Going to Big Kahuna’s Water & Adventure Park
This past Summer we visited Big Kahuna’s Water & Adventure Park in Destin, Florida. It is located at 1007 US Highway 98 East. We didn’t visit the Adventure Park to try out their Skycoaster or their Mini Golf Course, so this review will just be based off of their Waterpark. This was our fifth trip to Destin and we had always passed by Big Kahuna’s in the past. It doesn’t look very impressive from the street, so we always had low expectations for it. For this trip we stayed longer than usual so we decided to give Big Kahuna’s a try on one of the days that wasn’t already planned for something else. To our surprise, it ended up being the most fun thing we did on the entire trip. It is much bigger than it looks from the road, and there’s a lot more to do than you might expect. Our kids loved the waterslides, tube rides, rapid river, lazy river, surf simulator, etc.
Big Kahuna’s Ticket Prices
You can save a little money if you buy your tickets online. They are slightly more expensive if you wait and buy them on site.One Day tickets to the Water Park are $57.99. Two day tickets are $87.99. If you want to also go to the Adventure Park they offer a 2 Park Combo ticket for $75.99. Children 2 and under are free with an adult ticket purchase. If you just want to play Mini Golf and nothing else you can play around for $10.99 for kids or $12.99 for 13 year olds and up. Big Kahuna’s offers $5 off for military and first responders, discounts for seniors, and small refunds for parents who “stay dry”. We thought the Water Park tickets were pretty pricey but it ended up being worth the money. They have $5 parking behind the Water Park but the booth was closed and they didn’t’ even charge us for parking when we went.
Big Kahuna’s Attractions for Little Kids
Big Kahuna’s has several kiddie areas for small kids with plenty of splash pads, open water, fountains, small slides, and play areas. There are six areas made just for small children. Bombs Away Bay is a family friendly area where little kids can splash around. Buccaneer Cove is a playground that has slides, water cannons, and giant buckets that dump water. Croc Flats has three twisty slides. Pleasure Island is a water playground with small slides. Tadpole Pond is a water playground with a big frog themed slide. Fun Fountains is a playground with lots of fountains and splash pads.
Big Kahuna’s Lazy Rivers, Rapid Rivers and Wave Pool
When it comes to floating down the river Big Kahuna’s gives you three options. You can take it easy with a leisurely stroll down the Lazy River or Humungo River, or you can kick it up a notch and cruise down Thunder River and Raging Rhino River. Raging Rhino River and Thunder River have big drops, acceleration points, and are sure to be a blast. They are very long, last a long time, and they will keep you laughing as everyone piles up into each other at various points throughout the rivers. They were so fun our kids insisted on doing them again before we left the park. When you’re done with the Raging Rhino or the Thunder River you can hang out at the Wave Pool for a while.
Big Kahuna’s Best Waterslides and Tube Rides
- Kowabunga Racer – Our kids loved this slide! Four people can race each other by diving head first on a mat down a super fast slide.
- Maui Pipleline – There are three slides at the Maui Pipeline. One is through an enclosed tunnel and the other two are open slides. All three come out several feet above the water so there is a big drop as you plunge into the water below.
- Tiki River Run – Two riders can go down this enclosed tube. It’s long and fast with some nice drops along the way. You can get a good look at the mini golf course while you walk up the steps to get in line for this slide.
- Jumanji – These are the highest slides at the park. You’ll notice the blue and purple twisty tubes when you walk into the park. They make for a fast slide through a dark tunnel.
- Smaller Slides – The Cobra Twister, Hammer Head, Pirate’s Escape, and Monkey River are all fun, but much shorter slides.
Dining Options at Big Kahuna’s
There are several dining options at Big Kahuna’s although sometimes it’s hard to find a table and chairs to sit in that aren’t already taken. The Island Time Cafe has pizza, hamburgers, and fries. The Hideaway has burgers, chicken tenders, hotdogs, and onion rings. The Sand Bar has tropical drinks, frozen drinks, cocktails, and more. They also have booths for Dip N Dots, slushies, and other kids’ treats. The prices were a little high but nothing out of the ordinary for this type of place.
Surf Simulator at Big Kahuna’s
The Honolulu Half Pipe is a really cool attraction that simulates surfing, kneeboarding, etc. It’s different from all the other rides and slides and is a big hit with teenagers, especially teenage boys. The only bad things about the Honolulu Half Pipe is you sometimes have to wait in line for a long time. It’s not unusual to have to wait an hour to get your turn.
Pictures of Waterslides and Rides at Big Kahuna’s
Our Over-all Review of Big Kahuna’s Water & Adventure Park
All things considered, we found the water park to be a ton of fun. We’ve been to several water parks and this one ranks towards the top. It’s not nearly as good as Atlantis Aquaventure Waterpark in the Bahamas, but it is better than many waterparks we have been to including Soundwaves at Gaylord Opryland Hotel. The slides were good, the lazy rivers were good, the lines weren’t terribly long, and the prices seemed fairly reasonable. As I mentioned, the water park was much larger than it looked like from Highway 98. There was plenty of parking as well. It didn’t apply to us, but we also noticed they had reserved spaces for birthday parties and events. So all in all, it is a very complete water park. I will give it 4.5 stars out of 5. We will definitely go there again when we vacation in Destin.
