10 July 2 - 8, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Cool for the Summer Skip the rankings. We break down the best local waterparks by thrill, shade, price and crowds so you can pick your perfect summer splash. BY PRESTON BARTA E verybody has a water park opin- ion, and most of them come with a horror story. Here’s the truth: that stuff happens everywhere, at every park, on a hot enough day. So, we’re not crowning a champion; we’re laying out what each spot actually does well, so you can match the park to your mood. Sometimes you want chaos and a 75- foot drop. Other times, you want a snow cone and a slow float. North Texas has both and more. Epic Waters Indoor Water Park 2970 Epic Place, Grand Prairie This is a (mostly) weather-proof option. When the heat index hits triple digits or a mild storm rolls in, an indoor park starts look- ing like a stroke of pure genius. Epic Waters delivers climate-controlled comfort without the chaos. Free parking is a quiet hero at the waterpark, especially compared to Great Wolf Lodge, where premium pricing piles up un- less you commit to an overnight stay. Epic Waters feels more relaxed and less wal- let-draining. No sunburn, no heatstroke and a steady mix of slides and a lazy river indoors. On the downside, indoor humidity is a real thing, and the acoustics mean noise bounces. It’s a solid choice, but you trade open-sky scale for convenience. Tickets start at $39. Hawaiian Waters 4400 Paige Road, The Colony This is a neighborhood favorite that shows up in every local’s recommendation. It’s a friendly, manageable park that families return to, with a mix of slides and pools that suit a range of ages. The smaller park’s approachable size means less walking and easier supervi- sion, a plus for par- ents juggling little ones. As at every park, experiences vary by the day and the crowd. On busy afternoons, staff attentiveness and crowd management can slip, so go early when you can. Tickets are around $34.99. Hurricane Harbor Arlington 1800 E Lamar Blvd., Arlington This is your adrenaline headquarters. As the aquatic parallel to Six Flags Over Texas, Hurricane Harbor leans hard into thrill, with towering slides, drop capsules and a wave pool big enough to make it feel like the eighth sea is in North Texas. Older kids, teens and thrill-chasing adults will be in heaven here. The variety is unmatched. Plus, the new Splash Island for the younger ones is complete with a thousand-gallon tipping bucket. The downside is for families with ba- bies: there are zero baby changing stations unless you make a special trip to the first aid centers, and hardly anyone knows that. Crowds can swell fast, and on peak days, the chaos can be overwhelming. Pricing adds up quickly once you factor in parking, fast passes, lockers and food. Tickets start at $29. NRH2O Family Water Park (North Richland Hills) 9001 Blvd. 26, North Richland Hills If your idea of a great day involves shade and a little serenity, this one’s calling your name. NRH2O leans into a natural aesthetic, with plenty of trees, rock features and welcoming corners that don’t feel like a concrete parking lot with slides. Excellent shaded areas, a pleasant lazy river and a decent wave pool make this park hard to beat. Younger kids can enjoy climbing nets, fake logs, splash zones and a tipping bucket. Older kids get the big slides. Thrill purists may find this park tamer than Hurricane Harbor, but it’s still well worth the visit. Tickets start at $22.99. WhoaZone at Grapevine 3000 Meadowmere Lane, Grapevine Ever wondered what it would look like to drop a whole village of bounce houses onto a lake? That’s WhoaZone, the largest float- ing aqua park obstacle course in Texas, set out on Grapevine Lake in Meadowmere Park. This is “American Ninja War- rior”-style fun on the water, with inflatable bridges, balance beams and other acrobatic thrills all bobbing on the water. It takes the water park concept in a wildly different di- rection, trading giant waterslides for a wob- bly, splash-heavy labyrinth that rewards a little grit and a lot of laughing when you fall in. Note, everyone has to swim unassisted and wear a WhoaZone-issued life jacket. Weather can shut things down fast, too, since high winds and lightning close the course. Tickets are $23 for an hour or $55 for all day. ▼ MEDIA CHALLENGES OF CHEERING “AMERICA’S SWEETHEARTS” DIRECTOR GREG WHITELEY DETAILS THE STRUGGLES THAT THE FIRST SEASON BROUGHT THE DALLAS COWBOYS CHEERLEADERS. BY ADAM DAVIDSON W hen Emmy Award-winning di- rector Greg Whiteley first came to Dallas in preparation for “America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders,” he experienced the high-oc- tane “Thunderstruck” dance routine for the first time. He was surprised to see the crowds looking at their phones, slowly find- ing their way to their seats, not paying much attention to the girls who had bled and sac- rificed so much to get the chance to perform on this stage. After the success of his Netflix docuse- ries chronicling the cheer team’s season, he noticed people were still on their phones, but instead of doom-scrolling, they were now recording the performance, captivated by the signature pregame routine. With a nationwide tour, millions of fol- lowers on social media and big brand part- ners like the cosmetics line Charlotte Tilbury, the recently released third season of the show follows the cheerleaders as they grapple with their new level of attention and mounting pressures, chronicling the veteran members’ efforts to balance viral visibility with the pursuit of perfection. With the life-changing experiences that the cheerleaders have gone through, White- ley remarked that it would be “impossible” to tell this year’s story without accounting for the fact that their profiles have been raised to new levels that haven’t been seen within the brand before. “They’ve always been famous,” he says. “The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (DCCs) have been a world-recognized brand since the mid-70s, but I don’t think the cheerlead- ers as individuals had ever become famous in this way. During Season 1, we were docu- menting not just the DCC as a whole, but these individuals and what it’s like to be a cheerleader. The natural by-product of that is that you get to know them as people, and then the natural by-product of that is that some of them become famous. With that comes some perks, and with that come some downsides.” Come Hell or High Kicks Alongside highlighting the privileges of be- coming a DCC, like a marketable spotlight and a paved road to full-time influencing, Whiteley also captures the challenges and pitfalls they might face. This authenticity is what makes “America’s Sweethearts” such a popular show, watched by a global audience. “One of the things audiences respond to is when you can take a stereotype, crack it open, turn it around and show it in a different light. I think there’s something deep down in all of us that hopes that’s true of ourselves as well. ... When you see it’s true of somebody else — someone beautiful and seemingly flawless who looks like they couldn’t possibly have a problem in their life — and then you discover that they wrestle with many of the same inse- curities, issues and problems that we all do, there’s something comforting in that. I don’t think we feel quite as alone in our own strug- gles when we learn that,” Whiteley says. Working on the third season, the returning cast members have become more accustomed to media attention and to preserving charac- ter, and Whiteley has had to reimagine how to capture the girls’ authentic experiences and emotions to deliver the captivating series his audience insatiably devours. ▼ Culture Preston Barta DO YOU WANT CHAOS AND A 75-FOOT DROP OR A SLOW FLOAT? TAKE YOUR PICK. Hurricane Harbor’s kid-friendly Splash Island offers a change of pace for families.
