SCHOOL’S OUT FOR SUMMER! We decided to take the kids out to Wisconsin for a week of Waterparks and nature! This is a first time for all of us to this area so we tried to pack in as much as we could, and we had a great time! We stayed one night in Madison, then two nights in Lake Delton and two nights in Wisconsin Dells, which are two connected scenic cities that are collectively called “The Dells”. This is a great area to visit with children 12 years of age and younger.
TRAVEL
We flew in to Madison, Wisconsin on Sunday – the day before Memorial Day. Memorial Day weekend is a big travel weekend, but departing on Sunday was pretty quiet, which meant cheaper flights, quicker check-in at the airport, and FREE FIRST CLASS UPGRADES! Yes, all 4 of us got upgraded to FIRST CLASS for free!!
We booked our rental car with Hertz. They had a small counter at the arrivals area and not much service. No Gold Lot (or any special lot), no separate Gold check-in, nada. Typical of a small airport. I do like small airports though – you can go in and out so fast. On our return, there was no one greeting you when you drop your car off, and you are expected to bring the car key back in to the counter inside.
LODGING
DoubleTree by Hilton Madison – Downtown
We stayed at DoubleTree by Hilton Madison – Downtown for our first night. Our room was the 1 King 2 Room Suite. It was very spacious. The hotel was very clean and the service was phenomenal – the hotel messaged me (through the Hilton app) 2 days prior to our arrival to make sure all of our needs are met. I asked them to have the couches turned into beds for us, and they sure were when we arrived! We were also able to check in very early, which was a lifesaver because Ava was running a fever at the time.
For our second and third night, we stayed at Cedar Lodge and Settlement, right on the Wisconsin River. We booked one of their Fireplace Suites, but at check-in, we were upgraded to the Whirlpool Fireplace Suite for free! There’s a beautiful view of the river, and the cabin is beautiful inside and out. Everything was in tip-top shape and super clean. For staying 2 nights, we were given a FOUR-DAY Noah’s Ark Waterpark pass for ALL 4 of us. Valued at $50 each. Unfortunately, Noah’s Ark decided to not be open during the time we stayed so we didn’t get to visit at all.
Our stay also came with tickets to the Big Cat Rescue. It’s a 30 minute drive from the cabin, but I think it was worthy of a visit. The day we went, it was the middle of the day and it was so hot, so many of the big cats were in hiding from the heat. I wish I had come during early morning hours so we could have seen more.
Cedar Lodge really was a beautiful place to stay and the service was top notch also. There was a beautiful waterfront with beach, swings, playground, firepit and boat dock. You could rent canoes and buy fishing baits at the place next door – the River’s Edge Resort. There’s a swimming pool and an extensive video library. This was a perfect place for us to spend a few days.
Glacier Canyon Lodge @ Wilderness Resort
We spent the final two nights at the Glacier Canyon Lodge at the Wilderness Resort. The Wilderness Resort has several lodging options and based on my experience, Glacier Canyon Lodge is the best option for families. We ran into some confusion at first when we tried to check-in, because the Wilderness Resort is so big, and I wasn’t sure if we should check-in with the main Wilderness front desk or at the Glacier Canyon building. Long story short, after making a few mistakes, we learned that we had to check in at the Glacier Canyon lobby. They allowed us to check-in early and enjoy the amenities immediately – which included all of the waterparks (except for Wild West Waterpark which is closed this season for renovations), and all of the things included in our Fun Pass. (We did have to pick up the Fun Pass from an arcade, not from the front lobby.) This was pretty awesome. Our room is a 2 Bedroom Deluxe Condominium. The kids had their own room, we had our own room, and the living room has a big TV with a big murphy bed that we didn’t utilize. The kitchen is spacious and everything was quite nice. I know if I come back to the Dells, I would want to try a different resort, but honestly it’s hard to imagine another resort as nice as this.
RESTAURANTS
The Dells area has a lot of restaurants, but vast majority of the restaurants target families because most tourists are in town for the waterparks. Most restaurants have similar menus of hamburgers, pizza, beer, and cheese. There are some nice steakhouses but unfortunately we didn’t make it to those.
We LOVED this place! There’s a great selection of boils and sushi! Got the mussel seafood boil, and the sauce was divine! The mussels were huge and juicy. We also enjoyed the Hot Girl Roll, the Eel and Avocado Roll, and the Black Dragon Roll. Everything was delicious.
Double 10 Mini Hot Pot (Madison)
We had dinner at Double 10 Mini Hot Pot Sunday night. The food was VERY good. The sauce bar was DIY and they had all the right ingredients. There were many soup base options. I had the mushroom broth, Alice had the miso broth, and Teddy had the Curry broth. Everyone enjoyed their selection. The wait was very long, but I’m sure that’s because Monday was a holiday. They had a great selection of items and we ordered lots of varieties, even razor clams. The service was a little lacking (I’m sure because it was so busy) and they wouldn’t let my child share my food without an extra charge, which was annoying.
BJ’s Restaurant (Wisconsin Dells)
We don’t typically repeat restaurants when we travel, but BJ’s was so good that we literally came here for breakfast 3 times out of the 5 days we were in town. First off, the menu. Teddy loves a nice combination platter with protein option, eggs, pancakes, hashbrowns, etc. Most breakfast restaurants don’t seem to offer that – they usually have some regular platter, then he’d have to order a pancake on the side, but BJ’s has lots of options that gives you everything. Win. Secondly, the prices are phenomenal. If you don’t care about meat, you can order the “Howie’s Huge Breakfast” which comes with Eggs, Pancakes, Hashbrowns, Toast, all for only $5.50. Don’t forget, you also have the 10% off coupon that’s available everywhere in town. The service is great – they are always checking on our coffee refills and asking us how everything was. We didn’t really try any other breakfast restaurants in town but this may just be the best one!
Kimberly Mexican Restaurant (Wisconsin Dells)
We really wanted to like this restaurant because it seemed authentic and not touristy, but it was a bust. The service was bad – very bad. The waitress didn’t speak any English. I mean, she didn’t know what a GLASS is, so we couldn’t even order a glass of water from her. She also didn’t know how to serve beer. The restaurant was very busy and most tables required assistance from the few employees that did speak English. We eventually got everything we ordered but it was stressful. My Torta Lengua was good and everyone else’s tacos were fine, but the chips were very cold and the salsa had absolutely no flavor.
Summer House Grill & Bar (Lake Delton)
We came to Summer House Grill & Bar for lunch one day. The restaurant is nicely located on water and they have a beautiful deck with a nice view, but on the day we went, the wind was so strong that we quickly moved back inside. We had the Walleye and it was good. Not fishy. We also loved the Shrimp & Corn Chowder. Alice had a kid’s hamburger that seemed pretty dry. Service was top notch and the beer selection was pretty good.
I’ve gotta say, this place was, PRETTY COOL. If you like Macaroni and Cheese, then you must go to this place. They serve like, a ton of unique macaroni and cheese dishes that come in a little iron skillet. I don’t eat cheese, so I didn’t get anything here (and let me tell you, EVERYTHING has cheese here). My kids had a regular Mac n Cheese, and one with hot dogs in it. They both loved it. There were so many exotic and cool looking Mac n Cheese bowls that people were getting and honestly they looked so good – even to me!
This place was FUN! Moosejaw is a pizza restaurant and brewery. My kids shared a kid’s pizza, Teddy and I shared a large pizza and we ordered a beer flight of 12! Which is a taste of every single beer they brew in house! The table has a beer menu that tells you a little bit about each beer so it was fun to try them all.
Bobber’s Island Grill (Wisconsin Dells)
Bobber’s Island Grill is a Jamaican restaurant located right across the street from Wilderness Resort. The restaurant was beautiful inside and out, and becomes a cool dance club at night called The Reef. We came here for lunch. While the service was slow, the food was surprisingly good! We ordered the jerk combo and there was plenty of food for both of us. We also shared a can of FVCK COVID beer, which is local to Madison, Wisconsin.
Bella Goose Coffee (Wisconsin Dells)
Bella Goose has amazing coffee and great views. We also got a lemon blueberry waffle and a biscuit in sausage gravy.
Molly’s Shake Shoppe (Wilderness Resort)
If you are staying at Wilderness, then Molly’s Shake Shoppe is a must stop. Every shake made here is a piece of art. We got the Cookie Monster and the Wake N Shake. Both were delicious!
Monk’s Bar and Grill (Wisconsin Dells)
Monk’s Bar and Grill is conveniently located right across the street from Wilderness. The restaurant is huge and there are lots of TV screens. We also loved all of the little “quote bubbles” around the restaurant. We actually came here twice – because we had some wings on the first night and the wings were so good that we had to go back and get it again. The wings were big, juicy, and full of flavor. They came with dipping sauces too. Perfect with a mug of beer.
To be continued….
P.S. This is not our first trip to Wisconsin – we’ve been to the Green Bay/Milwaukee area before, but this is our first time to the Dells/Madison area. I typically try not to judge people with a broad brush, but we’ve all heard of “Minnesota Nice”, which I tend to agree, and I wondered if there was some similar saying for Wisconsin (Madison) for being, well, not so nice. A quick Google search did give me some results that I somewhat expected, but I’m sure there are plenty of nice people in Madison too. None of that is too important though – when we are traveling, we pretty much stay to ourselves and aren’t there to make friends. And if we come back to this area – which I plan to, Madison will only be used for its airport.