Visiting Great Wolf Lodge with Toddlers: Must-Haves & Tips for Parents
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Planning a trip to Great Wolf Lodge with toddlers? Last year we took our two toddlers (2 and 4) to Great Wolf Lodge in Perryville, Maryland, for the first time and had an unforgettable experience! From the excitement of the Wolf Den Suite with bunk beds to splashing for hours in the indoor waterpark, our kids were in heaven. However, traveling with toddlers comes with its own set of challenges, and I quickly learned what worked well—and what I will be doing differently next time.
We have another trip coming up in just a few weeks (it’s a surprise overnight trip for our kids), so I’ve been reviewing our trip last year and have been making a packing list & plans for what we want to do differently this year. In this post, I’ll share my favorite tips, must-have items, and some money-saving hacks to help make your visit stress-free and full of fun.
Our Stay at Great Wolf Lodge (Perryville, MD)
Last year we made our first-ever visit to the Great Wolf Lodge in Perryville, Maryland. This location is only about an hour away from Lancaster, PA (where we live), so it was a great distance for an overnight trip with our toddlers. We found a great discount/deal online and booked a one-night stay in the Wolf Den Suite, which features a special themed bunk bed area for the kids—and it was a huge hit with our toddlers. Upon check-in, we were pleasantly surprised by the free wolf ears, which made for a fun souvenir. (Don’t forget to grab these from the gift shop when you arrive!) Outside of the waterpark, our little ones particularly enjoyed the bubble dance party and the themed evening storytime in the main lobby, both toddler-friendly activities that were offered at two different times in the evening (we picked the earlier time slots before an early bedtime!).
The biggest challenge we faced during our trip was that our youngest needed a nap while we were spending time in the waterpark, making timing our arrival a bit tricky while we waited for our room to be ready—thankfully that won’t be an issue for future visits, since we have mostly phased out of nap times. But we managed to get her to sleep in our arms while her brother kept playing all afternoon and once she woke up, our room was ready for us to get our luggage from the car and get settled in before dinner and the kids’ activities in the lobby before bed.
Toddler Must-Haves for a Great Wolf Lodge Trip
When preparing for your trip to Great Wolf Lodge with toddlers, consider packing or getting some of my must-have items to make your experience smoother. Before our first trip to GWL, I scoured some Facebook Groups for our location to get all of the best insights, tips & tricks before we went and I found it to be so helpful for planning and packing! I’m someone who loves to try to think through EVERYTHING before I go somewhere new, so hopefully, some of these ideas might get your wheels turning and help you to make sure you have everything you need for your stay! (Pro Tip: Search for some Facebook Groups for the location that you’re going to visit to get even more insider info before you go!)
Stroller Wagon
Taking our stroller wagon into the resort was extremely helpful! It allowed us to haul our kids & all of their stuff from the car to the room and was also nice for getting down to the lobby for storytime. I believe some families also took their strollers into the waterpark, but keep in mind that it might be hard to find room for it during really busy days.
Blackout Curtain & Sound Machine
Pro tip: If you are staying in a room with the kids’ bunk area, consider taking a portable tension rod with you to hang a curtain in the doorway to keep light out if the kids are going to bed earlier than the parents!
Beach Tote Bag
We packed our swim bag with pre-swim lotion (because of the chlorine!), swim goggles, water bottles, waterproof phone lanyards, and wet/dry bags for our clothes. I’m linking some of my favorite pool & beach bags, plus some of our must-have items for in our pool bag for the waterpark.
Our Own Towels
The resort provides towels, but bringing our own helped us spot our chairs easily and avoid long return lines. Plus, if you forget to return the resort towels or they somehow miss them when you return them, you can get charged for them, and with the craziness of chasing after two little kids, I didn’t want to take that chance.
Swim Floaties
The resort provides life jackets, but our kids’ personal floaties made them easier to spot in the water! If you don’t already have some, consider taking your own and go for bright colors to make sure your kids are easier to spot in the water.
Bath Robes
This was one of the best tips that I got as I prepared for our first visit to Great Wolf Lodge! It was so nice to have warm fuzzy towels for the kids that they could put on and wear out of the waterpark through the hotel as we walked to our room.
Bubble Wands
This was another tip that I got in advance from Facebook Groups - to take our own bubble wands if we are planning to go to the dance party in the lobby for the kids. We forgot to pack the ones that I bought ahead of time for our first trip, so I had to buy some while we were there (my kids were so excited for bubbles), but I for sure will not be forgetting to pack them for our next trip!
Should You Get the Pup Pass for Toddlers?
I was up in the air about whether or not to get the Pup Pass for our kids (they are quite expensive!), but they honestly added that “next level” to our experience, and my kids are still talking about the items they got while we were there. This is an area that I’m really glad we splurged and added for our first trip to Great Wolf Lodge, but I’m not going to be adding it on every time we go.
The Pup Pass was worth it for our first visit! It included:
A Build-A-Bear-style Great Wolf Lodge stuffed animal
$5 arcade game card
Candy cup from the bulk candy wall
Small ice cream scoop from the resort’s ice cream shop
I’m already planning to pack each of their stuffed animals they got last year and will be taking our own “candy cups” to enjoy in the room when we get there so we can avoid the gift shop wall of candy. Our kids didn’t really have the patience to wait for the other games like the mini golf or bowling and they are too young for the ropes course, so we’re not adding on any passes for those this time either. The gem mining is fun (but expensive) and they loved the mirror maze, plus the arcade is always a big hit - but hopefully we can skip those without much fuss this time around.
Money-Saving Hacks for Great Wolf Lodge
Even when you are able to get a great discount/rate for a room for your stay, staying at the resort can really add up with all of the “extras” that they try to sell you on! Food is really expensive on site and there are lots of other little extras that they add on for your stay.
Side Note: After our stay last year, the Perryville, MD location changed their policy and they now charge $15/night to keep your car parked in their lot longer than 30 minutes - this really feels like some “nickel and dime” stuff to me, I’m not sure why they don’t find a way to include that cost into your stay or your waterpark pass fees if you aren’t staying overnight, but just know that you need to plan for that extra expense now as well, which will be charged to your card when you check-in.
Want to cut costs on your trip? Here’s what worked for us:
Bring Your Own Snacks & Breakfast
While the resort food is good, it is also expensive! We did a meal plan for our first visit for dinner and breakfast, but with two toddlers that don’t have a big appetite, it didn’t really feel worth it. For our upcoming visit, we will be packing some easy breakfast options to enjoy in our hotel room - things like cereal, muffins, granola bars, and fruit.
Pro Tip: There’s a mini fridge in the room (we used it for storing a half-gallon of milk & some juice), plus a microwave is available in the hallway by the ice machine (there’s just one microwave per hallway).
Refillable Water Bottles
Stay hydrated without spending on bottled drinks! We kept our water bottles in our swim bag so we had quick access to water all day.
Skip the Overpriced Bubble Wands
We saw so many kids with bubble wands from the souvenir shop during the dance party in the lobby - they were so fun, but they were way overpriced. We forgot to pack the ones that I bought ahead of time for our first trip, so I had to buy some while we were there (my kids were so excited for bubbles), but I for sure will not be forgetting to pack them for our next trip!
Consider Ordering Takeout Instead of Resort Dining
We got the meal plan for our first visit (which included vouchers for dinner and breakfast), but we’re not doing that for our next trip. The meal plans can make sense depending on your family dynamics, but with two little toddlers who don’t have huge appetites, I felt like we overpaid for breakfast. Dinner worked well for us because we were able to get a pizza, which my kids love. Next time, we’ll either pay separately just for the overpriced pizza for dinner, or we will order takeout or have something delivered to the hotel to eat in our room. You can also save money by packing your own lunch to eat in the lobby if your room isn’t ready by that time.
DIY Candy Cups
The Pup Pass that we got during our first visit included a bulk candy cup from the souvenir shop (they give you a plastic cup that the kids can fill up from the wall of bulk candy), but for our next trip, we’ll bring our own reusable candy cups pre-filled from home and surprise the kids with treats in the room! Of course, you can completely skip this altogether, but I just know my candy-loving kiddos would be asking me about this since they got to do it last year, and while I love giving them these fun memory-filled moments, I also want to save as much money as possible this time around!
Our Great Wolf Lodge trip with two toddlers was an absolute blast, and we can’t wait to go back! With a little planning and the right toddler-friendly essentials, your trip can be both stress-free and budget-friendly. Whether you’re a first-time visitor or a seasoned pro, I hope these packing tips and money-saving hacks help make your next Great Wolf Lodge stay an amazing experience for the whole family.
And as always, if you want to know more about our experience or have any questions about our stay, leave a comment or connect with me over on Instagram @simplemodestmom!
