Family water parks in Spain | take the kids on a holiday they won't forget

The Costa Caribe Aquatic Park is the flagship attraction of PortAventura, the most visited theme park in Spain. A great day out for all the family, the park offers a range of different attractions for all ages: you’ll find a pirate playground for the little ones, raging river rapids for the older ones and the highest free fall slide in Europe for the bravest ones. In addition, the park has a variety of relaxing pools and exciting slides to make sure everyone is catered for.

Siam Park is a taste of Thailand in the Atlantic Ocean. A water park with a bit of a difference, the ‘Water Kingdom’ is home to the largest collection of Thai buildings outside Thailand and even features a floating Thai village which offers tranquillity, relaxation and Thai massages. You can expect plenty of great Thai food, too. But R & R isn’t the only focus here: Siam Park is home to the iconic Tower of Power, a 28-metre free-fall drop; as well as Kinnaree, a hair-raising 200m-long ProSlide.

Facilities for younger guests include a children’s game pool and Sea Lion Island.

Spain’s first water park, the aptly-named Aqualandia is one of the largest water parks in the world. While it has plenty of the child-friendly slides and pools you’d expect (including the Lagoon water playground), the park takes thrill-seeking pretty seriously too; its flagship capsule-slide, the nausea-inducing “VertiGO” drops adrenaline-junkies 33 metres (108 ft) in around three seconds – the equivalent of jumping from the top of a 13-storey building. But if that’s not your cup of tea, you can always head over to the Grand Jacuzzi…

The biggest waterpark on the island of Majorca, Puerto de Alcudia’s Hidropark has something for everyone. Feeling sporty? Try your hand at snuba diving (a type of underwater snorkelling) or minigolf. Want to unwind? Sunbathe by the pool or relax in the green areas. Feeling brave? Try the one of two 15-metre ‘Kamikaze’ slides. The waterpark caters for youngsters too, with the Children’s World pool and Mini Park slide area.

An easy day trip from Barcelona, Illa Fantasia is a sprawling outdoor water park featuring more than 22 rides and slides, a wave pool and minigolf courses. Centred around a pirate ship playground, the park caters equally for both adrenaline-junkies and sun-seekers: test your nerves on the rapids, the super toboggan or ‘Torpedo’; or simply relax by the poolside. The youngsters will love the water games on the pirate ship.