We recently took a trip to the Wilderness resort to enjoy an extended weekend away. Since it’s winter in Wisconsin, we thought it would be a fun trip to take our 22 month year old to the indoor waterparks and resort, and we were right. Our little guy didn’t want to leave, which was also fun for us! Our three-night stay was the perfect amount of time to explore everything the Wilderness offered and feel like we had some time away from home.

Planning

We wanted to find somewhere within driving distance that had an indoor waterpark. We looked at various resorts like the Kalahari (Wisconsin Dells), Timer Ridge Lodge (Lake Geneva, WI), Tundra Lodge (Green Bay, WI), and a few others in the Wisconsin Dells. After reviewing prices, opinions from friends, and our research, we settled on the Wilderness. We stayed in Glacier Canyon Lodge, the condo portion of the resort connected by a walkway.

While preparing for the trip, we put together our indoor waterpark packing list to ensure we didn’t forget any of the essentials we’d need for the weekend.

Day 1

We opted for an early check-in to make the most of the first day. We could check in at 2 pm for an extra fee of $50. The usual check-in time is 4 pm. Since our trip was right around a birthday, we opted for a birthday package that The Wilderness offered when choosing a room. The door to our room was decorated with birthday signs and streamers. Our little guy was very excited, and so were the adults. A cute decoration of balloons was on the table, and a box of delicious homemade treats was waiting for us. You can choose from several other packages for the room to help celebrate any special occasion. The box of candy was from The Candy Cabin. We would suggest stopping here to pick up a few treats for everyone during your stay.

After checking into our room, we went straight to the water park. It was quite a walk from our room to any of the pools or attractions. We were happy we brought an umbrella stroller, so we did not have to carry our son or chase him the entire walk. We also brought a small backpack in which we could put all of the necessary items.

The best part of early check-in was that it was not very busy when we got to the pool (also a Thursday afternoon). We highly recommend the early check-in option to enjoy less of a crowd for a few hours. The first pool we checked out was the Wild West Pool. It had a small kids’ area with a small slide, swings, and a giant pipe with different wheels to turn the water off and on. This slide was easy for our son to go up and down on his own. Unfortunately, a door to the outside is right by the kid’s pool, and several people were going in and out of the door, making it very drafty for a toddler who already is very cold in the water.

Aside from the smaller kids’ area, this pool had a larger climbing structure with several other slides for kids over a certain height. Our son did not meet those requirements, so we did not test the other slides. We explored the climbing structure, and our son enjoyed the different splash and spray things. He did not enjoy the giant bucket of water that dumped a massive amount every few minutes. Overall this pool was a good introduction for him to a water park but was not our favorite.

There is a swim-up bar located in the Wild West area for adults. If you want to grab a drink to return to your table, there is a walk-up area, so you don’t have to get into the pool. If you need food, there is a quick-to-go area and a full restaurant called Swimmin Chicken. We stopped at Swimmin Chicken on another trip, and it was delicious.

After the pool, we headed to Monks for dinner. You can call a shuttle to pick you up, but we opted to drive across the parking lot. This was a great stop with good food and drinks to cap our day. From there, it was bedtime for the little guy, and we brought our Fire Stick to catch up on some of our TV shows in the room with a drink.

Day 2

With a toddler who likes to get up at 6 am, we had to plan our morning accordingly since the activities don’t open until 8 am. To start the day, we packed breakfast supplies to make food in the room for all of us. This was all that was needed for breakfast for us, but there are breakfast options in the main Wilderness hotel for those that want a buffet or to eat out.

After breakfast, we packed everything up and started walking to the indoor playground by the Wild West pool that opens at 8 am. This was a perfect time to take our 22-month-old; it wasn’t crowded, and he could explore at his own pace. This play area is four stories with lots of slides and obstacles for the kids to enjoy. It is large enough for an adult to go in with the kids; know that some areas can be more difficult to navigate. There is a separate section for smaller kids with a few climbing areas and one slide if they aren’t ready for the whole playground. Make note that the playground requires socks! Do not forget your socks, which can happen since you plan to go to the pools afterward.

The first waterpark opens at 9 am, and after 45 minutes on the playground, we were ready to head over. The Wild Waterdome was the first to open, so we grabbed a table by the kid’s pool. There is a ton of seating in this pool, but we have seen all the tables taken on a busy day, so make sure to scope out your spot early if you need a table and plan to stay awhile. The kid’s pool here has two slides, which both required our help for our 22-month-old to enjoy. One slide is a bit slippery climbing up, and the other has no sides but has metal bars for holding on. The main problem with the bars is that if they accidentally stick their arm out while sliding, it will push them off the slide. In addition to the slides, there is a large set of various pipes that squirt water and some water fountains on the ground by the entrance to the pool. Our toddler had a fun time splashing around between these areas and climbing on the various animals they have in the water.

Since this pool is connected to the large indoor wave pool, it was only a matter of time before our little guy wanted to see what that was about. We packed his puddle jumpers so he could explore independently and provide him with some safety. He enjoyed standing in the waves and swimming out with our help as he went over the waves.

There is a section with slides in the back of the pool area that we did not explore but it appears to be larger tube rides. The swim-up bar is located by all the tables and offers an outdoor section to sit in the warm water in the cold. This was crowded with adults as the day went on and looked like a fun spot if there was ever some help with the kids.

We stayed at the pool until lunchtime and went up the stairs by the park entrance to Survivors Bar and Grille. This was very convenient as it overlooked the pool and entertained the family by watching the activities as we ate. After lunch, it was nap time, so we returned to our room while the little guy napped and relaxed.

After a nap, he ate his snack while returning to the Wilderness resort’s main part. We made a stop in the wild west arcade as he seemed interested in the games when we had walked through earlier. Smaller kids can enjoy several claw games and a few other arcade games. Our little guy became obsessed with one of the claws that had stuffed food items. The good news is that this gave him different toys to play within the room. Our last giant claw game had holiday-themed large balls, and of course, we won the grinch, which he still enjoys even back home.

Then it was back to the pool and time to explore the one we had not been to, Klondike Kavern. For some reason, this pool area always seemed to be much warmer than the other pool areas. However, the water was generally colder than the other pools. The main kid’s area is in the center, with a vast play area for larger kids and a smaller slide, swing set, and water fountains for the younger kids. The main issue in this pool for a toddler is the large bucket of water that dumps right into the little kid’s area. Everything was going fine until that bucket tipped and scared the little guy. From there, he only wanted to stand further back and wouldn’t go near the kid’s slide or swing set to play.

After exploring this area, we took a family trip through the lazy river around this pool. There are plenty of tubes to grab in the river, and we could sit in the tube with our toddler in the middle. We all enjoyed floating around and watching the activities. Soon enough, it was time for dinner. The Klondike Pizza Kitchen is located on the second floor of the pool, and we quickly learned it’s a great idea to eat at the pool and get back to playing for an hour before heading back to bed. One of us went upstairs and ordered/waited for the pizza, which only took less than 20 minutes.

Since he enjoyed the kid’s area in the Waterdome in the morning, we walked over the skywalk to the Waterdome. This is a quick shortcut located at the back of Klondike Kavern. After some more sliding and playing, it was time to head back to the room, go to bed, and for the adults to enjoy some downtime.

Day 3

Since Day 2 started so well with breakfast and then the playground, we did this again with the same results. We planned to see Santa Claus at the Wild Kids Club this time, so we had to cut our playground time shorter than the day before. This area is located off the main lobby of the Wilderness Hotel, so we had to make sure we left in time to make the trek. The line was growing fast, but we were in the front and got our pictures with Santa. They did a great with the set-up, and Santa was nice to the kids.

We got done with Santa in time to head over to the Ducky races at the Klondike Kavern lazy river. This is a fun event they run on Saturday mornings during the winter, where everyone gets to pick out a toy rubber duck, put their name on it, and cheer it down the river. The first three races compete for the top three spots, each with prizes. The final race is for one winner for a larger prize. This was a great activity, with lots of cheering and entertainment for the kids (the adults did enjoy this equally as much). After the race, you pick up your ducky to take home.

From there, we returned to the kid’s area in the Waterdome until lunch. We enjoyed the convenience of Survivors again and continued to explore their menu. If you didn’t catch it in our Survivors review, avoid the mac and cheese, as it’s just from a box and the same price as other items.

After lunch, it was nap time after a busy morning. Another daytime nap in the room cemented how nice it was to have a separate living area from the bedrooms. This is a must if you have kids napping or going to bed before the adults.

After the nap, we tried the Wild West kid’s pool again, but this ended quickly because of the fear of the dumping bucket. So, we returned to the Waterdome since he enjoyed this area the most. After lots of swimming and exploring the wave pool, we ordered to-go from Survivors to eat at our table by the pool so we could eat quickly and get back to playing. Once everyone was worn out, they returned to the room to relax and sleep.

Day 4

Day 4 was our checkout day, which meant packing up the whole room and car before enjoying more time at the resort. The standard check-out time is 11 am, but you can extend it to 1 pm for a fee. Since we planned to leave after lunch and have our toddler nap in the car on the ride home, so we used the standard check-out time.

Once the car was packed, we drove to the main lobby and spent some time on the playground and final swimming time in the Waterdome. As we were packing up at the pool, this felt like the perfect time to leave, as we had explored most of the resort and had plenty of time to play.

We wanted to try out a restaurant, not at the property, for a change of pace, so we picked Buffalo Phil’s. This was located on the way back to the convenient highway and featured train-delivered food for the kids. This was the perfect last stop for a great trip we all enjoyed.

On the ride home, we agreed this would be a winter tradition to break up the cold weather blues, and we decided to plan a few nights away for adults to explore the swim-up bars and have relaxing meals with drinks (more to come on this).