2022-09-21 September disappointment at Suntago

A day of respite

In September we managed to coordinate with J.’s parents and find time to carry out one of the plans that, in my young-father mind, had seemed almost impossible: leaving the Młoda with her grandparents and going away for the whole day on a married-couple trip to Suntago.

The first thing I was very grateful for was the beautiful September weather. Despite the chill, there weren’t too many clouds, and the whole journey delighted us with the colors of early autumn. A small treat, but I like driving when I can see something more than a highway outside the windows.

Park of Poland

We had been planning to go to Suntago for quite a while, ever since J.’s parents went there. In our minds we had an image of a huge aquapark, and we weren’t disappointed: the buildings of the park complex emerged above the forest-and-countryside landscape. The entrance is overwhelming in its size and promises a lot of attractions. The parking lot can hold far more cars than were parked there. It was Sunday, around 12 o’clock, and even so it looked like it wouldn’t be crowded. There was no line at the ticket office. I paid for the tickets with vouchers from the MyBenefit platform, which is a very nice option if someone has access to it (you can also use the vouchers at the exit to cover all expenses incurred inside the park).

The watch-ticket system is very convenient. You can pay with the wristband in the bars inside, choose any locker you like, and it also serves as an entry pass to the different zones. The hair dryers in the changing rooms are a big plus. Before entering, there are of course showers, divided into women’s and men’s... And this is where I was surprised that very few people notice and respect that division, which was very uncomfortable, because when I wanted to wash, women with children were walking along the corridor (from which you can see people showering).

The first thing that struck us after leaving the showers was the sheer amount of space. Artificial plants, loungers, a large wave pool... We went left to find some way down into the pool, but instead we found the Adventure River: a combination of a haunted castle and a current pool that pushed pontoons forward. Next to it there is a small water playground for parents with children. The entire ground floor of the Jamango zone wasn’t exactly bursting with especially interesting attractions. Once we had walked around the area, we found only a pool with a bar and a jacuzzi.

Fortunately, the pool was saved by the huge extension with slides. There are quite a lot of them there, pontoon ones and regular ones, single-person, two-person, and four-person. The lines weren’t long, maybe because it was already September.

I have to admit that pool slides never really excited me, nor did pools themselves. When I was younger, I went with my parents, but I never felt like going on my own. Just some attractions, maybe, but generally boring. Suntago is one of those places I would never have gone to if not for J. Without her, I also wouldn’t have gone on most of the slides. The lines on the stairs would have been several times more boring. One of the everyday perks of marriage :)

In the meantime, we took a lunch break. There are two restaurants upstairs: Italian and Asian cuisine. The prices weren’t exactly low, but it’s hard to expect anything different in places like this.

After lunch it was time for a bit of rest, and that’s where the problem appeared: all the loungers on the ground floor, by the pools, were taken. Granted, only about 10% of them actually had someone lying on them, but towels were spread out over all the rest, which in our reality is considered a reservation. In my opinion, complete idiocy and dog-in-the-manger syndrome; I was already plotting to take two towels off and move them somewhere nearby to free up loungers for us, but it turned out there were still a few upstairs, and since the spot was less attractive, nobody practiced towel-blocking there.

How do I remember that day?

We left Suntago late in the evening, after testing all the slides beforehand. We drove home for over an hour, singing together in the car along the way. Even though the park itself didn’t particularly amaze me, with some slides and the outdoor pool closed and expensive tickets, it is a memory I want to keep, because we had a very pleasant time there. Shared jokes, fun, rest, my screams of fear on the slides, and J.’s laughter show me that a deep relationship is something that gives a lot of happiness, even in circumstances where I would be bored on my own.