Just before Thanksgiving, 2011 my family and I had the great pleasure of visiting Great Wolf Lodge in Scotrun, PA in the Pocono Mountains. I have to admit, I was hesitant about going. I figured it would be crowded, maybe cold… and overpriced. I couldn’t have been more wrong! It was great and a fabulous deal for a family of five! Below is our latest deal from Groupon (3/1/2016)!
$360/night during midweek (March 30-31st) at Great Wolf Lodge in Scotrun, PA. Regularly Weekends are above $500/night!
Posted by NJ Deals for Kids Activities on Tuesday, March 1, 2016
When we visited, our kids were 4 (almost 5), 6 and 8 . Our room was perfect for us! It was one of the “kids cabins” and there was a set of bunk beds and a daybed in a section of the room that was partioned to look like a little cabin built inside our room. The kids had their own TV in there and we had our own TV in the main room .. .and a fireplace. It gave us just the amount of privacy we all needed.
The water park was also pretty much perfect with “right sized” activities for everyone. There is a kiddie/toddler area with 3 or 4 smaller slides that are completely managable for a 3 or 4 year old but that my 6 year old enjoyed too. That same area has lots of little fountains and a water basketball area. Not far from that area is a very large hot tub perfect for warming up if you do get chilled. The same side of the water park area also includes a large wave pool that the bigger kids couldn’t get enough of… the shallow part of that pool also features fountains that are sure to keep a 2 or 3 year old occupied for hours.
There are 3 or 4 larger slides that weren’t too scary for my 4 year old but gave us adults just the right amount of thrill too. Everyone enjoyed the lazy river and all 3 kids had a ton of fun trying to traverse the lily pad/stepping stones and the larger pool with taller basketball hoops and a floating snake. Another HUGE hit was the large playground structure that featured a few more water slides and the huge bucket of water that rained down us on a regular basis.
There’s two options for dining and a bar and larger nicely maintained locker rooms. There were plenty of towels and places to sit although I can’t say we sat much at all…
The restaurant in the hotel had a wonderful buffet breakfast. We didn’t have dinner in the hotel but I imagine it was probably good too. There are plenty of dining options in the surrounding area.
The hotel also features “MagicQuest” which completely entranced my kids and from the looks of it, many others too. You rent (or buy) your very own wand and follow instructions provided in a little book to uncover hidden symbols, jewels and more throughout the hotel. Literally, the hallways are full of kids focused on their quests, helping one another and squealing with delight as they uncover the final item on their quest for a “healing” or “ice” rune. It’s fun to watch treasure chests open to reveal various gold, jewels or crystals and even more fun to watch as kids wave wands at objects that then come alive and move or even speak.
There’s a kiddie spa on premises too… we didnt’ have to time to check that out but it looked delightful and I believe there’s also an arcade room. We didn’t get a chance to explore that either.
We did attend the evening story hour where the woodland display in the hotel lobby comes to life in sing and dance. Very cute!
All in all, it was a great mini-vacation and a ton of entertainment was included for the cost of the room. I would highly recommend a stay any time of the year, although it seems especially appealing in the Winter months, I also noticed they had some great looking outdoor pools too! It’s probably fun any time of the year…
I’ve included some photos we took but they really don’t do the place justice. Check out their website for better photos and even videos. And, look in the 2012 Kidstuff Coupon book for a 20% discount. I tried to use my coupon and couldn’t. I was told it’s based on availabilty and the number of rooms left at the time of booking… so maybe if you call early enough the discount will be available? Or maybe if you have flexibility you can all and ask when it’s available?
Lastly, we realized 3 weeks after our visit that my daughter left the American Girl Doll she saved for all summer in the room. We called and left a message for the lost and found with little hopes of recovering it. We were delighted when we got a call back the next day and 2 days later the doll was on our doorstep!
