A Seasoned Mom’s Guide to Great Wolf Lodge

As I write this post, my family is returning from our fourth trip to Great Wolf Lodge!

While Great Wolf Lodge isn’t necessarily my favorite place, my kids absolutely love it! Their eyes light up the moment we walk in the front door, and their amazement doesn’t end until well after leave!

Now that we’ve been a few times, I thought I would share some of the things I’ve learned along the way! I’m concentrating my advice into three areas: food, rooms and when to go. One note, our experience is based on the location in Mason, Ohio.

Food

The food at Great Wolf Lodge is expensive! We learned this the hard way our first time there and haven’t made that mistake again.

While they have eating options on-site for breakfast, lunch, dinner and more, I find it best to try and buy as little food there as possible.

For dinner, we always order pizza from Donotos and either have it delivered or pick it up and bring it back. Great Wolf Lodge has a pizza place, but our family doesn’t love it enough to justify the price. 

For breakfast, there is an on-site Dunkin’ Donuts, but we usually have my husband drive to Panera and once again, bring food back.

We usually buy the kids ice cream at Great Wolf Lodge, but I always bring other snacks and bottled water to keep in the room instead of buying them there. 

Rooms

There are several room options. The first time we went, we got a “normal” room, with two Queen-sized beds. It was fairly roomy and a nice room, perfectly fine for an overnight stay.

However, we’ve upgraded to a themed suite the last three times, which the kids love! It comes with a queen-size bed, and then there’s a room partition with a separate sleeping area for the kids with bunk beds and their own TV! While the room upgrade isn’t necessary, it’s nice for our kids to have a separate little area!

When To Go

All four times we’ve gone, we’ve chosen to go during the week, to cut down on both the crowds and cost. Twice, we’ve gone over spring break, in March, and twice, we’ve gone in early August. I would, hands down, prefer to go in August because it is so much less crowded! The outdoor pool is also open then. 

As far as length of stay goes, we’ve always done just one overnight, and I feel that’s plenty for everyone. Check-in is at 4:00, but you can come early to swim on your day of arrival. We also added late checkout, so we could leave at 2:00 vs. 11:00. When writing this, it cost an extra $60, which I feel is worth it so the kids can swim again in the morning before leaving.

I hope this information has been helpful in planning your own trip to Great Wolf Lodge! It’s a fun little trip for the kids that isn’t too far away from home!

If you have additional questions, feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll try to answer it!

Here’s another post on this topic: A First-Timer’s Guide to Great Wolf Lodge