Great spot for water fun! Parking lot is huge. It took a bit to check in but it wasn't bad. Lots of…read morethings to do to entertain the kids! The lazy river was wonderful and the large splash pad area for the kids was a hit!

Such a fun place! Lots to do for big and little kids. Two slides, one you use a raft to go down,…read moreand even a wave rider for the older kids. Very large pool deck area and lots of chairs, but not a lot of shade. I was impressed with the number of employees and life guards. It was around $14 to get in for any age. Life vests and puddle jumpers available to use. There is a snack bar with a limited selection, and we brought in our own water bottles.

Got to the park today to take my grandsons fishing and it was closed for repairs. There mom has…read morebeen checking the website for a week now no mention that pier was closed.

My husband recently ran a 5K here and was excited to show me the park. It was my first time and I…read morewas impressed by the cleanliness, plentiful seating and children's playground. This is a nice park to take kids to for something to do. They had signs saying you shouldn't enter the water in certain places, but people seemed to ignore those. Lots of laughs and splashing heard as we walked around. :) They have several restrooms which were pretty clean for the most part also, which was a good thing. Parking is plentiful, but how close you can park depends on how crowded it is. We were initially directed to an overflow lot but just as we got out of the car, some spaces opened up in the main lot so we were able to move. I believe you can also get on a chartered boat here to go on Lake Norman. Nice place, we will return.

Elk River Falls is an open recreation area. As such it is not developed and the path is not…read moremaintained. Nevertheless the road into the parking lot is safe and easily passable by typical cars SUVs cans or trucks with either two or four wheel drive. There are no rest rooms or food so you must bring your own food and water. The path is firm and slopes upward gently becoming rocky with prominent tree roots. The 65 foot high big falls is spectacular. It is not a straight fall down. Many deaths have occurred as visitors attempt to dive from the top of the falls. Elk falls ranks in the top 3 waterfall related deaths. The rocks surrounding the first pool are beautiful but have a slippery surface. This park recently reopened after extensive restoration following Hurricane Helene. On the first day it opened there was a fatality of a falls jumper. Despite these challenges this park is a great example of the outdoors in nearly natural and breathtaking state.

The falls are closed as of late April 2026. Road is blocked about 2 miles out from town.read more

We went awhile back to see Charlotte and were sorely disappointed. Hearing of her death today…read morereminded me I had forgotten to write a review. This location is privately run and not for educational purposes. More like going to a friends house to see their pets. Please consider going to an aquarium run by scientists for educational purposes.

I want to say this has been one of the highlights of my family trip. When your 16 yo his 17 yo best…read morefriend and wife all agree on this fact it says something. As adults we have this tendency to say "if I knew then what I knew now, I'd have paid more attention in school!" Well here's your chance. This tiny aquarium will impart more knowledge in a short visit than you probably take in most months if you take advantage of it. The interns and owner (a former teacher) are committed to answering questions. The things they are studying and sharing are amazing. If you go in and you want to learn and ask questions this will be an experience you won't forget. Think of the best science teacher you ever had, having an opportunity to show the world what she loves to talk about... and that is what you have here. Do yourself a favor, go, enjoy and learn!!