Great Wolf Lodge aims to provide family-friendly entertainment

GRAPEVINE, Texas — Colder weather doesn’t mean Oklahoma families can’t enjoy a family-friendly, water-themed vacation. Just a few hours from the Oklahoma City metro area, vacationers can find Great Wolf Lodge, an eco-friendly, nature-themed vacation resort with an indoor water park.

Use of the water park is exclusive to those staying in the lodge.

Great Wolf Lodge aims to provide one-stop shopping for weary moms and dads looking to grab a weekend away with the kids.

Once the family has checked in, waterproof wristbands provide access to everything. They become room key, water-park pass and even charge card at the resort’s restaurants and shops.

From quickly moving slides to wave pools to kiddy areas, the indoor water park provides a range of activities for different ages and temperaments. Fort Mackenzie features a giant, 1,000-gallon bucket that dumps water at regular intervals. There also are slides and bridges in this four-story fort.

Circling Fort Mackenzie is Crooked Creek, where the family can go with the flow of the current on foot or in rafts.

The howl of the wolf warns that the waves are coming in the Slap Tail Pond Wave Pool, where waves can reach 3 feet high.

And the Cub Paw Pool provides an enclosed area for the youngest guests, with kid-powered water cannons and slides with a gentler slope.

After the water park closes, families can treat the kids to story time at the Great Clock Tower in the main lobby before bed.

The themed hotel rooms provide heightened immersion. In the “KidKamp Suite,” bunk beds for the children take on the appearance of a tent. Each suite has a desk, television and mural.

Children who enjoy the “Harry Potter” or “Narnia” books might enjoy spending a day or two on the hotel’s “MagiQuest.” With the purchase of a wand in the downstairs “magic shop,” guests become Magi, seeking magical clues and questing for items spirited throughout the floors of the hotel.

To make it easier on the guests who aren’t playing the game, MagiQuest players are requested to use the stairwell rather than the elevators to search for their items. So, players will get a decent workout on the stairs.

Teens can spend some time in the dedicated teen center or in the Northern Lights arcade.

For mom and dad, the hotel offers a spa, hot tubs and a fitness room.

- By Matthew Price
From Sunday’s The Oklahoman

Where: 100 Great Wolf Lodge, Grapevine, Texas.

Information: www.greatwolf.com; (866) 760-9653 for reservations.

Cost: Rooms start at $189.95 and can run higher depending on the season.

Comments

Leave a comment