If you’re looking for Great Wolf Lodge tips, you’ve come to the right place! These Great Wolf Lodge Tips and packing suggestions will help you prepare for your visit! We’ll tell you what to bring with you, what to leave at home, and what to expect during your visit!
Table of Contents
Great Wolf Lodge Tips
1. Arrival
Before you arrive, you should receive a text from “Willow”. Willow is the front office staff. Text them back with your approximate arrival time, any special requests or questions you may have.
When you check-in, the front office staff will let you know about any special events that are going on and let you know which entrance you should park at. Each door is clearly marked with a number.
Once you’re parked, run inside and grab a luggage cart. This saves you from looking like a pack-mule or taking a gazillion trips to the car.
Some Great Wolf Lodges have these stored in the lobby whereas others have them stashed near stairwells. Be sure to ask the front desk where you can find one.
2. Consider the Great Wolf Lodge Paw Pass
Great Wolf Lodge Pup Passes, Paw Passes, and Wolf Passes offer 30% savings compared to purchasing the activities/souvenirs individually. Bundling the activities is a great way to save a bit of money.
Trust me…when your kids see every other kid in the lodge running around with a wand, they’re going to want to participate in the fun, as well. The wands are part of a game called MagiQuest. In order to play, you’ll need a wand and need pay for the game itself. Both the Paw Pass and the Wolf Pass include MagiQuest.
Pro-Tip: Pack a Sharpie and use it to write your kids names on their pass and the arcade card. You can also write your room number on their waterpark wristband.
3. Think About Your Meals in Advance
Some Great Wolf Lodges don’t have many eating places nearby whereas others, like the Williamsburg location, have lots of options. Be sure to pull up your location on Google Maps to see what’s nearby.
Every Great Wolf Lodge has on-site restaurant open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Consider buying a meal plan.
If your family is made up of grazers and snackers, you may want to pack some snacks.
Food ideas include:
- Veggie tray
- Charcuterie (crackers, cheese, fruit)
- Cookies
- Chips and dip
- Individually packaged snacks
If you’re looking to save money on meals, there is a small fridge and a microwave in the room. You can pack microwaveable mac n cheese, pre-made spaghetti, pre-made taco meat (& the fixins), pre-made chili, and any other microwaveable meal!
You’ll also want to pack water. The chlorine in the pools sucks the hydration out of you.
The Great Wolf Lodge has a partnership with Dunkin’ Donuts. You’ll typically find a Dunkin’ in the lobby. Beware that these lines can get pretty long in the morning. You may want to pack some coffee, filters, cream, and sugar.
4. Download the App
The app offers a list of activities that are going on each day. Activities range from arts and crafts to dance parties and yoga sessions.
You can also order meals from some of the eateries directly from your phone.
5. Pack Your Pool Gear
The Lodge does have towels available, but they must remain at the pool. If you’re visiting during cooler months, or if the AC is cranking, you may get chilly walking back to your room. Consider packing your own towels or a bathrobe to wrap up in.
You’ll also want to bring along a pool bag to stash your phone, and the 900 things your kids ask you to hold on to for them.
If you have a baby or toddler, it is required that they be in swim diapers.
6. Pick Your Seat Wisely
Before you commit to visiting the waterpark, take a quick tour and decide which area would be best for you to post up for the day.
Our oldest kiddo is an adrenaline junkie and loves the waterslides. Our twins, however, preferred the wave pool and the kiddie area. We picked a spot where she could find us easily near the boys favorite spots.
You can also rent a cabana, if you want to splurge a little. However, the cabanas typically aren’t located in an ideal location- meaning, you won’t relax in the cabana while watching your kid play.
7. Get the Pool Early
If you want a table, plan on getting to the waterpark right when it opens. No joke. The tables fill up fast! Tables make it easy to snack or do lunch by the pool.
Getting there early also helps ensure you find a spot for your entire family. If you arrive around lunch time, you’ll notice a majority of the seats are spoken for. It’s difficult to find even two seats next to each other later in the day.
8. ...or Get There Late...
The waterpark tends to be the least busy around dinner time. It makes sense…considering most people get there in the morning. Consider grabbing a pizza at the Hungry as a Wolf Pizza Shop, eating poolside, and enjoying the waterpark in the evening.
9. You Get 2 Days at the Waterpark for the Price of 1
This is probably the best of the Great Wolf Lodge tips you’ll read! Although your room might not be ready, you can access the pool facilities at 1 pm on the day that you check in. Pack all of your swimming gear in a separate bag and leave the rest of your luggage in the car until check in. This lets you enjoy the waterpark early!
You can do the same thing on the day of checkout. Checkout is at 11 however, you can use the waterpark and facilities until the end of the day! Dry bags are a great way to pack up wet bathing suits without getting everything else wet!
10. Pack Ear Plugs
My wife would argue that this is the best of the Great Wolf Lodge tips! Unfortunately, some families let their kids run around the hallways at all hours of the night, or be ridiculously loud in the room. The rooms aren’t sound proofed well…so we heard every footstep above us. Although the hotel does have quiet hours, they start at 11 PM. Do yourself a favor and pack earplugs.
Great Wolf Lodge Tips for Packing
I’ve included the items listed above in the list below to help you pack.
- Pool bag
- Bathing suit cover up, hooded towel or bathrobe
- Goggles
- Towels
- 2 bathing suits per person
- Flip flops
- Waterproof camera (this one is great for kids!)
- Closed toed shoes (for the ropes course)
- Ear plugs
- Life Jackets- the waterpark has puddle jumpers and life jackets available for all sizes
- Sunglasses- it’s an indoor water park.
- Nice clothes. Okay…this one took me a minute to wrap my head around. Believe it or not, the Great Wolf Lodge is super casual. Visitors practically live in their bathing suits and pajamas. Leave the nice clothes at home and pack some extra loungewear.
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