Sun Valley Beach

 

2

36

Amara K.

Marietta, GA

8/12/2007

This was a most excellent goodbye to summer excursion for the kids.  We just spent five hours at Sun Valley Beach today for the first time.  It was just great.  What a great idea.  There was a huge area for the wee ones including two cute little slides, a mushroom sprinkler, and these safe swings so they can drag their toes in the water.  As you move from area to area (each area clearly roped and buoyed) it progressively gets deeper and the slides more daring.  My adrenelin junkies thought they needed to stay in the "shallow" end but quickly realized that was the "Baby" end.  By the end of an hour I watched my four year old take a 25 foot drop water slide!  Fearless!
There were 11 slides in all for ages 1 to 70 and all levels of  confidence.  There was a rope swing of 4 ropes that only the most agile kids could swing from one to the other.  There was also a "log roll" with ropes above so the kids could try to get the others to fall off (only 4 allowed on at a time).  A larger diving board would have been fun for the kids, but I guess it could be too dangerous or too high of an insurance risk.
There are three docks in the 8 to 14 foot deep end where much of the teenage preening and clucking happens but they weren't obtrusive or unaware that there were little ones around.  Not once did I have to reprimand some snot for cursing.  Also the lifegaurds were spot on to any kind of rough housing or rule breaking.   They didn't seem to miss a single transgression and that seemed to keep most people in line if they didn't get away with it the first time.
Now this wasn't exactly a high brow venue, so there were a couple of things I wasn't thrilled with.  I did see a toddler with regular diaper rather than a swim diaper and that just grosses me out to no end.  When I touched the bottom of the deep end, it felt like all the sand had settled there.  Yucky.  The bathroom/changing room would probably be where I would focus my next upgrades if I owned the place.  While they did have showers with the ingenius outdoor style pulls (so you can't waste a ton of water!), the toilet/ sink areas left a lot to be desired.  A little more privacy would be helpful.  I was in the changing area with 4 girls ages 4 to 13 and they were all complaining about not being able to change without some dignity.  
We managed to use two coupons, so for two adults and two children under 8 it only cost us $34.  Without  the coupons it would of cost $64!  Plan to spend the day, pack a glorious picnic lunch and snacks to make the cost worth it.  It helped that all "Pepsi" products were free all day at one of the concession stands.  The season pass wouldn't be worth it unless you lived close enough to come often (I think I read $60 per person; that's $240 for a four person family!!).  
We'll probably go back again but maybe after we find some more coupons!  We signed up for their email newsletter, so here's hoping!

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5

6

Ali M.

East Point, GA

6/19/2008 2 photos

This place is kind of like WhiteWater circa 1964, and I'm cool with that. Bring all your damn gear, and expect to leave with about 85% of it.  You will definitely need to pack a big picnic and get there early enough to stake your claim at one of the shaded tables around the perimeter of the pool area. I like that the swimming area is divided and quite large because even with a ton of people there you still get some space. The things that I think suck are that some of the "water" slides don't have water running down them, they are just big slides that eventually deposit you into the water once you have correctly guessed the appropriate angle and body contortions to get your ass down the not entirely smooth surface in less than 5 minutes. And it on the verge of being overpriced in my opinion (free soda not withstanding). But it's still big fun. They have a live DJ with the "southernest" accent I have come across since my 1993 trip to Myrtle Beach who says "Are y'all havin' fun at Sun Valley Beach?" about once every 12 minutes. This place is definitely not high-tech, but it is extremely family-friendly and
entertaining and very, very hot (so wear and frequently re-apply the sunscreen).

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