The San Francisco Examiner from San Francisco, California • 121

San Francisco Examiner Sunday, August 1 1, 1985Trave! T-7 F. Sunday Examiner Chronicle eS! your Wet 'n Wild fun in dry Las Vegas. among By Frank Macomber COPUY NEWS SERVICE AS VEGAS This desert re- sort is a gambler's town, and that isn't likely to change. 1 I Ir I I i I I I i i I 'o 1 Mm 'it "iBa 1 Tllf lasts a couple of minutes or less," Haas concedes. "But we have made studies which show that most visitors stay only from about three to five hours.

And since we're open 12 hours a day, until 10 p.m., the turnover is likely to keep lines to a minimum, even with big crowds." So far most of the visitors have been local residents, but Haas expects that to change this summer as non-Nevadans learn about the new kid on the Strip, complete with pic-nic grounds, fast-food outlets and shops. Wet 'n Wild is open from May to October. Hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 10 a.m.

to 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday (shorter hours after Sept. 3). Admission is $11 for adults and children. Water parks also have opened in Dallas and Orlando, Fla.

Others are planned for the East Coast, Europe and perhaps even Tokyo. After all, where else can you beat the heat for $11 a day? A number of Las Vegas hotels offer special programs for children. There are also tours to Red Rock Canyon and the rebuilt fort called Old Vegas. For brochures on family activities, write to Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, 3150 Paradise Road, Las Vegas, Nev. 89109.

machine tea Hy sail CLASSIFIED MARKETPLACE" We make it happen for you! families who want to come to Las but didn't think there was enough for the kids to do. Some of the large hotels are using the water park in their promotions and advertising. Others are sending groups of employees to spend hours on the, water wonderland's slides and rides. The new concept in theme parks is public participation," says Kenneth Haas, marketing and sales director for Wet 'n Wild. "Zoos are having trouble these days, so they are introducing gimmicks to attract people.

But amusement parks, where the folks participate, are packing them in. "We are finding here at Wet 'n Wild that the parents enjoy the water rides and slides about as much as the kids do." What management soon may have to guard against is overcrowding, the same condition that gave Disneyland growing pains. "Neither kids nor grown-ups like to stand in line for a water ride for 20 or 30 minutes when the ride only -jtbat this gambling mecca could become the ideal place to bring the family for a vacation. Sound incredible? Not really. Las JTAYegas has had a permanent circus (in casino, of course) in town for years.

But consider this: a new multimil-lion-dollar aquatic park right smack the middle of the Strip. im, Wet 'n Wild, a 26-acre water park, A is, a sort of liquid Disneyland. With Jh it's Surf Lagoon, giant water playground, 76-foot "free-fall" water slides and Lazy River, Wet 'n Wild in the short time it has been open has caught the fancy of Las Vegas residents. Kids and parents alike flock to the park by the thousands as the temperature climbs above the 100-degree mark. Las Vegas hotels are beginning to "get interested in Wet 'n Wild, too, as the park beckons to a new clientele: 777-7777 These adventurers slide down a 76-f oot-hlgh water shoot -IF YOU ARE OVER 50' "AND DO NOT BELONG -TO GAT-YOU MAY BE MISSING THE BOAT.

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