Macedonia Welcomes a Waterpark! Polin to begin construction of waterpark named for former Balkan president: The Boris Trajkovski Sport Complex Waterpark
Related: Polin Profile/ Sohret Pakis, Polin, Discusses the Future of the Attractions Industry in Turkey/ Santorini Water Fantasy: New Waterpark by Polin to Open in 2013 in Thailand
Construction has not yet started, but Polin Waterparks and Pool Systems has begun shipping materials to the site of a new government-funded waterpark in Skopje, a city in the Balkan country of Macedonia.
Skopje is the capital and largest city in Macedonia, home to about a third of the country’s population.
Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski attended the groundbreaking ceremony last month. Ratko Kapusevski, director of the new aquatic venue, said the attraction compliments the city’s "Skopje 2014" project in which the country has been working to build on the area’s historic roots. Improvements that are part of that project include the erection of new statues, fountains, bridges and museums.
"We expect this new aqua park will allow our area to provide guests with even more reasons to visit our remarkable city, " he said.
Costs of the new waterpark are estimated to be EUR€4.2 million. The venue is named after Boris Trajkovski, former president of the Republic of Macedonia from 1999 to 2004 whose presidency ended when he died in a plane crash on his way to an economic summit.
A Perfect Playground
Skopje offers a climate that lends itself well to the attractions of a water park. Summers are long, hot and humid with average temperatures of 31° C (88° F), though high temperatures sometimes reach 40° C (104° F). Summertime precipitation is rarely an issue with most rainfall from April to June and October to December.
Construction for the waterpark is planned to begin in March, before the rainy season begins. And despite the potential for rainfall during the construction period, city officials said they expected the park to be open by the start of summer. Kapusevski said construction would take no longer than 45 days. "This waterpark will be Skopje’s main summer attraction, " he said. "It will provide a direct impact on local tourism efforts and on the Karpos municipality’s economy, along with providing 35 jobs."
Polin established a new office in Macedonia. And it will be working with local Macedonian construction and electrical companies, Zikol and Elektrounion, to build the facility. It will include 10 waterslides, a children’s pool, a wave pool, a leisure river, an administrative building, a restaurant and bar, bathrooms, dressing rooms and a first-aid station.
Specifically, some of the major attractions at the new park will include:
- A Multisurf waterslide with head-first mat racing
- A Turbolance with Flying Boats, an extreme slide with a water-propelled uphill ride followed by steep drops that end in a splash pool.
- A Space Boat, which combines the elements of Polin’s Space Hole with its Black Hole attraction.
- A Body Slide that propels riders along a slide of both drops and straight-aways at different speeds.
- An Aquatube, a fast ride that can include both visual and auditory special effects.
- A kids area with a rabbit slide, giraffe shower, mushroom fountain, mini octopus slide and a pirate-themed multi-level water-play structure with slides, tipping buckets, water cannons and net climbs.
