Fountain of knowledge

CHILDREN are not only enjoying a splash at a Bahrain waterpark … they are exercising their brains too! For the operators of the $65 million Wahooo! Waterpark at Bahrain City Centre has been inundated with schools and colleges booking educational sessions to uncover the science behind the attraction.

Special guided tours have been organised to enlighten pupils about the facility and recently 25 students representing St Christopher’s Junior School’s Students Council took part in the field study trip before enjoying the slides and rides.

Glynn Jones, assistant operations manager at Wahooo! who boasts 15 years of experience in the industry, often takes the role of guide in-charge. He said: “We inform the children about all the facts of running the waterpark and they are always full of questions. Hopefully this can be a real learning experience with guaranteed fun at the end of the session.”

The children were impressed. Riva Kapoor, 10, a Year Six student from Budaiya, said: “The tour was pretty cool! We were told about the duties of the life guards, length of the slides – it was very interesting. I have visited the park before for birthday parties and love coming here but I didn’t know much about how it operated.”

The eco-friendly park has installed special air handling units which are used to de-humidify the air and recover 42,000 litres of water to be reused in the pools.

Its other claim to fame is that it is able to control the temperature throughout the facility to a comfortable 30 degree C.

Adam Wilson, 11, a Year Six student from Qurrayah, said: “The guide showed us how all the rides work but what I found most interesting was how they maintained a standard temperature. It increased my understanding and I found it all very fascinating.”

The waterpark’s marketing manager Shama Uchil explained that the park had received a huge response from parents and teachers. She said: “It’s positive to see so many school enquiries for both an educational and entertaining day out at the waterpark.

“There are very few avenues for children’s trips in Bahrain and having two of my own I know that there aren’t many options where they can visit, see and learn.

“Students are invited to perform practical pool water tests, check the PH levels in the water and watch a presentation on what makes a waterpark tick.

“Students can also learn about how the park ensures that pools have clean, hygienic water every day and how the evaporated water is replaced.”

Teacher Robert Stephenson said: “We brought the boys and girls here as a treat for all their hard work and helping other children throughout the year. Just mixing with different age groups of children and coming out to represent their school is a really a good thing and the information they learned will be useful in their studies too.”
The educational tours cost between BD8 and BD11.5 per child depending on the size of the group visiting and on whether its weekdays or a weekend.