Land of Natura — Attraction in Wisconsin Dells

I was hopeful for my family's first ever visit to Wisconsin Dells, or to any water park. The website and pamphlet for Land of Natura tell a very positive story, but once I got there and made it past the gates, I was left with a bitter impression. Waterworld was cool, but the park has some serious issues to address. To those who have extra money to spend, these may be easy to overlook. The parking fee (dollar amount - the actual fee) is not posted online. I phoned the park a week before my anticipated visit, before deciding to buy tickets, to find out what the fee was, and was told that it varies unpredictably, but on the day of my call, it was $25. I decided to take a chance. On the day of my visit, it was also $25. One has to wonder if the $25 parking fee (which is astronomical compared to any parking in the Downtown Dells area) is hidden online in order to entice people to purchase tickets ahead of time and have no choice but to pay the surprisingly high fee at the gate. On the day of my visit, there were numerous chairs, umbrellas, tables, and such amenities around the beach area that were available to rent for an exorbitant fee. These prices were set so high that even though rental chairs seemed to outnumber the chairs that were included in the price of admission, the rental chairs were still barely utilized. All chairs, umbrellas, sitting areas, and tables on the premises should be included in the price of admission. This would ensure that crowds are spread out, and improve the comfort for all. I knew the park had lockers available for day use, so I brought my own small padlock with the intent of securing my belongings. It turned out that padlocks are incompatible with the lockers. The park charges minimum $15 per use for the smallest lockers (even more, for larger ones), which must be paid using a credit card on a nearby machine. This is a shameless cash grab. As a result of this excessive fee, most families could understandably be seen lugging their belongings and leaving them in the only other place that made sense: on the dining tables and chairs, in plain view of the inflatables. The littering of the dining area with everyone's stuff (which really should be stashed in lockers) due to problem #3 meant that people who actually wanted to order food and sit down could not find an empty table. This is despite the blatant signage on said tables that these are to be used only for dining. The staff that were nearby did not enforce this rule. The "woodland adventure" simply did not work. The mini zipline is nearly horizontal, such that my kids could not actually glide on it, they would simply remain stationary, even with a running start. The rope trampoline (as pictured on the website) did not work either. My kids got bored as soon as they stepped on it. In order to beat the heat, I decided to explore the Treetop Walkway and nearby trails before heading to Waterworld. I paid the parking fee, was told to first check in with the waterpark, then returned to my car and proceeded to drive the rest of the way to Rivertopia. When I was done at Rivertopia and wished to return to the waterpark, I was flagged down and told I had to go through the parking gate again. I was not charged for parking twice, but this is dumb parking lot design, and if there happened to be a lineup the second time, I would have been pretty upset.

To the park owners: As a result of issues 2, 3, and 4, I decided to end my visit early. I did not lock away my belongings. My partner and I took turns enjoying the portions of the park that were included in the price of admission, and guarding our belongings. Because of the excessive rental prices, I did not rent anything. And because I could not sit down to eat, I did not spend any money on food. This park is not doomed. It is still very new, and you still have a chance to turn things around. But if you don't, you will get more reviews like this one, and more customers will spend less money and be less satisfied with their visit than they...

Business strategy of this place put a bad taste in my mouth. Reasonably affordable admission, but parking alone costs $30 (more than admission if you have the group rate or a coupon). Everything else after you get in the door is just more nickel-and-diming, with unreasonable prices to rent seemingly basic amenities or buy concessions. This is alluded to on the website but very little actual pricing information is provided. Seems like they're taking advantage of a captive audience by hiding most of the costs until you're already onsite/have bought tickets.

We went anyways despite knowing all that beforehand, because I didn't want to miss a planned event with friends. Kinda wish I hadn't bothered. The slides and the inflatable course are fun, but definitely not worth the time or money on their own- they're also the most consistently crowded. River area and hiking trails are neat, but you can get similar experiences cheap or free at one of Wisconsin's many state or local parks. Beach was too crowded and noisy to be restful, food/drinks were too expensive to be worth even trying, and watercraft (kayaks, paddleboards, etc) all cost money to rent as well. Having live music is nice and all, but the DJ's setup was loud enough to be bothersome almost everywhere in the lake area and cause hearing damage near the booth. They also had completely different loud music playing in and around the main building. Sensory hell for anyone close enough to hear both.

Ultimately feels like this place is trying to be some combination of a state park, a waterpark, and a beach resort, and it ends up just kinda failing at all three. Might be worthwhile if you have young kids who can make their own fun and play in the lake all day. But as an adult I just don't see the value in it compared to, well, an actual state park or waterpark or resort.

For my fellow 'research places obsessively before going there' folks: -I can't honestly recommend paying their parking fee, so if you can rideshare or plan out a way to park elsewhere, do so -Whole place is card-only, so don't bring cash -They have a bag check before admissions, they'll look through your things for any outside food/drink or other prohibited items. Empty your water bottles TSA-style before you go in. After that, you want the door on the left for the front desk, unless you already have a pass/wristband. -There are water fountains with bottle filling stations in the main building. Free, cold, filtered water. From the beach, just walk through the lockers next to the life jackets, and take the doors on the left. -The lockers cost money (I didn't check how much) but there's no rule against taking a bag in to hold your towels, sunscreen, clothes, etc. If you have someone to watch your bag or just leave any valuables in your car, you can skip the lockers completely. -Bring your own towel (free) -If you want somewhere a bit quieter on the lake, you are allowed and welcome to sit on/in the waterfall at the back. The pond closest to the hill with the slides is also a 21+ 'adults only lagoon' with some floating chairs, and it was mostly unoccupied the whole time we were there. -You can leave and re-enter the park with the wristband they give you. If you do park onsite, there's nothing stopping you from keeping your food and drink in your car and going back out to the lot for a picnic, rather than paying the park's steep...

Updated 6/19/2024 After just getting off the phone with the ticketing mananger at Natura, I changed my rating from three stars to one star. (See original review below) After checking the Natura website, it appeared they had reinstated the no charge observers pass after receiving customer “feedback”. I decided to give them a call to see if I could be refunded my $45.00 as I had been there on 6/14/24 and asked about the no charge observers pass at that time. I figured they would simply offer me a credit back on my account as it was just late last week that I had been there. The person I spoke with (probably about the most unprofessional customer rep I have ever dealt with) said they wouldn’t do that. After a lengthy and often very heated discussion on this it became clear this issue was not going to be resolved with her. I asked if she was the overall manager of the park and she replied she was not. I asked if I could have the managers name and she refused to provide it. I asked for her name and title and she refused to provide either. I have never dealt with a business representative that would not provide this most basic information. She was rude, talked over me, and often raised her voice during our discussion. I told her I was going to revisit my google review with a less than flattering comment on the park and the very poor customer service. She then said she would offer me a free standard day pass as compensation. I said that didn’t really make alot of sense as even if I were coming back there (which of course I’m not), I would still do nothing more than observers ticket anyway (I’m 71). I think the way a business operates says alot about it. My dealings with Natura have caused me concern and I think I would prefer to spend my money elsewhere. Frankly the $45.00 admission fee is not going to matter that much one way or the other but I would just rather go somewhere else where it feels I am valued as a customer and not just a dollar bill. As overused as the phrase is, it really is about the principle.

6/14/24 Probably not the best waterpark deal in the Dells but a decent place. I went up with my granddaughter and her friend. Parking is $15.00 which is odd as most of the other parks up there offer it for free. My admission came to about $45.00 total with tax. My granddaughter and her friend had season passes. Considering I didn’t do anything except sit at the table, this didn’t seem very customer friendly. According to my daughter, you could go in for free last year if you were going in only to chaperone. That seems like a pretty significant change now that you have to pay. Other waterparks in the Dells offer comparable (or better) pricing and offer more things to do. The park itself is clean and well maintained and the staff are friendly. The food was decent (pizza) but they charge you $2.00 for just a glass of water. It was a number of these things (parking cost, admission, charging for a cup of water) that makes it feel like they are trying to get every last dime out of the customer and I don’t like that. I am not recommending against this park but I do think there are better deals available at other parks with same or better options when it comes to activities. I would...