Because I love traveling, I’m always on the lookout for resorts and hotels that appeal to all family members, especially children. Traveling with children can be very rewarding, but it can also be stressful. Staying at a family friendly resort or hotel, though, can alleviate stress, and significantly add to the overall enjoyment of a vacation - for all family members.
If my son is happy, then I’m happy 🙂
With that, I’m pleased to write that I can add another family friendly resort in Phoenix to my list! My family and I were hosted to stay at The Wigwam over the Memorial Day Weekend and we loved it. The Wigwam is a resort located in the Phoenix area, specifically Litchfield Park. It’s near Goodyear, and easily accessible from the freeway. The resort itself is very spread out, with plenty of things to do, and while it has outstanding golf courses, it also has several swimming pools and activities for families, including children. And for those of you who like to explore off property, there are several attractions nearby, like the Wildlife World Zoo, and the Goodyear Ballpark, which I previously wrote about here.
The employees were also very nice, and accommodating, which is a big plus, especially when traveling with a young child.
What I also really like about the Wigwam is that not only is it a great place to stay at for a staycation, but it also appeals to out-of-state visitors, due to its amenities and location. It has a very southwestern look, and feel about it, and is very relaxing. Although it’s very spread out, many of the activities and restaurants are in the same area, and don’t involve a lot of walking. We also appreciated that there are several parking spaces. We’ve stayed at some hotels and resorts where parking spaces were limited, and there’s nothing enjoyable about arriving at your destination and not being able to easily find a place to park.
The main building is beautiful and very inviting.
There are several palm trees throughout the property. Below is one of the main pathways that we regularly walked throughout our stay.
And the flowers! There were several flowers, many were different colors.
I love nature photography, so I couldn’t resist taking several pictures of this rose 🙂
My son was all smiles - he loves the outdoors, especially when he is able to explore new things.
As for guest rooms, there are several options available, from casitas to suites. We stayed in a suite with a king bed and a sofa sleeper, which was a perfect fit for our family, especially for our active son. And the teepee in the picture below? It was a huge hit with my son, and he slept in it during our stay. This is as close to camping as we will get 😉 Guests are able to request a teepee for their room for an additional charge, and it’s very unique.
I’d definitely say he’s a fan.
We liked that not only did the suite have a separate sitting area, but it also had a huge bedroom, with additional sitting areas and another television.
As for the bathroom, there were two separate sinks, a sunken tub, AND a shower with a bench! I should also mention that the suite had two separate bathrooms - the one depicted below, and another one near the main sitting area/entrance.
A better view of the sitting area…..
There was also a kitchen area with a fridge.
We had a balcony, which overlooked a golf course and tennis courts. Not only was one area of the balcony covered for those hot summer days, but there was also a separate area with a lounge chair.
The good life.
I thought the tennis courts would get noisy in the mornings and the evenings, but while there were people playing tennis at those times, we couldn’t hear them from inside our suite. Because I’m a light sleeper, I’m not a fan of thin walls so I really appreciate it when walls have great insulation from outside noises.
I took a picture of some of the neighboring casitas and common areas/walkways. As you can see, there’s plenty of space for children to run around. The only drawback about being in the suite on the 2nd floor was that there wasn’t an elevator. However, I’d gladly trade that for the view and the amenities we had.
I mentioned there are several things to do while at the Wigwam. Here are some of our favorites:
Hanging out at the Pool
I liked that the pool area was not overwhelming for parents and younger children. Because my son is not quite 4 years old, there’s still only so much he can do. He’s not a fan of water slides in general, but give him a pool with benches, and he’s a happy camper. He’s just happy to walk around and play in the water. So I was very pleased to see that one of the pools at the Wigwam had the benches I’m talking about.
Here he is, standing on one of the benches.
There are two fun slides, though, for those of you who do like slides 🙂 And a lifeguard on duty.
There’s also a splash pad for younger children!
If you are planning on hanging out at the pool, make sure you arrive earlier in the day. We didn’t go to the pool until around noon on Saturday, and by then it was crowded and difficult to find lounge chairs that weren’t being occupied.
The Character Breakfast
During the summer, the resort has a character buffet breakfast every Saturday morning, with two different characters. The food was delicious, with a wide variety, including an omelet station (my favorite), cereal, pastries, pancakes and french toast. The price for the buffet is very reasonable - $17 per adult and $8.50 for children between the ages of 3 and 12. And you don’t have to be a guest of the resort to experience the character breakfast.
The characters we saw were Kylo Ren and Rey. Rey asked my son at one point who his favorite character is in Star Wars and he said Darth Vader. Uh, oh. Where is Luke Skywalker when you need him?
And Rey made lightsabers out of balloons for the kids.
Animal Encounters
I previously mentioned that the Wildlife World Zoo is located near the Wigwam. During the summer months, someone from the zoo brings small animals to the resort, and tells the guests about the animals. The children asked a lot of questions, as did their parents. So while it was fun, it was also educational.
My son was mostly excited about the tortoise 🙂
Anyone remember the video game Sonic?
Bocce Ball
There were areas set up for bocce ball. My son was able to play it for the first time, and he loved it.
The Spa
Okay, so this is more of my favorite. But when I found out there was a Red Door Spa at the resort, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try it out and get a massage. And I wasn’t disappointed. I’d become a member if I lived nearby.
The Food
Last but not least, the food was delicious. We tried out the dessert at Red’s Bar and Grill, which included cupcakes. There were flavors like oreo cookie, ding dong, and carmel frappuccino. I’m not exaggerating when I say the oreo cookie cupcake was the best cupcake I’ve ever eaten.
The resort has a couple of restaurants on site, and all the restaurants we visited had kid friendly menus, like mac and cheese and hot dogs. And crayons and coloring paper 🙂
We are glad we had the opportunity to experience the Wigwam. It was a fun filled, and relaxing weekend and we hope to return soon, especially for the winter holidays!
Disclosure - We were hosted for our stay at the Wigwam so that I could share our experience with others. However, all opinions and photos are my own.