano Bay even later than it closed, leaving at about 18.20 when the park closes at 6pm.
I went on Rock it coaster, hating the up part but loving the rest. I listened to MC Hammer. Then we went on Jimmy Fallon, then Escape from Gringotts.
After all of that, we settled down for the spectacular firework display of Universal. I missed the last one stuck in a delayed queue for Transformers. But so glad I made it to this one. They used more visuals than fireworks but it was brilliant.
To end our night, we stuffed our faces with Domino’s at midnight, then went to bed to end an amazing day. I love Volcano Bay and I am looking forward to returning soon. Next time I will be swimming with dolphins at Discovery Cove. So I hope you enjoyed this blog & I will see you all with the next one!!! Bye!!!
Lost in Travel 