Amusement Park News

Ripley's Believe It or Not! has made a splash with three new Texas water park acquisitions.

The three waterparks were previously run under the auspices of Hawaiian Falls, and are located in Mansfield, Roanoke, and Waco, Texas, respectively. Each featuring a Hawaiian theme, these parks fit neatly into Ripley's growing lineup of attractions that now include Great Wolf Lodge Waterpark & Resort located in Canada's Niagara Falls, Ripley's Aquariums, Louis Tussaud's Waxworks, Ripley's Haunted Adventure, Guinness World Record attractions, mini golf courses, mirror mazes, and wax museums, as well as a variety of traveling exhibits, among many others.

Ripley's is owned by The Jim Pattison Group, Canada's largest private company. According to company president Jim Pattison, Jr., “Ripley's Believe It or Not! World Entertainment has always been committed to creating unforgettable family fun…” He notes that bringing Hawaiian Falls into the Ripley's family of attractions is an excellent way for the company to expand in what he terms “one of our favorite states,” Texas. He adds that the 106-year-old company focuses on providing families and friends with memorable experiences together.



Since 2017, the Hawaiian Falls waterparks were owned by ProParks Attractions Group. Under that company's leadership, the water park attractions expanded, with guest satisfaction growing, too. John Hyltin, CEO of ProParks relates that "I am very confident the businesses and the teams will continue to prosper.”

The Hawaiian-themed waterparks were originally opened back in 2003 by David Busch of Horizon Family Inc. At that time, they had an unusual mission statement with a religious tone. In fact, their promotional material stated that the parks were "Serving the Lord by Bringing Families Closer Together."

In 2020, Premier Parks took over two other former Horizon Family water parks locations that were operating in Garland and Dallas, which are now operating under the brand name of Hawaiian Waters. ProParks took over the Mansfield, Roanoke, and Waco water parks that were in the Hawaiian Falls portfolio and are now purchased by Ripley.

The family-friendly water parks offer slides, wave pools, splash zones, and lazy rivers, with each of the locations offering some unique features for their guests.



The Mansfield water park location offers 13 acres that include a gathering space dubbed Ohana Hall and their new Turtle Bay splash zone area in the park. The Roanoke location is nine acres, with a massive children's' play structure which the park calls “one of the largest play structures in North America” located in the park's Coconut Cove area. Family sized rafts are another feature at this park. The Waco location is eleven acres and contains ten different water slides".
 
Each of the Hawaiian Falls Waterparks are now offering 2026 season passes. Existing season passes purchased for 2025 and 2026 will still be honored, and as a bonus, 2026 passes will now include free admission to a nearby Ripley's attraction, Ripley's Believe It or Not in Grand Prairie, Texas.

Hawaiian Falls Waterparks' media statement regarding their sale to Ripley's relates that "Our mission at Hawaiian Falls has always been to bring that Aloha Spirit to the communities and families we proudly serve, and we believe this exciting news will allow us to take that Aloha Spirit to the next level…In the coming weeks and months, we will be sharing new improvements and additions at each of our parks because of this exciting change.”

Hyltin and the Hawaiian Falls team worked with EFA Partners, a boutique financial advisory firm that arranges capital and provides strategic consulting services as their sell-side advisor for the recently completed sale to Ripley's Believe It or Not! World Entertainment.



Hyltin emphasized that it was “a pleasure working with the EFA team for the past several months… we selected them to lead our Hawaiian Falls sale process based on their significant experience and relationships throughout the leisure industry.”

EFA's principals collectively brought over 50 years of financial acumen in the leisure industry to the negotiations, handling client financial processes from start to finish. Working with ProParks, they received interest from other perspective acquirers besides Ripley's and assisted in negotiations with interested groups, as a variety of proposals were received for the ProParks offerings before Ripley's was selected as purchaser.
 
According to EFA founding principal and managing partner Ralph Willis, working with ProParks was more than positive. “Their industry experience allowed them to significantly grow revenue and profitability at each of the Hawaiian Falls waterparks which culminated in the successful sale to Ripley's,” Willis said in a media statement.

With these new additions, Ripley's now operates more than 100 attractions across nine countries worldwide.


The company's origin story began with a daily cartoon in newspapers that first appeared back in 1918. The cartoon is still offered in print today. Out of that beginning, the company has become a leader in family entertainment offerings around the globe, according to information provided by Ripley's senior manager, Suzanne Smagala.