Real Mom Review: Great Wolf Lodge Waterpark Resort

By Diana Franzese, CertifiKID NYC Family Fun Ambassador
Posted Jan 06, 2020 Real Mom Reviews Family Travel Things to Do

Great Wolf Lodge is the largest family of indoor water park resort hotels in North America with 17 locations nationwide. While the centerpiece attraction at each Great Wolf Lodge is the expansive indoor waterpark, the resort also offers a wide range of other dry-land adventures - ropes course, arcade games, miniature golf, bowling - kids games and activities, and a range of dining options - all under one roof!

Our CertifiKID NYC Family Fun Ambassador, Diana Franzese, visited Great Wolf Lodge in Poconos Mountains, Pennsylvania with her family. They received a free stay in exchange for providing an honest review of their experience.

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Diana: Great Wolf Lodge greatly exceeded our expectations. As soon as we arrived at the resort, it was a breath of fresh air...literally. Coming from New York City, it was such a nice treat to be up in the mountains, away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

Great Wolf Lodge is known for their indoor waterpark, which is enormous and packed with so many fun attractions - from obstacle courses to water slides.

They also have an outdoor pool and water play area for children. Racoon Lagoon Play Park, also outside near the pool, has oversized games, like Connect 4, checkers, blocks and bold-colored connectable building blocks, as well as s'mores roasting. The outdoor area includes a bar that also sells food, open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.  

There's an adventure ropes course outside, Howlers Peak Ropes Course. The 48" and under crowd can climb on the Sky Tykes ropes course, and they can also get up top (with an adult over 48") on the bigger ropes course.

Back inside, on the first floor, there is Howl at the Moon Glow Golf, Ten Paw (bowling) Alley, Northern Lights Arcade, Creation Station (where you can build one of their character stuffed animals), a sweet treat and ice cream shop, and a pizza place that also sells gyros, salads and more.

There's more food and activities throughout the second, third and fourth floors, such as The Loose Moose Family Kitchen that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets, a 4D theater called, Oliver's Time Challenge, MagiQuest, ShadowQuest & CompassQuest, morning yoga, storytime for the kids and more. 

We stayed one night but definitely could have stayed another. The rooms have balconies (or yards, if on the first floor). They have many different types of rooms from the standard, which also has a pull out couch and two double beds, to rooms with separate bedrooms and a living room, and duplexes.

We ate dinner at the indoor waterpark snack bar and breakfast the next morning at The Loose Moose Family Kitchen, which is a top-of-the-line buffet breakfast.

What Did You Enjoy Most?

This was our first stay at a real indoor water park and it was fabulous. I enjoyed the great deal and being up in the mountains. The view from our top floor room and balcony was beautiful.

Is There Anything That Could be Improved?

I don’t like waiting in line, so the check-in and check-out process is always my least favorite part of a hotel/resort stay, but they did the best they could because all of the stations were filled with employees. Five minutes isn’t that bad to check in. I’ve been in line for 15 minutes at other places.

Recommended Age Range

My son is 7 years old. This place is made for children of all ages from infant to teen. Some of the rides/slides are pretty thrilling, so no shortage of fun for the older set of children. There were many families there with babies who couldn’t even walk yet because there are an abundance of water activities for every age.

Time Recommended to Experience Activity

An overnight stay is fine at Great Wolf Lodge. You can get it all in within two days. Even though check in is not until 4 p.m., you can enjoy the waterpark as early as 1 p.m. on the day you arrive. You can also stay the whole day and enjoy their facilities on the day you check out. 

Tips for Families

Check-in time is 4 p.m., but you are texted before that if your room is ready earlier. Check-out is automatic at 11 a.m.

There are a quite a few places to grab a quick snack or fast food and also a buffet restaurant. If you want to bring your own food and drinks, there is a fridge in every room.  

Don't forget to wear your wolf headband ears throughout your stay that you are given during check-in! 

Would Your Family Visit Again?

We cannot wait to go back and enjoy ourselves at Great Wolf Lodge. We all had an amazing time. We sometimes pass Great Wolf on our way to other excursions in the area and my son recognizes the sign and asks if we can go back.  

Are you interested in becoming a CertifiKID Family Fun Ambassador for your city? Learn more and apply HERE.

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