Joanie G.
Yelp
My grandsons had celebrated birthdays at GWL before, but it had been a couple of years since they had been. It was my first time. I surprised them with an early Christmas gift. Before arriving, I watched YouTube videos to get the best advice on how to make our trip the best possible for the boys and most cost effective for moi. YouTube for the win! I packed our own groceries, so I had snacks for the boys between events. Additionally, my Son arrived later in the day, in time for dinner, so he brought dinner for us. Everything is very pricey and they nickel and dime you to death. I did pay for a family breakfast buffet at $80! Which wasn't worth the price. My grandsons are tiny and only ate a couple of bites of yogurt, one had a sausage patty, one had a slice of bacon and they drank some juice. Even for 2 adults, we had eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits, potatoes and juice... Definitely not $80 worth! It's nice there's a Starbucks inside, however, they open late, for a Starbucks. Kids are up before the crack of dawn! I need coffee at 6am, not 7:45. The lines were down the hallway, so you had to wait 45 minutes to get coffee...Then my spouse brought us lunch when they were ready for a lunch break. So we saved a bundle on meals.
Purchasing the wands and toppers in advance, online, was a bonus. Apparently I saved about $40, as opposed to buying on-site. I also ordered a snowland backpack for them as well. They were super cute and included holiday wolf ears, a stuffy, a nice sized sweatshirt material blanket, a huge treat bag and an ornament, all in a reusable clear backpack. Definitely a hit!
The Magi-Quest was their favorite thing to do while there. It was hard on me due to my OA, as the elevators had a 10-15 minute wait time, so the boys wanted to take the stairs, obvs because it was faster, they were super excited to play! Of course the challenges bounce around from floor levels 1-4, so it was painful...
Next favorite, for them, was the water park. Boy, when you walk into the enclosed water park, the chlorine gas takes your breath away! My boys wanted me to go in the lazy river with them, but I didn't last long. I got water dumped on my head, as I "walked" with my grandson. Once I got chlorine in my eyes, it burned terribly and I couldn't open my eyes, I had to get out! Not to mention it's the shallowest lazy river, Ive ever been in. Way too shallow! There a bonus 18 and over triple sized hot tub tho, that made the whole trip worth it! The boys had a blast going down the big slides, jumping waves, in the wave pool and my little bit, had fun on the smaller water sprayground, while my 7yr old had a blast going across the floating stones!
The only negatives are cost, excessive chlorine and archaic elevators. Hence the 4 stars. Everything is ridiculously expensive and anything you'd like to add or do, costs money, no matter how small. I learned that asking for Late checkout was a must, as once you check out of your room, you can still stay and play all day, but what to do with your things. Regular checkout is at 11, late checkout is 2. So I asked for late checkout and they were like, sure, that's $60 + $4.95 tax! Sheesh, the room was $209 + fees! Well I paid it, simply for the convenience, not to mention the first weekend in December was freezing AND raining!
All in all, if you plan it right, you can save a little money and still have a great time! Bring your own food and buy online discounts, in advance. It was also nice to know, before hand, to arrive before 4pm, check-in time. We arrived at 3:30 and check-in was a breeze!