A day at the Aqua park at Torre del Mar

The kids have been looking forward to it. A day at the splash park. I have seen a few of the attractions from the motorway but had never been before. From the little I’d seen I was expecting much. However, there are several rides for all ages and we all had a great day out.

The ticket price seemed a bit steep to me. 19 Euros for an adult and 14 Euros for children between 4 and 16. It’s lucky that Jessica is 3 years old. “I’m 4!” replied an indignant Jess. “Today your 3 years old” replied Mark, urging Jess to be quiet. There was no problems gaining entry at the park. Also, you are allowed to take in any food and drink you like. That’s a very good idea as the prices are high inside. If you run short and don’t fancy paying the prices at the café you can always slip out to the next door Mercadona. You will have your wrist stamped so that you can get back inside.

The adults decided to lounge about in relative luxury. The rental of a tumbona under the shade of a parasol costs 3 Euros for the day. Many of the locals adopted for lying on beach towels on the grass. They must have been eaten alive by all the varied insects flying and crawling around. Our spot was conveniently close to the kiddie’s pool so we could keep a watchful eye on Sophie and Jessica while they had fun on the mini slides and water features.


Sophie enjoying a break from the slides.

Jess was far too small for most of the attractions inside. However, the mini pool was a great playground for her. She loved the mini elephant slides and repeatedly asked me to catch her, as she must have gone up and down a hundred times. Her favourite was the big yellow slide watched over by the monitors. Again, I was on catching duty as she made a dozen circuits.


Jess having fun in the Kiddie's pool.

Sophie was more interested in the bigger slides. There is a measuring stick outside all of them. For the faster, more dangerous looking slides you need to be taller. Sophie was tall enough for all of bar the “Kamikaze” and the “Foam” slides. Her favourite was the slide where you went down with a rubber ring, the “Rio Rapid”. That was fantastic fun. Sophie would take huge delight on seeing me do a reverse somersault on exit. It was impossible for me to enter the water any other way than backwards as the rapids spun me around for fun on the descent.


I don't think Jess is tall enough for the "Foam" or "Kamikaze" slides.

It was time for the big boys to try out the “Foam” and “Kamikaze”. Again, Sophie tried to grow a few inches taller and sneak on. The monitor was having none of it. Sophie wasn’t happy. The first one we tried was the “Kamikaze”, the two brown slides at the end of the park. I think I know why it is brown now. We went racing down the slide, accelerating until the final bump where you take off briefly before slamming back down to earth. You don’t have chance to recover as you’re dumped into the pool at the bottom. Great fun! The “Foam” slide is more about trying to stay in a straight line. This looks easy enough and you fail to understand why so many people seem to twist around and plunge into the pool backwards. All I can say its harder than it looks. About halfway down I was fighting against twisting and ended up entering the pool at a 45-degree angle.


Mark and Lisa ready for the "Kamikaze".

There were other attractions like the wave pool, the two big swimming pools and the helter skelter slide. The latter being slightly uncomfortable if you try sliding down laid back. There are other twisty water slides but they don’t come close to matching the Rio Rapid, Kamikaze and the Foam slides.