6 minute read
Edmond Life and Leisure - February 20, 2025
Metro tourism gets a big boost
By Elaine Warner Wow!
That’s the only word I can think of that comes close to my reaction to my sneak-peak at Okana, the Chickasaw-owned resort on the Oklahoma River near the First Americans Museum.
The name Okana is a blend of two Chickasaw words, oka’, meaning water, and inkana’, meaning friend. The massive complex, a 400 million dollar project, has practically everything you could ask for in a resort – except a golf course. Even then, you can still get your inner Scheffler on with golf simulators – just one of a plethora of electronic games. My host took me on a two-hour tour and I still didn’t see everything.
We started in the lobby, an immense open space with striking ceiling fixtures. Several colorful murals adorn the walls.
Walking down a glass-fronted corridor, I was able to see one of the rooms. The resort hotel has 404 rooms with a wide selection of options. We started in a first floor King Bunk Deluxe Suite with two bunk beds (four bunks), a king-sized bed and a patio with a river view. There was also a sleeper/sofa, so the room could actually accommodate eight guests. Many of the rooms have this option.
I also saw an Inkana’ Suite which featured one king bed, two queens and a sleeper sofa plus a living area. You’ll never miss your favorite TV program – these suites have three 65-inch TVs.
On higher floors, many of the rooms have balconies All of the rooms have views – either of the Oklahoma River or the Lagoon (more about that later).
The smallest of the rooms, the Junior Suite, has a king-sized bed and sleeper sofa and can accommodate four guests. All the suites are sweet –and all suites have artwork by First Nations artists.
Not all the artwork was up when I visited. The collection is being curated by Exhibit C, the Chickasaw Nation gallery, which was formerly located in Bricktown. Its new home is between the resort and First Americans Museum. The new facility will open on February 21.
Now let’s talk about the Lagoon. There’s water, water everywhere in the resort. The largest pool looks like a lake and is called the Lagoon. Surrounded by a sand beach, the depth goes from zero-entry to six feet. The outdoor waterpark covers four-and-ahalf acres. The Lagoon is the fourth largest pool in the nation.
That’s just one of eleven unique pools in the complex. Outdoors, you’ll also find Bounce Bay, a Wibit pool with floating obstacles for balancing, climbing, jumping and sliding; the Summit Splash for cliff jumping; the Zip and Dip, zip line and drop;– and, of course, giant slides.
My favorite areas include the adults-only Cabana Cove, a shallow, tanning pool surrounded by Cabanas and chaise loungers with access to an adults-only bar. I’ll have to wait; the outdoor waterpark won’t be open until swimming season.
While many of the activities in the resort are geared towards a young crowd, there has been attention given
to those of us who prefer quieter, gentler spaces. Even in the uber-stimulating indoor water park, there’s a giant soaking pool, Soothing Springs, with built-in seating and a bar area just for over-21s. And there’s a corner for younger guests, too – the Low Tide Pool has a lazy river, a gentle slide and splash features.
The 100,000 square-foot park features 15 water slides (you can see some of the tubes from outside the building). Names like Whipsplash and Tidal Twist tell the tale, while Wild Rapids combines slide and rollercoaster elements. There are side-byside racing slides – Racing Rapids and Aqua Duel. Flowrider simulates surfing while Okana Crossing challenges balance with leaps from lily-pad to lilypad. High Tide, the wave pool, and Enchanted River offer more serene experiences.
In the center of everything is Splash Falls, a multistory play structure complete with slides, splash zones and tipping buckets.
If all that activity makes you hungry, grab a piece of pizza at Pie Lab, try Asian street food at Kaya or choose a sandwich at Sliders.
You’ll never go hungry at Okana. There are 13 different restaurants or concessions ready to fill the bill – and your stomach. Josh Ellison, Restaurant General Manager, showed us through Jack Rabbit, one of three signature restaurants on the property.
The bar area has a spectacular view of the Oklahoma River and the downtown skyline. Some of the specialties here include braised beef short ribs with a merlot demi-glace (Josh says the meat falls right off the bone.) and Waygu chicken-fried steak.
The restaurant was open that day for visiting dignitaries (I wasn’t one of them!) and Josh had just ordered his own lunch. His appetizer was Irish nachos: house chips, pastrami, white Cheddar sauce and pickled red onions. His main course featured fish and chips with jalapeno tartar sauce and fennel slaw. He added an order of truffle fries with Parmesan and parsley. Everything looked wonderful and, after asking, I tried a French fry –yum.
Other signature restaurants: Chido (Mexican slang for “cool” or “awesome”) offers Mexican street food and premium tequilas. Smokehouse Social, a BBQ restaurant with sports simulators opens later this spring. More casual and fast foods are available throughout the complex.
I’ve run out of room and haven’t even mentioned retail spaces and the huge arcade area, the escape room, laser tag and more. Director of Fun Melissa Roberts and her crew were practicing origami – one of many craft and game activities that will be available.
There’s also a spa I didn’t get to see but looking at the spa menu, it’s comparable to any five-star resort – offerings and price-wise.
The Grand Opening for Okana is February 21. You can book now at a special discount rate. Room reservations come with two waterpark passes. Restaurants and waterparks are open to the public, not just hotel guests.
Trust me, this resort is a gamechanger. It elevates Oklahoma City to a new level of tourism attractiveness. Do yourself a favor – forget about airline hassles and crowded highways –plan a staycation at Okana now.
Okana resort opens Feb. 21 near First Americans Museum
