Planning a Family Vacation - Don't Exclude Water Parks

When planning a family vacation be sure to include water parks in your planning options. In the past water parks consisted of swimming pools and water slides offering a great way to stay cool on a hot day. However with the advancement of theme parks so to have water parks evolved mixing heart-pumping thrills with family-style fun.

Water parks have plenty of entertainment for the entire family including water rides with eighty-foot drops, lazy rivers, white-water rapids, lazy pools, arcades and outdoor games such as miniature golf and go-carts, which all can be found in today's water parks. There are slides for all levels and ages including water pools for the very youngest of family members.

Of course, some water parks do it better than others with mixing the family-style fun with the heart-pumping thrills. Here are the top 8 water park picks in the United States as selected by the Travel Channel for you to consider for your family vacation:

1. Noah's Ark, Wisconsin
2. Six Flags White Water, Georgia
3. Water World, Colorado
4. Soak City, California
5. Splish Splash, New York
6. Water Country USA, Virginia
7. Raging Waters, California
8. Schlitterbahn Waterpark, Texas