Poconos will soon have country's largest indoor water park

An indoor water park in the Poconos will soon be the largest in the country.

When Kalahari Resorts and Conventions in Pocono Manor completes the expansion of its water park this spring, the 220,000-square-foot venue will surpass Kalahari's water park in Sandusky, Ohio, as the nation's biggest.

The expansion will double the size of the water park and add a wave pool, eight slides, a bigger lazy river, a swim-up bar, activity pool, hot tub, spa and cabanas, the Morning Call reports.

Owner Todd Nelson told the news outlet that the Poconos was a prime location because it can draw customers from New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. He also described the expanded water park, set for completion in March, as "one of the largest in the world."

The expansion will cost about $174 million, Nelson told the Pocono Record.

The African-themed resort in the Poconos and the first phase of its accompanying water park opened last year.

The Sandusky water park, for now the nation's largest, stands at 173,000 square feet.