Kalahari Resorts and Conventions are often regarded as some of the world’s coolest indoor waterparks. Kalahari Resorts opened their doors for the first time nearly 20 years ago in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. The founders, Todd and Shari Nelson were inspired to build the indoor waterpark after visiting Africa in 2000. After debuting in Wisconsin Dells, the owners opened two more parks in Sandusky, Ohio and Pocono Mountains, Pennsylvania.
Todd and Shari were moved by the spirit they saw in the African people and their culture. Remarkably, their inspiration and love for Africa can be seen strewn all around the resort. Artwork and sculptures from African artists and craftsmen are also on full display. Most of these memorabilia and artworks can be bought from the resort’s official store.
Construction for the new project in Texas began in May 2018. The huge waterpark is set to open in the Austin suburb of Round Rock, Texas in November 2020. The project will be located on U.S 79 near the Dell Diamond and Old Settlers Park and is worth $350 million dollars.
The resort will be built on 351 acres of land and will have 975 guest rooms. The African-themed resort will offer a full convention hall for events, Spa Kalahari, a fitness centre, unique retail shops and restaurants.
The new park will take the title of America’s largest indoor waterpark upon opening. The title currently belongs to Dells Kalahari which has a square footage of 125,000. The new park will have a square footage of 225,000.
According to Kalahari spokesman Travis Nelson “It’ll be larger, but we’re doing our best to keep up here in the Dells,” Nelson said. “We have almost 1,000 rooms, a very large convention center, the largest indoor waterpark in America. All in all, it’s going to be a monster.”
The new park will also have a Tom Foolery’s indoor basement park to match the Dells resort, but there are a few attractions at Dells that Texas Kalahari lacks. Firstly, the new park will not have a Ferris wheel, because there wasn’t enough room, despite the park’s huge size.
The new park also won’t have go karts, but there are plans to install an outdoor go kart track in the future. Nelson reportedly said “We have a really cool, large, older kids/adult roller coaster indoors. We have a small kids coaster in the Dells, but this one in Texas is going to be really cool. Your car actually spins a 360 as you go up and down. It’s a really cool indoor roller coaster that we don’t have in the Dells.”
The park will be a massive combination of indoor and outdoor activities. There will be 6 different restaurants to choose from. There will also be a piano bar, delis, pizzerias and a 200,000 square foot convention hall in the 1.5 million square-foot resort.
