The European waterpark industry\u2019s innovation award will be presented for the 24th time in 2026.<\/b><\/p>\n
\u201cConnecting excellence \u2013 inspiring innovation\u201d \u2013 under this motto, the European Waterpark Association e.V., the association of European leisure pools and spas, has been promoting innovation in the leisure pool and spa sector for 24 years through the annual presentation of awards for outstanding projects in service design and marketing. For the past two years, alongside the \u201cEWA Professional Award\u201d and the \u201cEWA Marketing Award\u201d, there has also been an \u201cEWA Sustainability Award\u201d for sustainability and social responsibility in the operation of leisure pools and thermal spas.<\/p>\n
This year, the EWA Awards will be presented on 27 April 2026 as part of the 10th International Congress \u201cFuture Prospects for the European Water Park Landscape\u201d at the MEWA Football Arena in Mainz.<\/p>\n
The finalists and winners were announced yesterday. The EWA Professional Award 2026<\/b> for innovative service design goes to OLantis in Oldenburg<\/b>. OLantis is being honoured for the redesign of its SaunaWorld under the theme \u201cCity, Country, River\u201d. As part of the strategic concept for Oldenburg\u2019s swimming pools, a high-quality redevelopment of the approximately 5,000-square-metre OLantis Sauna World was approved and implemented over a one-year construction period from June 2023 to June 2024. The expert jury was particularly impressed by how a previously eclectic mix of styles and themes characterising the sauna landscape had been transformed into a cohesively themed experience zone that establishes regional connections under the headings of city, countryside and river. No less impressive is the success of the initiative: The visitor target of 130,000 guests per year, originally considered very ambitious, was already achieved in the first year following the implementation of the concept, representing a 33% increase compared to 2024, which was already a record year. Turnover in the SaunaWorld even increased by around 49% in 2025, almost doubling. Completion of a further construction phase is now planned for summer 2026, during which a plunge pool and a hot water pool are to be built in the sauna garden. A third construction phase will see the creation of a treetop sauna and a relaxation room.<\/p>\n
Also recognised as finalists in the \u2018Innovative Service Design\u2019 category are the Spa Resort Geinberg in Austria for the redesign of the SPAplus area, and the Therme Laa an der Thaya, also in Austria, for the new Silent Villas as an exclusive addition to its \u2018Silent Spa\u2019.<\/p>\n
AGGUA in Troisdorf<\/b> is delighted to have won the EWA Marketing Award 2026<\/b>.<\/p>\n
The jury deemed the AGGUA BEATS Festival, which took place for the first time in September 2025, worthy of the award. Under the motto \u201ca pool becomes a stage and the town becomes the audience\u201d, an open-air festival was organised in the AGGUA outdoor pool area in collaboration with the local carnival society, paying tribute to the region\u2019s festive culture. Well-known carnival bands such as the \u201cKlingelk\u00f6pp\u201d created a lively atmosphere for 900 guests. \u201cFor the first time, the outdoor pool was perceived as a social meeting place and cultural<\/p>\n
venue, and not exclusively as a place for swimming,\u201d say the organisers, describing the intention behind the event. A follow-up event under the title \u201cART meets WAVE\u201d is already planned for 2026.<\/p>\n
Two finalists are also being honoured in the Marketing category: Rulantica Water World at Europapark Rust is being recognised for the \u201cNordic Festival of Lights\u201d, and Therme Wien for a campaign for \u201cWorld Gift Day\u201d 2025.<\/p>\n
Leisure pools and thermal spas are important venues for social interaction and health-oriented leisure activities, and hold significant social relevance. To reflect this at the EWA Awards, the EWA Sustainability Award<\/b> was launched in 2024 to recognise sustainable pool management. This category honours leisure pools and thermal spas that have made a special contribution to social interaction and improving their energy and carbon footprint. This year, the EWA Sustainability Award goes to two member establishments of the European Waterpark Association. The Austrian Spa Resort Geinberg<\/b> is being honoured for its successes in optimising bathing water technology. As part of the \u2018Green Geinberg\u2019 initiative to improve the thermal spa\u2019s energy and carbon footprint, a comprehensive package of measures was implemented between 2023 and 2025. The results are impressive: by improving process controls, whilst complying with strict Austrian hygiene standards, 22 million litres of fresh and thermal water and 350,000 kWh of electricity are saved annually, and chemical consumption has been reduced by 12%.<\/p>\n
The second EWA Sustainability Award goes to aquaferrum in Friesoythe<\/b>. The leisure pool initiated the Germany-wide #initiativeAugenblick campaign, in which over 200 swimming pool operators are now participating. The aim of the awareness campaign is to make parents and carers of children aware of their responsibility for their safety. All too often, according to the campaign\u2019s initiators, parents are distracted by mobile phone use and similar activities, thereby failing to fulfil their duty of supervision.<\/p>\n
The winners were selected by a jury of experts from the swimming pool and leisure industry. The jury comprised Petra Probst (Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of the trade journal Euro Amusement Professional), Sonja Redies (Profund Consult and deputy spokesperson for the Advisory Board of Supporting Members at the EWA), Dr Michael Quell (Honorary President of the EWA) and Prof. Dr Torsten Widmann (Head of the Leisure Management programme at Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg Cooperative State University).<\/p>\n
The outstanding contributions \u2013 in both senses of the word \u2013 from the finalists and winners at the 24th EWA Awards confirm the European Waterpark Association\u2019s commitment to its own work: \u201cConnecting excellence \u2013 inspiring innovation\u201d. The bar has been set high for the anniversary edition in 2027!<\/p>\n
Foto: Thomas Weber<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":47227,"template":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ewa.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ewa_news\/47229"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ewa.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ewa_news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ewa.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/ewa_news"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ewa.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ewa.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}