Remembering Back to Our Very First Visit to Great Wolf Lodge

A few years ago the family and I made our very first visit to Great Wolf Lodge (GWL).  What a time we had! It is such a great place to relax and spend time with the family. After that first visit I wrote up a review for a now defunct travel website and after some minor adjustments I thought I would share it here. Pardon the writing skills.  I had not perfected them yet. 🙂 We have been back to GWL a couple more times and each visit we love it that much more.  Make sure you let me know in the comments if you and your family have been to Great Wolf Lodge and what you think of it.

                                                          ********************************

In the Spring of 2011 my family took our first trip to Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara Falls, Ontario.  My daughter’s friend  joined us so we had two adults, two eight year olds and my two year old son.  We stayed for one night which gave us two days in the water park.  We booked a Standard Family Suite which was plenty of  room.  The maximum occupancy is six so this is convenient for larger families.  This was the basic room, however  it was well equipped with two queen beds and a pull out sofa.  GWL has several other types of suites that offer varying amenities, like bunkbeds and private rooms for the kids.  Not having experienced these I still feel that for a one night stay the standard room is perfect!

The rooms all come standard with a fridge, microwave, coffee maker and hair dryer.  The fridge was a decent size which came in handy as my son has several food allergies so we always travel with food.  Having a microwave was an added bonus as anyone heating up a bottle can attest to. 🙂 The one thing I suggest that GWL change in the room is minor, but to a place that’s main attraction involves water it’s really not. They need to add a second drying line in the bathroom for wet swim suits.  One line is not enough and there are no hooks on the bathroom doors to take the overflow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The dining options at GWL are abundant.  There is no need to leave the resort to eat.  By far the best option is the buffet at Antler Shanty. We purchased a meal plan that provided us with the buffet for breakfast and dinner and a lunch combo from Spirit Island Snack Shop, which is in the water park.  You can use your meal tickets at any time so we opted to have lunch right after checking in.  Our room was not ready, however there are lockers for rent so you can start using the water park right away.  We thought it best to feed our hungry cubs, err kids, first and then have hours of wet and wild fun!

Due to my son’s food allergies we decided to upgrade our lunch combo for an extra three dollars per adult and have the buffet.  I recommend this for families with young children or picky eaters. There are more choices, big tables to sit at, colouring pages for entertainment and we even had a view of the water park!  The service was wonderful!  We really enjoyed chatting with our server, Kaitlyn.  She served us for two meals at Antler Shanty and impressed me with her attitude. The buffet has a great ice cream counter which my son could not have.  Kaitlyn went out of her way to get sherbet from the Bear Claw Café for him and we did not have to pay extra! This impressed me and the kids loved her. As a result we gave Kaitlyn a Paw Sticker.  Two of these are provided upon check in to each room.  The idea is to present a sticker to a GWL staffer that wows you.  When checking out you hand in the names of the awesome staff and are entered into a draw to win a free stay!  The staff member is also recognized by the management.  I like the whole premise of this incentive and it got the kids involved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The other food choices were varied and easy to pick up.  In the water park, or Bear Track Landing, you could get pizza, fries, snacks and even an alcoholic beverage. 🙂  The food was unimpressive, but inexpensive and you did not have to leave the park to eat.  My husband indulged in a beer from Grizzly Rob’s Bar.  A nice treat, but not cheap. Seven bucks is a bit pricey when you have already shelled out several hundred dollars.

The reason for being at GWL (ie: water), while fun and refreshing, was a bit of a disappointment for me.  Bear Track Landing was immense! There are more than 12 slides, for all ages and several pools.  The girls loved the slides, however the long line ups/ wait times detracted my husband after the first day. My daughter’s favourite was the Canada Vortex.  This slide drops you into this giant bowl and sends you swirling around! Her friend enjoyed the Wooly Mammoth the most.  This slide is the largest and the kids even had their photo taken while on it! The lazy river was nice, but narrow. This meant a lot of crowding and bumping, especially from the teenagers trying to race each other around the river.  Of all the pools I enjoyed the outdoor pool Loon Lagoon, the most.  It was zero depth entry which was perfect for my son and he absolutely adored the frog slide!  He talks about it to this day! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inside there is Otter Lake Activity Pool and Frog Pond.  The girls enjoyed being able to play ball, practise climbing on the “snake” or running through the agility course.  It became a mini competition to see who could cross the lily pads faster. 🙂 I was pleased to see a good number of life guards on duty the whole day and they all seemed to be paying attention.  The wave pool, Rainbow Lake was fun, but a bit boring.  The waves only run every twelve minutes and the pool is not ideal for swimming around.

There was plenty to do if you looked up.  Fort Mackenzie is a tree house that covers a lot of ground.  It has interactive spray stations all throughout that can be reached via suspension bridges.  My son loved this area, but it was not easily accessible to him.  All the levers and pulleys were at a height not designed for two year olds so we had to take turns holding him up.  Not an easy task when you are being rained on constantly.

Close to the park entrance is Chipmunk Cove, the pool for small children.  Big enough for lots of kids to play, but very little for them to do.  There are a couple of spray features, some nets and three slides.  My son liked the little slides, but it required two people to take him on them; one to bring him up to the loading area and the other to catch him at the bottom.  GWL needs to update this area with activities to occupy their smallest guests. Stationary play areas would do the trick. I would like to see a climbing structure of some kind put in (like The Plunge in Blue Mountain) and the addition of more water toys.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cub Club is a centre where children can visit to colour or play.  You can purchase crafts, sign up for classes or just stop by. We dropped in for a peek, but an overnight stay does not allow much time for crafts.  The staff were lovely and invited the kids in.  My son was able to have a few moments of quiet play time, which we all appreciated.

Overall I enjoyed our trip to Great Wolf Lodge.  The kids had a blast and it was a great adventure for everyone.  I do think it is overpriced considering the lack of activities for our youngest.  I know you can’t please everyone, all of the time, but when you consider that a large portion of the guests will have young children in tow, you need to address their entertainment needs as well. For first time visitors I suggest wearing water shoes. My feet paid the price by days end due to the concrete flooring. Pick up towels as you enter the park and stake out a table to use as a base for your family to meet up at.

                                                                       *****************************************

What a difference five years can make! We have been back to Great Wolf Lodge two more times now and the kids love it.  I am content to float around and visit the hot tub. 🙂  GWL is a wonderful way to give your family a vacation, especially when a big trip is not in the plans. Since we have now stayed at GWL for both one night and two, I think my preference is to stay two nights.  This allows more opportunity to take in the rest of the offerings and also take naps. 🙂

We will be heading back to GWL sometime later this year. Have you taken your family yet? What is your favourite part?

FT&PD

Suz

**Please note this post is not sponsored.  All opinions are my own.