Great Wolf Lodge

 For Christmas this year Johanna's mom got our family a trip to Great Wolf Lodge. Luckily an ad had been running on TV for it, so when the kids opened the surprise on Christmas morning, they were already familiar with GWL. There was much excitement on the drive up and of course the standard repeat "Are we there yet?" 

We arrived and got checked in to our room, which was at the very end of the building. Long walk back and forth to the pool but it was nice being on the quite end of the building. Kids were in overload mode with all the different options of things to do, but I definitely think the water park was top of their list. We did the build-a-bear in the gift shop. We next headed to the waterpark and enjoyed the afternoon exploring all the different slides and pools. Hollis loved the kiddie area and Jackson loved the bigger slides once he nervously tried them out. 

Once we all got back to the room and ready for dinner, we realized early sign up for things is crucial at GWL. We ended up going to Wendy's for dinner and then I ran to get toothbrushes for the kids since those didn't get packed. We did some of the evening activities including the dance party and getting our MagiQuest wands. Kids were out cold once we got back to the room!

Next day, Jackson and I did morning yoga and we all had breakfast. We checked out the small bowling alley. Then we did Laser Tag and had fun with that. It was tough to get a slot to play, even though our pass allows unlimited play. We headed to the pool and had to find a table, those get gone early on we learned. Pizza for lunch, which was actually quite delicious. Spent all afternoon in the waterpark. Both kids riding the slides over and over. 

Dinner was at the resort restaurant and again was great food. We spent the evening doing MagiQuest, Arcade, and Virtual Reality. I didn't have my smart watch for an exact count but I have no doubt this was at least a 25K step day. 

The following morning, we loaded up the car and then headed to waterpark to enjoy every moment we could at GWL. We had a wonderful trip and this was a fun way to spend some time together after Christmas. We would recommend this as a great long weekend trip for families that are looking for something special to do but not spending Disney level prices. We got the Fun and Food Pass and the Kid's Club Pass. These offer great add-ons but be aware time slots are very limited for attractions, and you'll likely not be able to do unlimited play as it advertises. The MagiQuest is a great feature and keeps the kids entertained for a while.