Lake Geneva is a Winter Wonderland
Over this past weekend, my family and I discovered a winter wonderland located only about 4.5 hours from Indy. Lake Geneva is located in southeast Wisconsin, about an hour north of Chicago. During the winter months, Lake Geneva transforms into a winter paradise offering activities for all ages. It is also home to the Lake Geneva Ice Castle, which is the closest Ice Castle to Indy.
1. Lake Geneva Ice Castles
Let it go! Let it go! If you’ve watched Frozen as much as we have this winter, visiting a real-life ice castle is sure to wow the whole family. Colorfully luminous, imaginatively shaped, and sprawling across an acre of Riviera Beach in downtown Lake Geneva, this year’s castles will feature ice-carved slides, tunnels, fountains, crawl spaces, and more!
2. Winter Sports
The winter wonderland that is Lake Geneva doesn’t stop at Ice Castles. Lake Geneva is also home to one of the top ski resorts in Wisconsin. At the Mountain top at Grand Geneva Resort, you can find a winter sport for the whole family. They offer skiing, ice skating, and sledding. Since we were with a toddler we opted to try out the sledding hill, which is located near the base of the ski runs. We rented our sled from inside the ski lodge and made our way to the hill.
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Sledding Hill at the Mountain top at Grand Geneva Resort
This was our first time sledding as a family of 3, and while the toddler wasn’t so much help when trying to drag the sled up the hill, he definitely enjoyed his ride down. While we were sledding we were also able to watch the skiers and snowboarders race down the mountain, and then watch them head back up on the ski lift.
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Ski Slopes at the Mountain top at Grand Geneva Resort
Once we were finished with our sledding, we headed back to the ski lodge to warm up with hot chocolate and a fire.
3. Restaurants
Lake Geneva has some really amazing restaurants throughout the town. Our first stop was to Gino’s East where we enjoyed our meal while enjoying a panoramic view of Lake Geneva. Their menu included Chicago style pizza and their portion sizes were giant!
,Next, we tried out Mars Resort (which isn’t actually a resort). When we first walked in we noticed everyone seemed to know each other and it’s definitely where the locals hang out. About 5 minutes after we arrived, the staff began to treat us like family too. They have live music most weekends, which really seemed to entertain the toddler. Overall, the food was as good as the service and atmosphere, and we will definitely be back next time we visit Grand Geneva.
4. Moose Mountain Falls Waterpark
A trip to a waterpark doesn’t exactly sound like a winter activity unless you move the waterpark indoors and turn the heat up to 86 degrees. After all of our outdoor winter activities, the indoor waterpark was exactly what our family needed. The Waterpark at Timber Ridge Lodge had something for everyone. It had an amazing toddler zone with water tables, slides, fountains, and even a swing set. It also featured many slides and a huge lazy river. They also offered complimentary life jackets.
5. Grand Geneva Resort and Spa
Traveling with a toddler can sometimes seem like more work than a vacation, but the Grand Geneva Resort and Spa was designed to make things easier on families. The resort has several different lodges that all offer different types of sleeping arrangements. We stayed at the Timber Ridge Lodge, which gave us close access to the waterpark. Timber Ridge Lodge is an all-suite hotel, that gives families enough space to spread out. When we arrived they already had the pack-n-play set up in the living room, ready for us to use.
The Grand Geneva Resort also offers a kids program for children of all ages. The Kids Are Grand Children’s Program is available for an additional cost but gives parents the opportunity to enjoy some time on their own, while the kids get to do their own activities.
The resort offers a complimentary trolly service that will drive you anywhere you need to go on the property. This includes taking you to the mountain top. You can even download an app during your stay to request a trolly at any time.
If you are looking for a winter getaway, Lake Geneva is a perfect trip for the whole family. You can learn more about Lake Geneva at visitlakegeneva.com.
Wendy has been working for Indy’s Child Magazine for the past 8 years and had her first baby in 2017. Wendy and her husband are adjusting to life with a baby and are always looking for something new they can do as a family.
