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Wild Waves

Federal Way, Washington, USA

“The Pacific Northwest deserves a better theme park than this one”

Interstate 5 is a major highway in the western United States. It runs parallel to the coastline and spans 1,381 miles between the Mexican and Canadian borders. A road trip on I-5 takes you past several major cities… and a number of theme parks. In the far south, there are SeaWorld San Diego and Legoland California. I-5 then heads to the Greater Los Angeles area, where it leads drivers to the world-famous Disneyland Resort, Knott’s Berry Farm and Six Flags Magic Mountain. But it doesn’t end there. The imaginary I-5 Theme Park Club also encompasses some smaller amusement parks in Oregon and Washington State. The northernmost theme park on this list can be found within short driving distance from Seattle and it’s known as Wild Waves.

ROLLER COASTERS

Wild Waves seems to be having good relations with Zamperla. The park ordered quite a few attractions from this Italian manufacturer’s catalog, including two roller coasters. We are talking about a tiny powered coaster aptly named Kiddie Coaster and Klondike Gold Rusher. Zamperla describes the latter as a Zig Zag Coaster, but I prefer to just call it a Wild Mouse. The characteristic hairpin turns, sudden drops, and four-person cars all look very familiar. The experience is also similar, but we notice that Zamperla’s version feels a bit cheaper than the ones built by Mack Rides. The vehicles have a cramped design and hooking onto the chain lift happens with a rather painful bang.

Wild Thing doesn’t only refer to a hyper coaster at Valleyfair, but it’s also the name of an Arrow Dynamics multi-looper at Wild Waves. It’s actually one of the most typical Arrow-esque coasters you can imagine. The cars offer little legroom, the curves are rough, banking is weird and there’s an extremely uncomfortable transition at the start of the first corkscrew. Wild Thing isn’t exactly a great roller coaster, but I do find it surprisingly photogenic. It looks as if the tracks have been recently repainted and those bright colours really make the ride shine.

All of Wild Waves’ roller coasters were operating during our visit, and that seems to be quite an exceptional situation according to multiple theme park bloggers and vloggers. The park’s 4th and final credit is Timberhawk – Ride of Prey, a wooden coaster that opened in 2003. It was built by S&S Worldwide, a manufacturer with relatively little experience when it comes to wooden roller coasters. That’s why our expectations were low, but I must admit that the ride isn’t bad at all. We were pleasantly surprised by the excellent first drop, the smoothness, and the length of the layout. Besides, I’d like to praise the attraction’s location: Timberhawk is located on top of a hill and it’s surrounded by lush greenery. However, I’d like to add that Timberhawk doesn’t offer major thrills and it should therefore be considered as a family roller coaster.

OTHER EXPERIENCES

As its name suggests, Wild Waves Theme & Water Park also caters to Seattle-based water park lovers. Given that our visit took place on a scorching hot summer day, it was no surprise that the water park was particularly popular. The pools were filled to the brim and we encountered long lines for the slides. The crowds were immense and finding an open seat seemed almost impossible. We found it a rather unpleasant situation, especially because it was hard to find shaded areas in this water park. After a short walk, we quickly decided that we didn’t want to spend too much time in this area.

Satellite images on Google Maps clearly show that Wild Waves consists of two different sections. The southwestern half of the park (including the water park and Wild Thing) is wide-open, whereas the northeastern side of the park was built in a dense forest. It goes without saying that this second area is much more pleasant, and we were also delighted to finally enjoy some shade. Underneath the canopy, we found a nice mix of children’s and family attractions. We saw a carousel that’s over a hundred years old, an antique Ferris wheel, a Rockin’ Tug and an attraction with jumping kangaroos. Why didn’t the Walibi parks order one of these yet?!

There’s definitely no shortage of spinning and swinging flat rides at Wild Waves. The Timberhawk mountain is home to an old-fashioned Scrambler and a classic pirate ship. Further down the road, we found Hang Glider (a flat ride with seats that reminded us of those terrible Volare roller coasters) and Brain Drain, a miniature Space Shot built by S&S. One of Wild Waves’ more unique attractions is Soaring Eagle. This zipline allows guests to glide over the water park and the central lake. It looks cool and passengers are able to enjoy a great panoramic view, but keep in mind that this is an upcharge attraction. Reservations for Soaring Eagle can be made inside Wild Wave’s largest souvenir shop.

According to Wild Waves’ operating schedule, the park was open for just 102 days in the year 2025. You’d think that this leaves plenty of time for maintenance during the winter season, but we still encountered multiple attraction closures. Flat rides like Timber Axe and Gambler weren’t operational, but I was mostly surprised by the closure of Lumberjack Falls. We were visiting the park in August with a temperature of 33°C/91°F, so this shoot-the-chute would’ve undoubtedly been a huge crowd pleaser. Still, the park decided to keep the ride closed. And to be clear: the attraction’s water basin was empty, so I’m pretty sure that Lumberjack Falls wasn’t just experiencing technical difficulties.

WORTH A VISIT?

Our visit to Wild Waves lasted approximately 4 hours and that was more than enough. Honestly, the park didn’t make a lasting impression. It seems nice that Wild Waves can market itself as both a water park and an amusement park, but in reality, both parts underperform. The water park is lacking in atmosphere and capacity, while the amusement park is in desperate need of a headliner. Wild Thing and Timberhawk aren’t very special, and the rest of the lineup consists of standard kiddie and flat rides. It’s also sad that three attractions remained closed in at the peak of summer season. And to make matters even worse, we clearly noticed a lack of motivation among Wild Waves’ staff members.

Wild Waves is located in a region with very few amusement parks. It’s exactly this shortage of entertainment offerings that ensures that Wild Waves, despite its striking weaknesses, continues to attract visitors. I can only hope that the residents of Washington State will eventually get a better theme park in the area, or that Wild Waves will soon be acquired by an amusement park operator with more ambition. Until then, I have to conclude that the northernmost amusement park along Interstate 5 offers a rather disappointing experience.

This article reflects my personal experience at Wild Waves Theme & Water Park during a visit in August 2025.