Wild Rivers was a waterpark in Irvine

Irvine, California

Irvine is a suburban incorporated city in Orange County, California, United States. It is a planned city, mainly developed by the Irvine Company since the 1960s. Formally incorporated on December 28, 1971, the city has a population of 212,375 as of the 2010 census. However, the California...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. It opened in 1986 on the site of the former Lion Country Safari

Lion Country Safari

Lion Country Safari is a drive-through safari park located in Loxahatchee , in Palm Beach County, Florida. Founded in 1967, it claims to be the first 'cageless zoo' in the United States....

. Following the expiration of its lease

Lease

A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the lessee to pay the lessor for use of an asset. A rental agreement is a lease in which the asset is tangible property...

 with the The Irvine Company, it closed permanently on September 25, 2011, with the hope of opening in a new location by 2013.

History

Before Wild Rivers was built, the land was a drive-through zoo called Lion Country Safari

Lion Country Safari

Lion Country Safari is a drive-through safari park located in Loxahatchee , in Palm Beach County, Florida. Founded in 1967, it claims to be the first 'cageless zoo' in the United States....

, but it went bankrupt and closed in the 1980s. Wild Rivers opened in 1986. A few years later it opened the first side by side wave pools in the country.

Pricing

General tickets, for guests over 48" tall, cost $34.98 and junior tickets, for guests under 48", cost $21.98. Admission after 4:00 p.m. is $21.98 ($16.98 for juniors). Children under 2 years old are free, and seniors over 65 years old can enter free.

Season passes are $69.98 for one person or $249.98 for a family of four. Along with no blackout days, season pass holders are entitled to special discounts, including special Season Pass Sundays featuring discounts on drinks and hot dogs, and the ability to bring a buddy into the park for only $15 on select Sundays. The first open day of each season is dedicated only to season pass holders.

Food

The park offers a wide variety of foods at its quick-service restaurants, including Colonel Hawkins, Congo Cafe, and the La Fiesta. The full menu and pricing is available on the park's website.

Safety

Wild Rivers staffs Red Cross certified lifeguards. First aid in the park is provided by certified emergency medical technician-basics (EMT-Bs). Since the park opened there have been no confirmed deaths.

Rubber Ducky Derby

Each year Wild Rivers hosts a rubber duck race down the lazy river. It proceeds go to help underprivileged children and is called the Rubber Ducky Derby. Sponsors include UPS, Starbucks, The Anaheim Ducks, and elvistech.com. For 2005, a car show was added.

Closure

In early 2011, Wild Rivers announced that it had lost its lease with The Irvine Company. Both the park and the adjacent Camp James are scheduled to close at the end of the 2011 season. Afterward, everything will be demolished, and apartments will be built. It is thinking about opening at the Orange County Great Park

Orange County Great Park

The Orange County Great Park is the official name of a plan for the public, non-aviation reuse of the decommissioned Marine Corps Air Station El Toro in Irvine, California. The county park will comprise just 28.8% of the total that made up the old MCAS El Toro base. It is a $1.1 billion project...

, but is still deciding.