Waiting for summer to hit the water park? No need. Great Wolf Lodge, a year-round indoor water park with locations in Southern California and Texas, opened its Northern California location in Manteca in 2021.
The 95,000-square-foot water park is the biggest draw of the family-focused stay-and-play resort, bursting with attractions for “pups” big and small. (They lean hard into the wolf theme here.) The water is always a balmy 84 degrees. Speed through a quarter-pipe slide headed for a splash or take it easy on the lazy river. A 20-foot vertical free-fall ride, dubbed Wolf Tail, drops the floor out from under you, and Fort Mackenzie is a four-story treehouse fort filled with waterfalls, slides and fountains. When you’re not splashing in the wave pool or shooting hoops waist-deep in water, you can cozy up in a cabana with a piña colada in hand (virgin or not). Water play is unlimited with a day pass or overnight stay.
The rest of the 29-acre resort includes an outdoor swimming pool equipped with loungers, a ropes course that travels through a 45,000-square-foot indoor adventure park, mini golf, a full arcade, a mirror maze, a gemstone activity and mini bowling. The MagiQuest adventure game lets guests uncover secret perks and play hidden games throughout the property, all with the flick of their wrist (magic wand in hand). Nightly dance parties for the whole family and morning yoga classes are hosted in the lobby.
The 500-room resort is designed so families don’t have to leave, with on-site shopping, dining, an ice cream shop, Dunkin’ for a caffeine fix, and a candy store selling goodies by the ounce. Book a basic room or one expanded with a kids’ cabin or wolves’ den.
Great Wolf Lodge
2500 Daniels St., Manteca;
(888) 966-9653;
greatwolf.com
