About
Family-friendly site featuring a sandy beach, shallow swimming areas and a zip line.
As Smith Lake Waterpark operates on the natural waters of Smith Lake rather than temperature-controlled pools, specific pool temperatures are not provided. The water temperature naturally fluctuates with the season and prevailing weather conditions.
What are people saying (AI review summary)? Reviews for this family-friendly venue are mixed. Positive feedback highlights an awesome, fun, and relaxing family environment with beautiful scenery, enjoyable lake swimming, attentive staff (in one review), and available BBQ pits, recommending it for both relaxation and parties. However, significant negative feedback raises serious safety concerns. Multiple reviews report negligent and inattentive lifeguards, with one detailed account describing a terrifying incident where a child went missing for several minutes while a lifeguard allegedly remained seated and disengaged, leading to parental panic and an argument with the owner. Other parents reportedly witnessed and agreed with the concerned parent's assessment of the lifeguard's inaction. Further criticisms include unclean water with grass and debris, a lack of activities for smaller children, strict height restrictions causing disappointment, and concerns about potential hazards like a mattress near the water and overhead transmission lines.
Location
Gallery
Amenities
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Good for Children
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Parking Lot
Reviews
Listing Reviews
July 29th, 2025Austin Jackson
Awesome fun family environment! They really strive to make it a safe and fun family environment. Absolutely recommend 10 out of 10. Whether you want a nice day to relax and let the kids swim with full attentive life guard staff or to have a full party and not have to worry about all the details. Highly recommend.
July 29th, 2025matthew spaid
Horrible Experience. Unsafe and Negligent Lifeguards. Our visit was terrifying. The lifeguards were not paying attention, and with the water being so dark, it’s very easy for a child to drown. My son was playing on an island with other kids who were roughhousing, pretending to wrestle, and swimming underneath the platform. I had to step in to stop the horseplay. Moments later, we couldn’t find my son. My wife panicked, and I began yelling his name. (I’m a former Marine, so when I say yelling, I mean loud.) The lifeguard stationed on the island did absolutely nothing. She just sat there talking with her friends—no whistle, no movement, not even turning toward the water. I swam to the island myself, standing up, scanning the water, and still, she did nothing but give me attitude. I told her to do her job, because children can and do drown in situations like this. The owner (possibly her mother) told me I was being excessive. That is insulting. Every other parent nearby agreed I was acting as any parent would if they couldn’t find their child. Eventually, we finally found my son on the Zipline tower, but it probably took about 3-5 minutes. I remained calm, but this was an incredibly dangerous situation. I am also a former firefighter with extensive experience performing CPR on children and adults. Trust me, drowning happens fast and it’s not something you ever want to experience. If you’re a lifeguard, and a parent is frantically searching for their child in dark water, you should immediately help. If you can’t take that responsibility seriously, then you should not be in that job. We will never return. This was negligent and unacceptable. _________________________________________________________ Since the owner chose to “clarify,” I’ll add clarification as well. I’m shocked you found my behavior inappropriate but not your lifeguard’s. She stayed seated, facing away from the water, while I swam to the island, climbed up, and searched for my son calling his name the entire time. I did not cuss at the children or staff, however I probably said some bad words. I'm sorry, I was looking for my son while my wife was in tears thinking her son had drown. I apologized if I came across as intimidating. I know I can look intense, but I was not aggressive. I was focused on finding my child. Other parents agreed the lifeguard did nothing, and some even left with their children after witnessing it. If you believe a proper lifeguard response is to stay seated—without blowing a whistle, standing, or even looking—your standards are dangerously low. Even the kids on the island were yelling my son’s name before she reacted. I am a U.S. Marine, and I will do everything in my power if I think my son is in danger. I did not use a “combative tone” - I simply have a loud, deep voice. Multiple parents confirmed I was in the right. Instead of defending inaction, you should raise your standards and hire lifeguards who won’t freeze in a crisis. __________________ I've also added the photo of the lifeguard that was sitting in the island that found me on Facebook and replied to my story of me ziplining with my son saying "glad y'all had fun". I can see she takes her job very seriously. We actually were having fun, until it was very frightening because we thought my son had gone under the island and drowned. She remained seated the entire time. Raise your standards before someone drowns.
September 1st, 2025Steven Williams
Watched someone almost drown! Lol! And the mattress by the water sells the deal that people do procreate next to the water, also love the transmission lines above the water so if it falls in everyone in there is gonna be cooked by the electricity! 5/5 WOULD COME AGAIN!
June 25th, 2025Brandie Toten
Wasn't at all impressed, there's. There's grass and stuff growing all under the water. Not enough things for smaller kids to do. My daughter was 2 inches too short of being tall enough to go on the zip line. Which crushed they should have. More things for the little kids to do. And clean the bottom of the lake. Otherwise it was nice
June 16th, 2025Tony
It's a family-friendly getaway with beautiful scenery and a relaxing atmosphere. Swimming in the lake is so much fun, and they have several bbq pits for grilling. My stepdaughter works there, and she loves it.
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Opening Hours
| Sunday | 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM |
|---|---|
| Monday | Closed |
| Tuesday | Closed |
| Wednesday | Closed |
| Thursday | Closed |
| Friday | Closed |
| Saturday | 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM |
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