Great Wolf Lodge offers summer fun all year long

Published 9:46 am Tuesday, December 23, 2008

The holiday season is over and sometimes that feels like a drag. There were sparkles and presents and the kids were occupied enough not to bug you about going somewhere fun.

But if the dark nights, cold days and children aching for some wet, warm, fun are getting you down, consider a trip to Great Wolf Lodge in Grand Mound, Washington, just south of Olympia.

If taking your employees for a business retreat is in the cards for 2009, this is a fun and relaxing place to head to with spacious conference rooms, comfortable suites and a beautiful spa.

Even when the weather outside is frightful, it’s not much more than a two-hour drive from Everett to where the temperature inside the GWL’s cornerstone attraction, the 60,000-square-foot indoor water park, is a steady 84 degrees.

The indoor water park consists of slides and waves, toys and climbs, and water gushing from a huge tipping bucket that cascades hundreds of gallons of water onto those waiting below from a great height every time it gets full enough.

What families like about the water park is that not only is it warm, but it is only for guests of the hotel, which means that there is no overcrowding. Vigilant lifeguards watch children and adults closely. They keep a keen eye on fun seekers at all times while being helpful and considerate.

Speaking of great staff: GWL is not only family friendly but employees from waiters to management are top notch.

On our arrival we were greeted with free Starbucks samples from the outlet housed in the lodge lobby. Check-in was a breeze and everything was explained simply and smoothly.

With two kids chomping at the bit to hit the water slides we checked into our adjoining rooms with two queen beds, two restrooms and televisions. Rooms were clean and spacious. Check out options online for the 398 rooms including 10 suite-style rooms and themed accommodation such as KidCabin Suites.

Approximately three seconds later (at least that’s what it felt like), we were in the water park swimming, sliding, squirting, and tubing.

Areas for smaller children, such as our 3-year-old, were safe and fun with baby slides and toys to sit on and play with, as well as areas for paddling.

Our older daughter was anxious to ride the waves in another pool. She sat in a tube while grandma held her and they soft-surfed their way around.

The nail biting moment for this mom came when our 6-year-old wanted to go down the River Canyon Run slide. Sadly, she met the height requirements and her eyes gleamed as she looked at the six-story-high structure with 500 feet of winding gigantic hose.

Luckily, her 72-year-old grandma volunteered to go with her, not once, but twice.

Once the water park is closed for the evening, or if you want a break from all that wet fun, there is so much more still to do at GWL.

Many kids and adults were exploring the lodge on different floors and finding clues and riches such as treasure chests that open on command with a wave of a wand. They were playing MagiQuest, a live action adventure game that involves slaying dragons and coming upon other worldly characters while trying to accumulate points to get to higher levels.

Wands for MagiQuest can be purchased at GWL. With that and a booklet for clues and scores, the game begins.

Younger kids and parents can spend hours in Cub Club craft room where staff members help decorate tee shirts or paint bears and raccoons. There’s a pajama story time at the big clock in the great room of the lodge every night, a sprawling arcade room with 100 games for older kids, a Scooops Kid Spa for kids 12-and-under, offering ice cream themed manicures and pedicures, and gr8-space tech interactive family tech center.

Close to gr8-space are a Pizza Hut and Bear Paws Sweets and Eats offers up home made, yes, home made fudge in many different flavors. It is a treat.

The buffet restaurant, Loose Moose Cottage, is a kids dream for eating out. This food fare offers a smorgasbord of food for adults and a kid’s buffet in the center of the room that boasts Mac and cheese, smiley face potatoes, sprinkles, marshmallows and M&Ms.

There is also quieter, more couple-oriented dining in the lodge such as the Camp Critter Bar and Grille.

It in not necessary to visit GWL with kids. Many business events take place at the lodge where adults can relax and unwind at Elements Spa run in peace and tranquility by spa director Mark Elliott Siepak.

Siepak makes sure that when guests come to Elements they feel as if they are a world away from the crazy fun going on just a few halls away in the water park.

Grand Mound’s location is one of 10 in the United States and Canada. The Washington lodge is a partnership with The Confederate Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation.

It is not far enough away to go for a week’s vacation, but just far enough away from Snohomish County to feel like the family has been on a fun-filled getaway.

Two nights is probably the limit for families. But be prepared to be nagged by your family, or employees, for a return visit…soon.