I grew up going here when it was Magic Waters but haven't been in probably a decade. We took our kids this time and had a ton of fun. Here is what I noticed: The place was smaller than I remember (that seems to happen as I get older and larger), but doesn't mean it's small. It's a great size with a lot of different things to do for almost every age group from babies to adults. Since we have little ones we stayed in the kids area most of the time and our kids loved it. They have a big water playground with one of those huge buckets that dumps a waterfall every 5 minutes or so. I really want to go back sans kids and go on some of the adult slides because they've added a bunch and they look super fun. The lines aren't bad to get to anything (in fact we never waited for anything while we were here) so they do great crowd control. The wave pool in the center is a fun time too, and they also have a lazy river. The workers were all pleasant to us and the park was kept very clean. The kids area did need a little scrubbing of the floor (in the center of the playground floor, where there is standing water), but that was about it. I felt fine walking barefoot everywhere. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the high prices of the food and drinks. $12 for a kids dip n dots ice cream, $20 for one order of chicken fingers...these are ballpark or movie theater prices, maybe worse. That's the only thing that keeps it from being 5 stars to me. At least they provide a few umbrellas and picnic tables in the parking lot, so as long as you prepare and bring a lunch or meal with you, just go eat it in the parking lot and come back. The other nice thing is they stamp your hand upon exiting if you want to return, so it's very nice they allow going in and out if you need to. We got season passes this year (nice that they also get you into six flags as well) so I am looking forward to coming back again soon! read more

Dishonest website. The coolest ride in their website (Wipeout) hasn't been opened in YEARS yet they don't remove it Because it draws business. The stairs to the rides are covered in Bird Poo that you get to navigate barefoot. The price was fine but you get what you pay for apparently. read more

Hurricane Harbor Rockford - Water Parks Near Me - Cherry Valley, Illinois

Formerly known as "Magic Waters", and now known as "Six Flags, Hurricane Harbor Rockford", it's a decent water park in the Rockford area (specifically Cherry Valley). There are a good amount of water slides, a decently sized wave pool and a small lazy River and two kids areas. This Hurricane Harbor is half the size of the location in Gurnee but is still a nice location, it's nowhere near as crowded as there either but I still prefer Gurnee, but, Rockford isn't bad at all. If you want a break from high water park crowds and don't mind a smaller venue, this might be your go to, especially if you have a season pass/membership to six flags. read more

Hurricane Harbor Rockford - Entrance - Water Parks Near Me - Cherry Valley, Illinois

Went there on the 17th of August when I was leaving my windshield. And 2 other peoples were vandalized for no reason. When I called Monday, they told me, there's nothing they could do. It's not their problem, and the person I spoke with was very rude. I will never attend this place ever again. I paid $20 parking to be parked all the way in the back in the grass. It's probably why my car was vandalized. So all in all, just to let my son have fun him and his friend. I paid over $620 with the $501 to replace my back windshield. We'll never come again read more

We went to hurricane harbor Rockford OMG what a disappointment. First parking was $20. and add $35. per ticket not worth it. In my option I don' t think they put chlorine in the wave pool in a while the floor was slippery and the water was very dirty. Went to the lazy river and same thing the water was dirty and with what looked like large amounts of sand on the bottom. And of course the food and drinks were over priced. You have to definitely take a shower before you leave if you find one working. We were worried about catching something Needless to say we will not be going back. read more

the rides were insane make sure you put your phone away tho my friend for got his phone in his pocket but luckily it was the lazy river so it was pretty quick to get out of his pocket the multi colored tall slides you feel so scared at first then you feel so good that you did it after read more

Ugh. Let's get this over with. I'm not happy (that I'm not happy). I haven't been here since I was a Cub Scout, and all I could really remember from then was that there was water and the sun was out. Obviously, things have changed. They've no doubt updated, added, removed slides and facilities, and they are now owned by Six Flags, being referred to as Hurricane Harbor Rockford on all branding. The only reason I came was due to being a new Season Passholder (and thinking that Gurnee would be mobbed on July 5th). Though there was a line to get in (maybe an hour after opening), it moved quickly. There may have been a holiday crowd, but even so, good luck getting a pool chair. If you don't want to pay through the nose for a locker, you can leave your belongings elsewhere (and up to fate), like on/under various picnic tables, or on any expanse of grass. Now let's get to the good. Line management isn't bad. The tube slides move slower, but it does take longer to load up a tube when compared to just dropping yourself into a slide. And all the slides I slid were enjoyable. Even Wipeout, which has you basically stepping into a coffin at the top of a vertical tunnel slide, the clear door closing, the cold robot voice counting down from three to two to one, and then the floor vanishing from beneath your feet as you plummet, until you can't tell if you're plummeting anymore or not, all you know is water is flying straight into your eyes and esophagus. And then it's done? Then it's done. Now. To the bad. The sigh, the groan, the exasperated, slightly dehydrated, mostly I-don't-want-to-berate-a-high-schooler-doing-the-best-they-can part of the day. In addition to a Season Pass, I also purchase a Basic Dining pass, and seeing the lines somewhat long, I decided to utilize the in-app ordering, so I could pick up the food when ready. But I had to pick a time slot first, the next one being 30 minutes later. Okay, not so bad. I grabbed that slot, placed the order, and it said to come to the restaurant during the slot to "check in" on the app. The half hour passes and I return, deciding, I'll just get in line AND check in, see what comes first. At this point, I must mention I pass a tent on one side of the restaurant, and this tent is clearly branded "Six Flags Members." I'm just a Season Passholder, not a member, so I assume that's a perk I'm not paying for. So I check in and am told I'll get a message when the food is ready to be picked up. And I wait. And I wait. I see a few people walking off with full pizzas, so okay, those slowed things down. So I wait some more. An hour later, I get to the front of the line and tell the high schooler that my order still says "Preparing," that I haven't been notified it's ready, but HERE I AM, so can I have it. And she says "Oh, a pickup? You can just go in from that tent." "The tent that says Members?" "Oh, that's just what we put up." "But it still says 'preparing.' How would I know to pick it up?" "Oh, we don't use that. People don't show up and food gets cold." I could go on, but the exasperation is already leeching back into my soul. I had previous issues just getting and being able to use the season pass, and now that I visit a park, I follow what I assume are the best practices (use the app, don't go where it says Members, get in line, be nice), and I lose an hour and a half of my day. Stunningly frustrating. There is incompetence somewhere. Many places I assume. I just don't know where to point the finger. TLDR: Slides GOOD, Getting food BAD (though the food itself was fine) read more

A great wave pool and lots of fun rides and slides for the kids. Even the little kids have their own area which is really nice. It I had a really great time although it is smaller than the hurricane Harbor in Gurnee. read more

See all

We went here once with the whole family and felt that the water was very dirty and the park was extremely overcrowded for a Tuesday. We now take our yearly water park trips to raging waves. Things are cleaner there and they have cabana options where you are completely secluded from other people. It's a lot better. read more

Hurricane Harbor Rockford - Slushie drinks - Water Parks Near Me - Cherry Valley, Illinois

*****UPDATE***** Policy change now prohibits any coolers being brought into the park. This was the biggest perk at MW. But what makes it worse is citing "safety" as the reason. You lost my family's biz, MW. read more

If you're coming from Chicago this Waterpark takes a little while to get to but I think it's pretty much worth it if you're able to partake in a Groupon deal or even better going on their website they had a deal for $13 a person which couldn't be beat you just need to go on prepay and print and have the ticket present ticket to the cashier when you arrive and Groupon was running a special for $17 per admission you got a tube rental you got this Monster Shave Ice drink and you also got regular admission Today was a pretty cool day in the area only maybe about 75 the high so I think that's why I wasn't crowded today they also had an abundance of lifeguards on duty on every ride so that was good to see cuz I had a couple teenagers and I wanted them to be safe but you only have two eyes so the fact that they had more than enough lifeguards on staff on duty while I actually did see a rider get stuck in one of the tubes towards the back of the amusement park and the young lady who was stationed there ran to her Aid so quickly people hardly knew what was happening because she attended to the problem so swiftly . The food I would say was a letdown at this park when you're used to funnel cake from Six Flags Great America and try there there's it pales in comparison taste like it wasn't done they barely give you any toppings but it's much cheaper than Six Flags where you can get a funnel cake there for $4.50 so you run the risk of it really cheap or not being delicious but at least you didn't pay too much for it the rides today really easy to get on because the lack of crap no need for a FastPass everything was up and running only one mishap young lady get in the pool stuck in the tube the water temperature in on each ride it was frigid so I set out normally when I will go and ride every ride I was only able to get on for cuz I was just too chilly the water was chilling in the temperature was chilly but the children had a great time so it was worth it read more

See all

When the summers were hot this is where my son and I liked to spend our days. Cooling off in the river floating on tubes. If you check the website they are fairly cheap and for their hours which can, and have, fluctuate depending on what is going on in the area.. It's great to go when they have their $10 deals. All day Tuesday, after 5pm on the rest of the weekdays.. We also loved hanging, floating, around the big beach pool with the big waves. It was fun to be with my son teaching him how to handle these rogue waves. It gave us the bonding time we needed and he learned how to handle himself in the water.y The lines of the slides can be long but the actual wait time is not that bad at all. If you go early you will have a good chance to get on the more popular ones. The food is okay but it's great they let you bring your own. I don't get it but I sure am not going to complain about it. Look for ways to get free tickets too. For example, if your kids are enrolled in swimming classes. Many will give you a couple 1 days passed just for signing up. That really helps when you have to pay for classes. Also, when a child completes the summer reading programs, they will give a couple passes, good for 1 day, for 2 people by the library they sign up with. So, yes several options to take advantage of to save money. I try not to rent a locker but if you have to they are $7 each. When you return the key, you'll get $2 back. Getting tired of wading in your backyard baby pool, come out to the big pool where the big people play. read more

This place is just a lot of fun. Located off of I-90 in the Rockford/ Cherry Valley area, it is plainly visible from the tollway, with its impressive array of twisting tubes and slides. My 3 year old Stunt Boy got some gift passes on his birthday for the 4 of us to enjoy. A place like this is quite fitting for his character and adventurous spirit. Due to the chilly summer of 2009, we waited till Labor Day, the final weekend of the park's season, to make it there. Even then, it did not disappoint. For one thing, since the day was overcast much of the time, the crowds weren't as big. We didn't have to wait long to get on the slides. We even got to park in the front row, across from the main entrance. The park is very secure, with a strong presence of Rockford Police patrolling the facility. It's run by the Rockford Park District and it's managed quite well, I should add. They checked our bags. We brought in snacks, insulin and syringes, since my 6 year old is diabetic. They had no issues and merely tagged the bag as inspected, so we would not have to be re-checked later. FYI, you can bring food to the water park though they have a lot of concessions stands with hot dogs, burgers, ice cream and even a little Culver's inside! But a lot of families came with an entire picnic packed in their bags and set out quite a spread of outside food items. A few things keep me from giving the park 5 stars: 1. The changing rooms, while spacious and lots of private stalls, have no shelves or hooks, so you have to put everything down on the often wet floor. 2. The locker rental is $7 but there are only a few tall lockers. Most lockers are cubby-sized for just a few small items or clothing. You end up having to carry a lot of things you'd rather leave locked up. The park is fun and not intimidating for small kids. There's a wave pool that alternates between still water and waves. Water runs from 1-1/2 feet to about 6 feet in the wave pool. There's also a water playground with multiple slides. Rather than climbing up stairs, kids can go up grids of rope or crawl through tunnels to get to the slide of their choice - open or tube style. Lifeguards at top and bottom keep an eye on things, making sure two people don't go down at the same time. Atop this water playground is a huge silo of water, perhaps a capacity of several thousand pounds. Every few minutes, it dumps a massive downpour on bystanders below who dare to stand before it. While my 3 year old Stunt Boy feared this huge bucket, he survived it. My older son refused to go under it though. The Lazy River around the playground area was a bit too slow for our liking, since it required us to propel ourselves with our feet instead of using a tube to float along the current. Floating leaves you in stagnant areas with little or no water current to move you along. The giant water slides (3 of them) that you can plainly see from the tollway vary in challenge levels. The middle one is the fastest, with a steeper descent at the bottom. The other slides are actually rather slow and may even require a little push of the sidewalls to make it around a bend. You need to be 42" tall to ride them since they end in a 4-foot pool at the bottom. Perhaps the most thrilling ride of all, and one my 6 year old loved the best, was an inflatable raft ride. It is the tallest structure most visible off the tollway. This one also has a 42" minimum, but I know my 3 year old Stunt Boy is probably crazy enough to go on it and survive. Too bad the park attendants don't take these intangibles into account... You sit in a raft that carries you up an inclined conveyor to the highest point from which you can see the entire park below. Then it drops you down a steep slope where you feel your body rise off the raft momentarily, only to drop back into it then a strong jet of water shoots you through a series of twisting and descending tubes. A series of water sprays and blind turns lead you to an exhilarating landing at the bottom. Who wouldn't want to ride it again? For the littlest kids, there's a splash pad with small slides, sprinklers and plastic lily pads, frogs, and other things they can sit on or play with. In all, a fun place to play in the water for the whole family. read more

See all

My son loves this place and it is great to have such a big waterpark in our area, one that we get visits from people all around the state. With that being said, this park is normally really dirty and has really long lines. The best time to arrive is 15 minutes before they open so that you can get in line. If you come after lunch, the lines to get into the park can be 30-45 minutes long with ride wait times almost the same. The wave pool and lazy river get overcrowded after lunch and does not make for a fun time for the little ones. The last time we were here, there were leaves, hair ties, and band aids all over (GROSS!). Also, it took almost an hour for the wave pool to turn on. Beware of the bigger kids, as they tend to run over the little ones playing in the shallow areas. It is really hard to find a chair after the first hour. The park has cabanas for rent (really expensive) but you get a mini fridge and shade, as there is not much shade in the park. One of the nice things is that you can bring a cooler with food and drinks and do not have to pay for that stuff in the park. Prices on food and drinks are high but not outrageous like other parks. I would suggest always purchasing your tickets online so that you can avoid the ticket line and the high prices at the door. All summer long they have specials. Cheapest you can buy them is around $10, a couple weeks before summer. read more

Poor management, long lines and really expensive food. Have been coming for years but was disappointed enough this time that we will likely never come back. read more

Plus side, the two hundred pound woman wearing a toddler's life preserver on one of the slides. I really don't think you need to be worried about drowning on a waterslide, but apparently this was her top concern. We all got a good laugh when the lifeguard on duty pushed her raft down going backwards. Minus side, everything was going good until they had to shut down the wave pool...because the waves knocked someone's bowels loose. Or maybe it was just a Baby Ruth. read more

When I was a kid I used to love to go to Magic Waters. It wasn't as big as it is now, but I had fun. I hadn't been there in over 20 years. This year we decided that it was time to take our 9 year old to Magic Waters for the first time. We were able to get discounted tickets online so we saved some money that way. They let you bring in coolers with non-alcoholic beverages and food. So if you want to save some more money you can bring your own drinks and snacks in. The park is a nice size and it was clean when we were there. They've added many slides since I was a kid, and this year they have a new one called the "Double Dare Drop" Which is a very steep straight slide, that for those that have a fear of heights (me) but love their son who doesn't want to go down it alone, is pretty much terrifying. Yea, I went down it. Yea, I lost contact with the slide. Yea, I swear the ride lasted 20 minutes of falling. Yea, I screamed like a little girl. The wave pool is decent sized, the lazy river is fun, and they have a bunch of tube slides that are very entertaining. The family had a fun time. There are only two things that bothered me. First is that because it is run by the Rockford Park District, there is no alcohol. You can't bring it in and they don't serve it there. I understand not allowing it in the pools or only having it in designated areas like other water parks, but they have nothing. It was a hot day when we were there and an ice cold beer or a pina coloda would have been fantastic. The second, and it's not the parks fault, is that there were a lot of young kids running around unsupervised. They would cut in front of you, or push past when you were walking. I guess that's to be expected at any water park though. read more

Have been here a few times. For those used to water parks at places like major amusement parks or the like - you'll quickly see some differences: - This is low key; it is through a park district; local people; low key; friendly - Not into the big hype and trying to do a lot of fancy stuff - Water rides range from a toddler area and a sub-8 year old fun park with slides - to a major several story drop slide and a roller coaster like thing called a "hydroblaster" - where you shoot around a track on a raft with ups and downs - Food is inexpensive for a place like this - Easy for adults to pick a central location and for the kids to branch off in whichever direction - Small enough you can't get lost; big enough to have about 10 separate attractions/rides Generally we spend 4-6 hours here and get our fill read more

I almost didn't go after seeing the bad reviews, but decided since we had Six Flags season passes that we should at least check it out once. I was very impressed and in some ways liked it better than the Six Flags waterpark in Gurnee. For instance, many of the slides don't require as many stairs to be climbed to get to them like in Gurnee because they are built into the side of a hill. Most of the park was open when we were there except 2 slides and a food stand. The only negatives were that all of the free lounge chairs were in the sun, so I had to rent a cabana in order to lay in the shade and the food stands all had very long lines. They haven't fully implemented Six Flags mobile app food ordering yet, which resulted in waiting an hour total between ordering and receiving our food. Otherwise, a great park! We will be back again next year. read more

One of the best waterparks I have been too. I'm shocked at the low reviews. Maybe it wasn't as good before Six Flags took over. I saw no reason for low reviews. We had one of the best times we've had in a long time. read more

Just wanted to advise everyone, DO NOT come to this location.. The reviews regarding the cleanliness ARE true !!!! With the CoVid going on, how can they have the rest rooms in the horrible conditions they are IN... Toilets over flowing , sinks not sanitized , garbage over flowing ... it seems they haven't cleaned in days !! Six Flags I am very disappointed that you are okay with conditions of the way they are ... I would strongly NOT recommend coming here .. read more

Skip this place! It was GREAT before Six Flags purchased it this year (2019). The cost has gone way up for single day pass, AND they now charge $10.00 for parking. Last year it was $13 per person, free parking and we had a great time! Now it's $25 per person plus $10 parking or more for an "any day" pass. Six Flags' ownership has ruined it. read more

My family and I are regular attenders, and we go multiple times a year. This year we could only go once, and that was enough for me. Their no-coolers policy is bad, I'm not going to rehash other people's reviews, I'm not the only one disappointed on this. The Yorkville Park did this and we stopped going there, and now we're going to stop coming here as well. This policy is nothing but a cash grab. Since this is a government run park, Rockford Park District, this is clearly more money for cronies and the words about "safety" are just meaningless words. But wait, that's not enough. Prices for the food they sell went up, and they added Tiki Tacos - yup. If a private park did this, one could say "corporate greed" but since the government runs this park, it is more money for cronies. Aside from this ridiculous crony enriching policy, the park is OK, and enjoyable. I would have given a more positive review, and 4 stars - one star deducted for the cold water in the magic river - it was ice cold. I'm subtracting 3 stars for the obvious corruption here. read more

JUST SEEN ON THEIR WEBSITE: "For everyone's safety, guests are not permitted to bring coolers or outside food or beverages into Magic Waters Waterpark." This is new for 2017. HUGE MISTAKE, MAGIC WATERS. HUGE MISTAKE. We don't care about your overpriced park food. We don't like having to haul ourselves out to the parking lot every time we want a snack. Are you losing money? Is that it? Do you really think this is going to help your business? Outrageous. read more

Ok first of its my first time coming here paid for 5 people to enjoy my twins turning 5 I am very disappointed how I was spoken to and yelled at and kicked out of the lazy river because we had a beach ball and wasn't aware we couldn't hVe them but Im 32 years old and was yelled at and spoken to like I was 5 years old very disappointed read more

Hurricane Harbor Rockford - Very disappointed how I was spoken to and yelled at as if I was 5 by that person - Water Parks Near Me - Cherry Valley, Illinois

Great America bought this place and price to get in is much more without any benefits. Passed online are $10 cheaper but then they add a handling fee. Parking is now $10 and when we went wave pool was closed for the day which we were only told once someone already entered the park. Same waterpark but triple the price - won't be retuning unless GA adds something worthwhile ! read more

So I grew up with this place. I had a season pass the first year they were open and went just about everyday on my bicycle. I used to love this place. But things change over the years. We used the north entrance to get into the park. It wad $12 Tuesday but the lines weren't that long at the ticket office, but the wait sure was. After about 15-20 wait there, then we waiting another 10 to get our bag checked. We actually found some chairs by the kids section with the smaller water slides. The kids really love this area. They have a few small slides, climbing area etc. We went to the wave pool. It is not heated. I guess most people get used to it. There is a lot of debris in the wave pool. Leaves, hair, band aids etc. I felt gross going in there. It gets really crowded by the middle of the afternoon. The waves go off frequently, except when there's a medical emergency elsewhere. I asked the lifeguard why the waves weren't going off. She said a medical emergency was happening elsewhere and they shut the waves off. ?? Anyway, the new giant drop slides are really cool and such a rush. There wasn't much of a line. The other slides had long lines. About 30-45 minutes. I really don't think they are worth the wait. The surface gets really hot on your feet. The worst experience was Ocho's pizzeria and grill. There were 2 groups ahead of me in line. It took 15 minutes just to get to the register. I've never seen so much disorganization in a kitchen in all my life. They would take your drink order then leave the empty cups while they worked on something else. After I ordered hot dogs and hamburgers, you have to go to the side of the establishment where they are grilling outside. Nothing is ready at this point. You wait and wait until your food is done on the grill. The hamburgers are very small for $8 combo. Hot dogs were good size though. It's pretty sad that there is no real management at Ocho's. Slow, slow, slow. I asked to speak with a manager later and told them about my experience. I didn't want a refund or free meal. I suggested better and quicker service next time. This water park doesn't even compare to Disney water parks or anything you would find in the Dells. The wave pool at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas is 100 times better. I really can't recommend this water park to anyone, but for the area I guess this is your only option. read more

I want to commend magic waters for a response to an accident that I witnessed. A little boy hit his head hard on a slide in the children's section (just a freak accident, no faulty equipment or anything). At once the lifeguard sounded an airhorn and about 7 people rushed to the scene, each with different equipment. Other lifeguards cleared the area and maintained order. I saw them talk to the family, quickly bringing in an interpreter because they mostly spoke spanish. They wasted no time checking the boy out and wheeling him out. Within 10 minutes a helicopter took off, presumably with him in it? I was so reassured after this at the safety of the park and how seriously they take accidents. I also really loved that they had free lifejackets and water diapers. The details are very reassuring! The price is worth the peace of mind. read more

First they really need to pave a parking lot, the grass and gravel dont really work too good, esp when people are lugging coolers in. It was only $12 to get in and a tube. They look through your bag before going in and u are allowed one cooler in too. They have lockers and changing areas. As far as rides, there arent too many and i thought there would have just been a plain pool there too but they dont have one. Didnt look like a huge selection of food but we brought food so i didnt need to look too close, i did see they have funnel cakes A lady in front of me on one of the rides broke her nose, its a two seater and as her and her daughter went down , she hit her nose on her daughters back and broke it. The staff acted very fast and w great concern for the woman, took her tube off the ride bc there was blood on it, didnt rush her to stand up so that was nice to see, a staff that actually cares!!! read more

If you're bored just come here. Get slapped around the wave pool by some guy sticking his legs out inside a tube. There were tons of people to be there w/ a tube first of all, I didn't get that. It was good enough for my nephews though. They seem to like it so if you have kids this is the place. I did like the body slide however. I hate waiting in line, especially in the heat but once you hit the water it's cool. I wanted to try the funnel cake but was too lazy to get to my locker. By the time I got dressed and ready to buy it they had closed, even though I pleaded and begged they still wouldn't let me get one. Oh well. read more

Magic Waters, I haven't been here in 24 years! I was off work so figured it was time to hit a water park! let's go back to the place we used to go years ago! Some things are still the same........the wave pool, and the Magic Mushroom. now they have built several new water slides and kiddie area and lazy river that was not here when we used to come! Gone is the basketball rim, that used to be in the back towards the front of the park. We used to come here and show these Rockford boys how to play some hoops back in the day! well, that is now gone but I think I found the general area that it used to be at. This place seems to have lost a big of MAGIC in my opinion. Yes the guest seem to be a bit more trashier looking these days but I was just happy to get some fun in the sun! we tried a few of the water slides and god those lines took FOREVER on a Monday??? The Lines never seemed to move. I mean do they wait until someone is completely at the bottom and out of the pool before sending another raft down? come on! or maybe its the age of the kids running them? who knows. they really need to get better organization with the lines and wait times. The food? wooooah. Ocho's pizza was so unorganized. These kids had to be 15-16 tops working there. every single worker here had a stupid Flavor Ice hanging out of their mouth as they worked. Seriously? did I need to see the girl sucking on a Flavor Ice and then having it dangle out of her mouth as she made the pizza? or the other girl that did the same thing as she put chips and stuff into the basket? so gross. NONE of them wore gloves either! it took us 25 minutes to just get to the front of the line we were hungry. but do we now eat? OH NO! Now you have to pay for your food and go OUTSIDE to the grill area, while another 16 year old makes the burgers. now there is another line you get into as NO FOOD is made and ready to be put on your bun. now you have to wait in line 15 -20 more minutes as this clown figures out if a burger is done or not. Come on Magic Waters, Disneyworld wouldn't do this.........I mean there was so much disorganization. The Lifeguard jumps in the wave pool to save 2 kids who were having trouble in the 5'10" section of the pool. do they make those 2 kids get OUT or better yet, maybe make them go to the shallow end? Um, No. she leaves them there and she gets out of the water. Didn't make much sense to me. over all, I had a good day in the sun..............I got to see the Magic Mushroom but I think Magic Waters has lost its Magic for me. the food and lines were just bad enough to make me not want to come back. I think from now on its Raging Waves for us! read more

See all

The best part about this park is that its actually a part of the Parks District. Which means cheap admissions and barely any lines. No wait, the best part about this place is that when you walk in, it has a sign that says: "No gang activity. NO throwing signs. NO slang. NO representing." HAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The one ride not to miss is the raft-style toboggan thing that shoots you on a roller coaster. Your butt actually comes off the track and you catch some air. Hillllarious!!! read more

I hadn't been here since I was a child, I remember it being scummy and the area being trash but now that it's included with my Six Flags season pass, I decided to try it again. And let me just say, I am so glad I didn't pay to come here. There wasn't even a very large selection of things to do but that was the last problem. The place was FILTHY. There was no up-keeping. There were overgrown weeds along all of the paths, even on the stairs, overgrown trees over the lazy river. The water looked dirty with leaves, dirt, and who knows what else in it. The walls of the wave pool were literally brown. The bathrooms were so gross that I didn't even want to use them. There has been absolutely no effort into keeping up with this place. Would NOT recommend. Raging Waves is so much better. read more

Magic Waters is sort of water park-lite. It's not as big as Six Flags or Noah's Ark, or the ones at Disney that I've enjoyed. The upside to that is the cheap admission prices and affordable food choices. You can also bring in a cooler if you want to really cheap out... or you could always just eat a handful of pickles from the condiment bar... Some other loser did that. I swear. Lines move pretty quickly, except for on the roller coaster-esque one, which of course is the best ride, and it's not so crowded and daunting so it's a good place for the kiddos. It's a good, relatively affordable afternoon if you remember these tips: Don't rent a tube, it's a waste of $ Go down the middle slide on the body slides Be ready to throw an elbow at jerky little line jumpers If you have a lot of crap, rent a family locker. The singles are small and you'll need some solid Tetris skills to make it work. read more

Today was my first trip back since my high school days, over twenty five yrs ago. Not much has changed here but I have. Today's visit was with my wife and son. Twenty five yrs ago this was more of a 'let's meet some girls' kind of place. The park itself hasn't changed one bit as far as I can remember. The wave pool, raft rides, lazy river and giant slide all remain. My sons favorite spot was the wave pool and I can't say I blame him. The waves go on and off but this pool is what you make of it, and you don't have to wait to get in it. Our favorite raft ride was the one where 3 or more could ride in the same raft (yellow 4-seaters). Spinning through the cornucopia portion of the tube is the best twist in any of the raft rides. The covered tubes in the middle where you ride down in the dark with small neon lights is a real hoot too. The orange and purple tubes to the right of this area were far too slow for our liking and the body slide was flat out ridiculously slow. Then there's the giant drop slide (sorry, I dont remember what any of these rides are called). The giant drop is, well...just okay. You go from top to bottom in a few seconds and splash hard into sitting water. Some see this ride as a total rush..I thought it was kinda blah. The only thing it left me with was an achy back for 5 minutes. The lazy river is a nice time-out ride to relax in. We closed out our day doing an easy lap around. Why the three stars? We enjoyed ourselves but nothing is over the top here. We also came on a Monday when traffic was easily at at barest. I can't imagine..check that..I wouldn't come here on the weekends or when it was any busier. Some rides took us 20+ minutes to do. On busy days that's easily an hour. None of their rides are worth that kind of wait. The wave pool was pretty packed too, so it's got to be elbow to elbow any other time. The park itself isn't kept up as well as it should be, especially considering the admission fee. They need to hire people to sweep the place during operation and fix their broken bathroom stalls. And $7 lockers..c'mon man..this is Rockford, not a Caribbean resort. We had a good time here but I'll consider other options the next time I want to do a water park of this caliber. read more

I used to go here all the time when I was younger but over the years this place had gotten very ghetto and now that six flags bought it the prices skyrocketed and coolers are not even aloud I will probobaly never come back until prices our better read more

This place is terrible, i called ahead to make sure everything was open , was told it was and not even half the slides were operational. I made sure to ask about small kids area and even booked a cabana because I was bringing my Grandkids and it was clsed with no things for little ones to do. The food is CRAZY EXPENSIVE and service is terrible!!!! Should have put a sprinkler out at home and grilled! read more

This place is horrible very low quality and the staff cares about nothing! Do not pay to go here you are much better off staying home! The pool was dirty, the waves were not operating and half the water slides were shutdown! Do not waste your time buying a cabana as that is a bad joke. I thought this place would have gotten better after six flags took it over but it has gotten much worse! Do not waste your time and money bringing your family here! read more

Great place to come and cool down with family... Not so crowded as other place. Staff very friendly.........GREAT DEALS if you go Tues-Thurs...will go back..... Make you sure you do not bring any open liquids. they will make you toss. read more

This is still one of the best around! My last visit was 2012! Visited this summer over 4th of July weekend, on the way to Madison, WI. We made a mid-day stop here and had a BLAST. Was a little bummed that one ride was taken down (it was a roller coaster type water ride) but the workers told me they were building something new -so that will be fun to see! We got to ride every "ride" with very little wait. It was a good time and still a really nice park. I like that you can bring your own food and drinks inside (they do check coolers). I need to visit more often because this is all sorts of fun and only an hour from Chicago. read more