H2OBX - A Welcome Addition To The Outer Banks - REVIEW

Thursday, August 17, 2017


DISCLOSURE: I received two complimentary tickets from H2OBX in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own. No further compensation was provided.

Every year, we look forward to our annual trip to the Outer Banks in North Carolina. The kids enjoy spending time with their cousins, playing at the beach and swimming in the pool. In addition to the beach, we also like to visit the aquarium on Roanoke Island, climb a lighthouse or two, and check out the local shops and restaurants. This year, we had a chance to do something a little different. We visited the new waterpark!

H2OBX, located in Powells Point, opened this past June. The waterpark features 30 attractions, with plenty of activities for the whole family to enjoy.

We visited H2OBX this past Tuesday. In addition to the two complimentary tickets I received, we also purchased additional tickets for my kids and my brother-in-law and his family. Because we had rented a house through one of H2OBX's affiliate partners, we received a small discount on each ticket.

General admission tickets are dated, since they cap how many people are admitted to the park each day. Tickets cannot be refunded or transferred to another day. This worried us, somewhat, since the whole week leading up to the day we chose to go, the weather forecast was calling for thunderstorms. Luckily, the weather turned out great and we didn't need to take advantage of H2OBX's Weather Warranty (If operations are suspended for more than 90 minutes, you can receive a complimentary return ticket valid within 7 days from being printed).

The waterpark is conveniently located off of Caratoke Highway. It was about a 20 minute drive from the house that we rent in Duck. It's not hard to miss. You can see the brightly-colored water slides before you even see the sign!

Heading north on Caratoke Highway, H2OBX is easy to find!

We arrived at the waterpark early, before the 10 AM opening, to maximize our time at the park. There was a 20% chance of thunderstorms that day and we wanted to make sure we had a chance to experience everything, just in case the park closed early. Parking is free.

Before entering the park, we made sure to get a family picture by the sign! Unfortunately, our youngest couldn't come along. She had broken her arm last month and wasn't allowed to get her cast wet. So she hung out with Grandma and Grandpa.


After going through bag check and getting our tickets scanned, we placed our belongings in a locker. Lockers are available at the front near the main changing area/bathroom and by the Cat-5 Bay Wave Pool.


While it would have been cool to rent a cabana, we just set up under one of the big umbrellas by the Twin Tides Family Wave Beach. The kids really liked this wave pool. They liked how it had two entries at each end and thought the waves were pretty cool. They did think the bottom of the wave pool was kind of rough at the entrances, but not too bad in the middle of the pool.

A post shared by Bernadette Nunez (@mandarin831) on


The above video was taken at the end of the pool by the entrance. The picture below was taken at the other end of the wave pool.


After playing in the wave pool for a bit, we moved on over to the Calico Jack's Cove playground area. We spent quite a bit of time over here. The kids liked going down the different slides and waiting for the big bucket to dump water on them!





Next, we headed over to the other side of the park to check out the larger slides and the other wave pool.

A family favorite was Queen Anne's Revenge. It's a family raft ride that can hold up to six people. Even I did it and I never do water slides! My kids liked that there weren't any big drops or water falling down on your head as you're going through the tube. The rainbow lights inside were also a big hit. It was fun and I would have done it again, if my one son had wanted to. Instead, he and I went around the Teach's Tides Adventure River a couple times, while the others rode a second time.

A photo after riding Queen Anne's Revenge the first time
My brother-in-law and his family going down Queen Anne's Revenge
Floating along Teach's Tides Adventure River
My husband wanted to also go down the Rogue Wave slide, but couldn't convince anyone in our party to go with him. Maybe next year!

Rogue Wave

The Deep Six Adventure Lagoon was also a lot of fun for the family. It has obstacle courses and a climbing wall. The kids had fun challenging each other and trying to beat my husband at the different courses.




While we waited for my husband to ride the bigger slides, we hung out at the Cat-5 Bay Wave Pool. It had larger waves than the Twin Tides Wave Beach. The kids actually didn't like it because they found the bottom to be too rough. My one son even cut himself while we were in it.

 


A selfie while we waited 

While food and outside beverages are not allowed (other than one unopened bottle of water), we managed to eat well inside the park. There was something to satisfy everyone's cravings and I even got a drink at the Flyboys bar! My one son thought the burger and fries were really good and my husband liked the Mahi Mahi fish tacos.


After lunch, my six-year-old and I hung out at Sand Pail Beach, while the others did more big water slides. I liked that the water in the kiddie areas was heated. At other water parks, I've found the water in the kiddie pools to be really cold! It was nice to be able to just sit in the pool, while my son went around doing all the slides over and over again.


We had an awesome visit to H2OBX. The kids all thought it was the best waterpark they've ever been to. We definitely plan on visiting again next year!

 Connect With H2OBX

Website:  https://www.h2obxwaterpark.com/
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/H2OBXWaterpark/
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/H2OBXWaterpark/
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/H2OBXWaterpark/

H2OBX
8526 Caratoke Highway
Powells Point, NC 27966
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