The hotel industry has always been faced with one basic problem. The problem involves the fact that although customers are obviously paying for their rooms, there is little to encourage them to stay within the hotel grounds and splash out more cash. Bars, restaurants and casinos have had a certain degree of success yet the water park, now most popular in areas of the US such as Ohio and Wisconsin, are proving to be the most successful to date.
Despite the relatively large original investment which hotels need to make, the water parks, when up and running, are capable of putting as much as $100 extra on the price of the stay for each guest per day. The role of children cannot be ignored, as parents are more than willing to spend more on their children enjoying themselves than they would spend on themselves.
It is true to say that outdoor water parks are very popular, yet tourists tend to appreciate the improved level of cleanliness and extra privacy in the indoor hotel water parks. This perhaps explains why occupancy rates in hotels in Ohio and Wisconsin are up 10% on the last year. The water parks can be a lot of fun for the whole family, with a range of attractions on offer. Included in the attractions are raft rides, body slides, elaborate networks of swimming areas and shallow areas for toddlers.
The weakening of the American dollar has attracted a serious amount of foreigners to American hotels and has encouraged Americans to build more hotels with water park facilities. 33 new water parks were opened last year alone in Ohio and 83 are expected to have been opened by the end of 2008. As more and more families take to the water the profits of the hotels with water parks continue to rise.