Typhoon Texas Waterpark & Adventure Park Pflugerville

On a hot summer day in Texas, it’s hard to beat a day zooming down several slides into a pool of water. Well, unless you take several laps around a lazy river. You can also bounce in a tube in a wave pool or lounge under a cabana with shaved ice. That’s what my family did during a visit to Typhoon Texas Waterpark in Pflugerville.

We had a blast.

How Our Pflugerville Adventure Began

While babysitting four of our grand kids (ranging from 3 to 8) in Austin, we all got restless and bored. Since it was almost 100 degrees, we decided to head to Typhoon Texas Waterpark & Adventure Park in Pflugerville. Research validated that a season pass was the best way to go. It includes free admission for the season, to both the water park and adventure park, plus a lot of discount coupons. For example, bring a friend for free, $5 food coupon, $5 game coupon, free cotton candy, and a lot more. And I knew the grand kids would want to come again.

Hawaiian Falls has been around for over a decade. With a Season Pass, the grand kids can enjoy other Hawaiian Falls Parks. They’re located in Garland, The Colony, Mansfield, Roanoke, Waco, and White Settlement.

Typhoon Texas Waterpark

After walking through the gate, the grand kids took off with us in tow. They headed straight for the tubes at the lazy river.

The Typhoon Texas Shaka Meter rates the park water slides and attractions from 1 to 5. 1 is easy and calm and 5 means intense or thrilling. The lazy river is rated a 1. but it’s a great way to relax and cool off as you float in a tube, walk, or swim. After the third lap,. I started to get a little dizzy and a tad water logged. Thankfully, the vote was 4 to 2 to move on to another attraction.

Since the two youngest grand kids are under 48 inches, they went with the wife to Breaker Beach. It’s a wave pool with gentle waves and lots of lounge and beach chairs. They had a blast jumping the waves, swimming, and riding the waves in an inner tube. Rated a 1 on the Shaka Meter.

While they did that, the older two grand kids ran to Aquatube. They ran up the stairs to the top, then twisted and turned down one of the enclosed slides. Before I was halfway up the stairs, they headed up the stairs to ride the second of three tube slides. I huffed and puffed as they ran past me.

When I got to the top, they were waiting to tell me which tube to go down. Here are the options:

• The Aqua Aquatube starts slowly before twisting and turning down a huge hill to a catch pool (4 on the Shaka Meter);
• The Green Aquatube that is completely enclosed;
• The Blue Aquatube twists and turns before throwing you into the catch pool (3 in the Shaka Meter).

The grand kids forced me down the one with the highest Shaka Meter – and I loved it. As I huffed and puffed back up the stairs to try the Green Aquatube, they ran to the top and took a couple of runs down the Pflyin’ Hawaiian (Sky PFall) where they stepped into a capsule and suddenly the floor beneath them dropped. They went flying straight down an open chute – a 5 on the Shaka Meter, and too scary for me!

Watching from Splashwater Harbor

After a couple of trips up the stairs, I rushed over to join the two younger kids at Splashwater Harbor (a wading pool with water features and lily pads to leap from one to the other – a 1 on the Shaka Meter). I almost fell asleep in a lounge chair while the wife took the older kids down the next set of rides, which included:

• Diamond Head Drop – a partially enclosed tube that twists and turns to the bottom – a 5 on the Shaka Meter
• The Rush – a single or double inner tube ride down a twisting and turning enclosed tube – a 3 on the Shaka Meter
• The Pipeline – several turns through a half-enclosed and half-open tube to the catch pool – also a 3 on Shaka Meter

I don’t know how many trips they made up the stairs, but the wife came back looking a little tired with the two grand kids still full of energy!

Lunch and More Lake River Rides

After all of that, we were ready for some calories to get more energy for the rest of the rides. We ate at Surf Side Barbecue, which has Texas-style barbecue (the brisket sandwich was good), burgers, sausage on a stick, and more. The other choice was Sharkey’s Cafe which has hot dogs, burgers, pizza, nachos, pretzels, churros, french fries, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Following lunch, we had to do a couple more laps on the lazy river. Then I went with the oldest kids to the Reef Racer where you jump on a rubber mat and race straight down one of six lanes. I lost all three races and had to buy the kids cotton candy and Hawaiian shaved ice.

Texas Typhoon Adventure Park

It was a short walk to the Typhoon Texas Adventure Park, which opened in August 2014 on 23 acres. It’s designed to be thrilling, adventurous, and heart pumping. It tests your strength, agility, determination, balance, and courage.

Excited to give it a try, we were disappointed when we found out that, for safety reasons, you need a dry shirt with sleeves, shorts or pants, closed-toe or closed-heeled shoes, and no wet attire. Of course, we had none of that! So, unfortunately, we didn’t get to try any of the Adventure Park activities which included:

• Challenge Course – A three-level ropes course with 15 different rope activities on each level. You can start at 2′ above the ground and work your way up to a mini-zip line 60′ above ground and 400′ long. Each level gets a little higher and a little more challenging. It will test your agility, strength, and courage! You’ll use a smart belay system to navigate from challenge to challenge and you must demonstrate proficiency on one level before you can advance to the next level. Kids must be at least 48 inches tall and weigh at least 60 pounds to participate.
• Cargo Net – A 45′ rope ladder that requires strength, balance, and determination to make it to the top.
• Big Island Adventure Trail – Everyone will enjoy climbing over and under the 18 rope bridges and tunnels on three different levels

• Free Fall – At the top of the Cargo Net and Climbing Wall, you can enjoy an adrenaline-pumping and thrilling free fall by jumping off the 60′ seven story tower; don’t worry, you’re hooked into a safe full-body harness and auto belay system.
• Rock Climbing Wall – You’ll need upper body strength and some good footwork to make it up this 45′ tall wall.
• Pineapple Express Zip Line Tour – You can check out the park as you fly through the air 15′ to 60′ above the ground on one of three 500-foot-long zip lines.

Maybe Next Time!

The grand kids immediately pressured me on when we could return to try the adventure park. I promised them we’d give it a try the next time we were in Austin babysitting. I can’t wait!

Ready to go back to our cabana (the only way to go if you visit Hawaiian Falls – lots of shade, comfy chairs, a locker rental, all-you-can-drink wristbands plus a cabana attendant) – for a nap, I was forced to take a couple more rides then stop in the arcade to spend the free $5.

I hoped that, after a full day, all 4 grand kids would be ready for a long nap. I knew I was ready for one. But, no! When we got home, they wanted to ride bikes, swim in the pool, and play some baseball! I went to bed and could have slept like a baby for a couple of days! Fun day.