Who remembers camping as a kid? Personally, camping with family and friends during my childhood are some of my favorite childhood memories. As a child, we camped ALL.THE.TIME! Real tent camping. We had a boat and we were on a lake all the time with family and friends. We also spent a week or two every summer camping in the Redwoods. My memories of camping are something I will always cherish. Fast forward to becoming a parent. We've taken our kids camping one time... in a borrowed RV. Why? We're busy, we don't have all the stuff we'd need, it's a lot of work, the list (excuses) goes on and on. So I was really excited to take the kids to Jellystone this past weekend to work on creating those awesome memories with our kids. We spent two nights last weekend at Yogi Bear's Jellystone Park Camp-Resort: Tower Park in Lodi, California with several other Macaroni Kid publishers and their families and a few of our reader families and I'm excited to share my review with you!
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Since we don't have camping stuff, we were happy to select a cabin for the weekend. We stayed in a Delta Deluxe which sleeps up to 8 with a queen in the bedroom, sofabed, twin bunk bed, and a loft. (Side note: I broke my leg and am stuck in a wheelchair for a while so I called and was able to move to an ADA accessible Delta Deluxe cabin so the cabin we were in did not have the bunk bed, but did have an awesomely large bathroom with pull down shower seat, accessible sinks, extra wide doors for my wheelchair, and a ramp to get into the cabin. This made it possible for me to keep our trip scheduled!)
Let's start with the facts:
The bed: SO COMFY! Seriously one of the most comfortable beds I have ever slept in. We also paid to rent linens to have one less thing to deal with and they were high quality, super silky sheets and very plush towels.
The cabin: Adorable! Beautiful, super clean, wood cabin, awesome little kitchen stocked with dishes and silverware for eight, pans, microwave, full-size refrigerator, and more! With the door to the bedroom closed we couldn't even hear the kid's chatter and giggling in the other room. Tons of windows with shades, ceiling fan, and two wonderful AC units to keep the cabin nice and cool in the warm weather.
The campsite: We had a lovely little porch with two chairs and a table where hubby and I enjoyed sitting several times and watching the kids run around with friends or ride their bikes. There was also a picnic table, charcoal grill, a firepit (s'mores!) and a cement pad big enough for two vehicles to park our truck and the golf cart we rented to make it easier to get around the huge grounds.
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Facilities: With two swimming pools, miniature golf, a huge jumping pillow, sand volleyball, Gaga ball, a great playground, and a dog park, there's so much to keep everyone busy. Next year, the awesome waterpark with waterslides and a cool lazy river will be open and this and everything else I already mentioned is included with your stay! They also have laser tag for a small fee (it was $5 per person and my son's favorite thing he did all weekend) and other activities that include a small fee as well as some other free activities based on the activity calendar for the weekend, such as Candy Bar Bingo for $1.50 each participant with a chance to win a candy bar.
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Now on to our stay:
We loved the cabin. It was a pretty hot weekend in the mid-90's so having the AC was simply amazing. We had some family from nearby join us Friday evening for dinner and to hang out - they offer a guest pass/day pass for guests.
During our stay we enjoyed s'mores around the fire pit with fellow Macaroni Kid families who were there for the weekend as well. This is one of those fond memories I have as a child. Eating something yummy while playing with friends around the campfire. The adults enjoyed chit-chatting and maybe a glass of wine and some s'mores as well.
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The kids loved laser tag and swimming. We had a table in partial shade at the fun kid's pool that had a small slide, water spray features, a few water cannons, and a large hot tub where we spent many hours on Saturday. We also brought their bikes and they loved riding around the campground and the ease of getting from place to place on their own.
We missed the movie Friday night since we were enjoying s'mores, but that's a fun activity to enjoy as well. Saturday evening, they enjoyed a "glowing" hayride complete with glow necklaces and bracelets.
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This weekend's theme was "Tailgate Weekend" and featured a chili cook-off. The top three participants each won a camp credit with the top one winning a $100 credit! So be sure to check the activity calendar before your visit to see what fun is in store and if you should plan for anything specific you might want to participate in.
In addition to four different types/sizes of cabins to choose from, Jellystone offers tent campsites and a large variety of RV/Trailer sites as well to suit all types of families and their needs.
Lodi is about 90 miles from Fremont and took us about an hour and a half to arrive since we were able to leave Fremont early enough on Friday. Jellystone has specials listed on their website and also post seasonal deals on Facebook - right now they are running a BOGO deal! Pay for one night, get the second night for free! Click here for their website and follow them here on Instagram and here on Facebook. Search #MKJellystone to see more great photos taken last weekend!
Suggestions from the author:
- Don't forget your personal toiletries such as soap and shampoo, etc. Our cabin had dish soap and a sponge, but everything else we needed to bring.
- Bring stuff for s'mores! It's a fun camping tradition to enjoy s'mores around the campfire.
- Don't forget your sunscreen and bug spray. I didn't get bitten, but the kids each had a few mosquito bites.
- Bring your own beach/pool towels.
- Plan to HAVE FUN!! There is something to do for everyone all day, every day! Enjoy the time.
The author received half off of their stay in exchange to facilitate this review. Of course, all opinions are those of the author.
Originally published September 11, 2018.
