Mystic Waters Family Aquatic Center
✓ Last confirmed for the 2026 season
Where: 2025 Miner St., Des Plaines, Illinois
Season: Late May through late August
Hours: typically daylight hours
Cost: free
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A Des Plaines Park District aquatic center with slides, a lazy river, the zero-depth Dolphin Bay full of fountains and jets, and Beluga Beach, a no-standing-water zone built for toddlers. Admission is required, with a small extra fee to bring in a picnic lunch.
What's on site. OpenStreetMap maps playground alongside, parking at this location. No public toilets are mapped here — worth knowing before you commit to an afternoon.
When to go. Peak summer highs in Des Plaines average 87°F — warm enough for a splash pad through most of the season without being punishing at midday.
How long it's open. Roughly 17 weeks a year, from May to August. Seasons shift year to year and municipal pads often close early for maintenance, so check before a long drive.
If this one's closed or packed
Splash pads close for maintenance, run short seasons and fill up on hot weekends. There is 1 other pad within 5 miles and 14 within 15. These are the ones worth the drive — ranked by shade, toilets and cost first, then by how close they are: