This week I had the honor of speaking at Reviewer’s Retreat 2012, which was held at Great Wolf Lodge in Charlotte, NC.

Ok, let me just pause a moment here to say:

We're here, we're here!

I love Great Wolf Lodge!  The fact is that this resort is one of the best I’ve been to.  They rival Disney with hospitality (shh, don’t tell Mickey!).  Last year on my trip to Reviewer’s Retreat, Zoe had a meltdown, and the waitress at the Poconos Great Wolf Lodge stepped back, smiled, and let me be, and tried to help clean up.  It was awesome, and our stay there was wonderful.

Gluten-free macaroni and meatballs

This year, they are even better, because they have the allergy thing down even better.  If you have a food allergy, you should tell them in advance (just a few days’ notice), but when you arrive, they give you a menu and then the chef will speak with you.  There was difficulty, unfortunately, with the poolside food bar, which we needed to use since we were on a meal plan.  However, an employee named Keith was very helpful in figuring out the mystery, and on the second day my family tackled lunch by going directly to the main restaurant.  It all worked out, and in fact, we were envious of our kids’ meals, since the buffer featured the same food every night.  (I thought that was odd!)

The pools themselves were clean and it was not too crowded yet, so my kids had a blast.  The wave pool is simply what my kids long for all the time and we had a rough time taking them out!  Zoe was psyched about the water slides, and Amelia loved the basketball pool because that’s her thing.  There is also an arcade with kiddie bowling, which the kids enjoyed as well, and we didn’t have time for miniature golf.

Zoe enjoying dinner!

Back to allergies: The chef assured me that they understood the gluten-free requirements, and reserve a place to cook the food separately.  (He volunteered that before I asked.)  They also have a silver allergy bracelet that you can wear, so that everyone there can be advised of your allergies and take care to treat you safely.

Making a Basket

Weeeeeeee!

As you know, we go to a lot of resorts – Disney, Hershey, tackling Nickelodeon this year – but so far, none has taken the interest, care, and consideration that Great Wolf has.  Way to go, guys!  I felt so happy that my kids could eat and enjoy delicious food while we were on vacation – without me having to cook!