Monique West Our family took a trip to the newly opened Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark in Monticello, New York for a spontaneous getaway. In this blog, we’ll discuss what we thought about the resort, how it compares to other indoor waterparks in the area, and most importantly whether it was worth the money. Keep reading to help you decide whether the Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark will be a good getaway for you and your family.
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Where is The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark?
The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark is located in the Catskill Mountains in Monticello, New York, about 90 minutes north of New York City. It’s perfectly located about 30 minutes away from Legoland New York.
The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark Review
When you walk through the doors of the Kartrite Resort and explore the first floor, you’ll likely forget that this resort also has an indoor waterpark and other activities for kids. The Kartrite Resort screams 5-star hotel from the moment you arrive. The decor is modern and sleek while the furnishings remain inviting.
The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark is themed as a tropical paradise. It’s covered by a glass dome that allows natural light to filter inside and is temperature-controlled, making it look and feel like a tropical setting. The waterpark is designed so that if you sit in the middle of the waterpark, near the Flowrider, you can see the entire waterpark if you make a 360-degree turn.
One thing that stood out to us almost immediately is that the Kartrite Resort’s waterpark does not have a wave pool or any indoor pool for that matter.
Behind the lazy river is an indoor/outdoor hot tub. The indoor section of the hot tub is the size of a standard waterpark hot tub and the outdoor section is the size of a standard pool. As the only pool in the resort, the outdoor section of the hot tub is used by kids to swim and splash around, rather than a place for relaxation. We found this to be a bit…unusual and not well thought out. It would’ve made more sense to us if the larger pool was inside and the smaller hot tub outside.
Although the Kartrite Resort’s waterpark is small, it has all the components of an indoor waterpark, except for a wave pool. There’s a water basketball area, a frog petal obstacle course, a flow rider, a kids’ splash zone, and four waterslides.
The Kartrite Resort’s waterpark caters best to families with small children due to its size and the type of attractions offered. My kids, ages 3 and 8, had fun but there isn’t nearly enough to do if you’re looking to hang out in the waterpark all day.
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The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark Activities
When you’ve had enough of the waterpark, the Kartrite Resort offers a few dry activities. Keep in mind that the activities are subject to change and may be seasonal and weather-dependent.
The Arcade
The arcade is located near the entrance of the waterpark, and like the waterpark, the arcade games mostly cater to younger children. There’s also a rock climbing wall, virtual reality games, a 3D ride, and laser tag. The highlight of the arcade is Carabiners, the Kartrite Resort’s ropes course.
Near the elevators on the same floor, you’ll find two pool tables, mini bowling, and a few arcade games for older kids and adults.
We were a bit disappointed at the arcade hours. By 9 p.m., the arcade was closed and it did not open again until 10 a.m.
Scheduled Activities
The Kartrite has a beautiful outdoor common area called the Concord Commons, where their outdoor activities are held. There are a few activities, like giant connect 4 and Cornhole, that remain in the commons throughout the day, and then some yard games that were scheduled in the commons and supervised by the Kartrite staff.
One of the daily activities offered was making smores.
Money-saving tip: At the front desk, the smores family kit is listed as $20 per kit. There is no need to buy this kit unless you want a box of smores for each family member. Pops Sweet Shoppe sells the smores kit for $5 a box which was plenty for our family of 4. Or you can just come prepared and bring your own ingredients.
Movie night is another daily activity at the Kartrite. During our stay, they showed Inside Out. I loved that this was an option as it was an option I had missed at some other indoor waterparks.
However, there were a few disappointing things about movie night:
- All the stores were closed by the time the movie started and the Kartrite did not even provide popcorn. If you have young kids, you know how important snacks are during movies.
- The lobby was not the best setup to keep a child engaged in the movie. The screen was too high, and there was too much light in the lobby. There were too many distractions. Even with a couple of bean bags offered, it was not a very comfortable setup for a movie. We ended up leaving about 15 minutes into the movie and going to the room.
Activities pro tip: If you want to experience the Kartrite Resort’s best and full list of activities, it’s best to visit on a weekend and/or during the summer. We visited on a school day and because of that there weren’t many scheduled activities.
I have to admit that the Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark has one of the best outdoor areas and scheduled activities we have experienced at any indoor waterpark resort. To catch one of the scheduled events, make sure to check the Kartrite event calendar each day.
The Kartrite Resort Room Tour and Review
Walking out of the elevator and through the hallway to our room, I was excited. I loved the color scheme of the carpeting in the hallway and expected the room to blow me away. The room was clean, which is most important to us, but the room itself and its decor was basic.
We had a standard double queen hotel room but the resort also offers balcony and patio rooms, as well as suites.
Check out the rates and availability for your stay at The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark here!
The Kartrite Resort Restaurants & Bars
The Kartrite has six restaurants and bars, and one store perfect for those with a sweet tooth.
Restaurants That Were Open During Our Stay
- Surfside Grille: The Surfside Grille is located inside the waterpark. They serve food you’ll typically find at an attraction for kids, like cheeseburgers, french fries, and pizza, but you’ll also find a few healthier options as well. Overall, we were pretty impressed with the food and felt we got our money’s worth in value.
- Bar Mez: I’m only assuming that this bar, which is located on the second floor in the waterpark, was open because I saw some people walking around with some amazing looking drinks. Aside from cabanas and the bar, there is nothing on the second floor so we never made our way up there. However, after seeing the drinks, which looked like they were made at a tropical resort, and looking at the drink menu, which had non-alcoholic options for a reasonable price, I regret not going to check it out.
- Harvey’s Wallbanger: Harvey’s is both a bar and a restaurant, and was our choice for dinner. They had options for dinner that would show up on some of the best culinary menus. For a more kid-friendly, wallet-friendly option, you can opt for a freshly baked pizza like we did. It was delicious! Heads up: Even on a weekday, they recommend you make a reservation as the restaurant is small and gets crowded once the waterpark closes.
- Eat, Eat, Eat: This restaurant is the Kartrite’s buffet. It was open for our stay for breakfast and dinner but we chose not to eat here because (1) we’re not big breakfast eaters and (2) we thought the selection for dinner was not worth the $30 per adult, $16 per child (ages 4-12) cost. Pro tip: Before sitting down to eat at the buffet, ask to look at the options so you don’t end up spending a bunch of money on food your family won’t enjoy.
- Pops Sweet Shoppe: This store is exactly what you would expect based on its name. They sell candy by the pound, ice cream, and other desserts. It’s also where you buy the family smores kit. Heads Up: On the Kartrite’s website, Pops Sweet Shoppe is listed as open until 10 a.m. When we went down to get ice cream, a little after 9 p.m. on a weekday, the store was closed, leaving us very disappointed.
Other Restaurants at The Kartrite Resort
- The Highline: In the morning, we walked down in our pajamas to The Highline expecting to be greeted by the smells of pastries and coffee. We were disappointed to find The Highline closed for the day, leaving the buffet as our only option for breakfast. As more of a pastries and coffee for breakfast type of family, we opted not to go to the buffet and begrudgingly got into the car and drove to Dunkin Donuts. We never had to leave a resort for any meal before so this was highly disappointing to us, especially now seeing that their website lists the store as being open daily from 7 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- Bixby’s Derby: Bixby’s bar and restaurant is only open from Thursday to Sunday for dinner. From the look of the closed restaurant, which is located on the main floor near the entrance, Bixby’s is very high-end and was not a place we would have eaten during our stay. It did however appear to be the perfect place to relax with a drink or to get a drink to bring back to the room after a long day.
The Kartrite Resort’s Souvenir Shop
The Kartrite’s souvenir shop is located near the entrance to the waterpark. It’s a good place to go if you forgot anything waterpark-related or personal hygiene-related.
One thing we found shocking, is that the Souvenir shop opens and closes with the waterpark. After hours, the only place to get any personal hygiene items you may need is the front desk and their options are limited. The shop also sells medicine, which was not displayed at the front desk for sale.
The Staff at The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark
All of the staff we came in contact with at the Kartrite Resort were friendly and welcoming. However, they were not very knowledgable, or eager to help. There were several occasions where we asked the staff questions they did not have the answers to. There were too many times when we had to say, “Don’t worry, we’ll find out” or “Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out ourselves.”
The area where this was most obvious was during the scavenger hunt, which was listed as one of the Kartrite’s daily activities. The objective of the scavenger hunt was to answer riddles and figure which section of the Kartrite you should visit to get a stamp. Every time we would visit an area, the staff seemed more confused than we were about what they were supposed to do, which took away from the fun of the activity.
Should You Visit The Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark? Final Thoughts
It’s almost odd that the Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark seems to cater more to adults than children. It’s almost as if they were looking to create an adult resort where kids are also welcomed. Everything from the decor, to the large outdoor hot tub, and the restaurants, felt made for the parents.
Another thing to consider is that everything closed pretty early and then did not open until later in the morning, leaving parents with a lot of empty time to be in the room.
The waterpark and the arcade caters mostly to pre-adolescent children so if you have older children or children who like thrills, this may not be the resort for you.
However, if you have younger children and love the idea of an indoor waterpark resort that caters more toward your little ones, then the Kartrite is a good option. Who needs things open late if your little ones will be knocked out by 8 p.m. anyways, especially after a day at the waterpark.
However, if you’re traveling with kids under 13 or people with disabilities, the Kartrite Resort is a good choice because of its size, and relaxed attractions and environment. The resort is also much less crowded than others we’ve visited.
Hopefully, I’ve helped you decide whether the Kartrite is a good fit for you and your family. To view prices and/or book your stay, click here.
Please leave a comment below with any questions you may have or to share your experience at the Kartrite Resort & Indoor Waterpark, as your experience may help someone else.
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Monique this looks like a fun time. My wife and I are heading to Kingston, NY in a bit to do some house sitting. We will be just south of the gorgeous Catskills region. Magical place.
Ryan
Hey Ryan. Thanks for taking the time to read my blog and to leave a comment. That’s a beautiful location you’ll be in. Make sure you take some time to do some exploring.
Monique
The Kartrite does seem like a great place for families to visit, and my daughter would love to go to the waterpark, and that’s great they also have an arcade and other activities. My daughter would also love to make smores! It’s a shame that some of the restaurants didn’t stick to their opening hours, and it would be nice if their staff was more knowledgeable.
Thank you for reading. I hope you and your daughter get to go sometime. If you visit during the summer, you’ll have more activities to choose from and everything should be open.
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If I could give zero I would give zero several times. First of all, there is only one person at check-in. The staff is not polite, the room accommodations are the only good thing. The photos of the park inside deceive you on the website, it’s small and there’s almost nothing for children to do. I went with a friend and her son, both the same age, 12. We went for breakfast and there is all you can eat, 22.95 adults and children up to 12 pay 12.95, and there are still no breakfast varieties. When I went to check my card they had charged each of us 22.95. There is no bottled water for sale at the resort, only tap water, I have never seen that. For you to use the only two restaurants you have to make a reservation. The food is horrible and expensive, the drinks are the same. We had to leave the building and go to the local Walmart to buy water and some snacks. They have room to build a structure equal to or better than the Kalahari, but they haven’t done it. For the price we paid of $975 for 2 nights, it wasn’t worth a penny. PLEASE CHECK THE REVIEWS BEFORE GOING. If I had done so, they wouldn’t have seen my hard-earned money.