It felt strange Saturday morning, with the outside temperature in the mid-30s, to slip into my bathing suit before I left the house.

But American Dream’s DreamWorks Water Park in East Rutherford, N.J. was opening for a sneak peek at 10 a.m. and I wanted to get there early to be among the first inside. (It doesn’t officially open until March 19. But the sneak peek let the public inside Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.). I got to the steps leading down into the ticketing area at about 9:40 a.m. and there was a family of four and a woman with two kids ahead of me.

A water park employee pulled back the rope at about 9:45 a.m. and let us go down the stairs (or use the ramp) to get to the ticketing counter where friendly employees greeted us and scanned the QR code on my pre-purchased ticket, then gave me a bracelet -- a ribbon with a plastic card attached -- that would be scanned with a cell phone at the door.

We were pointed in the direction of changing rooms. One for families where women with children and men with children were separated into different sides of the room for privacy. There was also a women’s only and men’s only changing room. But you should arrive in your bathing suit. There are signs posted saying “Please remain clothed at all times.”

I didn’t need to change so I went back out the way I came in. That was wrong. There was no way to get into the park other than to meander through the changing rooms. There are signs on the ceiling directing you toward the water park, but I didn’t see them at first. It was a bit confusing. Leaving wasn’t any easier.

I made it out of the maze of the changing room and was at the top of a set of stairs where an American Dream employee made us wait until the clock struck 10 a.m. (He even counted down the last 15 seconds for some kids who were eagerly waiting).

Then we descended into the 8.5 acre, more than 370,000 square foot water park, which is now the largest indoor water park in the country. The first thing that struck me is the openness. The wave pool is in the center. A tangle of slides are on one side of the wave pool. Food and tube rental kiosks are on the other side. In the back is the lazy river, children’s play structure and, hidden behind them, some more intense slides.

I liked that you could see the whole park, end to end, from pretty much anywhere.

The first attraction you encounter is the Soakin’ Surfari, where you can use a body or stand-up surf board to ride simulated waves. I watched the life guards wipe out a few times and it looked fun. This attraction was free Saturday but will eventually cost extra, a park employee said. He did not know how much but said riders would likely purchase 30 or 60 minutes and share their time slot with up to 10 other people.

Beyond that were water slides, lots of water slides. Body slides, raft slides, mat slides. Intense slides. Tame slides. So many slides. At least a dozen.

American Dream describes the Dream Works Water Park as having 40 water slides and 15 attractions. The Dragon Racers, for example, where you lay on a mat and twist through a tube before being spit out into relay lanes where your time is recorded. That one ride has six lanes -- American Dream is counting it as six slides to get its number to 40. It’s not 40 different water slide rides. Some are multiples of the same.

(This will help when the park is busy. It was not on Saturday).

There are six child-friendly slides wrapped into one ride, called The Penguins Frozen Fun Zone. These are in the back of the park, across from the Kung Fu Panda Temple of Awesomeness Play Structure. That multi-level water jungle gym also has six slides, features that rain and spill water on you, geysers and a giant tipping bucket for a good soaking.

The lazy river is also there and circles the play structure and kiddie slide area.

Just when you think this back area is for the little ones, you’ll discover more intense slides beyond the kiddie stuff. Dragon & Dronkey’s Flight, Shrek’s Sinkhole Slammer and Swamp n’ Splash are each four person tube rides -- some with zero gravity moments. (Hold on tight, the rider operators will tell you).

But the most intense slide wasn’t open yet on Saturday. Thrillagascarrrr is world’s tallest indoor body slide with a 50-foot free fall. There are two of them and the front of a plane is jutting out between them.

Also not open were the Toothless Trickling Torpedo, the world’s tallest and longest hydromagnetic water coaster, several of the five hot tubs, the 31 luxury cabanas and the party rooms. The cabanas will over look the wave pool and were above the food counters and a counter where you can rent tubes or buy towels.

Yellow, donut-shaped tubes are available for $10, plus tax, to rent for the whole day. (Life jackets in different children’s sizes were available to use, for free). You can use the tubes in the wave pool or, workers said, bring them in the lazy river if you don’t feel like waiting for a tube to become available. (This sounds like a traffic jam waiting to happen).

Two different types of towels are also for sale, if you forget to bring one. A microfiber towel that comes in a little bag for $9.99 and a regular towel, it’s white with orange stripes, for $14.99.

I saw bigger lockers in the changing room and smaller ones that would hold your cellphone or wallet near Stair B.

I clocked thousands of steps exploring every corner of the park and was ready to sit down. There are white lounge chairs with little side tables along the entry-end of the wave pool, on a second floor deck overlooking it, and a bunch halfway up one side of the wave pool.

I call them lounge chairs, but they’re not. They don’t recline. They’re hard plastic. (They fit the Ikea-ness of the furniture I’ve complained about before at American Dream. They seem cheap. Like children’s or dorm furniture).

The unfinished cabanas overlooking the wave pool.

There are also tables on the far end of the wave pool and tucked into a few corners of the park.

If you get hungry, DreamWorks is currently serving grab-and-go food, just like Nickelodeon Universe. Plastic sheeting covers what will eventually be a food service area in the water park. I asked an employee what it would consist of, but he said he didn’t know yet.

The two food counters sell sandwiches ($12), wraps ($10), salads ($11), hot dogs and soft pretzels ($7), bottled beverages ($3-$4) and other snacks and drinks.

After a few hours of fun I was ready to leave the park. First I went down a set of stairs, that was a dead end. Then I saw the sign and went up a set of stairs and back into the changing rooms. (The changing rooms, by the way, have showers and hair dryers). I followed the signs pointing me to the Park Exit and was dumped out into a hallway. Two frosted glass doors at the end of it were where I needed to go, but an overhead exit sign pointed right toward a set of doors that were for employees. I pushed my way through the frosted doors after another moment of frustration.

Overall, I was impressed with DreamWorks Water Park. It’s really bright, from the glass roof. It’s kept at a consistent 84 degrees, so you really want (and need) to get wet. And the water temperature on most attractions was comfortable. The employees were helpful when I asked questions. The rides had a good mix of tame and thrilling.

I paid $79, plus tax, for my visit during the sneak peek. The regular price will be $99, plus tax, for those over 10 years old and $89 for those ages 3 to 9. Twilight pricing, for two hours before the park closes, will be $74, plus tax.

The cost is steep, but when you compare it to the prices for a day pass at other nearby indoor waterparks, it’s in line with them.

The DreamWorks Water Park is located at American Dream, 1 American Dream Way, East Rutherford, NJ.

See more of our ongoing coverage of the American Dream mega-mall here.

Allison Pries may be reached at apries@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @AllisonPries. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips.