In a perpetual blur of swoosh and splash, kids of all ages hurtle through the twists and turns of a water slide that drops 50 feet. Then, they scurry out of the pool, climb five flights of stairs and careen down again.

While outdoor splendors have drawn vacationers to the Wisconsin Dells (55 miles north of Madison) for decades, the newer wonders of the great indoors make for a weatherproof break. Since the mid-90s, no other resort town has seen the construction of more water slides, wave pools and tubing loops, making it the indoor water-park capital of the world, with some 17 of them.

At the jungle-themed Kalahari, on of the newest resorts to combine water fun with family-friendly accommodations, preschoolers wade across shallow Bamboo Bay. Older adventurers hit the Tanzanian Twister, where a slide drops you into a giant bowl.

Prepare to be drenched by a 500-gallon bucket in the indoor treehouse at Great Wolf Lodge across the highway. In Mt. Olympus Water and Theme Park, the Bay of Dreams Indoor Waterpark sports a 35-foot ship that's equipped with five kiddie slides, as well as some of the steepest tube slides you'll find anywhere in town.

But don't visit the Dells without seeing the Dells--the unique rock formations that have drawn visitors for generations. Those craggy bluffs rise from the bank of the Wisconsin River like stacks of sandstone pancakes. You float past them downriver on leisurely cruises aboard double-decker vessels.

Or you can bounce your way through the woods and splash into the river on the Wisconsin Ducks--amphibious transport vehicles from World War II. The "duck trail" heads along back roads into a forested ravine. The robots, holograms and other curiosities at Tommy Bartlett's Robot World and Exploratory keep children rushing from one exhibit to another. While outdoor splendors have drawn vacationers to the Dells for decades, the newer wonders of the great indoors make for a weatherproof spring break.

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