We went over New Year's weekend and stayed in a suite in the newer building, is clean and comfortable. It was very, very crowded and every footstep could be heard inside our room from the hallway and above. Never stayed anywhere that was this loud (granted noise to be expected at this kind of place, but it was super noisy just from foot traffic alone). Suite can hold up to 15 people, cramming too many people into one unit. The service was pretty bad. Went to the concierge with a question about the Gatlinburg aquarium coupon and was told to go to another line for check in/out that was 15 families deep checking out. The grill at the pool was either closed or had a line that was 15 people deep. Same experience at the deli/market on site. The place seemed understaffed and indifferent about it. No full service housekeeping - change of towels only. On a positive note, the waterpark was fun, the lines moved pretty well despite the crowds and many lifeguards on duty. Kind of strange that coolers are allowed into the waterpark...you get folks who can bring along a case of beer if they'd like and no one seemed to monitor it. More tattoos than I could count. Highly unlikely that we'd return.

We stayed the week after Christmas. We had two premier 2-bedroom suites, with a total of 8 adults and 6 kids, aged 4-11. Let's start with the good news -

*Staff was exceptionally friendly
*Rooms were spacious and very clean - kids loved the Murphy bed
*Waterpark was clean, with lots of lifeguards
*Towels are provided at the waterpark
*Food prices in the lobby grill were reasonable
*Polka Dot Pots (paint your own pottery) was pricey but lots of fun

Now the bad -
*Early check-in is a myth. We arrived at noon, waited almost an hour in the check-in line, and every single person in line got the "your room will be ready very soon" message. To their credit, the staff automatically refunded the early check-in fee. We were told that housekeeping was in our rooms "as we speak" and that someone would call our cell phones "in just a few minutes" when the rooms were ready. After two hours and no call, we walked upstairs...and found our rooms ready. The promised phone call came after 4:30...almost four hours after we checked in.
*Housekeeping service is very slow. We checked in on Wednesday, and Thursday's maid service was at 6pm. Towels are EXTREMELY coarse and scratchy.
*Extreme amounts of chemicals in the waterpark pools: After two days, 3 of the 6 kids in our group were covered in a red, burning rash. I washed our swimsuits in the sink each night, and I washed them FIVE times when we returned home...but finally threw them out because I couldn't get rid of the chemical smell.

We will come back, and when we do, here's what I'll do differently:
*Arrive around 1:30pm instead of noon - the check-in line was shortest then.
*Bring old swimsuits, knowing that we'll be throwing them away after our visit.
*Pack our swimsuits in a separate bag so that we can head to the waterpark immediately after checking in at the front desk. There are small lockers available at the waterpark - they weren't free but they were cheap, maybe $5.
*Get enough towels for two days.
*Rinse the kids in the shower at lunch and/or whenever we took a break from the waterpark (trying to minimize skin irritation)

We stayed at the Stone Hill Lodge over New Year's Eve. While the water park is fairly small during the winter months, there was still plenty to keep us occupied. The shuttle from the hotel to the waterpark ran every 5-7 minutes, so we never waited long. Most of the drivers were friendly, except for one man who was a bit gruff. The hotel itself was beautifully decorated for the Christmas Holidays and was very clean. We did have a problem with a child next to us banging something against the wall.
The beds were comfortable and the fridge was cold. We weren't able to get all of the channels on the television (ESPN). We had a problem with the toilet stopping up, and the maintenance man was there in less than 5 minutes to fix it.
The water park itself has 4 slides, a wave pool, and an indoor/outdoor hot tub for adults; the hot tub would've been much better if there hadn't been so many children playing in it. There are other areas perfect for younger children: a smaller slide, a children's/toddler's area, and a 3 ft. pool with a couple of play areas.

First off - your kids wil love it here. The water park (indoors) is fun and clean and has water activities for a variety of "fear" levels.

Secondly, everything you read about the restaurants is true...except cost. At least this week (between xmas and New Year), the buffet was 11.95 for adult - drink not included. Kids 11 and under free. It was $40 for a family of 4 (two kids free) with tip. Other than the omelette (cooked to order), it's food not even worthy of a Shoney's buffet. And the yogurt was warm - so don't eat that.

Also - we stayed at Stone Hill Lodge - across the street - as it's $100 cheaper. But they have no signs identifying the building - not outside, not inside. Not sure why it has a name at all. I mention this because when you pull up - well, it's the nice building across the street from the water park that has no name. They gave me some ridiculous story that the city doesn't let them have a name displayed.

We get there - there are two check in people - four computers. We are first in line. Twenty minutes later - they get to us. Twenty minutes later. Not to bore you with the ridiculous - because this won't happen to you - but we get to our room, it's open (for maintenance). The previous night some kids glued the toilet seats down - and they weren't supposed to rent the room. Remember, we were first in line and it took 20 minutes. When we finally got to the front, there were 20 people in line...so to go back there....no. Finally, after a lost hour and disappointment by my kids, we got a new room.

Rooms are nice, clean (there's a ton of housekeepers...a ton...), and comfortable. Internet doesn't work well - but that's fine - it gives you time to spend with your kids.

The water park itself was uncrowded and if they get the check in right - it'd be a great place.

The food is truly "low class" which I don't get - but hey - it's very close to restaurants - within a mile.

Hope you enjoy...it's definitely worth trying as you need to stay there to use the water facilities.




This "vacation" started off horribly and caused me to get angry because it should have been so "excellent" for my kids. We got to the check in line. There are 4 computers but two people working. We were first in line. It took 20 minutes for them to get to us - why does it take at least 20 minutes to check in the previous people. Thank goodness we got there when we did. The line was huge behind us.
Then we get to the room - it has a wood block in the door. It's wedged open. Why? Turns out the room wasn't supposed to be rented - the previous visitors glued the toilet seats together and you were going to replace the seat. Housekeeping was like - they were not supposed to give you this room. Well, my kids want to play - that's what I paid $200 for. But now you want me to go back to the front desk and wait in line with 10 or 15 people - when it took them 20 minutes to get to one. Seriously - you wronged us seriously. Embarrassingly I cursed in front of my kids - you had me so mad. This should have been the perfect time for them. After that, things were fine - but you blew it from the beginning.