Sirens, Rude Tourists and Dirt at Gelendzhik Aquapark
Queues for the slides at this aquapark exist at any time of day
Golden Bay is Russia«s largest aquapark, located on Turisticheskaya Street in Gelendzhik (Krasnodar Krai, southern Russia). The complex usually opens in the first days of June and operates until mid-September, while the weather is still warm. Every year, thousands of tourists and locals ride the slides and swim in the pools. One vacationer who visited Golden Bay in early August shared her impressions with 93.RU. Below we publish her first-person account.
The queue into the aquapark; fortunately, it moves quickly
“Queues From the Very Morning”
A crowd at the entrance
We arrived at Golden Bay specifically for the opening, thinking we would get in among the first and calmly pick sun loungers and ride the slides without crowds. But reality turned out completely different. A huge queue met us already at the entrance. Honestly, it surprised and even infuriated us — we thought we had arrived early, but there were already so many people it seemed like half the day had passed. We weren«t the only ones who were that “clever.”
By noon, the number of visitors grows very large
The most unpleasant part was that some particularly brazen individuals kept trying to cut in line. From the very morning our mood was already ruined — noisy, children screaming, everyone bustling and pushing as if they urgently needed to get into the aquapark. On top of that, it was hot.
There were few people under the canopy
But in fairness, the entrance queue clears up fairly quickly. We thought we«d be standing until noon, but we didn»t spend that long in it.
Opening umbrellas was prohibited
The cost of one adult ticket is 2,900 rubles ($32 at current rates). For children under 145 cm (4 ft 9 in) — 1,900 rubles ($21), and toddlers under 106 cm (3 ft 6 in) can visit the aquapark for free. But you have to pay extra for a storage locker — it costs 300 rubles ($3). One locker can be enough for two people if you don«t have many things.
Lunch at the aquapark
At the entrance all bags are inspected and food is “confiscated” if you have any. Later, when you leave, you can collect it. But it«s better not to hold up the queue at all and simply not bring any snacks — it will be easier for everyone. You can grab a bottle of water, they won»t take it.
And best of all, put on your swimsuit or trunks in advance. Because the changing rooms have terrible queues from the very morning, and by evening all the facilities become very dirty.
Trash Was Floating Already Half an Hour After Opening
When you get inside, at first you«re lost. The territory is enormous, there are very many people, and it»s unclear which slides are where and where to go first. Before noon there are plenty of free sun loungers — you can pick any, and there«s no extra charge. But it»s worth saying that it«s best to go in and immediately run to the slides you want to ride. Because during the day there will be a real hell and such crowds that no one would want to enter.
Of course, the most extreme slides have the longest queues. But we were unlucky, and during our visit some of them were closed because of the wind. For the same reason, aquapark staff forbade opening umbrellas — so there was nowhere to hide from the scorching sun.
The water in most pools was very cold, uncomfortable to get into. At the far end of the aquapark there are two heated pools, but even there the temperature was fairly low. One of them is located in a spot with many pine trees — so it was littered with leaves and various debris already half an hour after opening.
There Are Very Loud, Brazen and Even Drunk Individuals
It«s worth noting that tickets for a half-day visit are not sold here. If you arrive at 1:00 p.m., you still pay for a full day. That»s understandable — the number of people is enormous, you can«t keep track of everyone. And you might not manage to ride all the slides even in a whole day.
The queues for the slides are simply awful. I don«t understand the point of standing and waiting for half an hour in the heat to slide down for 5 seconds. But people still stand there! There are very loud, brazen and even drunk individuals. You also come across those who smell terribly. It»s not particularly pleasant to swim next to people like that. And it«s better not to go into the restrooms at all.
Each slide has two staff members on duty. Most of them absolutely don«t care about their jobs — they just sit there staring at their phones. They»re not eager to answer questions about how to slide down properly so you don«t get hurt. So you have to watch out for your own safety and count the time until the previous person has slid down so you don»t collide with them at the bottom. In other words, do their job for them.
But if you were foolish enough not to get out of the pool quickly enough after descending, be prepared for them to yell at you. You have to keep this in mind constantly, even if you hit the water painfully or flipped upside down while sliding. There«s no time for thinking — you need to fly out of the pool immediately! In short, the rules here work very strangely.
The other vacationers also seemed unfriendly to me. Many occupy several sun loungers at once. One question — why? There«s nowhere to put your things by the middle of the day, even though most people are swimming and not even resting by the water.
“We Swam Under Sirens”
The prices are a bit steep. Lunch consisting of a sandwich with ham (which turned out to be bologna, in fact) and a bottle of cola cost 700 rubles ($8). But for an aquapark, the food turned out to be quite decent in taste. There are several establishments on the territory, all serving fast food — pizza, hamburgers, french fries or chebureki (deep-fried stuffed pastries). The selection isn«t that large, but you can eat your fill.
The most annoying thing is that by the end of the day, the water in some pools becomes murky. And there«s also a countless amount of other people»s hair floating in it. But there«s nothing to be done — the aquapark is very popular, and it»s clear that there will be many people there during high season.
Throughout the day, announcements were repeatedly made over the loudspeakers about another lost child. You can«t say it»s annoying — it«s just a fact. Children often run on the slippery tiles, tumble in the pools or try to get onto slides meant for adults. Some bring infants with them — so there»s a very high chance of catching the smell of a baby«s surprise somewhere near the loungers.
By evening, sirens were activated in Gelendzhik, and they were clearly audible in the aquapark too. But none of the vacationers or staff even flinched. It«s not very clear how to behave in such a situation — nothing about it is said anywhere on the aquapark»s website. So everyone continued swimming, pretending there was no alarm. After some time, the warning system was switched off.
Closer to closing time, there are very few people — for about an hour you can swim to your heart«s content practically without crowds. The aquapark itself is very good, with enough slides for every taste. But the number of visitors is simply killing — and it»s unclear what time of year to go to have a calm holiday.
