Surfari Joe's Indoor Wilderness Water Park in Watervliet, Michigan

Located in Watervliet, Michigan, Surfari Joe's Indoor Wilderness Water Park is a possible day trip or overnight experience for travelers in southwest Michigan or northwest Indiana. You can opt to buy session passes for the water park only or you can reserve a room that includes passes to the water park. The water park attraction is open for multiple sessions on Friday, Saturday and Sunday of each week; however, the hotel is open 365 days per year.

Hotel

The décor around the hotel is safari themed. Stuffed animal heads and photos that show the actual kill of that animal are right next to the heads, so this hotel isn't appropriate for those with a weak stomach or animal rights activists.

The hotel rooms are clean and a good value for the money we spent. We got a room that offered three queen size beds. We spent around $175 for a Friday night stay. Two of the beds were in the main hotel room and the other was in a small room connected to the main room. We enjoyed having the beds set up this way as it gave my toddlers a quiet space to go to sleep while my husband and I got to spend some quality time together without trying to whisper like we have to in most hotel rooms.

If you are traveling with more than two people, ask for extra towels in your room. You should also bring your own soap, shampoo and toiletries. The hotel does offer some of these, but the soap dried out my skin and the shampoo was a very tiny bottle. If you have toddlers who aren't used to sleeping in a regular bed, bring some bed rails. If you have a baby who needs a crib, call the hotel as soon as you make your reservation to request one. The cribs here are portable cribs/play pens, so they aren't suitable for older infants.

Water Park

Included in the price of the hotel room, we got passes to the water park for Friday evening and Saturday morning. The water park was clean, but the smell of chlorine was almost overwhelming - if you have any breathing problems, don't even try to go into the water park. The towels for the water park are provided depend on where staff sets the towel bucket. During our trip, it was either at the entrance to the water park or in the gift shop.

The attractions at the water park are ideal for elementary and middle school aged children. There really wasn't much for my toddlers to do, but they are easily entertained and enjoyed the Pygmy's Pond area, which is a small play area for the little kids. They couldn't ride on the slides because you have to be 48" and they aren't that tall. We also enjoyed the Lino's Lagoon, a warm pool and the Winding Zambezi River Run, a lazy river type area.

When you go to the water park, don't bring anything personal or valuable as there aren't any lockers. Everyone who swims must wear appropriate swim wear. Babies and toddlers have to wear swim diapers. The floors are pretty slippery, so water shoes with non-skid soles are recommended for anyone (like me) who is accident prone.

Conclusion

This hotel and indoor water park is a nice break from the cold winter weather; however, if you are looking for a hotel and indoor water park that will amuse anyone of any age and taste, this isn't a good option.