Great Wolf Lodge Poconos, First Visit - Dad is Panicking

[stamfordmike]

I'm taking my family to the Great Wolf Lodge this Friday and Saturday. Our first family trip to a water park (and my first time as well to an indoor water park). Our boys are 6 and 2 1/2. I went to the website for the first time today (wife booked it) and was just overwhelmed by all the options and things to do?
Can someone give me or point me in the direction on how to get advice to make sure we hit the right attractions, eat at the right places??? Between Forts (MacKenzie), Double Barrel Drop, etc, it just seems like a lot. Driving 2 1/2 hours and only having 2 days I want to avoid on the drive back the second guessing of what we should have done different. Again any help would be greatly appreciated.
Specifically how should we split up the day, what are must things we do? Do we do it as all 4 or split up? What restaurants should we hit or avoid?

 

[Diegosmom]

You are looking at this like a Disney trip lol...

We havent been to that one but have been to the one in NC so I assume it is similar...

My advise is check out the kiddie area (where you little one will prob want to spend most time but 6 year old will prob like it too) then check out the fort...my DS loved it at age 5. We did try a few of the big slides but he did not like them...the place on the map looks huge but it really isnt...

Make sure to check the height requirements to see what your son can ride before hand...

 

[Happyjen27]

2 days ; no problem.

There really isn't so much to do that it's overwhelming. At this time of year, you'll be restricted to the indoor play areas, and it's all in one room. Just one big room. No sweat.

It will be a lot of fun, but it's not like Disney where you need to have a plan regarding what to hit first, what will have the longest lines, etc. It is also like Disney in that getting up early and hitting the big slides (if you and DW will be doing these) will cut down on the wait. They do not have a child swap or anything like that, so one parent will have to handle both kids while the other parent rides.

As for restaurants, they were all awful. We went off site to a local BBQ place, and that wasn't much of a step up, but it was better. I don't recall the name, but we turned left out of the parking lot and drove until we found a restaurant. It was on the left. The buffet food is about on par with an Old Country Buffet. The sit down restaurant was similar to a Denny's quality food. It's all overpriced. We brought food from home for breakfast and lunch, thank heavens, because I'm sure my stomach would have been very angry after our 2 nights there if we hadn't eaten some whole, healthy food.

 

[mjkacmom]

You are over-thinking it! We started taking our kids when the twins were still in diapers, and managed just fine. I second the advice of not eating there. The buffet is pretty gross, and really expensive (and I'm used to NYC prices). There are plenty of restaurants in the area. There is also a decent snack bar in the waterpark, and a pizza hut (I hate pizza hut). There is a microwave and fridge in the room.

I suggest getting there early, just to get a couple of chairs or a table.

 

[chrissy92972]

I live 45 minutes from the location you are going to and I went to college for four years in the area.

The food at GWL is expensive. My suggestion is bring stuff for lunch and breakfast and in the evening take a break leave GWL head to the main road route 611 turn right and head toward Stroudsburg. You will see a Friendly's, Subway, Pizza Places, Red Robin, Sonic, and so much more.

Also when we stayed at GWL we paged through the book that was in the room and it had a deal for free kids meals at Sonic if you had your GWL bracelet on.

Have fun trust me it is not huge. If you set yourself up in the right place you can see from one end of the water park to the other.

Towels are included, but you cannot leave the park area with them.

Chrissy

 

[scooffer]

I live 45 minutes from the location you are going to and I went to college for four years in the area.

The food at GWL is expensive. My suggestion is bring stuff for lunch and breakfast and in the evening take a break leave GWL head to the main road route 611 turn right and head toward Stroudsburg. You will see a Friendly's, Subway, Pizza Places, Red Robin, Sonic, and so much more.

Also when we stayed at GWL we paged through the book that was in the room and it had a deal for free kids meals at Sonic if you had your GWL bracelet on.

Have fun trust me it is not huge. If you set yourself up in the right place you can see from one end of the water park to the other.

Towels are included, but you cannot leave the park area with them.

Chrissy

Hi Chrissy, felllow ESU (assuming) Alum here, class '97, just wanted to say hi!

 

[stamfordmike]

So we'll go off GWL for dinner, thanks for the suggestions, it sounds like we can do all the water park rides then, I appreciate everyone's help. if there's any secrets as where to set up or what tips/tricks for the rides I again appreicate it.

 

[pocomom]

I'm taking my family to the Great Wolf Lodge this Friday and Saturday. Our first family trip to a water park (and my first time as well to an indoor water park). Our boys are 6 and 2 1/2. I went to the website for the first time today (wife booked it) and was just overwhelmed by all the options and things to do?
Can someone give me or point me in the direction on how to get advice to make sure we hit the right attractions, eat at the right places??? Between Forts (MacKenzie), Double Barrel Drop, etc, it just seems like a lot. Driving 2 1/2 hours and only having 2 days I want to avoid on the drive back the second guessing of what we should have done different. Again any help would be greatly appreciated.
Specifically, how should we split up the day, what are must things we do? Do we do it as all 4 or split up? What restaurants should we hit or avoid?

Super fun - but it is no Disney. You'll be able to do everything you and the kids want to. My older kids loved the magi-quest but the younger ones found it scary I would save the money and skip it, or just do it with the 6 year old if he really wants it to. Your 6 year old will be able to do a lot more than the 2 year old especially if he swims, so i would probably work out some switching on and off, or one parent will spend a lot of time standing around in knee high water AVOID THE RESTAURANTS! horrible and expensive! We bring bagels to the room for the morning, fruit and other snacks for mid-day or one of us runs to the deli down the street, and always do dinner out. You can eat somewhere nice for alot less than you'll pay for counter service there. You'll drive past some of the major chains on your way- just look off to the right on 80 as you get close. Olive garden, red robin, chilis, moe's, red lobster... If you have time and snow clothes think about stopping at Camelback on the way home for some snow tubing - super fun!

 

[ssawka]

I live 45 minutes from the location you are going to and I went to college for four years in the area.

The food at GWL is expensive. My suggestion is bring stuff for lunch and breakfast and in the evening take a break leave GWL head to the main road route 611 turn right and head toward Stroudsburg. You will see a Friendly's, Subway, Pizza Places, Red Robin, Sonic, and so much more.

Also when we stayed at GWL we paged through the book that was in the room and it had a deal for free kids meals at Sonic if you had your GWL bracelet on.

Have fun trust me it is not huge. If you set yourself up in the right place you can see from one end of the water park to the other.

Towels are included, but you cannot leave the park area with them.

Chrissy

ITA! The restauran at GWL is not very good and it is expensive. There is a couple diners right near the entrance which are much better. If you don't want to leave the lodge, I believe there are several pizza places that will deliver to the lodge.

Don't get overwhelmed by the choices, the place is not really that big. There is a Kiddie section with small slides, a wading pool, and "squirters".
Then, there is also a "fort" that has a couple smaller water slides and "squirters". There is also a regular pool and some "walk across" obstacles.
Finally, there are also about 4 large slides and a lazy river. We usually only go for one night and find we have plenty of time. You may need more time if you do the "extras" (Magic Quest, Story Time, etc.)

 

[mandynee22]

We went there in Oct for 2 nights (on a Groupon LOL)
It was me (single mom) and my 14,13,6 and 2 yr olds. Actually, the 14 yr old was 13 and the 13 yr old was 12 then..anyway.
It was great. My 2 yr old DD loved the water slides and so did my 6 yr old. But theyre luckily pretty independent so they can go to the top while I wait at the bottom (more necessary for my 2 yr old obv)
We got a paw pass (a magiquest wand and game and a story book game, bowling, etc) It was WELL worth it. I did buy another wand and game though for my 6 yr old. The older girls shared one. My 2 yr old loves her stuffed animal and thinks the book with her own picture in it is SUPER cool but the older kids are the ones who actually went around the hotel doing the book haha. Glad I have them..
The pizza place is good. There's a great family meal deal. The buffet has TONS of stuff. Good for even super picky eaters. A lot of people complain about the food but I had no problem with it. Im also not a picky eater and as long as I don't cook or clean it, I don't care. There's a Target close by in case you have a kid who forgets their bathing suit even though you reminded them THREE TIMES. Because the ones in the gift shop are like $100.
I wish we had stayed longer obv. I kind of like everything in one place and no travel.
The fact that the room had a lot of space (with one adult, two adult sized people and two kids that is HUGE) and a fridge and microwave were pluses for sure.

 

[shoney]

we stayed 2 nights a few years ago. the kids were 7 and 9 at the time and they loved it.

I had read about the food before hand, so I packed some.

I brought cereal and milk for breakfast.
Cold cuts for lunch w/potato salad
I made a baked ziti and salad for dinner the first night.

Having a microwave and fridge made it easy!

I knew the boys wouldn't want to leave the first day, so it was nice having food there.

the next day we had sandwiches for lunch and went out to dinner.

although they say "no cooking" we saw many crockpots on luggage carts!

there really is so much in the area that you will never go hungry!

my kids loved the magiquest. My older son just went with his friend...he is now 13 and he said the Magiquest was boring! Oh how they grow up!

I remember there being very few chairs/tables. Most were claimed early in the day!

 

[mommy22pumpkins]

Hello. We had our first visit there this past November. It was a bit overwhelming! When we checked in there were signs for a PUP pass OR a PAW pass- A package that includes certain things like the stuffed animal (think Build a Bear), a game of bowling, an art and craft project, and this Story Quest thing that we wound up not having time to do anyway.

I chose the cheaper of the two- thinking the MagiQuest Wands would just be a waste of money- (our kids are 8 and 10) And the whole trip they watched other kids play with the wand all over the resort (it is an interactive game) So we wound up buying one for them to share the last day and stayed around to let them play that for a few hours. I would have gotten the other pass had I known it was such a big deal

Food at the water park was horrible- just for the fact that we waited in line for 45 minutes our last day there. It is a tiny counter- with massive people in line- I would definitely try to eat lunch in your room- or just order a pizza and take it back to your room. My daughter loved the garlic knots that come with the family meal deal.

We didn't eat any of the restaraunts but they looked very kid friendly with a chocolate fountain for dinner (fondue). Food for adults at dinner did not look very appetizing though honestly. I would probably go out for dinner if we went back again.

Just an FYI, there's really only one restaurant- on the main floor of the building. The buffet lunch dinner, and sit down restaurant are the same thing- just different sections. There is a starbucks and gift shop on this level aslo- very nice.

Then one level down ( the lowest level) is where you will find the water park- as well as all the *extra things* -ice cream shop, arcade ,bowling alley, arts and crafts center etc. My kids colored their own t-shirt/pillowcase- and it is a nice keepsake. They love video games to we did do the arcade/ice cream shop one night too.

The only thing we didn't get to do was bowling and it would have been nice to fit this in as it was part of the pup pass as well. We stayed for two nights and accomplished everything else at a very leisurely pace with no problem. It was a fun place for the kids, and if you can get away there is a nice bar to grab a drink from if you're so inclined. Drink was just okay (pina colada)- but pretty standard.

Have a GREAT time it is such a fun place for kids and the waterpark itself is not hard to navigate once you've walked through it once. I suggest what others said- have mom take the 2 year old to the 5 and under area first. My son tried to go on the slides in this area and was told he was not allowed. Bit of a bummer because they looked really fun- I probably would have went on myself but no such luck- only 5 and under lol. The kiddie section is on the Left when you come in. Wave pool is nice And that is further back on the Left.

If you go to the Right you will find a large pool with basketball nets, a giant floating caterpillar for kids to climb on. And if you walk a bit further you will find the *walk across* /obstacle courses. My kids enjoyed these also. There are also two *medium slides* in this area which are great if your kids are too big for the kiddie slides- but too scared to go on the large water slides- we skipped all of the big slides as kids were too scared. Looked like so much fun though! I was disappointed mom and dad didn't get a chance to to on these at least once! Maybe next time.

Have a great time- would love to go back again some day- hopefully another groupon will come along soon

 

[aprilgail2]

So we'll go off GWL for dinner, thanks for the suggestions, it sounds like we can do all the water park rides then, I appreciate everyone's help. if there's any secrets as where to set up or what tips/tricks for the rides I again appreicate it.

We have been there many times- I agree with going offsite for dinner, food at GWL is expensive and not that good. As far as doing "all" the water park rides- we get there when the water park opens and the kids ride every ride there within an hour. Its really not that big. Just make sure you get in early and grab a place to sit- the chairs go fast.
My daughters favorite thing to do there is magic quest- in the evening all you see are kid running all over the hotel in their pajamas doing magic quest.
If you want to do some touristy things there you have Callies Candy Kitchen and Callies Pretzel Factory not to far away. If you left GWL and make a left you have the pocono cheesecake factory and if you make a right you will come to the candle factory (it is SO much more than candles!) they have one big room with barrels and barrels of candy that they sell by the pound, we always make the trip there right before checking in to great wolf so the kids have candy to snack on in the hotel room!

 

[snowman1035]

I live in the Poconos and have been to GWL. You'll be fine with the indoor water park. It isn't that big! I do agree with getting there early to get chair because they do go very quick. As for eating offsite, if you go out the parking lot and make a right onto Rt. 611 you will run into alot of places to eat that are very good. The candle shop is a great place to stop, the candy room is my favorite! If you travel down past that for about a mile, you will run into several great places to eat. Also right down the road from GWL is the Crossing Outlets. I found that the prices for snacks/food in th water park area are very costly and not worth the price. Have a great time and hope you have a nice trip to the Poconos!

 

[BuzznBelle'smom]

You should be able to do everything you want to, in the two days. Aside from the kiddie area, there are slides that are smaller, if your younger child is adventurous or the older child is a bit apprehensive. My DS6 is a real water puppy, and he was miffed that the biggest slides had height restrictions! OTOH, my DD9 is a big chicken, so she was happier on the mellower stuff.

As to food, we brought down a bunch of stuff--cold cuts, snacks, etc. Even the grocery store down the road was pricey. But, it's only about a mile away, so if you need supplies, it's there (as is a drug store, if you find yourself needing Tylenol or something). We never ate in the park. There are many restaurants within a 2-mile radius, including the diner that's a few hundred yards from the entrance. In addition, there's a bunch of places who will deliver--we got a big pan of chicken parmesan, it was really tasty, and it fed the 6 of us with leftovers--no mean feat, given that I have 2 teens.

If your 6yo isn't ready for Magiquest, there's a younger, story-time version that you can do. Or you can just skip the whole thing. There's also a build-a-bear rip-off that's not worth it, IMHO.

Have a nice time!

 

[DisneyDiana]

For dinner, we always go to Barley Creek Brewing Co. It's only a mile or two away and has great food, beer, kids meals where they can pick from a treasure box for a prize, awesome!

 

[stamfordmike]

So how expensive and how bad is this food? I appreciate the advice but to go off campus for food or bring food in seems to take away from the experience. How much is a kids meal? 10-12 bucks? As an adult will me and my wife have stomach issues because the food is that bad? Are we talking normal hotel/resort jacked up rates or something much higher?

 

[dbogen]

When we went a few years ago we actually ordered take out for dinner. I just walked down to the front desk and asked if they had any suggestions for take out. They actually handed me a few menu's. It was easy everyone got what they wanted and we were able to store the leftovers in the room for a late night snack after the water park closed.

Don't panic, you will have a great time.

 

[pocomom]

So how expensive and how bad is this food? I appreciate the advice but to go off campus for food or bring food in seems to take away from the experience. How much is a kids meal? 10-12 bucks? As an adult will me and my wife have stomach issues because the food is that bad? Are we talking normal hotel/resort jacked up rates or something much higher?

From the best of my recollection you can expect disney prices, and I actually did have stomach problems from their "pizza" (which isn't fun when you are at a waterpark and your room is all the way at the end of a looooong hallway! To me on that first visit (the only one we ate there) at best the food was equal to cafeteria food. Even our teenager who could eat anything and everything at the time, couldn't eat her meal foor dinner. And frankly for a little weekend vacation I wouldn't have minded the cost if the food was edible. For us the food at these kiddie vacations is just fuel, but still you don't want to get sick. We actually wrote a letter to them after that- who knows maybe it is better now?

 

[Nlbnikki]

We go every year my kids are now 6 & 10, but have gone for the past 3 years. When you check in you can ask for menus of local places that deliver to the resort and go back and relax in you room for dinner. We picked an Italian place and all 4 of us ate for under $20. Another thing they tend to keep the entire resort pretty warm year round, my kids usually end up in at least short sleeve shirts to do the stuff inside the resort. I would also have to say my kids both love magiquest, and run around doing that for a few hours each day. Even my youngest has been participating since we first went when she was 3. Just go and enjoy your self, but prepare to be hooked.