Yes/No Detroit on the Road: Castaway Bay (Year 2!) and 4-pack day pass giveaway {ends 3/23}


*Disclosure: I received a 1-night stay at Castaway Bay, as well as waterpark tickets. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own.

This past weekend, I was able to stay at Castaway Bay for one night, as well as experience its waterpark, and I had a great time. This was my second year going to Castaway Bay as a blogger - I went last year as well.


This year, I went with my boyfriend, and we stayed in a Pelican Bayview room - last year I was in a Starfish Bayview room. I didn't find much of a difference between the two rooms (both of which were very nice) but apparently a Starfish room has two double beds, whereas a Pelican room has two queen beds. Castaway Bay has all types of rooms, ranging from standard (Starfish/Pelican) to suites for larger families, and you can read about the different types here.


Sandusky is about a 2-hour drive from the Detroit area, and we arrived around 4 p.m. on Saturday for check-in. I was eager to get to the waterpark, and that was one of the first things we did; he had never been to Castaway Bay before, too, and really enjoyed the wave pool and spa area. The spa actually starts inside and then goes outside, and is well heated, so it's definitely a unique experience when the weather is cooler; this weekend, temps were in the 40s and 50s so it wasn't super cold out, though.


A few of the waterslides were closed that day, for some reason, but the other two I went on were a lot of fun - one involves a raft and goes pretty quickly, and the other was a tube slide.

This year we were able to eat at the restaurant attached to the hotel, Quaker Steak & Lube, too - last year I believe it was closed for renovations. It's known for its wings, so I ordered a 6-pack of boneless wings and mozzarella sticks combo, and both were great. We also ordered loaded nachos for an appetizer, and my boyfriend tried one of the steaks for his meal.


We also explored the hotel a little more this year, and I found that Ebb & Eddy's, the hotel coffee shop, had some delicious treats: they had large cookies for about $2 each, as well as some buckeyes for around the same price. I LOVE buckeyes and have never actually seen them sold before - the only time I've had them was when co-workers have made them for office parties and around the holidays - so I was pretty excited to try Castaway Bay's. (a buckeye is a peanut butter treat dipped in chocolate at the bottom)


The hotel also does a ton of activities for kids - on Saturday night, there was a "meet and greet" session with Snoopy, and there was also hot chocolate and cookies. I was tempted to grab a cookie as well but I already had my buckeyes to eat :).


Castaway Bay was again very enjoyable this year! If you decide to go, check out the hotel website for specials, too - right now they're doing two nights for only $199 total, which is a great deal (normally it's about $200-250 per night). Groupon also has a deal for Castaway Bay currently, ranging from $98 to $198 per night, and you can check that out here - type in "Castaway Bay" at the top, and make sure to select Sandusky, OH as your region.

You can also buy day passes for Castaway Bay (and enter to win them, below!) - they're $29 per person, and Castaway Bay recommends buying them online before you go. I'd recommend that as well, because when we arrived on Saturday, there was a big sign up saying that day passes were sold out for the day - so I'm guessing passes sell out fast on the weekends.

Have you ever been to an indoor waterpark? If so, do you prefer water rides or pools better?



GIVEAWAY:

One of my lucky readers will win a family four-pack of day passes for Castaway Bay!

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Wednesday, March 23rd, at 11:59pm EST, and winner will be notified via email, and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen. I already have the passes in my possession, and will be mailing them to the winner.

Must live within driving distance of Sandusky, Ohio, to enter this giveaway.

Good luck!

Castaway Bay day passes - 2016

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