Great Wolf Lodge versus the old TT

[pk1023]

Hey all,

Whelp, this Thrus/Fri was Fall Break in these parts. It turned very cold in Indiana about 2 weeks ago, so we knew camping wasnt' going to happen, or at least felt like it might not.

We did a night at Great Wolf Lodge in Mason, OH. It was fun, but the place made me want drugs and lots of them. SO many kids and you could not escape them.

Rooms there are 250 bucks a night, during the week. Up from there on weekends and busy times. My VERY basic Nomad 173 is costing me 300 a month for finance and storage. So every night till the 12th night in it a year is 300 bucks in my mind.

I keep running over in my head where the value was. GWL made me stressed with all the noise, but the kids had a blast. I hated waiting wet in line for a silly slide, but we showed up, checked in and didn't have to all the MILLION things we do when using the TT

I guess what sucks is that the TT is just a "sometimes toy" for a family like mine. ( 2 boys, 9 and 7, plus wife)

With no TV at all in our TT, it's like at night there's fire. And while fire is great, after 2 summers of staring at one, meh I dunno.

A TT is an adventure facilitator, I know that. But, I don't know to hunt nor do I even know where you hunt. I know how to fish, but I mean I am not going to eat the fish so it's basiclly 15 minutes of staring at a pond per fish.

GWL was alot of the same stuff, lots of prep followed by short "fun". Still had to feed the kids, still had deal with them.

I often wonder, should I abandon it all just buy lots of video games and have a big Cable package? I mean is leaving the house really worth it with kids? We have them in sports and that eats up time. But, it's all just leading me back to work at my boring job on Monday.

I really like playing Grand Theaft Auto 5. Maybe more than camping and GWL combined. It's kinda like I should appease the kiddos so that I can back to GTA 5.

My wife really likes to watch HOURS and HOURS of TV on our DVR. She does it every night. That and play games on her phone and check facebook.

Maybe I should abandon the money sucker of the TT and just go back to blowing 300 bucks at a time at random.

I mean what more really is there to using the TT? I mean lets say you take off for the weekend to a state park. There's setup time, cook time, and fire/bed time. There's hiking and horseback riding and stuff like that, but mostly that comes at a fee and I could do that and still sleep in my bed every night.

So what's the value in doing the TT? Is it so I can spend money farther away from home?

😞

[allen8106]

For us it's about the get away. I wouldn't trade my 5ver for 10 hotel rooms. Unlike the three bears I know exactly who has slept in my bed and when. I eat better, sleep better and have more fun doing it. Part of the fun for me is the packing up and set up.

[mlts22]

A hotel is a nice change, but I've found that the bed of my TT, even though it has a low end mattress, is decently comfortable with a foam topper on it. The biggest benefit is that I know (assuming no break-ins) who is in my rig and bed, so I won't be taking some unwanted guests (i.e. bedbugs) home with me.

Of course, having a large bathroom and stick/brick building shower in a hotel room is always a nice change without having to trudge to and from a bath-house.

[westend]

Yeah, I've done a weekend or two in bleached air, man, they load it up! The kids loved it, it wasn't for me. Maybe take the boys to a destination like was mentioned. Something historical or monumental is always a good choice, gives them bragging rights when they go back to school. Use the TT and call it a budget trip. Take the money saved from the budget trip and get away with the wife for a weekend. We all need to unwind, sometimes.

[dodge_guy]

I know what you mean! we went last year for New Years. first off the kids don`t bother me. what did bother me was sitting on a small balcony and not being able to just go off for a walk. the place is expensive!!! for what it costs for the weekend could`ve went on a very nice shorty trip somewhere nice!

Give me my RV any day over a hotel room, even a water park hotel room!

[musicman54]

i have been camping since late sixtys tent popups traliers motorhomes now a 5er this is the first one with a tv to watch there isso much to do outside

[Opie431]

It does not matter what we think, it only matters what you and you wife think.

[PUCampin]

I have come to discover that camping can be different things to different people, even within a family. Me, I LOVE outside. I love to get up, make a fresh cup of coffee and head out the door to enjoy the cool morning air. My wife loves to snooze and snork in bed as long as possible. My yongest loves to come outside with daddy, my oldest and my wife love to open the windows and sit at the table inside the TT doing crafts, puzzles, watching some TV, etc. I LOVE to go for walks on trails, my yongest too. Wife and oldest, not so much. I LOVE a campfire at night. My yongest will sit outside with me till the coals are dead. My oldest will not even come out to look at the fire, my wife does for 5 minutes to roast her 2 marshmallows and then it's back inside. My son has high functioning ASD, so he is kind of all over the place and can change from one minute to the next.

This used to bug me, I felt camping meant outdoors, doing stuff outside, hikes, etc, and was kind of bummed about DW and oldest DD attitude, but I quickly realized that camping is about changing the scenery and relaxing, however you choose to relax. So now I don't worry about packing some snacks and water and taking youngest on a walk leaving the others in camp, or that oldest is not getting the "camping experience" because we have a TV in the TT, or that half the family stays inside for campfire. There is still lots of family time, we all prepare meals together and sit around the table at meals, do games and other activities together. At the end of the trip, everyone had a good time got to do some of what they wanted, and got to do some family stuff.

[Campfire_Time]

We started camping in a tent when our daughter was 1. That was nearly 30 years ago. We had very little money. To scrape up $100 for a weekend camping trip was difficult. But those were our vacations. We hiked, went to ranger programs, and looked for anything else that was free or really cheap. We brought along games to play. We didn't have a TV, nor any other electronics (not that there was much in those days), we didn't even have a radio the first couple of years. So, yes, even in crappy weather, we'd just sit in the tent and play games (shudder the thought!). But we would also look for places to go that didn't cost a lot. And yet, you may not believe this, we had a great time. More important, our daughter developed a deep love for the outdoors and camping and still camps with us to this day. Most kids lose interest by the time they are preteens. I won't even give you my opinion on that. beemerphile1 said enough on it.

So as time went on, we later did the indoor water park thing in the winter months. I have to tell you, if you go at the right times, the crowds aren't bad and its a lot of fun. We've also flown to different places, and taken the train.

TIP: A family vacation is for the entire family. Before a vacation sit the entire family down and consider where you are going and talk about all the different things you can see and do. Let everyone pick something they want to do. Then make sure every gets to engage in something they want. It creates anticipation and a feeling that everyone is included in the decisions.

About vacationing with friends. It has its pluses and minuses. We've found it best to not expect people to be with us, or us with them during day time activities. Daytime everyone does what they want. At night pretty much everyone sits around the fire. On other non-camping vacations, we sit down long before the trip with those we are traveling with and talk about what to expect from one another. It makes things a whole lot less stressful. But vacationing with just the family has special benefits too.

[musicman54]

try a cabin most rv parks have then just pack some food and clothes

[wbwood]

There's camping with friends and then there is camping with friends. Personally we don't want to camp with friends that we have to make all our plans around each other.

We enjoy cruising by someone's site at night on the golf cart and have a beer with them around their campfire. We don't want to plan the entire day around them, their kids needs, the type of food they want to eat or can eat. Definitely not every meal. Some people enjoy that though. Just not us. We see it all the time while camping.

[pk1023]

wbwood wrote:

beemerphile1 wrote:
The best thing you can do for your kids in this regard is to ban all electronics and spend time in the woods with them. People comfortable with the outdoors and handy with doing things for themselves are better more rounded people.

This goes for you and the spouse also. Spend time with the kids outdoors and teach them to find their own entertainment. It teaches them to be creative and to think for themselves.

I believe he said that. He said they have no tv in the camper and that the fun time has turned to a fire which is getting old for them.

Yeah no TV, but I think we're going to add one. We actually have a great time camping.

I think you have to camp with friends and do GWL with friends too. Friends make decisions harder, but it's more fun and takes the weight off personal interactions.

[2012Coleman]

beemerphile1 wrote:

2012Coleman wrote:
...Instead of trying to appease them, try inspiring them.....

Wow, I love that line. I betcha I use it in the future.

Our job as parents is to prepare our children for adulthood. This involves education, social interaction, ability to think for oneself as well as many others. Our job is NOT to entertain them.

Children that learn to entertain themselves and also solve their own problems make quality citizens as adults rather than parasites on society.

I feel it is great for children to take them into the woods, establish a relatively safe environment, and then let them run. RVing is a great way of doing that.

Thanks to beemerphile1 for expanding on my thoughts. If all my family did while camping was stare at a camp fire, we get bored as well. It's up to the parents to find outlets for the endless enegry of a child. One could always camp in the vicinity of things to sightsee or do. But the beauty of nature cannot be disregarded.

As far as no TV, that's the OP's choice, but is the absence of a TV only a good excuse for saying "No TV right now"? I have been stuck inside the TT during bad weather - Nuff said.

[wbwood]

beemerphile1 wrote:
The best thing you can do for your kids in this regard is to ban all electronics and spend time in the woods with them. People comfortable with the outdoors and handy with doing things for themselves are better more rounded people.

This goes for you and the spouse also. Spend time with the kids outdoors and teach them to find their own entertainment. It teaches them to be creative and to think for themselves.

I believe he said that. He said they have no tv in the camper and that the fun time has turned to a fire which is getting old for them.

[beemerphile1]

2012Coleman wrote:
...Instead of trying to appease them, try inspiring them.....

Wow, I love that line. I betcha I use it in the future.

Our job as parents is to prepare our children for adulthood. This involves education, social interaction, ability to think for oneself as well as many others. Our job is NOT to entertain them.

Children that learn to entertain themselves and also solve their own problems make quality citizens as adults rather than parasites on society.

I feel it is great for children to take them into the woods, establish a relatively safe environment, and then let them run. RVing is a great way of doing that.