OWA Parks & Resort

The amusement park north of Orange Beach. Owned and operated by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. The closest real theme park experience to the beach. If you've got a day to fill, this fills it.

The pieces

• Tropic Falls amusement park: outdoor rides, coasters, family rides. Real coaster credit for the enthusiasts.
• Tropic Falls indoor waterpark: open year-round, climate-controlled. Slides, lazy river, wave pool, kiddie areas. The single biggest reason OWA works as a rainy-day move.
• Downtown OWA: shops, restaurants, brewery, bowling, mini golf, escape room, Cirque-style shows in season. The "we don't want to ride rides today but we want to be at OWA" component.
• The hotel: on-site, the only on-property lodging.

What it costs

Day passes for the parks. Combo passes save real money. Weekend pricing is higher than weekday. Multi-day passes available. Look at the OWA website for current pricing because it changes seasonally.

Honest take: a family of four on a weekend at full price will spend several hundred dollars before food and parking. The combo pass and weekday timing are the move. If you're going for the indoor waterpark only, the waterpark-only ticket is cheaper than the combo.

When to go

• Best: weekday morning open in shoulder season (April, May, September, October). Short lines, decent weather, full operations.
• Fine: rainy weekday in summer. The indoor waterpark is full but moving.
• Worse: Saturday afternoon in July. Hottest, busiest, crankiest.
• Closed: some rides have seasonal hours. Check before driving.

The location

OWA is in Foley, about 20-25 minutes north of Orange Beach. The drive up is easy. Coming back on a summer Sunday evening with the rest of the beach traffic can be slow.

visitowa.com has the schedule, ride list, and current pricing.