Wild Wadi Waterpark Dubai

For our latest trip to Dubai with our 3 years old son, we started to research on what should we see this time. Dubai has a large offer for kids, but we considered Wild Wadi Waterpark as the most appropriate for a toddler. After our visit to Sunway Lagoon in Malaysia in February, we realised a waterpark should be on our travel agenda as often as possible. Traveling with a toddler, age-appropriate attractions are very welcome; Eric is a huge water lover and needs enough space to burn off his energy.

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Located in front of the famous Burj Al Arab, Wild Wadi is a very popular family attraction in Dubai and one of the most visited water parks in the world. Themed around the tale of Juha, a well known Arabian folkloric character, it offers 30 rides for all ages. Jumeirah Sceirah was the most spectacular for us, the tallest and fastest free-fall water slide outside the American continents. Tantrum Alley and Burj Surj are other new fun slides in the park that we enjoyed a lot, feeling kids again, full of excitement and adrenaline. Wipeout and Riptide Flowriders offer a very authentic surf experience and are top-class in this field. Most of the rides have a minimum height limit of 1.1m, so we can’t wait to visit again in a few years, when Eric will be old enough.

Eric had loads fun at the designated kids area. Lagoon and Juha’s Dhow, the play area for children at Wild Wadi, features shallow waters and over 100 water activities, including slides, sprinklers, buckets and water guns. It is the perfect place for the little ones! We had a long discussion to convince Eric to try the slides, as they initially seemed too high for him. But it took just one round and he understood how fun this is. He was very proud of himself and enjoyed a lot his time. He wanted to try again and again all the kids’ slides and we could hardly take him out of the pool.

All the lifeguards and pool attendants were very nice and attentive with children. We had no reasons to be worried for Eric’s safety. One of us was always in the area, but our presence was rather needed for encouragement and reassurance, than to assist him on the slides. If you have any concerns about safety, it is worth mentioning that all the lifeguards at Wild Wadi are internationally certified and the park won several quality and safety awards.

To take a break from the slides, all the three of us enjoyed Juha’s Journey, the 360 meter long lazy river. It took us accross the park and Eric almost fell asleep floating there, tired after all the slides. Breaker’s Bay is another good spot to relax, but enough entertaining for kids. This is the largest wave pool in the Middle East and the waters are cooled/heated depending on the season.

I advise you to start early your visit to Wild Wadi Waterpark. It is much better to enjoy the park for a full day, plus that it might get crowded in the second part of the day. We were there at the beginning of April and luckily the park did not seem at all crowded. We did not faced any queues for the rides and found plenty of spots available for lunch. There are enough of sun lounges available in all areas but, in case you need more privacy and comfort, you can rent a private cabana, in a more remote area of the park. Changing rooms are available and also lockers, in three different sizes, depending on your needs. You can also rent towels at Wild Wadi, in case you forget to bring one or if you prefer this easier option.

For health and safety reasons, you are not allowed to enter the park with food from the outside, but you can have water with you. Inside the park there are a few restaurants and snack stands. As we were visiting Wild Wadi with a toddler, of course we chose pizza to refuel our energy, but there are various other quick bite options. Mostly of them are in the fast food type, but you can also choose salads, fresh fruits or smoothies, for a healthier meal. No alcohol is sold in the park and smoking is restricted to certain areas.

Kids up to 2 years of age have free entrance to Wild Wadi, while for the others the fee is based on height, with a limit of 1.1 meters. You can check online the latest rates and offers for Wild Wadi Waterpark and, if you book your tickets online, you generally get a discount. The guests of Jumeirah Beach Hotel benefit of complimentary access to Wild Wadi Waterpark for their whole stay.

Disclosure: We received complimentary access to Wild Wadi Waterpark, in return for an honest review. As usual, all the opinions expressed here are our own. This article contains affiliate links.