Best Kids Hotel Get Away So Far

Alice was not interested in being in this picture.

This past weekend we took our 5 kids to the Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara Falls.  We had heard of this place before and were hoping to make it part of our Christmas holidays but found that it worked better for us to wait and go when we thought  it would be less busy.  It's only an hour away from where we live and it is amazing.  They have so many activities going on for kids and adults that it was hard to fit it all in  with the time that we allowed ourselves.  The main lobby has animated wolves, moose and bears that talk to the kids and are very cute and lifelike. There is always a roaring fire in the front and it has a very rustic feel.  The room that we stayed in had plenty of room for all of us the a log cabin type club house taking up half the room with a bunk bed and a singel bed inside as well as their own tv.  The boys really enjoyed that.

Sorry - a little blurry.

The main attraction at the lodge is a giant waterpark. It is huge and very fun with lots of eye catching out door themed structure throughout the park. There was lots to do for all the kids and we enjoyed hours of playtime over the two days we were there.

 

 We found it very economical because we could check in early and then go to the waterpark one day and then stay over one night and spend as long as we wanted at the park the next day after check out.  We contemplated staying one more night but we had so much fun over that day and a half that we were ready to go by 5:00 and were home in time to eat supper at home.

  The only complaint that the kids had was that the hot tube was't very hot.  We are finding that hot tubs are a rarity in Ontario pools and it makes swimming kind of a bummer.  They had adult only hot tubs at the hotel and Matthew and I would try to sneak away every so often so that we could warm up.  Other fun features of the hotel were a huge arcade where Matthew and Maggie earned many tickets playing the basketball game over and over and over again.   They also had a really good buffet with different foods that we all enjoyed. The kids favorite was the jello and the mussels.  My kids like shell fish.  I keep wondering if that is weird.    While Matthew and I enjoyed many platefuls at the buffet the kids went out to the front lobby and listened to story time with a group of other children from the hotel.  It was very neat with some of the animated animals telling some of the stories.  They also had a neat magic adventure quest that the kids could do throughout the hotel.  You buy wands at the gift shop and get them activated so that you could go throughout the hotel on a quest. The are screens with characters that give clues and the kids use their wands to open chests and turn on lights and do other activities to help them on their quest.  It was really neat and would be something we would do when we go again.  It was a great little get away and highly recommend it to anyone who can go.  We are obviously having lots of fun hear in Ontario, there is so much to do we hope we can fit it all in in our time hear.  Take care all.

Christmas 2012

Christmas is Toronto has been great. Different, but great.  You can't beat the weather here. Compared to Edmonton Alberta weather, Toronto rocks.  Temperatures have not dipped below -10 and even at that we still hovered around the 0 degrees mark.  Snow didn't seem to be in the cards for Christmas at all but we did get a big dump on Boxing Day which made it feel like home. We were able to get together with quite a few different people over the holidays that we have gotten to know since arriving here.  We held two get togethers at our house. One on Christmas eve with the Tay family and one on New Years eve with the Wooley family, the Gundaker family, Nicole and her some Kingley, and Josi and her son Jacob.  We had a lot of fun playing on the Wii and playing in the snow on New Years Eve.    One of the highlights of the holiday was going out to visit my cousin Todd and his wife Paula their family in Cambridge for boxing day.  They just moved in a beautiful and large  house on a lake and they invited us to come have Christmas dinner with them and Paula's family.  We had a great time and were taken care of by great people.  The visit really helped to lesson my sadness over missing my family back in Alberta and our fun holiday get togethers.  Most of the holiday was spent in our pajamas and the kids felt fairly spoiled over their Christmas gifts so I say that it was a success.  By the end of week two with the lack of sleep and structure, needless to say I did blow my top a couple of times.  I'm glad my husband and kids are so forgiving cause I felt pretty guilty.  Although we enjoyed our holiday, I am glad we are back to real life again. Happy New Year.