What a class act, they actually gave the employees jobs at other businesses they owned, helped the ones they couldn't transfer find other jobs, and struck a deal with Wet n' Wild to have them honor their outstanding tickets? You hardly ever see that sort of honest business done anymore.
Probably has something to do with the fact that, even when they closed, they were a family owned business. Given how the CEO was the former general manager, he would have some form of relationship with them and want the best. Also important is that this was one theme park as opposed to a franchised restaurant or something. Much more manageable and more personal than hundreds or thousands of employees across God knows how great a distance.
I don’t know what’s worse, being like River Country and left abandoned, or being developed and those buildings abandoned. Either way, it’s sad and fascinating at the same time with these water parks.
I miss them both. Larson's Lodge had a great steakhouse attached, the Black Angus. One of the LL hotels had two pools, a hot tub and one of those tiny in ground kiddie pools.(I haven't seen one of those since I was little) They also had a huge arcade, I always loved to stay there when I was a kid in the 80's.
Disney had good reason to close my River Country. I went once and that was enough for me. As a former cast member, I know why it closed...it was for the best.
@@keithh5159 We used to go to River Country every visit to Disney. Back when it opened it was so unlike anything else. I remember as a kid thinking some of the stuff seemed questionable. Did they have some fresh water tank to scuba in? I just recall it being a lot of fresh water used & there being issues with keeping it clean.
it's literally become my Sunday evening routine to curl up under a blanket, have a cup of tea, and watch an Expedition Theme Park video. thank you for these :)
I moved to orlando/ winter park in 1986. I was 6. I watched the growth of what it has become today. From shuttle launches to the openings of parks and closers due to replacing them. A new NBA team and the growing night life of downtown. From hurricanes to tourist declines from Sept 11th. I can't imagine growing up in a better place. And water mainia was a big part of that. Wet n Wild has always been the greatest but water mania offered a different and inexpensive yr pass and single day ticket and I had may fond memories there. I understand these parks closers but really miss them and it's sad that memories are all I will have as far as continuous enjoyment. But the fact I have the memories from actually being there is something not many can say and I'm so thankful for that and appreciate the owners and employee's for providing these experiences that I wouldn't trade anything for. So I thank you and you will forever be in my heart and memories
I only went to Water Mania once as a child with a few friends in the fall of 2004, but I will never forget it. I went about a month after Hurricane Charley, and despite the Screamer being closed, I remember it was a great park and I had nothing bad to say about it. Also, despite him saying the Banana Peel was a "family tube slide", it was easily the most terrifying slide at the park
@@44bthknuckles i think new parks are lame. Too much safety, too much bland Starbucks fashion cues. Not everything should look like that. Neon sunshine, thats the way of a water park, I'll never see them any other way.
Water Mania opened as a low-budget alternative to try to compete with Disney's Splash, a big water theme park shopping and hotel complex plan that was in the works at the time, named after the movie of the same name. This plan was eventually revised and went from a theme park to the water park we know and love called Typhoon Lagoon. The plan was dubbed Disney's fourth gate for a while so it worried the competition like Larson so in Larson's eyes, changing the budget and appealing as a low-budget park was his only way of competing.
I think they have the right to be proud of what they accomplished. It can't be easy running a company like that with giants like Disney and Universal studios breathing down your neck. But I guess their demise was inevitable, since the other water parks also had theme parks drawing the customers away.
I love watching the commercials and ads you put into these videos, I swear they're like a temporary time capsule to the past and it's great Also, it's really nice how the employees were actually helped to find new jobs or moved to different places, that's not something you see often
Man, I remember those big blue/yellow canopies you could sit under. My family and I always went to Water Mania instead of Wet N' Wild. Wasn't as busy, cheaper, was smaller and easier to do and had mostly everything Wet N' Wild did just little smaller. I loved it as a kid. And most of all, had easy parking. They had one of those buggy surfing wave things 10:39 being best ride in the park. And yeah, I remember the woods they had in the back of the park where you could picnic or just sit in the woods at picnic tables to get out of sun. We always carried our cooler into there and ate lunch. Good times. You never realize when you're 10 or 11 that those will be memories you'll remember forever. Weird because we went during early 2000s hahaha It's kind of sad there are essentially NO family owned tourist attractions of a large scale like this in Orlando area anymore. It's all corporate. Which has it's pros of course... but also its cons.
I honestly feel bad I forgot about this place. We went there at least once. When I think back, it was so nice because it seemed more like it cared about locals. I've always been defensive of the historic importanance of Wet & Wild even though I never went there, but it was in my territory. However it often seemed it aimed more to be the tourist attraction (and wow do I remember that commerical like it was yesterday) and I liked the little places that acted like they were there for locals too. One reason I loved Fun 'n' Wheels so much.
@@coyoteartist oh yeah, for the morning shift when taking the carts out of the garages, we used to open all the tracks and race them from track to track and thru the parking lot, until the manager would yell at us to stop fucking around. The night shifts on weekends during the summer were crazy, too.
Holy shit thank you for making this video, I have a fever dream-y memory of going here when I was in like kindergarten/1st grade for a friends birthday party and I’ve been trying to research about it casually for years. Low and behold you make this video. At long last.
I’ve been looking for this type of video on Water Mania for a while. Thanks for creating such a detailed video on it. I have so many memories from this water park.
I have been enjoying all of your video's, but I especially loved this one. My mother is friends with Iris. She is still an inspiring lady. I used to go to Water Mania all the time growing up. I have fond memories of the slides.
Moved from the UK to Orlando in 1996 as a kid.Was a dream come true growing up here. Wish I could say it was the same atmosphere now but I'm afraid its far from it...thanks for this ☺
I say this almost every week - Great Video. I love learning about the places I had no idea existed and it always blows me away the amount of info you find on them.
Water mania is not forgotten!!! I use to go as a kid. I feel so spoiled growing up in Orlando in the 90s with all the attractions. Sadly now it's only disney, universal and seaworld. Thanks for keeping the memories alive
It's so interesting. I hadn't thought about this place in decades. But just seeing the name again, and all these memories come rushing in. I went on several school trips there, just like you mention in the video. The banana peel looks so mild in the video, but I remember it being very scary. It was a very steep drop.
Awesome video as always. "Kissimmee charm" killed me. Once everything gets figured out about its future, an episode on Elitch Gardens would be fantastic (especially the 38th & Tennyson location)
Watching this series, among other things, really shows you how intensely-competitive and cutthroat the world of non-Disney/Universal/Busch Gardens attractions trying to compete with them can be!
I grew up in Orlando and as a kid absolutely loved wet n wild and water mania. Water Mania was the local spot and wipe out was really their most popular attraction.. now both parks are gone and residents who grew up here were not happy when each park closed
Took my daughter there when she was 4 years old and we had the best time there! We spent most of the day in the little kids’ section (of course) where we met some of the sweetest lifeguards that not only watched the littles but were kind to them and played with them.
I remember this place, it was cool. The small water park life continues once again with Island H20 down the road. Hurricane Charley decimated 192, ill never forget that storm. It was sad to see it go in the end. Great job on the video.
I really love the documentary style of your videos and how you cover a lot of topics that are more obscure. 192 is a strange place that was killed by Disney. It makes me wonder why I-Drive has fared so well in comparison.
I went dozens of times with my summer camp when I was younger. Fun, but always kind of felt like a downgrade from the Wet N Wild park. Definitely felt a little sketchy too. I remember the concrete walkways at one point were painted a dark blue and would get so hot in the summer you'd burn your feet. Also Wipeout was notorious for "Bathing suit malfunctions" lol.
I remember that park so vividly! I was always upset cause I am a December baby and would want to go there for my birthday. Use to be located right across from Celebration in Orlando and had some of the best slides.
My wife and I loveeeeeed the place. We were so sadden by its closing. It was a family park; absolutely no alcohol was allowed. Thank you for telling the story of the park. We were wondering why they closed. We still miss it. It was a safe park to go to and unlike Wet and Wild the parking area was not in an unsafe place.
I have so many great memories of Water Mania. It was definitely THE PLACE to go hang out as a kid during long hot summer vacation days. Wet'n'Wild and the Disney water parks were great, but they were much too expensive to visit regularly. WM took care of the locals and they were well-loved and cherished. After just moving back to Central Florida last year, I wanted to find out what happened to one of my childhood playgrounds, so thank you for the tale!
Hey Sam, This was a great video!!!! I was never there but remember it from when I first moved to Orlando. We get Starbucks there almost every Sunday after church so it was fun to see the history of that area. Thanks! 👍🏻
This made me feel majorly nostalgic for my early 90s childhood. The commercials bring back that childhood yearning you used to get, wanting to go so badly!
You did a really nice job on this it's the best one of these i have seen on water mania. There was a small waterpark in Orlando even before river country that you won't hear about from people who make these videos on youtube becase there is no info at all on the Internet about it that i could find except for a local Orlando Facebook group I'm on that I've see people mention it sometimes it was called waterslide world it was only open a couple years i still remember the radio commercials of it. It's what got me fascinated with abandoned parks becase i saw it often diving by it on i-4 and seeing this big hill with slides and over grown grass and empty pool next to a small campground or trailer park off of 33rd street
I just gotta say I love your channel, man. Growing up in Central Florida and going to all the local theme parks and watching things change and come and go, it’s such a blast watching you cover these old extinct parks. My family used to go to Water Mania all the time and my father used to actually work at Mystery Funhouse. I love the content and thank you for these wonderful trips down memory lane.
Wow talk about childhood memories! We use to go to this park every summer...R.I.P Water Mani and Wet and Wild 😭😭😭 The wave pool & lazy river was my fav😄
Great video. You added that personal and emotional touch at the end which was a nice tribute to the family. I was in Florida and visited Kissimmee in 1996 but I didn't know about Water Mania.
I have very fond memories of this park growing up. The Screamer was my first speed slide and was TERRIFYING for me when I was young. It wasn't the best water park, but it sure was fun as a kid.
I went in '93 and '96, I remember the advert! Don't remember much about the park specifically other than I never did master the boogie board on the surf simulator thing. Ah memories. Also, eff me I'm old.
Great video!!! Definitely a trip down memory lane. I remember going there a couple times in 86 and 87, before my moved to Greece. I was 10 and we lived in Palm Bay at the time.
I must have gone by this countless times as a kid, yet I can't remember ever going (we used to holiday a lot and even to this day will still stay on 192). I do however remember the concrete monstrosity crazy golf that replaced it and spent ages a few years ago going "I'm sure there was a crazy golf next to the golden coral", so thank you for putting my poor mind at ease =D. It's really a shame to see all these family businesses close down along the 192, it's changed so much in the last 20 years.
Huh, never realized how innovative Ontario Place's water park was. I knew that a Canadian Company is one of the biggest developers of water rides, but never made the Ontario Place connection XD
Finally thanks for this wonderful video . I think is the first one I seen on water mania I have the opportunity of visiting the park many times during the late 80s and 90s .
I never realized that Golden Corral was where water mania was. It had been 15 years since I had been there. Last time I was at Golden Corral was probably back in 14’. I miss that old town.
We would stay at the Travel Lodge right next door in the 80’s. Two years ago I drove into the site to check it out. Hotel is abandoned and like your video shows, the park land is built up. Great video! Makes me sad but also happy thinking back.
I remember passing those tall slides and asking my parents if we could go, but they told me that they were recommended not to go there due to the employee death. That was probably in 1999.
wow , good joob , historian film well done , the satellite image and music was a very nice touch ! I am been living outside orlando ( ocala ) for over 25 years ( I am 35 ) and never heard of Water Mania , impressive ! ... thanks for upload .... good job !
This was the best for family who have many members and not enough money. I would remember going a few times and going straight to the pirate ship splash area the best memories ever!!!! I remember my parents calling the place the most Spanglish you’ll hear sad it’s gone :( *ALSO IM TYPING AS THE VIDEO IS PLAYING AND THE SHIP POPPED UP MY HEART!*
Yo I went here once as a kid. I was extremely young (was born in 1998, park closed in 2005) I must have gone basically right at the end of its life for a friends birthday party and I remember LOVING it. They had this one slide that wasn't really a slide, it was more a jet blast of water that would launch you into the lazy river. It was like being caught in white water rapids as a kid. That place was awesome man.
I'm a huge fan of Gregg Allman and I never knew he did a concert at Water Mania, that's so funny. I grew up near Kissimmee and Orlando, but I don't really remember seeing Watermania along the road while traveling.
Yeah, there used to be TONS of smaller family attractions. But with how dated they became, and with the ever increasing popularity and expansion of Disney, has caused most to close.
Yes back in the early 90s, also stayed at that red carpet hotel, I remember it being super hot, and we spent more time at water mania then the Disney parks we actually came to visit.
There's a newer waterpark in Kissimee now and it's kinda crazy to think $70 is competitive pricing (for all year), but considering how much more crowded and more ridicoulous the disney and universal ones are price-wise, it seems like it's doing well. Hope it doesn't meet the same fate. Especially because the two Fun Spot America parks do just fine with disney, universal, and seaworld competition all around.
Did you visit Water Mania? Let me know!
i visited the water park at Ontario Place as a kid, can you do a video on that park one day? (and maybe one on the CNE/the EX?)
Yes I will I actually went and filmed footage of the place last year as I lived in Toronto
We would go down to Florida every year, 2005 being the first. I remember seeing the Billboard but when we tried to get there it wasn’t opened
No.
I never visit there before, not even as a child.
What a class act, they actually gave the employees jobs at other businesses they owned, helped the ones they couldn't transfer find other jobs, and struck a deal with Wet n' Wild to have them honor their outstanding tickets? You hardly ever see that sort of honest business done anymore.
Probably has something to do with the fact that, even when they closed, they were a family owned business. Given how the CEO was the former general manager, he would have some form of relationship with them and want the best. Also important is that this was one theme park as opposed to a franchised restaurant or something. Much more manageable and more personal than hundreds or thousands of employees across God knows how great a distance.
The finest in altruism.
I have to give credit to the Larson's for going through the effort of making sure their employees got other work
Yeah good of them!
Any abandon mall, theme park and water park just make me so sad :-( A place once filled with fun is just gone like that.
I don’t know what’s worse, being like River Country and left abandoned, or being developed and those buildings abandoned. Either way, it’s sad and fascinating at the same time with these water parks.
Right?!
Sad I went to both when I was 5! River county is where I first had Dippin Dots but they called it something else!!! I can't remember what...
I miss them both. Larson's Lodge had a great steakhouse attached, the Black Angus. One of the LL hotels had two pools, a hot tub and one of those tiny in ground kiddie pools.(I haven't seen one of those since I was little) They also had a huge arcade, I always loved to stay there when I was a kid in the 80's.
Disney had good reason to close my River Country.
I went once and that was enough for me.
As a former cast member, I know why it closed...it was for the best.
@@keithh5159 We used to go to River Country every visit to Disney. Back when it opened it was so unlike anything else. I remember as a kid thinking some of the stuff seemed questionable. Did they have some fresh water tank to scuba in? I just recall it being a lot of fresh water used & there being issues with keeping it clean.
it's literally become my Sunday evening routine to curl up under a blanket, have a cup of tea, and watch an Expedition Theme Park video. thank you for these :)
Ahh thank you!
I moved to orlando/ winter park in 1986. I was 6. I watched the growth of what it has become today. From shuttle launches to the openings of parks and closers due to replacing them. A new NBA team and the growing night life of downtown. From hurricanes to tourist declines from Sept 11th. I can't imagine growing up in a better place. And water mainia was a big part of that. Wet n Wild has always been the greatest but water mania offered a different and inexpensive yr pass and single day ticket and I had may fond memories there. I understand these parks closers but really miss them and it's sad that memories are all I will have as far as continuous enjoyment. But the fact I have the memories from actually being there is something not many can say and I'm so thankful for that and appreciate the owners and employee's for providing these experiences that I wouldn't trade anything for. So I thank you and you will forever be in my heart and memories
I only went to Water Mania once as a child with a few friends in the fall of 2004, but I will never forget it. I went about a month after Hurricane Charley, and despite the Screamer being closed, I remember it was a great park and I had nothing bad to say about it.
Also, despite him saying the Banana Peel was a "family tube slide", it was easily the most terrifying slide at the park
Hahah yeah true it was scary! Ahhh dang I wish I found some footage of that time
Even in early 2000, the park never seemed to change out of its, “stuck in the 80s” feel.
Yeppp
I don’t think I’d mind that
Retro 80’s water park would be awesome today. Neon fanny packs, oh yeah!
Wet n wild was also stuck in the 80s
@@44bthknuckles i think new parks are lame. Too much safety, too much bland Starbucks fashion cues. Not everything should look like that. Neon sunshine, thats the way of a water park, I'll never see them any other way.
Water Mania opened as a low-budget alternative to try to compete with Disney's Splash, a big water theme park shopping and hotel complex plan that was in the works at the time, named after the movie of the same name. This plan was eventually revised and went from a theme park to the water park we know and love called Typhoon Lagoon. The plan was dubbed Disney's fourth gate for a while so it worried the competition like Larson so in Larson's eyes, changing the budget and appealing as a low-budget park was his only way of competing.
"Kissimmee Charm" - spoken like a true local
😉
Lol 😆
There nothing charming about kissimmee lol
@@zan31669 Definitely tongue in cheek.
@@zan31669 There was in the 90s. A little bit even though it was tourist trap central of course. Now its one big run down and decaying barrio.
I think they have the right to be proud of what they accomplished. It can't be easy running a company like that with giants like Disney and Universal studios breathing down your neck.
But I guess their demise was inevitable, since the other water parks also had theme parks drawing the customers away.
Exactly 100 percent
I love watching the commercials and ads you put into these videos, I swear they're like a temporary time capsule to the past and it's great
Also, it's really nice how the employees were actually helped to find new jobs or moved to different places, that's not something you see often
They are my fav part haha
Man, I remember those big blue/yellow canopies you could sit under. My family and I always went to Water Mania instead of Wet N' Wild. Wasn't as busy, cheaper, was smaller and easier to do and had mostly everything Wet N' Wild did just little smaller. I loved it as a kid. And most of all, had easy parking. They had one of those buggy surfing wave things 10:39 being best ride in the park. And yeah, I remember the woods they had in the back of the park where you could picnic or just sit in the woods at picnic tables to get out of sun. We always carried our cooler into there and ate lunch. Good times. You never realize when you're 10 or 11 that those will be memories you'll remember forever. Weird because we went during early 2000s hahaha It's kind of sad there are essentially NO family owned tourist attractions of a large scale like this in Orlando area anymore. It's all corporate. Which has it's pros of course... but also its cons.
Yep
I honestly feel bad I forgot about this place. We went there at least once. When I think back, it was so nice because it seemed more like it cared about locals. I've always been defensive of the historic importanance of Wet & Wild even though I never went there, but it was in my territory. However it often seemed it aimed more to be the tourist attraction (and wow do I remember that commerical like it was yesterday) and I liked the little places that acted like they were there for locals too. One reason I loved Fun 'n' Wheels so much.
Will do a video on that park soon!
I worked at Fun N Wheels [I-drive location] in '95/96. The stuff that went on at that place, lol.
@@dolosevensix i would imagine. At least with access to the go karts anyway.
@@coyoteartist oh yeah, for the morning shift when taking the carts out of the garages, we used to open all the tracks and race them from track to track and thru the parking lot, until the manager would yell at us to stop fucking around. The night shifts on weekends during the summer were crazy, too.
Why did water mania close
Holy shit thank you for making this video, I have a fever dream-y memory of going here when I was in like kindergarten/1st grade for a friends birthday party and I’ve been trying to research about it casually for years. Low and behold you make this video. At long last.
Got to say stumbled upon these vids now can’t stop watching all of them. So informative and fun to watch.
Thank you
Binge Watching your vids is the best way to spend my Sunday afternoon!
Thank you!!
I’ve been looking for this type of video on Water Mania for a while. Thanks for creating such a detailed video on it. I have so many memories from this water park.
Thanks for watching !
I have been enjoying all of your video's, but I especially loved this one. My mother is friends with Iris. She is still an inspiring lady. I used to go to Water Mania all the time growing up. I have fond memories of the slides.
Replaced by a Golden Coral? A fate worse than death.
Hahaah
And large apartment complex- I lived back there. It is a really nice complex - the crappy hotels are slightly sketchy
Moved from the UK to Orlando in 1996 as a kid.Was a dream come true growing up here. Wish I could say it was the same atmosphere now but I'm afraid its far from it...thanks for this ☺
It’s not that bad still way better then where I had to move in Tampa used to live in Windermere;(
I'm pretty sure I went there once as a child. I remember the commercials well.
I say this almost every week - Great Video. I love learning about the places I had no idea existed and it always blows me away the amount of info you find on them.
Thank you so much as always!
Water mania is not forgotten!!! I use to go as a kid. I feel so spoiled growing up in Orlando in the 90s with all the attractions. Sadly now it's only disney, universal and seaworld. Thanks for keeping the memories alive
Thanks for watching!
Those of us from Orlando will never forget watermania. I spent so much time there as a kid I didn't even realized it closed half my life ago
""""LOCAL KISSIMMEE CHARM"""" is the nicest way I've EVER heard 192 described.
I was nice hahaha
@@ExpeditionThemePark As someone who lives here this made me DIE laughing! Spot on
As someone who lived there for 16 years this made my day.
Considering the section of 192 from Kissimmee to Old Town is a touristy slum there's no charm left in that landfill :(¿…
@@dr666demento that's the joke.
It's so interesting. I hadn't thought about this place in decades. But just seeing the name again, and all these memories come rushing in. I went on several school trips there, just like you mention in the video. The banana peel looks so mild in the video, but I remember it being very scary. It was a very steep drop.
Awesome video as always. "Kissimmee charm" killed me.
Once everything gets figured out about its future, an episode on Elitch Gardens would be fantastic (especially the 38th & Tennyson location)
Watching this series, among other things, really shows you how intensely-competitive and cutthroat the world of non-Disney/Universal/Busch Gardens attractions trying to compete with them can be!
Yeppp
I grew up in Orlando and as a kid absolutely loved wet n wild and water mania. Water Mania was the local spot and wipe out was really their most popular attraction.. now both parks are gone and residents who grew up here were not happy when each park closed
It’s so crazy this video came up. We miss water mania we absolutely LOVED it
I remember going here ss a kid right before they closed! Thank you so much for letting me know what happened!
Thank you for watching
Took my daughter there when she was 4 years old and we had the best time there! We spent most of the day in the little kids’ section (of course) where we met some of the sweetest lifeguards that not only watched the littles but were kind to them and played with them.
Wow, I had been wondering what happened to this park. Thanks for the nostalgia.
Every time you said "Gary Larson" I looked up to see if there was a Far Side cartoon being shown.
Haha no
Same
absolutely!!
I thought the same thing. 😂
Haha yes SE is really hot!
Nice touch there Expedition!!
Great video, the ability to dream is for sure the start of everything.
Exactly
So happy you did a piece on this place! I only ever went once or twice but it was always a blast and I didn't realize the impact and history it had!
Thank you for watching!
Mad props for not forgetting to add the minitruck shows at 11:38 mark. They were so much fun.
RIP Watermania
Its good to hear that it ended well and the employees weren't just made redundant we no prospect of future employment.
Yep!
My family and I would visit water mania every year as kids. Miss that place so much.
I remember this place, it was cool. The small water park life continues once again with Island H20 down the road. Hurricane Charley decimated 192, ill never forget that storm. It was sad to see it go in the end. Great job on the video.
Thank you
I didn't even know this place existed! My parents grew up near there, and my mom says she went there all the time with her family.
I love how I’ve been in the Orlando area for 9 years and Didnt hear anything about this park, great video to watch.
That’s because it closed 16 years ago
I really love the documentary style of your videos and how you cover a lot of topics that are more obscure. 192 is a strange place that was killed by Disney. It makes me wonder why I-Drive has fared so well in comparison.
It’s deff interesting !
I went dozens of times with my summer camp when I was younger. Fun, but always kind of felt like a downgrade from the Wet N Wild park. Definitely felt a little sketchy too. I remember the concrete walkways at one point were painted a dark blue and would get so hot in the summer you'd burn your feet. Also Wipeout was notorious for "Bathing suit malfunctions" lol.
Haha I’m not surprised
OMG yes! Those floors were so damn hot not to mention the sand maze.
I went with my summer camp too it was the best
This is so cool! I used to hit the starbucks that sits where the Larson Lodge was on my way to work every day.
1:21. Awwwww! Can’t wait to see the 2 of you in more videos together! ❤️ hang in there! Great video Sam! As always!
💕💕💕
I remember that park so vividly! I was always upset cause I am a December baby and would want to go there for my birthday. Use to be located right across from Celebration in Orlando and had some of the best slides.
Yeah!
My wife and I loveeeeeed the place. We were so sadden by its closing. It was a family park; absolutely no alcohol was allowed.
Thank you for telling the story of the park. We were wondering why they closed.
We still miss it. It was a safe park to go to and unlike Wet and Wild the parking area was not in an unsafe place.
I have so many great memories of Water Mania. It was definitely THE PLACE to go hang out as a kid during long hot summer vacation days. Wet'n'Wild and the Disney water parks were great, but they were much too expensive to visit regularly. WM took care of the locals and they were well-loved and cherished. After just moving back to Central Florida last year, I wanted to find out what happened to one of my childhood playgrounds, so thank you for the tale!
Hey Sam, This was a great video!!!! I was never there but remember it from when I first moved to Orlando. We get Starbucks there almost every Sunday after church so it was fun to see the history of that area. Thanks! 👍🏻
Thank you Scott!
This made me feel majorly nostalgic for my early 90s childhood. The commercials bring back that childhood yearning you used to get, wanting to go so badly!
Different times !
This made me feel so nostalgic. I went there a ton when I was a kid. Thanks for another great video!
You did a really nice job on this it's the best one of these i have seen on water mania. There was a small waterpark in Orlando even before river country that you won't hear about from people who make these videos on youtube becase there is no info at all on the Internet about it that i could find except for a local Orlando Facebook group I'm on that I've see people mention it sometimes it was called waterslide world it was only open a couple years i still remember the radio commercials of it. It's what got me fascinated with abandoned parks becase i saw it often diving by it on i-4 and seeing this big hill with slides and over grown grass and empty pool next to a small campground or trailer park off of 33rd street
I remember playing at Pirates Cove as a kid on family vacations. The memories on that stretch of road are endless.
Its was always one of my favorite field trip locations with the rec center I attended as a kid. Very good times!!!!!!!!!!!
Yessss
I just gotta say I love your channel, man. Growing up in Central Florida and going to all the local theme parks and watching things change and come and go, it’s such a blast watching you cover these old extinct parks. My family used to go to Water Mania all the time and my father used to actually work at Mystery Funhouse. I love the content and thank you for these wonderful trips down memory lane.
Thank you so much
I think I speak for everyone here, but thank Sam for helping everyone enjoy their lockdown sign your incredible content!
Wow talk about childhood memories! We use to go to this park every summer...R.I.P Water Mani and Wet and Wild 😭😭😭
The wave pool & lazy river was my fav😄
Idk how you don't have more Subs... This channel is right up there with Defunctland for me
Looks like Theme Park History is back on the menu boys!!!
Always
Great video. You added that personal and emotional touch at the end which was a nice tribute to the family. I was in Florida and visited Kissimmee in 1996 but I didn't know about Water Mania.
I have very fond memories of this park growing up. The Screamer was my first speed slide and was TERRIFYING for me when I was young. It wasn't the best water park, but it sure was fun as a kid.
I went in '93 and '96, I remember the advert! Don't remember much about the park specifically other than I never did master the boogie board on the surf simulator thing. Ah memories. Also, eff me I'm old.
Me too haha
Was it the one that gose "i got the maina for water warer mania" they played that song at the end of every commercial it got stuck my head! Haha
You have somehow made me nostalgic for a place I have never visited nor realised existed. It's a good feeling.
Then my goal is complete ha
Great video!!! Definitely a trip down memory lane. I remember going there a couple times in 86 and 87, before my moved to Greece. I was 10 and we lived in Palm Bay at the time.
I must have gone by this countless times as a kid, yet I can't remember ever going (we used to holiday a lot and even to this day will still stay on 192). I do however remember the concrete monstrosity crazy golf that replaced it and spent ages a few years ago going "I'm sure there was a crazy golf next to the golden coral", so thank you for putting my poor mind at ease =D.
It's really a shame to see all these family businesses close down along the 192, it's changed so much in the last 20 years.
Huh, never realized how innovative Ontario Place's water park was. I knew that a Canadian Company is one of the biggest developers of water rides, but never made the Ontario Place connection XD
And now even Ontario Place is abandoned and dead. I used to go almost every year and was almost always a year end trip for schools
Everything you do is probably one of the best amusement park history channel on the web!
Thank you so much
@@ExpeditionThemePark every upload is interesting especially old Florida history.
my summer camp always went there, loved that place
Amazing!
I worked at the Wave Pool in Decatur Al, one summer in the early 80's.
Thanks for the shout out.
Finally thanks for this wonderful video . I think is the first one I seen on water mania I have the opportunity of visiting the park many times during the late 80s and 90s .
Thank you!
Nooo !! Thank you
I never realized that Golden Corral was where water mania was. It had been 15 years since I had been there. Last time I was at Golden Corral was probably back in 14’. I miss that old town.
This is so informative! Great job, fantastic reporting!🌻🌼🐝 Keep it up 🙌
You work like always is astoundingly good! You do fantastic work researching every little detail.
Thank you!
This place looked like alot of fun. Sad that it went under
Yeah!
It’s was had some much fun there
I was a lifeguard at Water Mania from 1987 until 1992. Had a great time hanging out with coworkers, playing beach volleyball at Lucy Bluz after work.
Wow!! I remember going to that water park in Orlando, FL.
We would stay at the Travel Lodge right next door in the 80’s. Two years ago I drove into the site to check it out. Hotel is abandoned and like your video shows, the park land is built up. Great video! Makes me sad but also happy thinking back.
Why would anyone dislike it must be ppl who never been to Kissimmee/Orlando I feel for you guys ;( take a trip there and feel the magic vibes :)
I remember passing those tall slides and asking my parents if we could go, but they told me that they were recommended not to go there due to the employee death. That was probably in 1999.
What happened to the employee ???
@@beastlaser9611 Not sure?
Lemme go find out what happened to the employyee
wow , good joob , historian film well done , the satellite image and music was a very nice touch ! I am been living outside orlando ( ocala ) for over 25 years ( I am 35 ) and never heard of Water Mania , impressive ! ... thanks for upload .... good job !
OMG YESSSSSSSSS
I LOVED THIS PLACE. THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS PLACE
(me before i even watch the video but can't believe what im witnessing)
I actually worked here when I was 16. Loved it.
This was the best for family who have many members and not enough money.
I would remember going a few times and going straight to the pirate ship splash area the best memories ever!!!! I remember my parents calling the place the most Spanglish you’ll hear sad it’s gone :(
*ALSO IM TYPING AS THE VIDEO IS PLAYING AND THE SHIP POPPED UP MY HEART!*
Used to go here as a kid this is a bummer! Such memories😁
I could never forget this place
Love these episodes. Thanks man 🙂
Thank you for watching
I was a lifeguard there for many years. Loved working there.
I have a lot of great childhood memories at both Watermania and Wet n Wild. Went to both all of the time as part of a summer program.
Always coming through with a great video after I had a rough night at work. Thank you!
Thank you! Hope you have a better day!
Really good presentation. Thanks , ETP.
Yo I went here once as a kid. I was extremely young (was born in 1998, park closed in 2005) I must have gone basically right at the end of its life for a friends birthday party and I remember LOVING it. They had this one slide that wasn't really a slide, it was more a jet blast of water that would launch you into the lazy river. It was like being caught in white water rapids as a kid. That place was awesome man.
I'm a huge fan of Gregg Allman and I never knew he did a concert at Water Mania, that's so funny. I grew up near Kissimmee and Orlando, but I don't really remember seeing Watermania along the road while traveling.
I can only imagine just how awesome Kissimmee was in the 80s and 90s. I really missed out!!
You did. Was great.
Yeah, there used to be TONS of smaller family attractions. But with how dated they became, and with the ever increasing popularity and expansion of Disney, has caused most to close.
Yes back in the early 90s, also stayed at that red carpet hotel, I remember it being super hot, and we spent more time at water mania then the Disney parks we actually came to visit.
There's a newer waterpark in Kissimee now and it's kinda crazy to think $70 is competitive pricing (for all year), but considering how much more crowded and more ridicoulous the disney and universal ones are price-wise, it seems like it's doing well. Hope it doesn't meet the same fate. Especially because the two Fun Spot America parks do just fine with disney, universal, and seaworld competition all around.
Yeah I’ve not been yet
i remember the commercials fondly and going there once, i had a blast it and fun n' wheels were the coolest when i was a kid
I used to go to water mania all the time. I really miss the park had a lot of good times there.