LAKE LANIER - 5 Suitcases https://5suitcases.com A family travel blog Mon, 05 Dec 2022 12:30:30 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://i0.wp.com/5suitcases.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/cropped-cropped-logo-4.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 LAKE LANIER - 5 Suitcases https://5suitcases.com 32 32 95195983 An Honest Review of the Legacy Lodge at Lanier Island https://5suitcases.com/review-of-the-legacy-lodge-at-lanier-island/ https://5suitcases.com/review-of-the-legacy-lodge-at-lanier-island/#respond Sat, 12 Mar 2022 15:39:00 +0000 https://5suitcases.com/?p=10010

This winter we stayed at the Legacy Lodge when we went on our Christmas trip to Lake Lanier.  As part of the kids Christmas present, we got tickets to Snow Island at Margaritaville Lanier Islands.  Snow Island is a winter event that features snow tubing, a giant snow pit for snowballs and snow angels, ice skating, a walk-through light show, carnival rides, and more.

Legacy Lodge

The Legacy Lodge

The Legacy Lodge serves as the main hotel for Margaritaville and Lanier Islands.  This pet-friendly hotel is perfect for romantic getaways, girls trips, and family vacations.  The hotel offers traditional hotel rooms as well as suites.

For our stay, we booked the Legacy Lodge Double Queen Room.  The room was about 300 square feet and super comfortable!  The beds were cozy and we had access to a mini-fridge, TV, and a private patio (some offer private balconies).

Our room was on the first floor which meant we had easy access to the lake (via our private patio), the heated salt-water pool, the bars, and restaurants.  The amentities are all centrally located but spread out across different floors.  For instance, the main bar was on the first floor, the game area was on the second floor with the fitness center and heated salt-water pool with firepit, and the upscale restaurant is on the third floor.

 

Legacy Lodge Amenities

  • Heated Saltwater Swimming Pool
  • Fire Pits
  • Gaming Area
  • Fitness Center
  • Business Center
  • Multiple Dining Options

Helpful Hints About Legacy Lodge

  • We suggest arriving at the Margaritaville complex during the daylight.  We found the property difficult to navigate at night because there was not adequate lighting on the roads, and the signs were not lit up.  Many cars had to brake at the signs in attempt to read them.
  • The Legacy Lodge offers a free shuttle to the Margaritaville water park (which is also where Snow Island is held).  The front desk can provide you with a phone number to call to arrange for this service.  It is super user-friendly and it means that you don’t have to worry about finding a parking spot!
  • Parking at Margaritaville is $20 a day, however, this price is included with your hotel stay.
  • The Legacy Lodge offers go-kart rentals which are perfect for days at the lake and driving around the Margaritaville complex.
  • Check in time is at 4 PM, check out is at 11 AM.
  • All purchases at the Legacy Lodge can be charged to your room.

Getting to Legacy Lodge

The Legacy Lodge is located at:

7000 Lanier Islands Parkway, Buford, GA 30518

Phone: 770-945-8787

Our Honest Opinion of the Legacy Lodge

Honestly, for the price, you can’t beat the Legacy Lodge in Lake Lanier, Georgia.  We booked the Double Queen Room and it went for$150 a night (at the end of December 2021).    The room was comfortable and suited our needs.  

The hotel itself didn’t have a lot to offer, but I think that’s because most visitors don’t spend much time at the hotel itself.  Since the main reason most people visit Lanier Islands is to spend time on Lake Lanier or at Margaritaville, most visitors simply use the lodge as a place to rest their head.

Legacy Lodge
Double Queen Room at Legacy Lodge

That being said, I think the hotel has definitely missed out on the opportunity to capitalize on this being a family-friendly hotel.  The amenities are limited to a heated salt-water pool, a fitness center, firepits, and a business center.  None of them are really worth writing home about.  The gaming area is just a foosball table and a pool table.  The hotel definitely has the space to expand and add more amenities (a splash park, playground, mini-golf, etc) that would make the place a bit more enjoyable.

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Legacy Lodge
Legacy Lodge
Legacy Lodge
Legacy Lodge

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]]> https://5suitcases.com/review-of-the-legacy-lodge-at-lanier-island/feed/ 0 10010 License to Chill at Snow Island-Margaritaville Lanier Island https://5suitcases.com/snow-island/ https://5suitcases.com/snow-island/#comments Sun, 02 Jan 2022 00:11:00 +0000 https://5suitcases.com/?p=10012

Transport yourself to a winter wonderland at Snow Island at the Lake Lanier Margaritaville!  The crew at Margaritaville has transformed the lakefront paradise into a wintry carnival that is “snow fun” for all ages!  Parrot Mountain is the the crown jewel of the park.  It is an 8-story high, 575 long super steep snow mound that is perfect for snow tubing!  The event is one of the premier winter events in all of Georgia.

Snow Island Features

  • Snow tubing down Parrot Mountain, a 8-story high, 575 long super steep snow mountain.
  • Ice skating under a covered canopy.
  • Snow pit for snowball fights and snow angels.
  • Carnival rides for visitors of all ages.
  • Fire pits for s’mores.
  • Massive light show walking-tour.
  • Bars and Restaurants. 
Snow Island Margaritaville Lanier Island
Getting ready to snow tube at Snow Island Margaritaville Lanier Island!

What to Wear to Snow Island

One thing that was fairly obvious during our visit to Snow Island is that nobody quite knew how to dress for the day.  There were people in full snow suits, hats, scarves, gloves and snow boots, and others were dressed in their everyday wear.  I reached out to the Margaritaville staff prior to leaving to see what they suggested we wear.  During our visit the outside temperatures were in the 70s, it seemed kind of ridiculous to me for us to be wearing snow gear with it being so warm out.  The Margaritaville rep suggested we dress for the outside temperature and boy am I glad we did!  We would have been way too hot if we were rocking our winter wardrobe.  We wore pants and long sleeve shirts and we were perfectly fine- even on the snow.

Visiting Snow Island at Margaritaville at Lanier Islands

Physical Address:

Margaritaville at Lanier Islands
7650 Lanier Islands Pkwy
Buford, Georgia 30518

The hours for Snow Island vary by day so be sure to check out the official calendar before planning your visit.

Snow Island Ticket Information

There are a few different ticket options ranging from purchasing individual tickets for the attractions to an all-access pass.

Activity & Ride Ticket Pricing

Snow Island Day Pass

Ticket Sheet (20 tickets) $44.99
Individual Ticket $2.50

Snow Island Individual Ticket Redemption:
Blizzard Mountain – 4 tickets
Frosty’s Ice Skating (includes skates) – 3 tickets
Snow Play Area – 2 tickets
Amusement Rides – 1 to 2 tickets per ride
Marshmallow Stick – 1 ticket
S’mores – 2 tickets
Hot Chocolate – 1 ticket
Coffee – 1 ticket

Unlimited Day Pass for Snow Tubing, Snow Play Area,
Ice Rink, Amusement Rides

  • Regular – $49.99
  • Child (Age 3-7) – $39.99
  • Age 2 & Younger – FREE
  • Military (Active & Retired) – $39.99
  • Senior (62 & older) – $39.99
  • Group (15+) – $39.99
  • Family 4-Pack – $159.99

All Access Day Pass

Margaritaville’s Lakeside Lights Spectacular

Unlimited Day Pass for Snow Tubing, Snow Play Area, Ice Rink,
Amusement Rides, and Margaritaville’s Lakeside Lights Spectacular

  • Regular – $54.99 online, $59.99 at the gate
  • Family 4-pack – $219.99

Access to walking light show attraction

  • Regular – $19.99
  • Child (Age 3-7) – $14.99
  • Child 2 & Younger – FREE
  • Military (Active & Retired) – $14.99
  • Senior (62 & older) – $14.99
  • Group (15+) – $14.99
  • Family 4-Pack – $59.99

Our Thoughts on Snow Island

We gave the event a 6 out of 10.  Considering it was called Snow Island, we expected there to be more snow.  Obviously, we understand that’s a little hard to achieve when it’s 70 degrees outside, but there were more carnival activities at Snow Island than there were winter activities.  The winter options were limited to snow tubing, Snow Ball Alley, and ice skating.  

The line for the Parrot Mountain Slide was about 45 minutes long all throughout the day.  We suggest tackling this 8-story snow tubing hill as soon as you get to the park.

The kids loved the Snow Ball Alley section.  They enjoyed playing in the snow and tossing snow balls at each other.  

The three littles were also really looking forward to ice skating.  The ice skating rink was held inside of a covered canopy and was rather small.  I was disappointed that they didn’t have walkers for novice ice skaters to use until they got their bearings.

We visited Snow Island on a Tuesday and discovered that not all of the eateries were open.  This caused the food lines to be long.  They were also sold out of marshmallows for s’mores, which was a bummer.

Snow Island Margaritaville Lanier Island
Snow Island Margaritaville Lanier Island

For our kids, the highlight ended up being the carnival rides.   We had the unlimited pass and they ended up riding most of the rides two or three times.  It was great that they had rides for visitors of all ages.  For instance, there were two different types of Carnival swings, a small one for toddlers and a larger one for older kids and grown ups.  The same can be said for the Ferris wheel.

 

The lines weren’t bad at all, especially first thing in the morning.

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Snow Island Margaritaville Lanier Island
Snow Island Margaritaville Lanier Island
Snow Island Margaritaville Lanier Island
Snow Island Margaritaville Lanier Island

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