Published February 19, 2025 | Updated October 11, 2026
Nebraska’s oldest city announced more than two years ago that it would build one of the country’s largest water parks. It will also have the distinction of being the first Mattel-themed water park to open, with several others expected to follow across the country.
The City of Bellevue and Mattel recently released new renderings for the Mattel Wonder Indoor Waterpark (formerly Bellevue Bay). According to Mattel, the park will consist of nearly 150,000 square feet and will include an 80-foot-tall building of more than 100,000 square feet with another 38,000 square feet outside. The outdoor portion is about the size of the indoor water park at Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City.
The new interior renderings show Hot Wheels-themed water slides and a Mattel Games lazy river lined with Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, Magic 8 Ball, and UNO. The other two renderings show a Barbie-themed boardwalk with a FlowRider surf simulator and a Fisher-Price water play structure. According to Mattel, the 385-foot lazy river will be longer than a city block, while the tallest slide reaches 60 feet. Not pictured but included in the original design are a swim-up bar and a grotto for adults, according to Holland Basham Architects. My son, a longtime fan of Hot Wheels, will love the slides, but I’m most excited about the chance to float in the river.
Harrison Johnson, the city’s Director of Economic and Community Development, told KMTV in May that a deal between Mattel and WhiteWater, one of a few companies in the world capable of manufacturing large-scale water park attractions, will help move the project along: “They are one basically of two or three other companies in the whole world that can manufacture these slides so having them have the…contract with Mattel will help expedite a lot of our intellectual property process to get these slides off the rack and hopefully over to the park.”
The park remains under construction and is now targeting a late 2027 opening. In June, I drove by the construction site to check on the progress. At that point, the steel frame and roof structure were being installed. While I haven’t been by since, recent updates from Mattel indicate that the building’s exterior and retractable roof are complete.
The water park will be owned by the City of Bellevue with day-to-day operations being handled by American Resort Management, which manages Epic Waters in Dallas-Fort Worth and Wild Rivers in Irvine. The project team includes Holland Basham Architects, ARCO/Murray, a national design and construction firm, and Olsson Engineering.
The park will serve as the anchor to the Bellevue Good Life District, a state-designated area that uses tax incentives to drive development, create jobs, and attract tourism. The water park is expected to connect to hotels via a climate-controlled walkway.
Bellevue has come a long way since Joshua Pilcher built the first trading post in the area in 1822. It was later taken over by Lucien Fontenelle, whose son Logan Fontenelle is the namesake of Fontenelle Forest, established nearly a century later. The city has since become home to Offutt Air Force Base and is now aiming to be a top entertainment district in the state with the Mattel Wonder Indoor Waterpark featuring some of the toymaker’s most popular brands. My family is counting down the days until we can take it all in!
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Sources
- https://www.wowt.com/2024/02/07/bellevue-city-council-approves-bonds-build-massive-water-park/
- https://www.3newsnow.com/papillion-lavista-ralston-bellevue/bellevue-breaks-ground-on-bellevue-bay-indoor-waterpark
- https://bellevuetimes.com/bellevue-bay-water-park-promises-to-make-a-splash-by-2027/
- https://www.3newsnow.com/papillion-lavista-ralston-bellevue/bellevue-bay-water-park-secures-deal-set-to-open-years-before-other-mattel-themed-parks
- https://www.islands.com/2161073/bellevue-bay-indoor-water-park-newest-largest-indoor-nebraska-outside-omaha-family-friendly-destination-open-2027/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellevue,_Nebraska
- https://www.greatwolf.com/kansas-city/waterpark-attractions/indoor-water-park
- https://bellevuetimes.com/first-look-inside-mattel-wonder-indoor-water-park-revealed-in-bellevue/
- https://mattelwonderindoorwaterpark.com/media-kit/ (registration required)
- https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261001968564/en/Mattel-Unveils-First-Mattel-Wonder-Indoor-Waterpark-Opening-in-Bellevue-Nebraska
- https://hollandbasham.com/projects/bellevue-bay-waterpark/
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