So here I am again .Ladies day at Aquapark . Prices at QAR 180 per person . Five star hotel price ! Safety lockers extra QAR 30 !
Are the facilities five star as well ?
Sad looking changing rooms .Wet walls ,peeling painting ,very small to change comfortably .
Lockers are better . We get no keys but a waterproof bracelet that opens our lockers ! Wow !
Dress code - they claim that we have to respect the local culture . What does it mean ? No details given -only a note that the management got the right to expel anyone whose swimming attire is not proper . Not very welcoming .Not very professional . They should explain well and kindly what is allowed and what is not.
After reading all that I was scared .I had a one piece swimming suit without leggings .Will I be expelled ? When I entered the park area I saw a lots of women covering up with long sleeved swimming suits with leggings . Then I noticed a few who wore bikinis .I got relived then .
The lagoon pool was the first pool I tried . It was cold - I was shivering when came out .It is a luxury here in summer to be cold . It is good that they care . Hot water can be the source of a lots of kinds of infection . The bar inside the pool did not work . I swam there and had a little chat with an African lifeguard . She informed me that some facilities - bars /restaurants can not work during ladies days as they do not have female staff .
That is sad . The lagoon pool is a place that is shallow at the edges and deep inside .
Some years ago an 8 year old temporarily unattended boy drowned in it as he did not believe his bigger siblings that it was not safe for him .After this tragedy you would suppose that they watch out for it would not repeat . But what I saw was very little kids playing at the edges of the pool - mothers are chatting 20 meters away sometimes yelling at their wards .The lifeguards did not care ,either ... :(
I do not remember any sings either warning for swimmers that the pool is deep in the middle .
After the lagoon pool swimming came the lazy river . This is a bit boring for me -sitting in those donuts and getting around ...my neck hurts after ten minutes ...
The wave pool is my real favorite .It is a real thrill .Jumping up and down in the waves !
It was quite an exercise . It lasts around ten or 15 minutes . I am not sure . But I found it too long and I left before the end . Though I loved it -just I was exhausted .
I was pleasantly surprised that we do not have to pay extra for the huge slides .So I tried one . The smallest one .It was frightening . The speed was too big ! I was afraid of falling out !How much my heart was beating after that ! I decided that no more slides this summer . Or at least no open slides !
The day was nearly over . Remembering their poor quality of food I ate well before arriving . Just the crepe stall was so much tempting that I decided to stand in line . I had to wait for a single crepe for 20 minutes ! It was nice a bit dry .
The Aquapark was not crowded .The age group of the visitors was from totes to 60 - young adults were more than old ones . They have some facilities for disabled customers so one could see some guests in wheelchair as well .People behave usually respectfully. I met only one group of teens who were so loud and so disrespectful that I had to ask them to chat in a lower voice while waiting for that crepe . They were chatting in Hindi ... Very unusual here - Indian women who are residents here are usually well -mannered !.Every nations got spoiled kids I thought ! Then it turned out that they were Hindi speaking Malaysian girls visiting Qatar . Even though they are just humans like anybody else !
They answered in a very rude way to my request and they jumped the line . Luckily the staff was sympathetic with me and served me before them .
All in all - though not a perfect facility but Aquapark is a fun place in Qatar . Ladies day is an expensive but enjoyable occasion to have a carefree afternoon . But please do not think that your kids are safe just because there are lifeguards . If you wish just to relax here then rather leave your kids at home with someone you trust ...
