DreamWorks Water Park - East Rutherford, New Jersey. Were going in January. Kalahari is newer and more efficiently run. The Great Wolf Lodge resort in the Poconos was constructed in 2005 - and is one of roughly 19 locations for the chain. The Poconos location has 401 rooms and each wing of the lodge has 4 floors. We recently visited Camelback Mountain Resorts waterpark Aquatopia (November 24th, 2021). There were a total of 3 TVs one in the Family Room where the pull out bed / couch was, one in the master suite and one in the second bedroom with the two queen sized beds. We did really like the lazy river at Aquatopia. There was a large selection, with an emphasis on Italian cuisine. What we usually do @ Kalahari is claim a couple of tables next to the fountain in the lobby and while one of us stays with the family the other runs around to the different food venues to obtain the items we desire to assemble a meal. Sincerely, Chip. Great Wolf Lodge: Outdoor ropes courses seasonal. If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu. Chip, I am planning to go to waterpark with three kids, so I really enjoyed all details! bellyrubbah1 2 yr. ago Cool. Both Great Wolf and Kalahari have very luxurious condos that can accommodate a whole family easily. I've been on trip advisor for years, but have never felt the need to leave a review until now. Great Wolf Lodges water park continues their wildlife theme. It was unpleasant to see and to step on. As part of the U.S.' largest group of family-friendly water parks, this indoor water park has perfected how to maximize family fun for all ages. The clothing line in the bathroom was broken and the bed covers had an unpleasant smell. Swim Up BARS - An absolutely genius idea! Klahari is themed and decorated as an African resort. We also only stayed one night, so Im not sure how often housekeeping visits. After learning about the aspects of both of these resort, which one will your family choose? My husband and I especially like the adults-only area at Kalahari, and we dont miss the late-night stomping of kids in the hallways playing MagiQuest at Great Wolf Lodge (if you know, you know). Hopefully you can come again soon but until then, take care! The hot tub situation was disappointing. It smelled like an overcrowded SPCA. Both waterparks are easily accessible from the lobby, and the dining and shops are also centered around there. If there are any older children in your party, around 10 years and older, then they may not appreciate the kiddie theming that runs through Great Wolf Lodge. There is a huge fireplace towards the back of the lobby that is adjacent to a huge window that overlooks the water park. In the center right past the check-in area there is a large animatronic display where the nightly bedtime story (The Forest Friends Show) takes place. Wonderful service.Lazy River - Longer than the one at Great Wolfbut lots of people and tubes jamming it up!Towels were only available outside, we heard there may have been a shortage but we didn't really experience that. We ordered a pizza and had it delivered to the room from the in-house Pizza Pubit was quite good and we felt reasonably priced! Expect to spend money on food, games, etc. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Confusingly enough she was allowed to go on the small kids slides that were inside the waterpark. How does it compare to Great Wolf Lodge? Great Wolf Lodge was nearly as inexpensive during the week as Aquatopia ($249 vs $238), and the cheapest on Saturday night. We stayed in the Desert room which was sufficient in size for 2 adults and 2 small kids. It felt cozy and definitely complimented the whole lodge theme & experience! The theming is carried throughout multiple aspects of the total experience. In our opinion, the splash park at Aquatopia was the weakest of the three. It is also carried through with the water park experience itself with some of the attractions incorporating the characters and /or lodge theme. It was HORRIBLE! Both resorts also have bunk bed suites with small alcoves just for the kids. The room @ Aquatopia that we had was a double queen suite, a pull-out sofa and a balcony. So these mini-vacations are a perfect and necessary thing for our family. My household has loved a handful of stays on the water park lodge Nice Wolf Lodge in Grapevine, Texas (and one go to to the GWL in Southern California). Many of these water parks are resorts, meaning they also comparison guide for all three of these resorts, Lindt Chocolate Factory Outlet Carlisle, PA. It needs to be checked more often. I look forward to hearing back from you. Aquatopia offers a great selection of activities for tweens & younger teens, both inside & outside! Kalahari was definitely newer and nicer but also more expensive. (If we wanted to watch tv, we could go to our room.) Great Wolf Lodge. Thankfully, we didnt have a 2+ hour line to check-in. But the resort's smaller size makes it easier to keep an eye on the kids. Adventure Update # 018: My Tricycle is Very Very Fast! Keep reading our Poconos water park guide & comparison to find out! There are other places with better miniature golf courses and a regular bowling alley does a better job for bowling so we tend not to spend our dollars on those activities when we are at Great Wolf Lodge. Kassi was terrific! One of Melani and my pet peeves with regards to hotel accommodations is when there is only one night stand for a queen bed. Speaking of the wave pool we did find the buzzer alert to notify guests of the beginning of a wave cycle to be very harsh and not conducive to the relaxing atmosphere that should be associated with a wave pool. This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC. The wave pool alternates between wave / no wave cycles. Kalahari did a remodel on their indoor kid area about a year ago. I would request a higher floor again because the 2nd floor gets all of the foot traffic as that is the lobby floor and the waterpark and arcade are on the lower 1st floor.Take a minute to just look around and notice the dcor, architecture, and design. The wolf mascots host a nightly dance party and pj story time. EXPECT IT and you will have a great time. B-Lux also features 12 lanes of state-of-the-art Brunswick bowling. We had no problem finding a table and chairs to rest our towels and use for eating later. CHECK IN/ROOM - We checked in with Kassi at We visited Kalahari in the Pocono Mountains for a last minute trip with our two girls, ages 8 and 9. Kalahari also has crafts, escape room, mini golf, mini bowling, and arcade. Yes, there were some healthy options just not a very good variety. Camelback Lodge and Great Wolf Lodge are two of the most popular family resorts in the Poconos with indoor water parks. Our Dallas, TX resort offers an 80,000-square-foot indoor water park and exciting land attractions for the entire family. Staff always pleasant and friendly!FOOD - There is food available in the waterpark in addition to a steakhouse and Italian restaurant. This past visit however was somewhat disappointing. You used the same bathroom photo for both resorts. Much more concise! They did a fabulous job with the design of this place. As I mentioned above, we can engage in many of the other activities closer to our home. Check there and compare prices with their website to find the lowest prices for your stay. The main dry activity, however, is the MagiQuest interactive wand game. The resort has a spa center, a hot tub and an on-site restaurant. When I called, the charge was removed & the service rep was polite enough but, apparently Aquatopia/Camelback fully expects there to be a parking fee added to every invoice! Many months later (due to COVID) we stayed at Camelbacks Aquatopia. Kalahari Resort has an African safari theme. The distance from the lobby to our room was an extremely long haul for her. According to the contract, the family resort and water park will feature at least 400,000 square feet of lodging and entertainment space and the indoor water park will be at least 75,000 square feet. Kalahari and Wilderness are kind of overwhelming. LOCATION: Within the 1st floor level of Tom Foolerys Adventure Park inside B-Lux Grill & Bar. Kalaharis waterpark is the largest at 220,000 square feet & Camelbacks Aquatopia indoor waterpark is right in the middle at 125,000 square feet. It was nicely decorated and efficiently arranged. The view felt somewhat private and we really enjoyed it! The Great Wolf Lodge resort in the Poconos was constructed in 2005 and is one of roughly 19 locations for the chain. The farm is back a lane, and Lindt Chocolate Factory Outlet is located at 40 Logistics Drive in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. There are 2 lazy river type rides, the wave pool is immense, there are 2 hot tubs that are partly inside the building AND partly outside of the building with a narrow channel to traverse back and forth. That said, I wouldnt pay triple the price for Kalahari. There is an indoor rock wall, laser tag, and indoor ropes course, etc. We like archaeology and the lost river archaeology theme was interesting and well done. From our experience after visiting Great Wolf Lodge, Kalahari & Camelbacks Aquatopia indoor water parks in the Poconos we felt that: Check out our comprehensive comparison chart of these three indoor water park resorts here: Waterpark Comparison Chart: Kalahari, Aquatopia & Great Wolf Lodge. Still it was a frustrating experience that cast a pallor over our time and experience there. For our Tuesday June 25th, 2019 stay @ Great Wolf Lodge the cost of our room was $209.99 with taxes & fees amounting to $51.59, bringing the total to $261.58. Great Wolf is more for kids, but I feel like Great Wolf service is better than Kalahari. TheParenthoodAdventures.comis owned & operated byChip Williamsonwho is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program that enables websites like this to earn advertising fees from Amazon.com. The outdoor small kids area with slides was a nice addition to the park however my daughter who is 53" tall was not allowed to go on them. Hello, Erika! Also, the post was never updated to include information about Aquatopia. At times Kalahari actually felt a littletoo bigfor us. Thank you to the staff we mentioned for really making sure our stay was the best it possibly could be! This post will focus on the Leola New York City and upstate New York are close to many amazing indoor water parks. Otherwise, it far exceeded our expectations and we will definitely be choosing Kalahari over Great Wolf for many years to come. My family recently visited Kalahari Resort in Round Rock, Texas. Would have been nice to have them inside as well.The waterpark overall was phenomenal - huge and definitely accommodates young and old. However, there seemed to be a noticeable amount of debris at the bottom of the pool which seemed to a combination of plastic and dirt. This was because: 1) We are a family of 6 and eating out is not usually relaxing or enjoyable! It had its own TV and was adorned with a lot of cute character images. We may also participate in other affiliate programs from time-to-time and be compensated for referring traffic & business to these companies. I found the photos pleasing to look at and relaxing! We stayed from Tuesday through Thursday during July. Kalahari and Chula Vista - now that the "Flyin Mayan" ride is back - are also. Both resorts have also utilized Groupon for deals. We went to all three water parks in the Poconos (Great Wolf Lodge, Kalahari & Aquatopia) to find out which one is the BEST water park. Here's our overall review.Right away we were looking for and expecting a wonderful customer service experience, and Kalahari did not disappoint. Read on to find out which one is the BEST water park for your family vacation! Have you been to both Great Wolf Lodge and Kalahari Resort? If you can't afford it, don't bother making the trip. Our suite @ Kalahari was HUGE! Hopefully you can keep returning and finding even more ways to have fun with us as the kids grow. We appreciate it! This activity requires participants to roam all over the lodge to find clues and solve a quest. It is hard to believe that Aquatopia/Camelback would actually be charging extra for the balcony /patios at this level! Thank you for your feedback. Winner: Kalahari Resort (especially for older kids and teens). (Remember that Kalahari is actually a desert in southern Africa.) I will say we were on the 7th floor..and it was perfectly quiet. Learn how your comment data is processed. To read more aboutHOW TO GET THE BEST DEAL& aPRICE COMPARISONof ALL THREE POCONOS WATERPARK RESORTS check out my NEW post:Poconos Waterparks: How to Get the Best Deals at Great Wolf Lodge, Kalahari & Aquatopia! It seems, for obvious safety reasons, that a toddler area would be better located on the lowest level of the water park. I felt the prices were reasonable for this type of American Pub food. A report from KSAT sister station KPRC states that the indoor water park will break ground in 2022 in the city of Webster, just south of Houston. Wisconsin Dells, WI https://www.greatwolf.com/wisconsin-dells We really liked the 2 water falls that were present on the lazy river. Our balcony overlooked a very lightly used service road and then there was an unobstructed view of the forested mountain side. Kalahari was the cheapest on Friday evening - but the most expensive during the week & the second most expensive on Saturday evening. I look forward to connecting with you. Part-time blogger, full-time nerd & aspiring Renaissance man! Sincerely, I love the theming of GWL and my kids are obsessed with Magi Quest, but the adults only things at Kalahari cant be beat! We ended up eating most of the fries and onions rings, while discarding the rest. Take care! We simply love everything about it! I love Great Wolf Lodge, but the water park is a little more for younger kids, while Kalahari is more for the older kids. CEO approval 75 % approve of John Murphy (Murph)'s performance 74 % approve of Todd Nelson's performance Salary satisfaction 49 % think they are paid fairly at Great Wolf Lodge 40 % Great Wolf Lodge is known for their MagiQuest game. To the credit of one observant & kind employee he noticed the exceedingly poor service my wife had received and apologized to her later in the day when he saw her. I'm displeased to hear of the strange odor in your room and that we were not able to correct this situation while you were staying with us. We joke that we lost Sophie our 2 year old for 5 minutes in the immense suite! Kids are going to want to explore all areas of this place and we find it frustrating reading reviews about those complaining about how expensive everything is. It is so fun for my children (12 & 4 years old) and for adults too!! Towel check-out is something new since our last visit. The advent of Great Wolf Lodge represents one of the most monumental The advent of Great Wolf Lodge represents one of the most monumental accomplishments in the Citys history, Webster city officials said. Thats theming! The new Italian restaurant had a nice design and the food was good. We visited Kalahari in the Pocono Mountains for a last minute trip with our two girls, ages 8 and 9. How does the resort compare to Great Wolf Lodge? It is a wonderful family vacation spot that offers a lot of adventure & nature! There is a very small / non-standard sized bowling alley, a miniature golf course, an arcade, MagiQuest, etc We have done some of the other activities in the past but only if they were included with our stay or one of the bundled package passes (Paw Pass, Pup Pass and Wolf Pass). There are currently 4 locations for the chain with the Poconos location being its largest facility. My husband was brave enough to continue exploring as I sat out on the ground level patio. This is probably the one area that Aquatopia beats both Great Wolf Lodge & Kalahari. Kalahari is amaizing! Naturally, the hotel offers an indoor water park, plus character meet-and-greet experiences, live entertainment, an arcade, ropes course, bowling alley, mini-golf course and spas (one for kids and one for adults). You could definitely capture everything this place has to offer in 2-3 days. I actually made the kids wear earplugs (as did I) to go to this! Kalahari activities and attractions differ with each location. Hey, thanks for the great reviews! Church work is not for the faint of heart, and by the end of the summer church has just flat taken its toll on all of us. Great Wolf Lodge, Kalahari & Camelbacks Aquatopia resort are all located in the Poconos and are VERY close to each other! There is also a cafe (Cafe & Bar) and a restaurant (Horizons) located right off the main lobby. There were 2 bathrooms one off the walk-in area and the second one in the master suite. But having a wide variety of restaurants and foods was great! LOVED the concept - didn't like the fact that they were not full bars - they only made a few specialty drinks and offered beer and wine. It is disappointing to hear that you did not have as great of an experience this time around compared to your first two. It reminds me of Disneys Wilderness Lodge. Activities could include yoga, character appearances, crafts, a nightly Forest Friends show, story time, and a dance party. Aquatopia made an effort to do some theme-ing with the Kartrite Quest /Adventures but this really only covers the water park and the activities for kids to the left of the lobby. The food was overpriced but tasty. As I mentioned earlier with 4 kids ranging in age from 2 10 we are not very often dining in @ a restaurant. lindakmonty He's like "OH NO YOU DIDN'T" Joined Jun 24, 2005 Jun 30, 2006 #7 Kalahari Resort vs. Great Wolf Lodge. As I indicated above I should not have been charged a fee for parking since we did not leave a vehicle at the resort and were dropped off. However, having fewer food venue choices and adult amenities limits your stay to a very kid-centric experience. That is with just 2 adults and 4 kids. Although our room was not yet ready (official check-in is at 4:00), we received our bracelets to use the waterpark downstairs and we were advised that we could store our luggage in an adjacent locked storage area. It is the smallest of the 3 indoor water parks in the Poconos, Pennsylvania. Copyright 2023 KSAT.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group, a division of Graham Holdings. We LOVED IT!More. The development is expected to break ground during. Camelbacks Aquatopia resort opened their indoor water park in May of 2015. We stayed @ Great Wolf Lodge on a Tuesday night and then Kalahari on Wednesday night of the same week. Wet bar, fridge, microwaveIMPRESSED with the upkeep.WATERPARK - The place is absolutely huge. We were told that the elevator was on the convention center side, which was not really convenient for her. more. Snow tubing in PA requires no special skills or equipment and is appropriate for almost everyone. Crystal, The fact that Aquatopia ALSO has an outdoor water park (Camelbeach) and its night-time illumination make it unique. Billing Issue: I did have a billing issue with Aquatopia / Camelback. After the meal there are plenty of places like the pastry shop, coffee shop or ice cream shop that have many enticing desserts for the children. We are a family of 6 with four kids ranging in ages from 5 12 years old. https://www.theparenthoodadventures.com/waterpark-comparison-chart-kalahari-aquatopia-great-wolf-lodge/ GWL isnt fast either, but 2+ hours to pay triple the price wouldnt work either. Great Wolf Lodge has more charm and we enjoyed the lodge theme & the characters. They were methodical and intense, and I just didn't get that feeling with many of the lifeguard staff here. Answer 1 of 6: We want to take my son ( just turned 4) to either Kalahari or Great wolf lodge. Kalaharis water park does the same, except with a jungle theme. Let's talk about the Royal Hospitality Suite at Kalahari Pocono. We also liked the master light switch in the room that made it very easy to turn off every light in the suite with one switch. This is an interactive game that has players moving throughout the Lodge on quests. It felt more intimate and clean, less crowded and sufficiently staffed. Kalahari Resort has a huge upcharge for the one type of themed room. Its really a question of what the individual family prefers, as far as water park size, features and resort amenities. Generally we are there for some water park fun and that is what Great Wolf Lodge does best so that is where we spend the majority of our time. See our Advertiser Disclosure and Editorial Notehere. Both are reasonable attempts at having a meal on the healthier side. My son went to the prime rib carving station several times but the chef continued to serve him meat with chunks of fat on it - so he gave up. Great Wolf Lodge Poconos Water Park Toddler Play. During our long walk to the room (the opposite end of the facility), he was VERY professional, engaging and helpful. Rooms are bigger and have fun themes. Looking up to the roofline Aquatopia does feel more open and expansive since it is more of a sweeping semi-circle in shape. Both resorts in the Poconos have a water coaster. The Lobby is one of the things I, and everyone in my family, really liked about Kalahari! Offers more free activities in the main lobby. The Great Wolf Lodge Resort is a family-friendly resort located a few miles from the LEGOLAND Discovery Center in Grapevine and offers deluxe accommodations, upscale amenities, and an indoor water park with several swimming areas and wave pools, water slides and rides, waterfalls, hot springs, and entertainment for children. This is an exciting place for kids to be with lots of fun things to do from arcade games galore to a huge indoor water park. I noticed that Kalahari may have a larger toddler area. Great Wolf Lodges water park is 80,000 square feet, but Kalaharis is over 220,000 square feet. Kalahari is a better choice for families with adolescents and teens, while Great Wolf Lodge is perfect for elementary-age children. 6 Best Texas . (especially Aquatopia & Great Wolf Lodge) If you were to drive from Kalahari, to Great Wolf Lodge, and then to Aquatopia the total distance would be approximately 11.3 miles and take just 26 minutes. But, if or when we do return, I look forward to spending more time in that adults-only grotto. Chip Williamson All Rights Reserved. That makes it easy for families traveling with toddlers (and their little legs!). Since we are fans of Indiana Jones we like most archaeology theme including this one but I would not say the theme-ing is immersive other than the lazy river. Most of the time we were at Aquatopia we ate FROM Trails End Pub & Grille. Kalahari is absolutely immense! We had no real negatives about Great Wolf but in all honesty, Kalahari Resort surpasses them on almost all levels, but to no fault of Great Wolf. Advice: you can't come to a place like this and complain about how much things cost. Expect to spend money on food, games, etc. This was our 3rd visit to Kalahari, the 2 previous times we stayed was before March 2017 when the resort was only half way completed. The ladies bathroom and changing area looked tike a war zone! We changed in the bathroom/changing areas, located a storage locker (for a fee), and found a table. My wife went there one morning to order some breakfast and it took nearly an hour to get our food after ordering it (she was also in line for nearly an hour before even getting to place her order). There are a number of other activities available at the lodge. We visited Kalahari in the Pocono Mountains for a last minute trip with our two girls, ages 8 and 9. but also read water is cold. Kalahari I feel would be better for the adults to have fun as well. It felt like you were rubbing shoulders with other people all the time. Compare management, culture and compensation ratings for Great Wolf Lodge and Kalahari Resorts & Conventions. Age and height requirements vary by location. We had no real negatives about Great Wolf but in all honesty, Kalahari Resort surpasses them on almost all levels, but to no fault of Great Wolf. At Kalahari, there are two separate, toddler play areas. We had no real negatives about Great Wolf but in all honesty, Kalahari Resort surpasses them on almost all levels, but to no fault of Great Wolf. We inquired about an potential upgrade and they granted us a special price to upgrade to an African Queen Suite which had 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms - perfect to provide privacy with 2 girls! "The advent of Great Wolf Lodge represents one of the most monumental accomplishments in the City's history," Webster city officials said. Top Educational & Inspirational YouTube Channels for Families 2022, Waterpark Comparison Chart: Kalahari, Aquatopia & Great Wolf Lodge. The room was clean and a good size and the 4 of us had enough room to spread out, with one person taking the full-size, pullout sofa bed. I hope you have a wonderful time with your family! The floors were full of paper, tissues, dirty towels, used dippers, used shampoo packets etc and there was no attendant in sight. Inspired parents sharing the joys & adventures of the parenthood journey!