It's still a couple of weeks away from opening day on December 12, but Sydney's newest theme park is buzzing with activity.
Construction workers lumber back and forth, attending to last-minute landscaping, and on the high platforms above, members of the 'splash test dummy' crew take their first spins on the park's 30-odd water slides.
Some of the tubes coil tightly around others, sending riders into a dizzy spin of sharp turns. Others shoot punters into the air aboard inflatable rafts, before sucking them down drain-like tunnels.
The newest incarnation of Wet'n'Wild won't be a direct copy of its Gold Coast twin. Those with keen eyes will spot the colours of Sydney lifesaving clubs reflected in the bright hues of the slides.
And there's a nod to Melbourne, too. Managing Director Chris Warhurst recently spent "about six hours" at a paint store, painstakingly selecting the colours that adorn the distinctly Brightonesque beach huts.
There will be more attractions, and general entry will cost $70 instead of $60.
Warhurst, who nursed the project through more than two years of planning, says the higher price point is indicative of the investment into the park and its facilities.
"Ultimately the pricing is pretty representative of fair value," he says.
"This theme park has over 40 rides and attractions, that makes it the largest in the world," he adds. "There are some rides and slides that haven't been seen ever before, there's the world's tallest, world's fastest, and what we think is the world's best beach."
He says those looking for value will be drawn to the season passes, which start from $100. There's been plenty of early interest.
"We've had overwhelming demand, so that's been really pleasing," says Warhurst.
The limited local public transport to the park's Eastern Creek location is something management have tried to accommodate.
"We're going to augment the lack of public transport in the area, so we'll be running shuttle services," says Chris Warhurst. "There's also plenty of car parking."
The outskirts of Sydney are no stranger to theme parks. Wet'n'Wild, on Reservoir Road, is just 10 minutes down the road from where Wonderland Sydney stood until its closure in 2004.
And those with longer memories will remember the days Mount Druitt boasted a water park of its own, just a few hundred metres from the train station.
But park bosses are confident the park will succeed where others before it have failed, and they aren't the only ones who think western Sydney is ripe for a theme park revival.
Former Wonderland employee and Mount Druitt-based property developer Ammar Khan wants to bring back the theme park he used to work at.
"I believe the market has certainly changed from back then," he says. "Sydney's population is much larger, and believe it or not the demand is way higher.
"There is simply nowhere to go, other than to get on a plane and fly to the Gold Coast."
