Anyone who has grown up in Central New York can recall the commercials and jingle for Enchanted Forest Water Safari (where the fun never stops). I hadn't been to this water park in many years and had heard that it had undergone a change in ownership and there were some updates that longtime regulars weren't thrilled with, like not allowing outside food and beverage in. Upon entry, we had a brief security check and then got our tickets and got in quickly. We had our own water bottles and some snacks and no one batted an eye...so it didn't seem to be that big of a deal for outside items. The park was bustling on a busy Friday but lines seemed to move along well enough. We stuck to the kiddie areas with our toddler and those were even less busy. In general the park was largely familiar to me as someone who had been to the park numerous times as a kid which was both nostalgic but also a sign of the parks age. I didn't see any attractions that were closed which is always a positive. We found as the day went on and the park filled that we were still able to enjoy many of the attractions which was nice. The wave pool got a bit busier than I would've normally enjoyed but the kiddo was having fun so that's what mattered. Food and drinks were reasonable though wait times for them was way too long. Lunch took me almost 20 minutes to receive once my order was placed. Overall we had fun but wouldn't rush back. read more

Absolutely peak, love the blue slides that drop you in the water. Downside is the drop slides hurt your back so it's kinda annoying but yeah I totally recommend read more

There is many great things to this place. It is NY'S most largest water park. So worth it to try out.

Made a plan for our group of 21 with Zoe for a family day, which was our Christmas gift to our family so we wanted it to be a special day. Zoe and her team made the day beyond our expectations! From our entrance, we enjoyed a private area for all of us, our meal was top notch- EVERYONE was so friendly and went above and beyond! Zoe frequently touched base with us throughout the day to insure all was well- we will be doing this again! The park was very clean, easy to navigate and FUN!!! Thank you Zoe and team, and apologies for delayed review!! This was in July, 2025- warm regards! VHM memory day was a great success! read more

The park gets 5 stars. The employees get 1 the park itself is great. Nostalgic, fun, great water slides, love it. Unfortunately, the kids working there are rude, abrupt, and really ruined the experience. Starting at the front gate the ticket kid got up and walked away with a line waiting for tickets. When we asked if the line was closed the second line attendant said "He went on brea. If you don't like waiting I can get you an application". It went downhill from there. read more

This water park is exceptional in quality. The personnel are courteous and hospitable. My entire family experienced considerable enjoyment during our visit. We are committed to returning for another familial holiday in the upcoming year. read more

They are not joking when they say it's the largest water park in the state. Once you think you're done with one side of the park, take the wrap around train to the other side and enjoy another few hours worth of rides. We went on Sunday midday and there were no lines whatsoever. A very clean water park with an enchanted atmosphere. Brush up on your children's fantasy stories! *Most rides require a walk up a steep incline and several staircases. Tubes are available around the park. read more

TLDR You better like the smell of pee. The pools are full of pee, people pee while standing in lines and the bathrooms will take your breath away. I took my family on a Monday, spent a few hundred dollars on tickets, figured during the week would be less people. We arrived right at 10:00 opening time. Bought our tickets from Market 32 the day before, saved 8.00 per ticket. Only waited about 10 min to get in park. It was already incredibly packed. First thing I did was go to main men's room, we had driven 1.5 hours to get there, it was obvious it had not been cleaned, it reeked of pee and the floors were disgusting. I tried several bathrooms throughout the park, throughout the day and none were clean. My wife reported that the women's bathrooms had used diapers and sanitary pads left in corners. I finally found a bathroom in a less used area that we could stomach. The wait time was anywhere from 20 to 45 min per ride, even for simple slides. I was really excited to try the "Amazon" ride but when we got close to the line it reeked of pee, then I realized people were peeing while standing in line. The ground was covered in pee water and I was standing barefoot. This was all before noon, by noon there were so many people in the park we were packed in like sardines. Lines for rides were 45 min long. People in the pools were elbow to elbow The food we ate was way over priced and low quality, deff not fresh. The chicken tenders were over cooked planks and oddly sweet, the fries were good but the burgers were well past well done . The layout of the park is alright once you figure it out. It's not as big as they make it seem, you could easily do all rides in a few hours but it takes so long to actually get to go down the ride. I have been to many water parks, big and small, water safari is by far the dirtiest and over advertised I have been to. I was really hoping it was going to be great. I am new to area and love water parks. If they would clean it up and stop people from just peeing wherever they want it could be fun. Overall you can tell the park is aging and the owners are not reinvesting into the park. read more

was there for the past 2 years now with my family with me my father and my two brothers. and my experience was great! Other than that i feel like they could maybe have a bit more? but its already really nice how it is. read more

I recently had a birthday bash party for a friend of mine. We had 15 people in our group. With the package, we were supposed to have a meal plan and other amenities. We had several in the party informed that the food was not included and several people had to pay. I had paid for a group of 15 and 2 cabanas for a meal plan 15 as well as a party pack. We got plates and napkins... for what I don't know because you're not allowed to bring food from outside of the park. Party favors for 15, cute but not really age appropriate for a 31 year old. The park was good, but not too many lines wait time was just around 20 minutes. One raft ride was down for repair. The circus was just ok. The place needs an over haul to bring it out of the 80s. read more

Alli and Bennett were amazing. We had a party of 11 that showed up at the water park at 2 p.m it started pouring ( tornado in area ) that day at 3 ish, they refunded us our entire entry fee with no hassle. Great people they are. read more

They shut down park at 1:30pm and when I asked to speak to manager about getting tickets to come back another day was told I could not. At almost $50 a ticket and the fact they took away coolers and stuff you think they would be a little more customer friendly to get return business. Bought two pizza and wing deals as well. Spent around $400 for 6 of us to only get 3.5 hours of actual park time. Customer service is a joke and very disappointing on what's supposed to be a family friendly park. read more

Had a great time with my wife and kids. Lot's of water rides and rides for little kids. Will come again.

I remember spending every summer here as a child so i was delighted to bring my daughter here on a family road trip! She had the best time! The souvenirs were severely lacking- im wondering if it is because of covid but as a kid i remember so many branded trinkets- we would have spent SO much more money had they had some more fun/better options!! read more

I have been going to Water Safari for over 20 years now and I will not be going back ever again. The past 3 years I have purchased tickets during there Black Friday promotion. My wife, daughter, and I always make it a long weekend, so we can enjoy Water Safari and Old Forge In general. On Friday August 16th, we drove from Syracuse, went through security, at the gate we were told that our tickets were not valid, we must go to the ticket office. The pleasant ticket attendant scanned my paper tickets which I printed off on the day of purchase, November 24th 2023 and said they were not valid. I opened my email, which still had not been opened since I received it in November and she said that she would need to call the "office." She picked up the phone and made a joke with the other ticket attendant in the booth about how long it was taking for anyone to answer the phone. She took my name and email and came back with, " these tickets were used on July 26th." She actually made the comment " do you have a wife? Maybe she used them!" I was pretty stunned at this point and didn't know how to proceed, I just knew that I had a 10 year old daughter who was looking forward to a day of water slides after sitting in the car for two hours. I proceeded to purchase 3 new tickets and would reach out to Water Safari customer service as soon as possible. I reached out to them shortly after our trip and to say that they were not helpful is an understatement. I have even reached out to the new owner James Harhi and I have not received any response as of yet. I am not looking for a refund at this stage. I was just looking for decent customer service so that it doesn't happen to anyone else in the future, also I am pretty sure that they have cameras to see who enjoyed Water Safari on Friday July 26th with my tickets. Tim Clark read more

Well since i'm from the south i'd give it a 3. I came during summer time and totally didn't expect it to be like kinda in the woods and so it was 71 out to me that was pretty cold and i mean personally i got a weird vibe being there i think it was the fairytale area but it was. nice park and no long lines they said it was heated water but it wasn't but it was pretty good but you could probably find somewhere better read more

Had a great time at Water Safari this past weekend!! We went on a rather cloudy day, and didn't have to wait in line for much of anything! My boys had such a good time with the water slides and wave pool! We also had a great time on the dry rides. My only complaint is that there definitely isn't enough time in the day to do everything. We were there from open to close, 10-6pm, and didn't get to ride all the dry or wet rides. It's kind of pricey ($30 for kids, $35 for adults). My family of 4 spent about $130 and I'm not sure it was worth that price, hence only 4 stars! Definitely enjoyed the heated water of the lazy river! Next year we will go when it's warmer! read more

Fun in the sun. Get wet. I have been coming here since I was a kid. The place offers somthing for my kids and offers somthing for myself. Please get a pic with Paul Bunyan on your way into the park. I've been doing it for years I love every bit of this park. Now that I'm older the lazy river is all I need on hot days. But the kid in me needs to feel the rush of the big slides. They have somthing for everyone here. This is mainly a water park with a few dry rides. They also have a little story book walk with thungs like the Cinderella and hansel and Gretel. The staff are excellent. They are freindly and helpful. The park is well kept and clean. I'm very happy they keep this place up I plan on coming when I am a grandparent and getting my picture taken with Paul Bunyan. read more

Enchanted Forest Water Safari - Fun in the sun - Water Parks Near Me - Old Forge, New York

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Came here last weekend with my daughter's Girl Scout troop. My kids are 9 and 6 and we hadn't taken them here yet. This water park was a great size. When you walk in you're greeted by a giant Paul Bunyon statue and walk through a nursery rhyme themed area to get to the rides. When you walk in you're greeted by a giant Paul Bunyon statue and walk through a nursery rhyme themed area to get to the rides. I particularly remember those from my childhood when my parents brought me here. They have a handful of dry rides and a slew of wet attractions for the hot summers. It seems like they have 2 water park sections. One in the back and one in the front. The one in the back is near the dry kiddie rides and has a faster flowing lazy river which my kids loved. Trek up a little hill and you can get to the tidal wave pool which was one of my kids' favorites. They also have lots of water slides and tube rides. They have a good number of restrooms and changing areas scattered throughout the park for the crowds. I noticed a small arcade type area for some variety. We had a lot of fun. The kids didn't want to get out of the water. I am sure we'll be back some time in the near future! read more

It so much fun there. They have many great water slides. I love the one that drops you down.

We just got home from spending the day here. We had our family and my sister, her husband and her kids. Every employee was super friendly. We didn't bring any food in so bought lunch, cost was less then we expected for a water park and tasted yummy! We had such fun that our car was one of the last ones left in the parking lot on our way out. The employee at the exit, Leanne, was super nice to us and told us to have a great night, which after spending the day working we were surprised how pleasant she was. I'm sure I would have been counting the minutes to leave work. Highly recommend this place for a fun family activity. read more

Very fun family day trip. I would say one day is definitely not enough to see everything and do everything. We went with a group of 13 of us and it was a blast. About half the workers were friendly and about half you could tell didn't want to even be there. Maybe seeing everyone else having fun on the rides while they can't I don't know. I will have to confess I wasn't very excited about going. I'm not a big fan of roller coasters or rides at all. I'm even more afraid of cold water so both combined did not sound like a good time. I figured I would chase the kids around and watch them have fun. We get there and the weather was mid 70s kind of cloudy. I put my foot in the water of the lazy river and the pool next to that and it was HEATED WATER!!!! I was so amazed and excited. We didn't get to ride all the rides but we will be back next year. read more

This is mostly a waterpark, but does have some other amusement rides. It is the only waterpark I've been to that rents tubes out. I guess the idea is that if you rent a tube, you don't have to wait as long (just wait in the line for the slide, not wait in the line for a tube and then wait in the line for a slide). Seems to me they would be better off doing away with this. A friend of mine rented a tube the two days they came here and someone stole it both times. Not sure if it was someone who didn't understand it was a rented tube or if it was someone who wanted to turn it in to get the deposit. We had a good time during our visit. The park is a little run down, but we had fun. read more

Met the grands and their mom here for the day. They are ages 9-15. All of them enjoyed the park, a first-time visit for them. They especially liked the Water Safari. /// The park is small enough that we felt we could comfortably let the kids go off on their own, periodically checking in with the adults. Some things we joined them in doing. // Nice-looking picnic area, as well as other areas with tables for people to use for a hub as well as a picnic lunch. As is to be expected, food/beverage prices in the park are higher than we feel comfortable spending; but, the park does not discourage people from bringing their own food and beverages. Many places to grab a lounge chair to relax and take a load off the feet. // There seemed to be plenty of supervision throughout the park. // It isn't the newest, most modern waterpark BUT it is fine for an affordable family outing. read more

Save your money! Went here for a little break this summer and was devastated. I hadn't visited since I was 9. This park opened in the 50's and it shows, because not only has barely anything new been added; but they've taken things down. The décor is faded and seriously needs updating. Let's get into some of the finer details shall we... -Drinks! ...I'm sure no one comes to water safari to get plastered. But that doesn't mean they should be able to get away charging $10 for a small plastic cup Daquiri. Ingredients for the drinks come in these old, cheap looking cartons. The Rum used is the bottommost shelf Barton's Light and goes for $10 a bottle. Beers are $7 which isn't horrible. The least they could do is provide an actually tasteful beverage. But maybe they make the drinks gross on purpose so everyone is sober. -Overall Cleanliness ..Disgusting! Couldn't be worse! The bathrooms you change in are absolutely horrendous. Men's bathroom was caked in a brown sludge all over the floors. They weren't cleaned once all day we were there. The women's bathroom my wife said was just as bad. Not cleaned at all throughout the day and people were sticking their garbage to the stall walls. The water in the rides is not heated as advertised, and reeks of bodily fluids. Not counting the wave pool. Which just straight up smells like a bacon foot sandwich. Definitely wouldn't let my child swim there. Did i mention there are NO SHOWERS? You get to soak in their gnarly human soup all day and then get to let it marinate while you drive home. I actually got sick from what I can only imagine to be the water, but that's not important. No water shoes on a good half the rides. So enjoy walking on the pavement that people are constantly spitting on all day. -The Rides ... disappointing to say the least. Same seven or so run down carnival rides i remember from 15 years back. I'm sure they're "safe" but they look completely unappealing and run down. leather finishing's on the seat rides are in tatters, and the rides are definitely not clean. Water rides have long lines regardless of the time of week you come. Employees keep it moving as slow as possible because they're miserable and harassed by the patrons. Tubes are gross, and smell like the bathrooms. Skipped out on most of the rides I usually go on. -Handicap Accessibility ...Nonexistent! The bridges that go over the park are too steep for people to push the wheelchairs water safari has so graciously provided. Are you an amputee? find another waterpark because there isn't a less accommodating park out there. They will give you a very hard time if you have prosthetics and try to go on rides. You can find the proof yourself by surfing the reviews across the various trip sites. I wonder if action has been taken on the 3 year old autistic child that park employees put their hands on. Or if the lady that shattered her tailbone on a water slide due to employee negligence got any closure. And lastly... the people that run the place. If you didn't have a swell dandy time, and you choose to voice why as I did... you can rest assured. The person with access to reply to your reviews will just tell you that people disagree with the bad experience you had. And that everyone loves their super safe and clean park. They will just remind you that some omnipotent all powerful force somewhere has voted them as #4 water park in NY. So clearly whatever criticisms and observations we make as paying customers are obsolete because everyone else is having a good time. Real classy. I really tried to have a good day with my family. But there just isn't enough in the park to make up for all of the bad things we experienced. Will NEVER be returning. And I will be warning all of my family and friends. Place reeks of cigarette smoke as well as marijuana. Clean this place up! read more

The wife and kid had a blast at water safari. I'm not a huge fan of water parks, but I can say that it was a comfortable visit, the staff was polite, and the rides were well kept. If you are in Old Forge or surrounding area, Water Safari is a must see attraction. You could easily spend the day there. read more

Enchanted Forest Water Safari - At Entrance, In front of Paul Bunyan - Water Parks Near Me - Old Forge, New York

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After years have passed, this place has not changed. It meets the needs of the adult looking for fun and appeases the little ones who can't go on the bigger rides. The tube slides are amazing but as with every person who goes here, everyone needs to get the Paul Bunyan picture. Every time! It is a must to get on the Sky ride and check out the park view. It reminds you of all the different rides that you must get to in the park. Then after the sky ride, of course you need to ride the train through the forest to get to the back of the park. That's where you get to see the mini circus act and go on some pretty fun rides that get some serious speed with the tubes. This is also where you can rent some cabanas but truthfully I have no idea how anyone can sit idle at this park! There is so much to do! As per the slogan, this is the place where the fun never stops! read more

Went yesterday was good slides lazy river highly suggested cheap tickets good ice cream arcade kids area gift shop

This is such a fun place for everyone young and old! A wide variety of water slides, lazy rivers and lounging areas. Also, although it's old, the dry side of the park is a perk too! read more

Enchanted Forest Water Safari - Water Parks Near Me - Old Forge, New York

I've been going to Enchanted Forest my entire life - before it was also Water Safari and just a quaint theme park. I do love it but I feel they fall short on many levels. We paid for a cabana (it's not cheap) and we expected to have some privacy. We had people lift the rope and sit at our table - which had our food and belongings on. We had people lay on our lounge chairs. We told an employee but they couldn't be bothered. Shoulder shrug and sorry was what we got. I cut my hand on a sharp edge on one of the slides and it was deep and wouldn't stop bleeding - I went to where the map indicated the first aid was. It was not. I spoke with 3 employees, while my hand bled through the paper towel I had wrapped around it and no one knew where first aid was. I finally found some band aids, which were well, only a band aid and I bled through them in an hour. I read about a girl dying of an asthma attack there and now I see why - the staff is not trained to handle any type of medical issues. This is a big problem. I love Enchanted Forest but they need to fix some serious problems before they have another tragedy. read more

Great water park, a little bit out in the middle of no where but definitely worth the trip

I grew up going to to Enchanted Forest every summer. I have albums full of photos, and unforgettable memories. Now I'm 35 and home for the summer, so a trip to Enchanted Forest was a must after at least a 6-7 year hiatus. My guy and I made the 45 minute drive up from Utica and all I did was talk about how awesome it was, and how much he was gonna love it. See, he grew up in California with Disneyland and million other big time parks, so of course he was skeptical, but he did end up seeing the charm and had a great time. First of all, this place dates back to 1956, and still maintains a lot of the traditional elements from back then. It's no where near as expensive as most parks,and it's located in the middle of a forest in the Adirondack Park. It has the water park, a traditional midway with Tilt-O-Whirl, Bumper cars, scrambler, kiddie rides, and even a circus. With rides for all ages, the water slide collection is really fun and has expanded over the year. The Black River, Randax Run, and Raging Rapids are my favorites. The food is standard. Hot dogs, hamburgs, french fries, pizza and more. Nothing special, but not bad by any means. I suggest packing a lunch, snacks & drinks. Bring a cooler, and get yourself a nice shaded picnic table or lounge chair set up for the day. My all time favorite has to be story book lane. I love walking through the woods and checking out Cinderella, Snow White, Hansel & Gretel and the rest of the gang. At the end of the walk you'll find a petting zoo, which I must say is pretty lacking. I would prefer to see them do away with this. The circus is also a must at either 12PM or 4PM. It's a nice change of pace from the day when you're running around the park and waiting in lines. This is worth a day trip if you are in the area. It was all be one of my fondest childhood memories. read more

As with others-I have been coming to Enchanted Forest once every other summer or so for about 15 years. I live in Central Connecticut and stay at a cabin on Chases Lake so its about a 40 min drive for us. Compared to what we have back home--Enchanted Forest is smaller-and that is reflected in the price. I go to Disney World a lot, and have been to Six Flags a few times too, EF is much more affordable. True--its a lot smaller and there are no roller coasters--but the water park is similar to what you'd find at a Six Flags--especially now that they added the new part in the back. The food isn't too outrageously priced either-that genuinely surprised me. This year when we went it rained all day but didn't thunder--so my sister and I had a great time sliding in the rain. Obviously the lines were a lot shorter due to the rain. There weren't too many enclosures for our mom to stand under though :/ Going on the balloon ride first and then again right before we leave has been a little tradition for our family for years--I'm glad its still running :) read more

Great family fun, it's not just a water park. Kids rides, Circus, overhead sky ride, train ride and other shows. Picnic areas, just a wonderful place. Looking forward to another visit sometime. read more

This is a fantastic water park. There are rides for all ages... even a super shallow splash pool for infants. Our family started bringing our son when he was 3. Each year he's able to go on something else as he grows. Food is reasonably priced (for an amusement park). There is a good variety of rides so you won't get bored. Tube rentals are only $5 and well worth it during peak times in the season so you don't have to wait for one. We'll be back every year. HINT: Check out the siesta passes where if you come later in the day, you get the next day free (siesta pass times change depending on when the park opens in the season). read more

Great fun for a great value. The lines are short on weekdays. The rides are fun, especially black river. The scenery is beautiful. Workers are polite and friendly. There are two areas in need of improvement: The food is not good. Sysco stuff. Husband had to toss his chicken sandwich because it was rubbery. He was given a plastic bag with lettuce tomato and pickle in it instead of them putting it on the sandwich, it was soggy and gross. You can bring your own food in or go next door and get your hand stamped to return. The material used on the stairs for the ride cascade falls really hurt my bare feet.. Many patrons were talking about it. I could barely stand it. You aren't allowed to use water shoes. read more

Went to the water safari a few days ago with my four year old. What a blast. Clean property, loads to do, efficient staff, friendly water park helpers with the young ones. Super fun. And they have several options for lunch. You can buy a towel when you get there and they have lockers. A great place to spend the day. read more

Nice place to take the family if you are in the area. The zoo was clean and the animals looked well cared for. We drove an hour from our camp and feel it was worth the trip. It looks like they are adding some new exibits too. The staff was friendly and accomodating. Kids of all ages are welcome. Stroller or wagon friendly, everywhere! read more

Yesterday was my second trip this year. I have been going to Enchanyed forest since I was a child and that is probably why I still choose you over all the other choices, but that changed yesterday. I was there with my husband and my children and nephew, not an inexpensive experience with 8 of us in total and I was in the gorilla kiddie pool with my 6 year old for most of the day. For some reason that's where he wanted to spend most of his day. He loves going down that little slide into the kiddie pool and the attendant that was working there shouldn't be allowed to be around people much less children. I believe her name was Camryn she was rude and nasty to the little kids. There were 2&3 year olds that she continued to yell at because they wouldn't get off the mat at the bottom of the slide fast enough. I'm not saying that she would talk loudly to them as it was noisy, I'm saying that she would say nasty things to them.She would say things like "get off the mat, or just don't listen to me OH MY GOD" to a 2 year old. I watched for a while till she actually stepped in front of my son as she was "swimming" off the mat and pushed him with her legs out of the way the. She was nasty to him every time he went down the slide after that. These are children they don't know the rules nor can some of them understand the rules. I explained to my why she was yelling at him and that as soon as he was at the bottom he had to get up and get out of the way for the next child and he did it every time. Then she would stare off and there would be a kid pile up as 3 kids would go down at the same time and she would yell at them. If she had been paying attention that wouldn't have happened. When another staff member came to give her a break she said "thank God good luck with this one" that staff member stood at the top of the slide and controlled when the children went down allowing for the children to get out of the way at the bottom before the next child went down. Employing staff like that is wrong on so many levels. I had to drive 2&1/2 hours to get to the park and I believe that will be the last time I ever go to your establishment. read more

Growing up in California, I was used to huge parks like Disneyland, Raging Waters, Waterworld, and Great America. I actually like this place much more than Disneyland!!! Here are the reasons: 1) More charming, particularly if you have small children. Water Safari offers circus shows and has a petting zoo, in addition to all the water rides. 2) The lines are not as long. 3) The entire park is nestled in a real forest. 4) Way less expensive, but not less fun. 5) Food is actually pretty good. 6) The people who work here actually seem to like kids and are so friendly. I cannot even remember how many times the ride operators would engage my toddler. In the parks I visited growing up, the ride operators would be bored and would not make eye contact. 7) The enchanted forest section with the storybook theme is one of the oldest existing fairytale parks in the country. Kids seem to really enjoy it and it is very unique. 8) I think parking is free. 9) The park is very clean. The bigger parks I grew up visiting in California I think would get overwhelmed with the crowds so there would be litter. 10) Plenty to do in surrounding Old Forge. I have recommended this place to everyone I know, especially families. read more