Why you should visit Great Wolf Lodge during the off-season

It’s officially been raining *forever* in the Pacific Northwest. Honestly, this is only a slight exaggeration. This year, we had the rainiest winter in decades, and it’s unfortunately leading right into one of the rainiest springs I can remember. I think at this point we’re all very over the grey and drizzle, and I, for one, cannot wait for summer weather to emerge. But sadly, we’re still waiting and the drizzle shows no signs of stopping.So, while we were waiting, we escaped the rain for a bit for a little warm water fun. We didn’t need to fly south or utilize our passports, we just needed to drive a few towns over to visit the Great Wolf Lodge in Grand Mound, WA {in between Portland and Seattle}. These kids didn't know where we were headed until we pulled into the lot at Great Wolf Lodge, and there was a whole lot of screaming once they put together where we were staying.

We had never been to Great Wolf outside of summer, and I cannot believe it took me so long. There are so many reasons to visit Great Wolf during the “off-season”, and I’m going to share my 12 favorite reasons below:

1. There IS no “off season”

Being that it’s an indoor waterpark kept at 84 degrees, it is always comfortable, no matter what the weather. You will never get rained out, you never need sunscreen, and it just doesn’t matter a bit what the weather outside is doing once you step inside the majestic Great Wolf lobby.

2. It’s a great value, especially during the non-peak months

With a massive interactive water fort tree house, over 56,000 square feet of pools and slides, and plenty of activities for everyone, it really is a great value. Go price some water park day passes for the whole family and then price a local hotel to stay at and you will see why Great Wolf Lodge is so popular. Instead of spending money on tickets and accommodations while worrying about shuttling back and forth between the two, stay where you play and save money.

3. It’s the perfect mini-vacation

Maybe you don’t have tons of days off to spare or your child can’t miss school for vacations and you’re struggling with what you can do. Why not master the art of the mini-vacation and take a trip to Great Wolf Lodge a few times a year. A weekend {or mid-week, if you can swing it} getaway is the perfect length for Great Wolf Lodge as you can easily try most everything on your list while still leaving some things you will want to return for.

4. Strengthen the sibling bond throughout the year

My kids are super close, but when they are with their own friends and at school, they tend to just see each other in passing. Seeing them going up and down slides all day together, playing mermaids in the wave pool, and working together to solve the Magic Quest game was a little family bonding present for all of us.

5. Individualized attention from the GWL staff

If there isn’t a line you’re holding up, the Great Wolf employees will help you create that perfect memory, even when you’re outnumbered by kids. During our visit, we had the mining room fully to ourselves, we were thrilled that the Magic Quest employees took the time to answer any and all questions we had, we were so grateful to have employees helping my kids in and out of pools, and we had individualized attention throughout the lodge as we played video games, fought dragons, and even while shopping for souvenirs.

6. You don’t have to wait for summer for an amazing family vacation

If you wait for the absolute perfect time to visit, you will most definitely miss the mark. Go now. Go when you’re worried your kids are too young or too old {they aren’t – trust me, there are activities for every age}. Go even when you haven’t lost that 15 pounds you want to lose. Go when you’re celebrating a birthday, a holiday, or whatever. Just go. Go and be with your family for one-on-one time and have a blast exploring all that the lodge has to offer.

7. Unplug the whole family throughout the year

Speaking of one-on-one time, you should take advantage of the waterpark to achieve the perfect family vacation without worrying about phones and tablets accidentally taking a swim. Declare the waterpark a no-phone zone, and you will actually see your teens or tweens for a bit… and you won’t be tempted by your own phone. These little mini-getaways spread throughout the year are a great way to touch base outside of big family travel and help you stay connected even when you get home.

8. Take advantage of smaller waits

Summer crowds aren’t awful, but visiting the waterpark in spring, fall, or winter cuts those lines for water slides even further. If you can go mid-week, those lines will all but disappear and your trip will be a whirlwind of slide after slide after slide.

9. The minimum-wait-time holds true for restaurants

The restaurants on-site are usually pretty packed in the summer with vacationers looking for fuel after days spent getting all that energy out, and I’m the worst at waiting until it’s too late to start thinking food. Off-peak is more my speed and it means I don’t have to plan ahead one bit when feeding the kids.

10. Get a {really fun} workout

You will be surprised by how many flights of stairs you will climb up in just a short stay at Great Wolf – whether those stairs are in the waterpark or while playing Magic Quest. It won’t feel like a gym workout, and you just might find yourself saying “just one more…” over and over again, but trust me, you will be exhausted by the end of the day. Go often enough and play hard enough and you just might help yourself get swimsuit ready in time for summer.

11. Keep swimming all year

We invested in swim classes last summer and ever since the rain hit, we have struggled to keep their swimming skills sharp and get them practicing. At Great Wolf, they can swim year-round and hone their skills, but it certainly doesn’t feel like work. 

12. Break up the grey and drizzle

I couldn’t even tell you for sure if it was raining the weekend we stayed at Great Wolf Lodge or not, because it just didn’t matter to me. But, what I do remember is that it felt we escaped somewhere warm and sunny in the middle of our record breaking rainfall, all without requiring airfare. This made it more bearable to return the grey knowing we had a wonderful break from the rain while enjoying some really awesome family time and getting a ton of exercise.

Bonus reason:

Look at this fun photobook we created after our Great Wolf Lodge stay! The Shutterfly card with the free book promo code was in the room and we utilized it this month to make a cute little book for the kids. It’s a great way to remember all the great family memories we made during our stay. Have you stayed at Great Wolf Lodge off-season? Is there anything else you would add to this list?

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