Walking Tours

Wet 'n Wild's Strip ride coming to an end

This season probably will be the last for Wet'n Wild water park. Las Vegas-based Archon Corp., which owns the approximately 27-acre parcel beneath Wet 'n Wild, plans to close the park to make room for a new megaresort.

Wet'n Wild was the Strip's first major nongaming attraction, popular among tourists and locals. Several rides have been replaced or altered over the years, but Wet 'n Wild's signature attractions -the Lazy River, Surf Lagoon, Raging Rapids and Der Stuka's towering 76-foot slide -have been in place since the park's debut, and still attract visitors.

Mike Fijas, Wet'n Wild general manager, said the company plans to built another Las Vegas park. If built, a new Wet 'n Wild probably would be away from the Strip, where land values are prohibitive. Palace Entertainment would instead look for a central location that's accessible to tourists but convenient for locals. Fijas estimated a new park would take at least 12 to 18 months to build.

The most of the park's current rides will be moved to the nine other water parks Palace Entertainment owns. The park's 30 full-time employees could transfer within the company, though many will be laid off.

A new project, tentatively called Palace of the Sea, is expected to be a luxurious marina-themed resort. The development would include a 3,002-room hotel towering 611 feet above the Strip, replica yachts and a casino area designed to resemble the famed Opera House in Sydney, Australia.