IN PARTNERSHIP WITH AQUA PLANET

What’s a good escape from the scorching summer heat? Most of the time, an ice-cold beverage does the trick, but that’s thinking small. A beach trip, perhaps? Been there, done that. Let’s do you one bigger. How does almost 90-degree body slides and over 300-feet high water raft races sound? We thought so.

Then Aqua Planet, a water theme park in Clark, Pampanga is the perfect place to bring some thrill into your summer itinerary. The newly-renovated park has raised its standards to world-class without the world-class prices. Think California water parks but without the 16-hour flight, and way more rice meals in the venue.

Aqua Planet’s goal for park goers is simple: It’s to give you a watermazing experience. (In case you haven’t heard, that’s a notch above amazing.) On top of the food and facilities, the best part about Aqua Planet is that whatever the size of your summer getaway party, there’s bound to be a super slide for you.

For the solo risk-takers (or the people whose friends all chickened out), Aqua Loop is the slide meant for you. You stand over a launch flap before it opens, sending you into a 100-meter free fall that will have you pummeling your way towards a 360-degree loop.

If you’re more about skilled balancing acts and less about death-defying drops, head over to the Flow Rider instead. It’s a surfing simulator, and needs a little finessing to ride without getting wiped out by the high-volume water pumps. Once you’ve figured it out though, you can take your hard-earned skills with you for life. Fun, check. New skill, check.

Of course, some of you might want to share the fun with your ride-or-die. That’s where the two-person slides come in. The Spiral Slides is the more mellow option for tandem rides, which lets you and a partner ride a double-tube floater through crisscrossing slides and curved spiral turns. But you have more than one best friend, you say? Make your way to the group slides.

Remember those pirate ships that doubled as gigantic swings in amusement parks? That’s what Sky Shuttle is, but make it a water slide. Feel weightless during the split-second loss of gravity as you prepare to launch back down during the pendulum-like ride. For the competitive bunch, the Octopus Racers is basically competitive falling. Grab your lucky race mat of choice and go head to head with up to five other friends in a race of gravity—mild trash talking optional.

Once you and your friends have had enough of falling, try whirling for a change at the Super Bowl. The slide is shaped like—you guessed it—a bowl, in which you and your friends will swirl your way to the bottom, where a maximum-splash drop into the pool awaits.

Crazier still is its bigger sibling, the Hurricane. Instead of a bowl, you’ll be at the mercy of a huge funnel in which the only exit will be a steep 45-degree drop. Yes, that might be what Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz felt when she and her house got whisked away by a hurricane.

For the more low-key peeps, don’t fret. It’s not all thrill and adrenaline at Aqua Planet. The trusty Wave River is long pool with a slow current that weaves around the area for you to ride a floater, laze under the sun, and just enjoy the view. Tip: It’s also a more fun way to travel around the park. The Wave Pool and Boogie Bay do not involve any drops or loops either, just good old-fashioned waves.

Cool, clear waters and high-speed slides aside, there are air-conditioned cabanas and ice cold treats available at Aqua Planet. If there’s anywhere on this country where you can beat the heat, this is it. Now, shall we celebrate a watermazing summer?

Aqua Planet is located at the Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga. For more updates, check out @aquaplanetph on Facebook and Instagram or visit their website at www.aquaplanet.ph.