Family-Friendly Hotels with Awesome Pools

This post may contain affiliate links for which I may earn a small commission if items are purchased via the link. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.

Are you looking for a family friendly resort with a water park? We got you covered! When traveling to warm climates, we always try to find a hotel with an awesome pool area for Milana. Some we’ve been to had not only great pools but also splash pads/water park features for the kids to enjoy. Here’s a list of some of our favorite family friendly hotels with water parks and great pools, in no particular order. It will be updated as we discover more on our travels! If you have a favorite, leave a comment. we’d love to hear about it!

1.Omni Rancho Las Palmas  This hotel is located in the CA desert, which means it gets hot in the summer months!  No better way to cool off than at Splashtopia, their onsite water park.  The park has a lazy river, two slides, sprinklers, a huge pool and a sandy beach area with a zero entry pool (and completely shaded sand area) which is perfect for the little ones!

2.  Great Wolf Lodge With locations all over the US, there is bound to be one close to you. They recently built one in SoCal, close to our house, so we have been several times.  You can read my very detailed post here and see all the activities besides the water park that they offer.  We’ve also been to the one in Grapevine, TX when visiting Dallas.

Great Wolf Lodge is great because they are completely indoors, meaning you don’t have to worry about slathering sunscreen on someone that’s the equivalent of a rabid alligator  and you can enjoy the water park regardless of weather.  There is so much to do here (it truly is a water park) that your kids will be entertained for hours!  And the best part about GWL is that unless you are a hotel guest, you can’t use the water park, keeping the crowds to only hotel guests.

3.  Orlando World Center Marriott  This is one of our favorite Marriotts in the world!  The pool area here is amazing, I’d choose this over a Disney hotel any day when visiting Orlando.  Our room had a view of the nightly Disney fireworks which was great!  The pool is huge, there are several slides as well as a splash park.  They also have a ton of kid activities throughout the day, making it perfect for families.

4.  Hilton Buena Vista Palace This is another Orlando hotel that is a great alternative to the Disney hotels. It’s across the street from Disney Springs, making it a great location.  The pool area here is really nice! They have a huge pool, a zero entry pool for little ones and a lazy river.  I highly recommend staying here if you come to Orlando!

5.  Hilton Phoenix Resort at the Peak Another Hilton, this time in Phoenix, with an on-site water park called the River Ranch with an awesome pool area.   This hotel has multiple pools, a lazy river and water slides.  Milana loved this place and we spent a lot of time by the pool!

6.  Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas This hotel is located on Maui and has an awesome pool area.  There are multiple pools on the property, water slides and a pirate ship play area for the younger kids. Definitely one to check out if you’re in Hawaii!

7.  Hacienda del Mar Los Cabos Cabo has lots of family friendly hotels, and the Sheraton is definitely one of them! This hotel has several pools to choose from and a completely separate kid pool area, with slides and splash features making it a great choice for families.

8.  Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa Puerto Vallarta is one of our favorite destinations and we always stay at the Marriott.  The pool here is great and they recently finished the splash pad with slides by the kid’s club, making it a great choice for families.

9.  Grand Oasis Palm Cancun Not only was the pool area awesome at this hotel, but the beach had no waves, making it perfect for little ones to splash around.  There are multiple pools spread out all over the property, including one with slides/trampoline and a pool with slides inside the kid’s club that you are able to use.  Great place for families!

10. Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance  This place is amazing!  And the location is great too.  Located a very short walk to the Disneyland gates, this is the perfect hotel to mix some Disney and water time.  This hotel is closer to the gates than 2 of the 3 Disneyland hotels!  The splash area is fun and the slides are really great for kids.  Milana had a blast here and since it’s really close to our house, we will definitely visit again.

11. JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa We stayed here over Memorial Day weekend 2018.  The pool area here is really nice, with multiple pools, a small splash pad and a lazy river.  There are lots of other activities for families throughout the day, making this the perfect destination with young kids.

12. Hilton Cartagena Hotel & Resort If you’re coming to Cartagena, you are going to want a pool to cool off in! We stayed at this Hilton and it was a hit. They have multiple pools, including one with a slide.  Highly recommend it for a stay with kids!

Have you visited a family friendly resort? We’d love to hear about it!