Great Wolf Lodge to open in Pittsburgh

Great Wolf Resorts plans to open a location in Pittsburgh, according to an announcement made by the indoor water resort development company last month. The newest of their Great Wolf Lodge locations will be built adjacent to the Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills, a shopping mall located in Frazer Township.

With less than 15 locations across the nation, Great Wolf Resorts is known for having premier indoor waterparks. One of the newest resorts opened in the Pocono Mountains in 2005, which features the lazy river Crooked Creek and a 436-foot-long dark waterslide, Coyote Cannon.

Specific attractions for the Galleria location have yet to be determined, according to Jerry Crites, mall manager of Pittsburgh Mills.

The luxury resorts have on average 250 to 600 rooms and approximately 75,000 square feet of indoor water park space, according to the Great Wolf Resorts' Web site, www.greatwolf.com. With rustic, mountain-themed decor and attractions, their mission is to be a "leader in regional family entertainment with an emphasis on indoor waterpark hotels."

Crites said the partnership between Great Wolf Resorts and Pittsburgh Mills is less than a month old. Great Wolf executives are still deciding on official plans at their headquarters in Madison, Wis.

"We're expecting to break ground later this year, opening fall next year," Crites said.

Crites is anticipating positive results following the opening of the lodge for Pittsburgh Mills, which has struggled to keep tenants since its opening in 2005. Great Wolf Lodge is known to be a destination that reaches visitors beyond the local area.

"[It will] bring in a lot of new faces," Crites said. "It can only expand our market."

The resort hosts most of its locations in the northern states, making Pittsburgh's biting cold winters an ideal candidate for a Great Wolf Lodge.

"It would be something fun to do year round and in the winter," Teresa Montoya, a sophomore dance major, said of the resort.

Great Wolf Lodge's water parks, however, are only open to guests of the resort, with an average nightly rate of over $200, according to Great Wolf's Web site.

Despite this setback, Great Wolf is still expected to turn Pittsburgh into a vacation destination.

"Pittsburgh doesn't have a lot to offer, as far as water parks go," Elisa Halma, a sophomore jazz dance major, said.

Pittsburgh's other regional water park, Sandcastle, located in Homestead, Pa., is only open during the summer months of June, July and August and is slightly more than half the size of an average Great Wolf resort.

Great Wolf also offers adult and children spas, dining facilities and specialized activities for all ages, such as storytime around a fireplace and the Cub Club activity areas for children.