SPLASHDOWN water park in Poole has announced it "can't wait" to reopen later this year after months of closure.
Ensuring the water park meets all relevant safety regulations, Splashdown has revealed that it will be a quite a different experience from what people are used to but promise the park will be just as fun.
READ MORE: Dates set for the reopening of Bournemouth Pier attractions
Splashdown will reopen in May (Splashdown)
In line with the government's 'roadmap' out of lockdown the water park is expected to reopen on 21 May.
A Splashdown spokesperson said:
"We are incredibly excited to welcome everyone back, it's been a very long lockdown!
"We hope to welcome people back from 21 May and we can't wait!
"It's a different visit to what people might have previously been used to, but we're confident that we can provide a safe and memorable trip that's still incredibly fun."
What safety measures will be in place?
The water park, located at the Tower Park complex, has been working with guidance issued by the Government last year and resources made available by the trade associations to get everything in place for their reopening later this year.
The spokesperson for Splashdown said: "We implemented Covid secure protocols last summer which served us very well.
"In the absence of any further regulatory changes by the government this will be in place again this year which includes reduction in capacity, online booking in advance only, timed sessions and slots, enhanced cleaning regimes and staff PPE which we have all become only too familiar with.
Extensive risk assessments have been put in place and the water park, operated by Lemur Attractions, have changed their booking procedures by running a cashless system.
All tickets must be booked online to back up the Track and Trace initiative.
New stairs and plastic separators were installed last year at Splashdown ahead of their reopening.
Overall capacity has been cut by around 60 per cent and operators are asking guests to book in 15-minute slots to manage the number of people through the changing village.
This is to help social distancing measures between household groups and to help staff carry out additional cleansing routines for sanitising lockers and changing cubicles.
Queues for slides have been split up into two metre gaps and households are required to stay in their groups during their time at the water park, with a minimum of two and maximum of four per marker.
Splashdown have even put in a new staircase to remove a queue from one of their main staircases.
Staff will be expecting people to turn up in their swim wear and leave quickly after being in water park. Showers at the water park can be used for quick rinses, but only if necessary.
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