Yes, Minnesota travelers are letting the economy splash cold water on their spring break plans. And they're having a blast.

At the Water Park of America in Bloomington Friday afternoon, the wave pool (it's not really cold) and raft ride were full of giggling, splashing kids. Moms and dads lounged on the decks, getting a beach fix without getting on a plane.

Weekend nights at metro-area water park hotels have been sold out for weeks; for this spring break weekend, the Water Park of America and its sister, Grand Rios Indoor Water Park Hotel in Brooklyn Park, had a waiting list for rooms and water park access.

Nobody seems to have hard figures yet for how many folks are clinging to the traditional tropical spring fling, but anecdotes point to a tendency to "travel in," take "staycations," or take a "trip on a tankful."

Spring break is always busy, water park hotel managers say, but this year is a different animal.

"What's different from last year is people are checking in and staying for the weekend," said Lisa Giaimo, vice president of sales for Torgerson Properties, which owns Holiday Inn & Suites Maple Grove, and its Venetian Water Park. "Instead of a one-night stay, they're making this their vacation. They're not going to Mexico, they're not going to Disney World, so this becomes their family getaway."

Travel Leaders, formerly Carlson Wagonlit, has seen bookings fall by double digits over last year, said Steve Loucks, vice president for communications. The good news is that bookings are up over the fourth quarter of 2008.

Still, he said, folks seem to be chasing the bargains.

"Is everyone staying home? The answer is no," he said. "If you're chasing great deals there are great deals to be had."

Reports about airline travel have been mixed.

Michael Boyd of Boyd Group International, an Evergreen, Colo.-based aviation consulting firm, said that anecdotally, airline traffic has dropped faster this year than the airlines had anticipated. According to the Airports: USA Forecasts, airline traffic at 146 selected airports was down 10.4 percent overall in January; Boyd noted that the decrease was 15 to 20 percent in February, even with some fare discounts.

"The people who are going to fly anyway pay less," he said, "but it doesn't stimulate anyone to get out of their La-Z-Boys."

Still, the trend doesn't seem to be universal, especially when it comes to warmer climes.

March is still one of Sun Country's busiest months, and flights to destinations such as Florida have been full.

"We're a little soft but not by very much," said Wendy Williams Blackshaw, vice president of marketing for Sun Country Airlines. "The difference is people are booking closer" to their departure dates, possibly in hopes of grabbing lower airfares.

AAA Minneapolis spokeswoman Dawn Duffy said ideas about vacation began to change with last year's $4-a-gallon gas.

"You've got good gas prices in your pocket [this year], but you've got nothing else. Look at this economy," she said. "Definitely, we're changing our habits for how we travel and how we use gas on a regular basis."

Heidi Ihle, of Huxley, Iowa, is spending two nights with her husband and three kids at the Radisson Hotel Bloomington, which adjoins the Water Park of America.

In other years, they've gone to Orlando; this year, they're visiting the Mall of America, the Science Museum of Minnesota, and of course, the water park.

"I think everyone's just more cautious about spending money to go," she said. "It was cheaper and we could drive."

That's not news to Angela Greer Reed, spokeswoman for Wirth Hotels, which owns both Grand Rios and the Water Park of America, across from Bloomington's MOA.

"People are looking for the closer destination for the vacation and opting out of the more expensive trips like Mexico," she said. "Those travel destinations that are very popular for the midstream population may not be in that affordable reach."

Outstate water park hotels also were filling up for the weekend.

Managers also noted that while vacation planning time has been shrinking during most of the year, people's water park visits seem to be well-planned family trips.

"It's the economy, and nobody needs more bad news, but you don't know if you're going to have a job tomorrow," said Mark Innes, general manager at Rapid River Lodge and Waterpark in Baxter, Minn., near Brainerd. "They're doing what they can afford and putting off what they can't afford."

Staff writer Patrice Relerford contributed to this report. Maria Elena Baca •

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