Sunburst Bay Aquatic Center

About

Sunburst Bay Aquatic Center, located at 1201 1st St, Cary, IL, is a popular seasonal outdoor aquatic facility operated by the Cary Park District. It features a variety of attractions including a zero-depth entry pool, exhilarating body flume and drop slides, a relaxing current channel, a dynamic spray play area, a sand play area, and dedicated lap lanes. The center also offers a concession stand for visitors.

The pools at Sunburst Bay Aquatic Center are heated to ensure a comfortable swimming experience for all visitors. While specific daily temperatures are not typically published, they are consistently maintained at a recreational temperature, usually in the low to mid-80s Fahrenheit, ideal for family fun and relaxation during the summer season.

What are people saying (AI review summary)? Sunburst Bay Aquatic Center is praised for its thoughtful design, cleanliness, and fun atmosphere, offering something for every age group. Many reviewers appreciate the facility and its staff, describing them as great, helpful, kind, and welcoming. However, significant criticisms include outrageous prices at the snack shack, with specific mentions of a $16.50 chicken tender meal and $4 sodas, along with concerns about undercooked food. Pass pricing is also a major point of contention, with a family pass costing $190 for only four people and a substantial increase in price over recent seasons, lacking discounted rates for toddlers or larger families. There are also complaints about rude sign-in staff who reportedly laughed at inquiries about disability/army discounts, and some observations about guards not enforcing rules effectively. One reviewer noted a lack of attention to security by not locking doors at night. Huntley Sting Ray Bay was suggested as a more respected alternative.

Location

Gallery

Amenities

• Accessible Entrance

Reviews

Listing Reviews

July 29th, 2025

Asem Kazieva

Great experience at Sunburst Bay Aquatic Center in Cary! The entire space is so thoughtfully designed — they really paid attention to every detail and made sure there was something for every age group to enjoy. It felt clean, safe, and super fun for all!

August 6th, 2025

Mehdi Aribi

Great fun facility and the staff are great and helpful nice kind and welcoming not like other facility with some stiff attitude Thanx alexia for making the best impression. Minute one Super recommended if u are in the area

June 23rd, 2025

AM S

We’re really lucky to have such a nice waterpark in the community — it’s a fun spot for families and a great way to cool off in the summer. That said, the prices at the snack shack are outrageous. Unless you’re okay spending $16.50 for a basic chicken tender meal, I highly recommend packing a cooler. We’ve also had multiple experiences with undercooked food — including pink chicken — which has completely turned us off from eating there. The pricing feels more like what you’d see at a concert or amusement park, which just doesn’t make sense here. $4 for a can of soda!? That’s insane! Another area that could use improvement is their pass pricing. A family pass is $190 and only covers up to 4 people. If you have a larger family and need to add two kids, you’re paying full price — $180 — which is just $10 less than the family pass itself. It would be great if they offered discounted toddler or young child rates, especially since little ones don’t stay long or use the facility to the same extent as older kids. To put it into perspective: just two years ago, the family pass was $155. Last year, it increased to $175. Now, it’s $190. That’s a $35 jump in just three seasons

July 18th, 2025

Jess Kenney

I have never met a ruder staff, the sign in people are absolutely horrid. We asked about disability and army discounts. These children at the sign in laughed and named their price. If you want a respected water park I highly recommend Huntley sting ray bay as an alternative

July 25th, 2025

Mike

Update: they don’t even pay enough attention to their work to close and lock the door at night. It's fine, but they keep raising prices and the guards don't really enforce any rules; they just whistle and point a lot.