DUBAI // Yas Waterworld, the new waterpark in Abu Dhabi, opened its doors today, four days earlier than originally planned.
The opening was announced on its Facebook page, and comes ahead of its initial official opening to the public scheduled for Thursday, January 24.
The announcement said that management "just couldn't wait" until Thursday to open the park. "Today January 20th we officially open our doors to welcome everyone," the announcement said.
"Today was our first day, but it was more like a soft opening," a spokesman said. "The official opening is still on Thursday. People were excited and we were excited too, and we were ready to open."
The opening comes a day after a VIP ceremony on Saturday, attended by Shaikh Tahnoon bin Mohammed Al Nahyan, the Ruler's Representative in the Eastern Region.
The all-day opening ceremony saw carnival performers fill the souq area of the mega-theme park, plus a demonstration of pearl diving and a demonstration of expert flow-boarders.
"Yas Waterworld Abu Dhabi came to life today - both symbolically and literally," said Mike Oswald, the park's general manager, in comments to WAM, the state news agency.
"It has been an incredibly journey to this point and unbelievably satisfying to watch the people's reaction to what has been created.
"We are confident that people will have seen nothing like it before and we look forward to the waves of visitors expected to arrive now that the park is officially open."
newsdesk@thenational.ae
