The kids had been counting down the days, and Brynn kept announcing that she was going to wear her “ballerina dress” (aka swimsuit) for spring break. Great Wolf Lodge was a huge success!

I didn’t realize that there were Great Wolf Lodges all around the country until my cousin blogged about her trip to one in VA, then my neighbor visited one in WA last spring, and I finally put two and two together recently. The lodge was having a 25% off sale, so we booked two nights in one of their Kid Kamp rooms for the middle of spring break week.

Walking into the lodge was impressive! It was an authentic lodge with outdoor decor to the max.

The giant two-sided fireplace was gorgeous and had lots of seating nearby. There were nightly story times by the fire place and a Giant Clock Tower show with mechanical people and animals several times each day.

The lodge had lots of free activities for the kids like an “I Spy” lobby game, scavenger hunt to gather clues and earn a prize, button making, and meeting the lodge’s very own raccoon characters.

 

In addition to the huge water park, the lodge housed an arcade, mini golf, gold panning, spas, ice cream shop, several restaurants, shops, and an obstacle course. We felt like we were on a stationery cruise ship!

While we weren’t planning to do more than the water park, we did purchase the MagiQuest game for the kids. Basically it’s an electronic scavenger hunt that sends kids on “quests” all throughout the lodge. They follow the clues, find the object, and wave their magic wand to complete the quest.

The boys loved it–especially Silas. We would set him loose to run all around for a set amount of time and then meet up with us later. He loved the privilege of independence.

Stephen also splurged on arcade games with the boys, and the arcade was Silas’s favorite part.

Somehow he ended up winning 1,000 tickets at one game and was able to get several prizes. Cooper got a light-up saber too, so he was thrilled. I was glad Stephen could have some special time with his sons.

Our room was split in two with one part decorated as a kids’ summer camp cabin. The kids had bunk beds and their own TV. Brynn was thrilled to sleep in her new sleeping bag, and Cooper got to sleep on the top bunk for a change.

The room was spacious and clean, but I could have used a bigger bathroom and another sink and mirror with all the cleanup and changing we were doing for the water park. We brought our own breakfasts, lunches, and snacks, but got dinner at some local places outside the lodge.

Our first dinner was Burger Claim, and I’m pretty sure that was one of the highlights of the trip for Stephen. Their burgers were amazing!

The Great Wolf water park was so much fun! Silas loved riding the waves in his life jacket. I couldn’t believe how brave he was, but then again, he’s the kid running into the waves at the beach. The lifeguards were amazing at their job, and I was very reassured to see them being so diligent.

Brynn loved the kiddie pool and the hot tub. Though, she informed me that, “It’s not the kiddie pool. It’s the Hello Kitty pool!” Silas and Cooper were tall enough for all the slides except one. My favorite part was going down the tube slides with each of the boys. Cooper surprised me with his courage and excitement to go on the big slides. He practically jumped up and down and told knock, knock jokes the entire time we were in the line. He loved the giant slide with its own lights and music.

All five of us stood under the giant bucket and let the flood of water crash down on us. Brynn wasn’t too happy with us about that!

We made some great memories and hope to come back in a few years.