Mountain Creek Water Park — Attraction in Vernon Township

recently visited Mountain Creek Waterpark in Vernon, New Jersey, and after spending the entire day there, I feel like I got the full experience. This review is a long one, but I wanted to share all the details because when I was looking for information before going, I wished I had a more thorough breakdown. Hopefully, this helps anyone who’s considering visiting.

Arrival & First Impressions

The waterpark is located right in the mountains, and the scenery is absolutely beautiful. Driving up, you can already see the natural landscape that sets this park apart from other waterparks I’ve visited. Parking was relatively straightforward, but it is an additional cost, which is something to keep in mind. Once inside, the entrance is welcoming and organized, and I didn’t wait too long in line to get in, even though I visited on a busy summer weekend.

What really stood out to me right away was the mix of natural beauty and old-school charm. This waterpark has a bit of history, being tied to the infamous “Action Park” of the past, and you can still feel some of that adventurous energy. But now it’s run much more safely and responsibly, which gave me confidence bringing my family along.

Rides & Attractions

The variety of attractions is impressive. Mountain Creek has over 20 different rides and slides, and they range from thrilling body slides to relaxing wave pools and lazy rivers. • The Canyon Cliffs: This was one of the most intense rides in the park. Basically, you’re standing on a platform at the top of a cliff, and when you slide down, you get this near-vertical drop. It’s over in seconds, but the adrenaline rush is unforgettable. This ride is definitely not for the faint of heart, but if you love thrill rides, it’s a must-try. • Colorado River Ride: This was one of my favorites. You sit in a tube and go down a winding, bumpy river that feels more like a whitewater rafting experience than a typical lazy river. It’s fun, exciting, and long enough that you don’t feel rushed. • Wave Pool: The Surf Hill and the wave pool area were perfect for cooling off and just relaxing. The waves are strong enough to keep things interesting, but not overwhelming for families. • Family Rides: There are plenty of attractions suitable for kids and families. The Lost Island River and the Tarzan Swing gave us a great mix of thrills and family fun.

Overall, the rides are diverse, and what I appreciated most is that there are attractions for every type of visitor—from the extreme thrill seekers to those who just want to float and relax.

Safety & Staff

Given the park’s history, I was very tuned in to how safe everything felt. I was pleasantly surprised. The staff were attentive and professional, and lifeguards were stationed at every ride and pool. They were strict about height requirements and safety rules, which gave me peace of mind.

I also noticed staff constantly checking water quality, cleaning the grounds, and directing guests. I never once felt like things were chaotic or unsafe, even in the busiest parts of the day.

Cleanliness

Cleanliness in a waterpark can really make or break the experience, and Mountain Creek does a solid job here. The bathrooms and changing areas were decent—while not spotless like a luxury resort, they were maintained regularly throughout the day. I saw cleaning staff making rounds, and trash was picked up fairly quickly around the park.

The pools and slides themselves looked clean and well-kept. The water was clear, and I didn’t notice any debris or maintenance issues. For a large, high-traffic park, they did better than I expected in this...

If I could give 0 stars, I would. My boyfriend and I came here from Philadelphia, 2.5 hours away. We bought water park tickets & zip lining, then the $10 parking, $200 total. We came at 11:30, park opened at 11. We purchased a $20 locker for our belongings. We ate lunch at the bier garden, bought cocktails by the water, it was expensive already but we weren’t complaining!

As soon as we touched the water, it started down pouring. We were told that we had to wait 75 minutes in the park in order to get a refund. However, they don’t give out refunds, they only give out passes to come back. HOWEVER, that was their last day open so we will get tickets for NEXT YEAR.

we could not wait 75 minutes in the hailing rain, so we went To the local hotel we booked for that night that we already paid $170 for so we had no choice. There is not much to do around the area so we grabbed a few cocktails and went back to chill, we called the mountain creek and a lady answered the phone- she told us to go back the next day and receive a refund for our zip lining and new tickets for the water park next year.

We came back the next day, the lady running the parking was SO RUDE after we explained our situation (because we didn’t wanna pay for parking again) and told us “that’s not how we do things here”, despite me explaining my recent phone call with them.

We continued to the zip lining building where they told us that their online call receptionist has no clue what she is talking about and that they can’t help us. They offered us to go zip lining in that moment if we wanted to wait a bit, but we had a 2.5 hour commute so we could not. The gentleman that handled us was understanding, he called the manager to get some answers. She will be reaching out, hopefully, to issue our next year tickets (which will be impossible he said because their system is changing).

Next we went to the water park entrance tent, but there was a line…I was told the water park was closed for the rest of the year. However it was not. The guy we spoke to basically told us the same thing, “the online call receptionist does not know anything”. The two gentlemen were arguing on what solution there was and who to email. It was really unprofessional but I understood. He told us that he’ll email his boss Bob but “there’s very little chance that they get back to you”, so he offered to have someone come down to speak to us but it would be a long time. We ended up taking down the email and the boy took a picture of my QR code to send to his boss, hoping that we get tickets for next year.

I am very upset that the water park was indeed open that day, if I was told that yesterday, I would’ve had no problem coming back the next day. I can only imagine how many other people this happened to. I am angry that I spent $400+ dollars for a weekend that never even happened. I understand weather is always permitting but the way they handled it, immediately no.

Overall the miscommunication within the business is very frustrating, their customer service is god awful. I do really feel bad for people who had bigger parties and had to go home, thinking the water park wasn’t open the next day ATLEAST. I will not be coming back here, I hope these problems have solutions because this was a complete...

If I could give zero stars for my visit, I would. Buckle up because this is a long one.

To start, the park was absolutely filthy with trash all over the ground as well as cigarette butts. The bathrooms were grotesque. People were wasted and smoking weed throughout the park. People were cutting in the already very long lines with zero repercussions. I had a nine year old with me who I was treating to the park as a birthday present. It came to the point, where even he was asking if we could leave. While in line people were drinking brown liquid out of water bottles and behaving belligerent, leading me to believe it was liquor. They were smoking their vapes. And I had to explain SEVERAL times to the nine year old I was with that we had to just ignore it and turn away.

The final straw was when we were waiting on line for the alpine rush slide. While in line there were a group of 4 very young and very wasted people smoking their vapes and SCREAMING curse words as well as disgusting sexual comments. I had A NINE YEAR OLD WITH ME! No one was around to correct this behavior or ask them to leave. While this was going on a couple was (once again) cutting in line, and a few people in line asked them to please go to the back of the line and wait like everybody else. They refused to go back and began arguing with the people already in line. It got heated and the man who was cutting said he would be back. He left the line (with his bottles of liquor) and when he returned, he returned with a huge stone in hand TO BLUDGEON the guest who had asked him to go to the back of the line. The crowd began screaming for someone to call the police or security and NO ONE WAS AROUND! It’s OUTRAGEOUS that the only employee present to handle a situation like this was a teenage girl! The crowd broke into a frenzy and I rushed the nine year old I had taken to the park out of the line. At that point, people were running from the ride, including myself and the child I was with. I decided it was time to leave the park after spending 4 hours there and only getting on two slides (which was not only because it was a busy day but because of the constant line cutting). I found two gentlemen who were collecting garbage by some of the food court options on my way out and alerted them to what was occurring at the ride. They began heading over but I don’t know what came of it, I didn’t stick around to find out.

I have never been so disgusted, concerned and downright scared at a theme park before. I have come to this park in the past, years ago, and I LOVED it. I spent a lot of money on this present for it to be the worst gift I ever could have given a child. A day that was supposed to be fun, led to a an hour and a half car ride home full of conversations about safety, alcohol and drugs and how to escape a dangerous situation.

I emailed the park about this and have yet to hear back. I have never left a Google review anywhere before but this seemed...