Despite the dark clouds occasionally dropping patches of rain over Sun Splash on Sunday, the last day of operation, families still came out and enjoyed what the water park had to offer.

Dawn Richards, who brought her four children, said it began raining 10 minutes after they arrived and rained for about half an hour. Theystayed in the lazy river because there was no lightning.

Richards said she thought the park would have been more crowded on Sunday since it was the last day of the season and the great admission price of $7, but figured the rain discouraged some from coming.

The Richards visited the water park a couple times this year because the kids love going.

“My favorite is the lazy river because I get to walk around in it,” Reid, 6, said.

A Fort Myers resident, Debbie Howard decided to use tickets she won for free on the last day of operation with her five children. She said they really enjoying their first time at the park

“I like the lazy river because you can just float around,” Howard said.

She said the weather did not affect their day either because they stayed in the lazy river while it rained.

Next year when Sun Splash opens again, Howard said she will definitely come back with her kids.

Sandra Greiner, Sun Splash manager said the last weekend of operation went remarkably well considering the weather.

“We are doing really well,” she said Sunday about the attendance. “We still had a really good year.”

Although it rained on and off on Sunday she said they did not have one drizzle of rain at the park on Saturday. Around 10:45 a.m. the first sprinkles of rain were felt at the park on Sunday.

“It didn’t seem to bother anybody,” Greiner said, adding that everyone would have had to get out of the water if there was lightning.

Last year on the final two days of operation she said they had 95-degree weather without a cloud in the sky, which brought out more people for the end of the season.

Greiner encourages people to call her with suggestions on how to make Sun Splash better because she is always looking for ways to improve the park. She said she takes ideas from the surveys she sends out, along with visits she makes to other water parks.

“I visit other water parks and capitalize on any good ideas,” she said.

This year the new feature at Sun Splash was the Tiki Express, which served hot dogs, pizza and drinks so attendees did not have to visit the kitchen for something to eat.

Birthday parties, although this year was not the first year they were offered, were more popular among the guests. Greiner said last year they had 134 birthday parties and this year they had 182.

“We stepped up to the plate,” she said, adding that it was an idea that she picked up on from a conference she attended.

A lot of the parties were repeat customers or they were booked because of word of mouth.

Although the last day of operation for people at Sun Splash was on Saturday and Sunday, dogs will still have the opportunity to go for a swim before the pools are emptied for the season.

Yappy Hour, which will be held from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1, and Sunday, Oct 2, is held for dogs of all sizes. Admission is $10 per dog and free for their humans. Each dog must have proof of current vaccinations and a completed registration to participate in the event. Only the dogs will have the opportunity to swim in the “Tot Spot” and “Family Pool” of Sun Splash before the pools are drained for the season.

Greiner said last year they had 174 dogs attend the one day event. She said all dogs were well behaved and they did not have any incidents.