Great Wolf Lodge (Gurnee, Illinois)
Great Wolf Lodge is a resort and indoor waterpark of 30 acres (12 ha) located in Gurnee, Illinois near Six Flags Great America and Gurnee Mills. It was originally opened as "KeyLime Cove" and was listed as the "Official Resort of Six Flags Great America".[1] The resort is located about an hour away from Chicago and less than an hour from Milwaukee.
Great Wolf Lodge | |
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![]() ![]() Location within Illinois | |
General information | |
Location | Gurnee, Illinois, United States |
Address | 1700 Nations Drive Gurnee, Illinois 60031 |
Coordinates | 42.3833°N 87.9447°W |
Opening | 2007, 2019 |
Closed | 2017 (KeyLime Cove) |
Technical details | |
Floor count | 4 |
Other information | |
Number of restaurants | 7 |
History
KeyLime Cove operations (2008 - 2017)
Around 2007, the resort, formerly named KeyLime Cove was constructed. It opened the following year, with a water park. It had a tropical theme around the resort.
Nine years later, in 2017, the hotel announced its closure. It was announced that it would be owned by Great Wolf Lodge and would be having an extensive renovation throughout the whole hotel. [2] This also ended the partnership with Six Flags Great America, though, as the shuttle entrance to the park removed its signage, and it did not reference the hotel after its removal.
Great Wolf Resorts operations (2017 - present)
Renovations on the new Great Wolf Lodge finished around summer of 2018. The renovated hotel opened on July 1, 2018. [3] It featured a new forest and wolf theme. There was a new expansion in the water park by adding new water slides near the original slide complexes. The exterior was painted a new brown and peach color. It also incorporated the MagiQuest game throughout the park.
In 2020, the hotel closed down for the COVID-19 pandemic. The hotel was used for housing navy recruits during April for quarantining purposes. [4] The hotel reopened on August 24, 2020, with temperature checks. [5]
References
- "Hotels & Lodging | Six Flags Great America". 2014-07-06. Archived from the original on 2014-07-06. Retrieved 2020-05-12.
- Susnjara, Bob (2017-04-19). "Great Wolf expected to open in Gurnee in mid-2018". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
- Schwabe, Amy. "I got to see the inside of the new Great Wolf Lodge, and it's going to be awesome!". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
- Graham, Doug T. (2020-04-20). "Gurnee's Great Wolf Lodge starts housing Navy recruits for 14-day quarantine period". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
- "Great Wolf Lodge Announces Reopening Date Amid Coronavirus Concerns". NBC Chicago. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
Further reading
- Graham, Doug T. (June 22, 2018). "Chance the Rapper hits the waterslides at new Great Wolf Lodge in Gurnee". Daily Herald. Retrieved July 18, 2018.