Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Great Wolf Lodge: Our First Visit

This past weekend, my family and I bravely ventured to Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara Falls, ON for the first time.

The experience was really great and far exceeded my expectations.

It wasn't that I didn't think we would have some fun, I was just unsure as to what my two non-swimming toddlers could do for an entire day at a water park.  Well, let me assure you there is tons of water and non-water stuff just perfect for this age group.

When you walk in the lodge, you are welcomed into a massive lodge-like lobby, complete with giant fireplace, and life-like animals (wolves, bears, gofers, moose) that move and talk.  Everyone present is in the exact same boat as you (sleep-deprived, kids in tow, multi-tasking) so no worries about any judgement re: the kids whatsoever.

In the indoor water park area there were shallow pools, splash pads, water jungle gyms and believe it or not, six kiddie slides that my oldest son mastered and loved!  My one-and-a-half year old loved the splash pads and having fun in the puddles.

The lazy river (which wasn't too lazy) was also perfect for this age group as they could sit on the tubes and watch all that was going on. 

There is also one large water slide that uses a giant tube that the kids (provided they are tall enough) can go on with the whole family.

Massive arcade, kind of like Chuck E Cheese's where you walk around with wads of tickets and then cash them in at the end (for candy and an extremely small teddy bear). I'm not a huge video game gal, especially the violent ones, but I was very happy that there were many games for young children and only two or three gun-type games that I actually saw.

The rooms were adorable. Typical queen-bed room, but with a cozy little 8x8 nook for the kids, complete with twin bunk beds and their own television (different room styles are available). Mini fridge was nice surprise too.

The Lodge's evening story time is also a big hit. All the kids are invited to the main lobby in their pyjamas for a giant story-time party with interaction with all of the "live" talking animals. Unfortunately we weren't able to make it, but it looked like tons of fun.

We ate at the main restaurant for all of our meals and again, quite impressed with the balance of kid-friendly foods and adult-appropriate options. Always some mac & cheese, chicken nuggets, fries, etc. for the picky eaters but also always salad bar, interactive station (fajitas, jambalaya, omelets), pasta dishes, meat and seafood and of course dessert! Yummmm ... make your own sundaes.

We were fortunate to go with my sister and brother-in-law and their two kids as well as Nana and Papa. Kids entertained each other, adult company was good and allowed a bit of shared watch over the younger kids (i.e. we got to go down some big kids slides!).

Very busy but manageable. Going during the week would definitely be worth looking into if possible.

I would definitely recommend and will most likely be back again when winter hits next year and we are in need of a close-to-home beach vacation.

2 comments:

  1. I have heard great things about this place and have been dying to check it out. I'll probably wait at least a few more months until the little one is walking. One of best friends is actually there right now, they've been a few times and love it!

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  2. Can definitely see it becoming a mid-winter tradition. I hear there are good deals if you go mid week -worth checking out if you have that flexibility.

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