Santa's Lodge Reviews

Will be at Holiwood Nights this year (last time was Voyage opening).

We will be staying at Santa's Lodge and just wanted to get some reviews of the place.

http://tinyurl.com/y9e5vut

I stayed there in 2007 for ACE CoasterCon. I didn't really care for it other than being close to Holiday World.

I paid $99 a night and didn't think it was worth it, but I had an older room. Had some friends in one of the newer rooms and it was pretty nice. My bed had no fitted sheet, they used a flat sheet instead and it drove me crazy at night.

Buffet downstairs was ok, nothing special. When I go back to Holiday World I will look for something else. I know there isn't much in choice in Santa Claus, In but there are other places nearby.

I stayed in 2002 and 2006.

It was as "nice" as your typical Hampton Inn/Comfort Inn etc. My wife has a sweet spot for Christmas and loved the lobby decor, which has a nice charm to it.

Felt a bit overpriced, but the proximity to Holiday World is nice (my wife and I drove back to rest and freshen up before dinner and the long nighttime ERT session).

It is about 1/4 mile to Holiday World.

The food sucks. The rooms are on-par with a Hampton Inn or Comfort Inn. I find the place a bit too pricey for the quality and would not stay there were it not for the convenience of being down the street from the park.

I'm a hotel snob, and I would still prefer a rental RV at Lake Rudolph (though it occurs to me now that's gonna be harder since we're not driving).

I'm with Jeff on this. Both of my visits to Holiday World I've stayed in the rental RVs at Lake Rudolph. They will set you back about as much as a single room at Santa's Lodge and you're even closer (with the complimentary shuttle to boot) and with plenty of campground-esque stuff to do when the park isn't open. Rent a golf cart to enhance the experience.

The only problem with the RVs and cabins is that you do have to bring your own linens (bed sheets, pillows, towels, etc.) and that's not going to be exactly feasible for those flying in.

Yeah, that's where I'm a little stuck for this year. What did you do?

Both times it was 2-3 week road trips hitting several other parks, so we had already packed beach towels for some of the water parks and just used those. One of the two trips we just stopped at Wal-Mart on the way in and bought cheap pillows and sheets. It's amazing how far $50 will get you at Sam Walton's Five and Dime.

We wised up the second trip and just packed the pillows and sheets in the car before we left. But, yep, none of this works if you need to pack light for a plane. It'd be great if Lake Rudolph took a page out of Disney's Ft. Wilderness playbook -- or even Cedar Point's Lighthouse Point -- and offered some of the RVs or cabins with fresh linen service.

Jeff, have you tried those vacuum bags for linens and clothing? I think they can be found at a number of retail stores. You put your folded compressible materials in the bag, then squeeze the air out through the one-way valve. You might be surprised at how little space a few sheets and towels can take up...perhaps enough of a difference to fit them in your luggage.

Just found out about Lincoln State Park. It is 6 miles from Holiday World and has camper cottages that will sleep as many at 16 people.

I just booked a 12 person cottage for $33.30 per night. I think I already have it full with KICentral folk. It ends up costing $6 per person plus a $7 per vehicle entry fee for the weekend.

Considering that most of the available hotels are running closer to $120 a night and are 20+ miles from the park, this seems like a real bargain.

http://www.indiana.reserveworld.com/Campgrounds/Search.cfm

I give you guys who do the camping thing all the credit in the world.

Looking at those cottage descriptions... *shudder*

As lax as I am with hotels, I'm with Gonch here. When I book a cabin, it has to have some of the basic modern features that I get from home. I don't mind paying more, when my vacation calls for a cabin. "Roughing it" is not for me.

I agree - at least the rental RVs have air conditioning and their own bathrooms...

I stayed there back in 2007, the rooms are ok, there's like 22 channels but only half come in. The hall ways could use a up grade.

LostKause said:
"Roughing it" is not for me.

Funny...I thought you liked it rough :)

Who have you been talking to, Moosh. ...Or was that just a good guess? lol

Let's call it a good hunch :)

I believe Betty White ratted LK out since she loves you so much. :)

Jeff, if you have old crappy pillows you don't really care about, you could compress those in a vacuum bag (they really do work quite well), bring them with you, and then leave them there (negating the need for a vacuum to repack them to bring them home).

A bit wasteful, so I'd only do it with stuff on the verge of getting tossed, but I've been known to pack for long international trips that way (making room for souvenirs in the process :) )