Is Kalahari/Sandusky Worthwhile?

[keishashadow]

was trying to throw together last min overnight trip to Cedar Point & found what seems to be a great rate for a "Hut Room" for self, DH & teenage son

hotel we usually stay @ has closed down, was thinking Breakers Expess but for a few $ more can stay @ Kalahari & use the water park the next day

im reading mixed reviews on tripadvisor was hoping somebody here could give me some advice.

will state that we have visited the Castaway Bay waterpark, thought it nice; yet limited as to offerings...Kalahari looks so much bigger when we drive by assume it has way more stuff to do.

 

[XYSRUS]

FWIW, If I was going to CP, I would just go to the beach there and Soak City, if you want to do the water park thing. That being said, Kalahari is awesome. My kids love it(The 4 yo said it was better than DW, but what does he know. But, we always hit up Kalahari in the winter when we need a mental health day. Have fun on your trip. Noticed you're from Pitts. We went to Kennywood this year for some old school fun.!

 

[TnTWalter]

My brother and family just got back from CP. They did a CABIN and LOVED it. They raved and raved and they could go back during day for hanging out grilling etc as it's walking distance and then hit park again later.

They went 4 days.

 

[pearlieq]

If the price is good and you don't mind the extra time in the car (US-250 can get REALLY backed up to and from the park) Kalahari is a pretty nice joint--kind of AKL-lite.

The waterpark is pretty extensive for something attached to a hotel, and the other attractions are pretty nice too. Your DS might be a bit too old to truly enjoy everything there, but the big slides and the flow rider will probably keep him occupied.

 

[smaurer]

When are you going? Depending on the day i might be able to get you a code for a discount. I work at the local hospital and they run specials with us and we can get discounted rates I think in august they have days we can stay for 178 and september for 98.

 

[Leader of the Club]

The absolute worst experience of my life was at Kalahari Sandusky.the letter that I wrote to Kalahari was four pages long. Not joking! Four pages. It made me ill that we spent so much money on our three nights there. My 3 y/o had to go to the ER for an injury in the waterpark (I know, not Kalahari's fault, but it was that "just one more thing" thing) My 10 y/o suffered a chemical burn over his entire body from the chlorine in the pools.

Here is a brief review I put on Trip Advisor:


I have travelled--a lot! I have travelled to countries where they do not speak English. I have NEVER been treated as badly as I was at the Kalahari in Sandusky, Ohio.

The room was fithly. There was old, half eaten ice cream bars in the freezer, what appeared to be raw ground meat smeared on the counter top and the fridge was just GROSS. Oh, and the glasses where stuck to the selves in the cabinet and the dishes were dirty. We checked in on Monday, the room was not cleaned until Wednesday. Oh, and let us not forget the dirty carpet, bathtub, hair on the bathroom floor (not just one, but lots) and construction debris including 3 inch long rusted nails on the balcony.

Check in was a disaster. Had to wait in line for over an hour--twice! Once to check in and once again to get the room key.

The resort manager was so rude that he actually reduced my 19 y/o daughter to tears when she tried to tell him of our concerns. Yes, tears. And she has travelled--a lot! On her own, to other countries! She is quite the tough cookie.

I cannot honestly begin to tell you how bad this stay really was. My letter to the resort is 4 pages long. Don't go, take the money and go elsewhere.

This TripAdvisor Member:
Liked — When it was time to leave!
Disliked — The staff was exceedingly RUDE

 

[Leader of the Club]

BTW, we really, really liked Castaway Bay and would go there again.

 

[keishashadow]

When are you going? Depending on the day i might be able to get you a code for a discount. I work at the local hospital and they run specials with us and we can get discounted rates I think in august they have days we can stay for 178 and september for 98.

ooh thanks, we're either going the 14th or 15th next week; if u have the time to check i'd appreciate it as i could only get good rate one day, the other (Friday) it was almost $300

BTW, we really, really liked Castaway Bay and would go there again.

wow, sorry to hear how ur trip went so wrong I think ur report probably was one of the ones that alarmed me.

i refused to stay @ the Econolodge that i had booked our 1st trip (it had gotten great reviews on TA ), fled to clarion @ mall now closed due to ADA lawsuit. Econolodge had absolutely beat room, with Thirsty Pony Restaurant across the street that had sign on the door "no weapons in restuarant" as if it was okay to have them in hotel or parking lot.

None of the CP hotels have been getting stellar reviews on TA, mostly housekeeping & maintenance issues, guess they can get away with it for the early entry perc?

thanks for all the advice guys

 

[eyeheartgoofy]

We stayed there in June 2007. Our room was fine (clean and very roomy) and we enjoyed the water park.

But, the food (we tried pizza and hot dogs)was gross and greasy ... and the servers at the gross & greasy pizza counter were very rude.

I would go again, but I would pack my own lunch fixins' and keep them in the room fridge. We went down the strip and ate dinner at Olive Garden.

 

[dimimi]

We stayed at Kalahari and loved it. We stayed in one of the large 2 bedroom suites/condo things. We split it with another family and it worked great. We liked it better than Great Wolf. However, if I had a room like the other person described, I would not have beenhappy. We went over Thanksgiving and had a blast.

 

[DwarfMaster]

My 10 y/o suffered a chemical burn over his entire body from the chlorine in the pools.

My DD6 did also. However, we were there swimming for 4 days...probably should've stopped after 2. We had a great time & are looking to go again if we can find a good deal.

 

[breathinforluck]

I just got back from my third trip to Kalahari, as always I LOVE it there.

They recently added onto the waterpark, now there's an added two new group slide, two new body slides and a wave pool, along with an swim up bar/hot tub. The new addition is huge and very nice. I'm 19, and love going down the new slides. I wish we would have had longer to enjoy the new stuff. They also have a new eatery and tanning deck. It's really nice.

I couldn't say enough good things about the place. Franky, it's surprising to me that anyone could have a bad time there. We got a weekend deal and ended up in a Desert Room which was really clean. I usually stay in Hut due to having a small family. I love Hut's because the balcony overloooking the back pool/play area is a nice thing to have.

The food is the best at Great Kaboo in my opinion. It's a bot pricey to eat at, seeing as it's a buffet. But 19.99 for all you can eat, prime rib, clams and various other foods was worth it. And the deserts, WOW.

And you can't miss the Candy Hut, best carmel apples ever.

I've never had problems with the service. Everyone was so nice.

After we stayed there this weekend, we went and walked around some of the other indoor waterparks in the area and in my opinion, Castaway Bay doesn't even compare.

If you want to see pictures of the room/place PM me, I'd be happy to help!

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

We just returned last week actually from a 3 night stay at Kalahari.

We were there a couple years ago prior to the expansion and wanted to try it out again. I too wrote a review on trip advisor.

The kids had the time of their lives. The check-in was horrendous. The lifeguards were very non-attentive and just not giving a crap. With a teenage son, that might not be that much of an issue as it was for me with little ones, but thought it was worth mentioning.

None of us received any time of chemical burns from the chlorine, but the place wasn't very clean, housekeeping was horrible, the place was crowded and if the lifeguards paid more attention the lines would go alot faster.

The food we thought was very good everywhere we ate. As I said the kiddos loved it. And we also had fun, but will probably try other places before returning to Kalahari again.

We have been to Kalahari 2 years ago as I stated and it was not like this. Plus we've been to Great Wolf Lodge near Kings Island twice and Splash Lagoon, so we do have something to compare it to.

 

[Princess Pudding Pop]

I had my 4yr olds birthday there. Mind you it was 15° (god only knows what the windchill was so fridgid) out in March but it was so fun. If you live nearby I suggest getting a party package if you want to go swim for the day. The tickets are way cheaper that way PLUS you get a drink and a slice of pizza for each person in your party which I thought was a deal in a 1/2. No one would ever know if your having a party I had everyone pay for there portion of the tickets, except for the kids which we paid for.

There is something for everyone there to do. I got hurt on one of the double raft rides when we came down into the pool area i slammed my head into a wall I had an headache for the rest of the day. Worst was driving home 1:45mins home.

A guy I work with is friends with the manager there, but he was off on vaca when we were there we couldve gotten Cabanas for free. drats

 

[PLUTO2]

We stayed there many times when we lived in Michigan. My dd is always commenting how she wishes there was a Kalahari near where we live now.

 

[shortbun]

My next door neighbor works for the State of Ohio and says Kalihari is the most notorious water park in the state. Apparently cleanliness is an issue there and they've been cited several times. He told us NOT to go there but that other indoors in the state were much better.

 

[keishashadow]

 

[momtomari]

i just booked another stay at kalahari for november. booked one of their specials for 2 nights with a bunch of extras.

amanda