Six Flags Hurricane Harbor

Last updated
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor
Product type Water parks
Owner Six Flags
Country
Introduced1995
Related brands
Markets
WebsiteSee external links

Six Flags Hurricane Harbor, simply known as Hurricane Harbor, is a chain of Caribbean-themed water parks owned by Six Flags. The water parks commonly include water slides, wave pools, lazy rivers, restaurants, and shops, but are not identical. There are 16 Hurricane Harbor water parks located in North America. Some of these water parks were built from the ground up while others were acquired and rebranded.

Contents

The chain is associated with the former Six Flags company prior to its 2024 merger. It was launched in 1995 with the opening of a Hurricane Harbor water park adjacent to Six Flags Magic Mountain, now known as Hurricane Harbor Los Angeles. Only two Hurricane Harbor water parks have been closed: one at the former Six Flags Worlds of Adventure, and Hurricane Harbor Maryland at the former Six Flags America.

History

In September 1994, Six Flags announced plans to build a new water park in Valencia, California, adjacent to the Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park. The water park was named Six Flags Hurricane Harbor and opened in 1995. [1] Six Flags additionally filed a trademark for the Hurricane Harbor name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on November 4, 1994. [2] Six Flags would later acquire the Wet 'n Wild water park in Arlington, Texas, in April 1995, which operated with the suffix "A Six Flags Park." [3] It was speculated in November 1996 that park executives were debating whether to rename the Wet 'n Wild as simply Hurricane Harbor with the "A Six Flags Park" suffix or Six Flags Hurricane Harbor. [4] The Arlington park was ultimately rebranded as the latter in 1997. [5]

Six Flags New England's Hurricane Harbor opened in 2003 as part of Six Flags' growing efforts to grow the brand in the 2000s. Six Flags Hurricane Harbor New England.jpg
Six Flags New England's Hurricane Harbor opened in 2003 as part of Six Flags' growing efforts to grow the brand in the 2000s.

Throughout the late-1990s through the 2000s, Six Flags would start to expand the Hurricane Harbor brand through the construction of new water parks or rebranding existing water parks attached to their theme parks. In 1999, Six Flags St. Louis constructed its own intra-park water attractions section. [6] Two Hurricane Harbor water parks would open in 2000: Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, New Jersey opened theirs in May 2000 after three years of planning; [7] the recently-acquired Six Flags Worlds of Adventure in Aurora, Ohio also opened one as part of a large theme park expansion. [8] In 2003, Six Flags New England in Agawam, Massachusetts, renamed and expanded their Island Kingdom water park to Six Flags Hurricane Harbor. [9]

The Aurora, Ohio, Hurricane Harbor was sold to Cedar Fair in 2004, as part of the sale of Six Flags Worlds of Adventure. It was renamed Hurricane Hannah's Waterpark before it was ultimately abandoned in 2006. Most of its attractions were relocated to a new water park on the other side of the property named Wildwater Kingdom. [10] Another two Hurricane Harbor-branded water parks would open in 2005. Six Flags America in Woodmore, Maryland, rebranded their existing Paradise Island water park into a Hurricane Harbor. [11] After a failed attempt to build a water park in the late-1990s, [12] Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois, opened their Hurricane Harbor next to the theme park. [13]

Six Flags would not build another Hurricane Harbor water park until 2014, when Six Flags Over Georgia in Mableton, Georgia added a water park. In 2015, Six Flags acquired an abandoned water park in Oaxtepec, Morelos. It was renamed Hurricane Harbor Oaxtepec, renovated, and reopened in 2017 under its new name. [14]

In the late 2010s, Six Flags would acquire lease rights to operate multiple water parks owned by EPR Properties, most of which Six Flags had previously owned. These properties included Waterworld Concord (renamed Hurricane Harbor Concord in 2018), [15] Wet 'n Wild Splashtown (renamed Hurricane Harbor Splashtown in 2019), [16] White Water Bay (renamed Hurricane Harbor Oklahoma City), [17] and Wet 'n Wild Phoenix (renamed Hurricane Harbor Phoenix in 2020). [18] Additionally, Six Flags acquired lease rights from the Rockford Park District to Magic Waters in Cherry Valley, Illinois, for 10 years in 2018. It was renamed to Hurricane Harbor Rockford in 2020. [19]

It was announced in 2021 that Great America's Hurricane Harbor park would operate as a separate property, becoming Hurricane Harbor Chicago. [20] In 2023, White Water Bay, next to Six Flags Fiesta Texas, was renamed to Hurricane Harbor San Antonio. [21] Hurricane Harbor Maryland at Six Flags America was permanently closed on September 6, 2025, ahead of its adjacent theme park's official closure on November 2, 2025. [22] [23]

Locations

Six Flags Hurricane Harbor
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Map of Six Flags Hurricane Harbor water parks as of January 2026.

As of 2026, there are 16 Six Flags Hurricane Harbor-branded water parks throughout North America:

Located within amusement parks

The following Hurricane Harbor water parks are typically included with admission with their connected theme parks.

NameLocationYear openedConnected parkNotes
Hurricane Harbor Queensbury, New York 1997 Six Flags Great Escape Originally named Splashwater Kingdom; rebranded in 2019.
Hurricane Harbor Atlanta Mableton, Georgia 2014 Six Flags Over Georgia N/a
Hurricane Harbor Darien Lake Darien, New York 1990 Six Flags Darien Lake Property owned by EPR Properties. Originally named Barracuda Bay and Splashtown at Darien Lake; rebranded in 2020.
Hurricane Harbor New England Agawam, Massachusetts 1997 Six Flags New England Originally named Island Kingdom; rebranded in 2003.
Hurricane Harbor San Antonio San Antonio, Texas 1992 Six Flags Fiesta Texas Originally named Ol' Waterin' Hole, Armadillo Beach, and White Water Bay; rebranded in 2023.
Hurricane Harbor St. Louis Eureka, Missouri 1999 Six Flags St. Louis N/a

Separate property or admission

The following Hurricane Harbor water parks either operate as a separate property or are not included with the nearby theme park admission.

NameLocationYear opened or acquiredNotes
Hurricane Harbor Arlington Arlington, Texas 1995Originally named Wet 'n Wild, A Six Flags Park. Located near Six Flags Over Texas.
Hurricane Harbor Chicago Gurnee, Illinois 2005Located near Six Flags Great America.
Hurricane Harbor Concord Concord, California 2017Property owned by EPR Properties. Originally named Waterworld California; rebranded in 2018.
Hurricane Harbor Los Angeles Valencia, California 1995Located next to Six Flags Magic Mountain.
Hurricane Harbor New Jersey Jackson Township, New Jersey 2000Located within the Six Flags Great Adventure Resort.
Hurricane Harbor Oaxtepec Oaxtepec, Morelos 2015Originally opened in the 1940s; rebranded in 2017.
Hurricane Harbor Oklahoma City Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 2018Property owned by EPR Properties. Originally named White Water Bay; rebranded in 2020.
Hurricane Harbor Phoenix Phoenix, Arizona 2019Property owned by EPR Properties. Originally named Wet 'n Wild Phoenix; rebranded in 2020.
Hurricane Harbor Rockford Cherry Valley, Illinois 2018Property owned by the Rockford Park District. Originally named Magic Waters; rebranded in 2020.
Hurricane Harbor Splashtown Spring, Texas 2019Property owned by EPR Properties. Originally named Wet 'n' Wild Splashtown; rebranded in 2019.

Former properties

Hurricane Harbor (Aurora, Ohio)

Hurricane Harbor Maryland

See also

References

  1. ↑ Shooman, Annie (September 9, 1994). "New theme park to join Magic Mountain". Santa Barbara News-Press. Retrieved January 11, 2026– via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "Hurricane Harbor". United States Patent and Trademark Office . Retrieved January 11, 2026.
  3. ↑ Brown, Jessmay (1995), "Six Flags operator buys neighbor Wet'n Wild - Facilities expected to stay separate" (PDF), Fort Worth Star Telegram
  4. ↑ Strope, Leigh (November 29, 1996). "Wet 'n Wild expected to open next year as Hurricane Harbor". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Retrieved January 11, 2026– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Wet 'n Wild takes its new name, Caribbean-style". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. January 8, 1997. p. 61. Retrieved January 11, 2026– via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ Seifert, Jeffrey (2011). "Turning 40 in Mid-America". RollerCoaster! Magazine. 33 (1). Zanesville, Ohio: American Coaster Enthusiasts: 37–46. ISSN   0896-7261.
  7. ↑ Bergen, Doug (January 20, 2000). "Six Flags overflows to 45-acre water park". Press of Atlantic City. pp. C1, C5. Retrieved January 11, 2026.
  8. ↑ Welch, Cheryl (June 4, 2000). "Six Flags is for Loonatics". News Journal (Mansfield, Ohio). pp. 1C, 4C. Retrieved January 11, 2026– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ Ross, Ken (March 13, 2003). "Six Flags boosts watery thrills". The Republican. p. 16. Retrieved January 11, 2026– via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Geauga Lake Park Maps". GeaugaLakeToday.com. 2012. Archived from the original on January 19, 2012. Retrieved January 20, 2012.
  11. ↑ "Caribbean makeover planned for Six Flags". Associated Press . The Star-Democrat Archive. March 11, 2005. Retrieved January 11, 2026– via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Silvestri, Scott (March 22, 1999). "Gurnee group, officials debate what vote on Six Flags village will mean". Daily Herald. p. 1. Retrieved December 9, 2022– via Gale OneFile.
  13. ↑ "Great America opens Six Flags Hurricane Harbor water park". Southtown Star via Newspapers.com. June 2, 2005. p. 78. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Six Flags Expanding With New Water Park In Mexico - CBS Texas". www.cbsnews.com. 2016-02-09. Retrieved 2026-01-11.
  15. ↑ "Concord Water Park is Now Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Concord" (Press release). 22 February 2018.
  16. ↑ Takahashi, Paul. "Six Flags to rename, renovate Wet 'n' Wild Splashtown". www.chron.com. Archived from the original on 2023-08-07. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
  17. ↑ "White Water Bay gets new name 'Hurricane Harbor,' to debut new attraction". KOCO-TV. August 29, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  18. ↑ Frigerio, Josh (2019-02-12). "Six Flags in Phoenix: Wet 'n' Wild is now Six Flags Hurricane Harbor". ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix (KNXV). Retrieved 2026-01-12.
  19. ↑ DeCoster, Ken. "New name, new attraction for Magic Waters in 2020". Rockford Register Star. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
  20. ↑ "Six Flags Announces Reopening of Six Flags Great America Parks". investors.sixflags.com. March 22, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2025.
  21. ↑ Salinas, Rebecca (2023-03-23). "6 new attractions opening at Fiesta Texas' waterpark in 2023". KSAT. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
  22. ↑ "Six Flags America will be closing its water park this weekend". wusa9.com. 2025-09-04. Retrieved 2025-09-06.
  23. ↑ Walrath-Holdridge, Mary. "When is Six Flags closing two parks? What we know about closing dates". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2025-09-06.
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