Great Wolf Lodge Shares Water Safety Tips During National Water Safety Month

While Memorial Day marks the official start of the summer swim season, May is also National Water Safety month. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one in four fatal drowning victims are children under the age of 14 years, and for every child who drowns, another four receive emergency care for submersion injuries. Great Wolf Resorts, Inc.^® (NASDAQ: WOLF), North America’s largest family of indoor waterpark resorts, focuses on water safety 365 days per year and wants to remind families about the importance of practicing water safety this summer.

"The most startling thing about the CDC water statistics is that the majority of drownings could have been prevented,” said Franceen Gonzales, vice president of aquatics for Great Wolf Resorts and former chairperson of the World Waterpark Association. "That’s why it’s so important for parents to teach their children about the importance of water safety at an early age.”

Great Wolf Lodge^® recently earned accolades for its water safety practices and life guard training program from Ellis & Associates, Inc., an international aquatics safety and risk management firm. Great Wolf announced that four of its properties achieved the prestigious "Platinum” award, the highest award granted by the firm to the top one percent of all certified aquatics facilities. The four Great Wolf Resorts properties achieving platinum status are: Great Wolf Lodge – Williamsburg, Virginia; Great Wolf Lodge – Kansas City, Kansas; Great Wolf Lodge – Charlotte/Concord, North Carolina; and Blue Harbor Resort^® in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. The other Great Wolf Resorts’ locations all achieved the Ellis "Exceeds” rating, meaning that they went above and beyond the certification requirements.

"The safety of our guests has always been our top priority,” said Gonzales. "It’s wonderful to be recognized by Ellis & Associates for something we strive to do every single day.”

To stay safe in and around water this summer, Great Wolf Lodge offers some basic tips including:

• Parents should actively participate in water activities with weak or non-swimming children. Most water-related accidents could be prevented by having a parent within arm’s length.
• Inflatable rafts, swim "floaties,” and other inflatable devices are not appropriate life-saving devices. Make sure young children and non-swimmers wear Coast Guard-approved life jackets and ensure the life jacket is fastened properly.
• Enroll children in swim lessons. These lessons teach the basics of water safety and awareness, and kids will learn a valuable life-skill while gaining confidence.
• Stay hydrated and be sure to take regular breaks out of the water to stay alert and avoid fatigue. This is especially important if it is hot or humid, including inside an indoor waterpark such as Great Wolf Lodge.
• Try to swim where there are trained lifeguards on duty. Lifeguards are trained to monitor the water and react to rescue situations, though it’s still important for parents to take responsibility for their children in the water. Lifeguards are not babysitters. Parents should also teach kids not to enter a pool without direct parental supervision.

As part of National Water Safety Month, Great Wolf Lodge will join a coalition of the nation's leading water safety and training organizations in an attempt to set a new Guinness World Record for The World’s Largest Swimming Lesson™ on Thursday, June 3. In order to build awareness about the importance of teaching children to swim, waterparks, pools, and aquatics facilities around the world will participate in this event. Great Wolf Lodge locations will host swim lessons for its registered guests on that day.

National Water Safety Month was established by the World Waterpark Association, the Association of Pool & Spa Professionals, and the National Recreation & Park Association. This national recognition helps educate the public about the importance of being "water aware.”

About Great Wolf Resorts, Inc.

Great Wolf Resorts, Inc.^® (NASDAQ: WOLF), Madison, Wis., is North America’s largest family of indoor waterpark resorts, and, through its subsidiaries and affiliates, owns and operates its family resorts under the Great Wolf Lodge^® and Blue Harbor Resort^™ brands. Great Wolf Resorts is a fully integrated resort company with Great Wolf Lodge locations in: Wisconsin Dells, Wis.; Sandusky, Ohio; Traverse City, Mich.; Kansas City, Kan.; Williamsburg, Va.; the Pocono Mountains, Pa.; Niagara Falls, Ontario; Mason, Ohio; Grapevine, Texas; Grand Mound, Wash.; and Charlotte, N.C.; and Blue Harbor Resort & Conference Center in Sheboygan, Wis. Through Great Wolf Resorts’ environmental sustainability program, Project Green Wolf^™, the company is the first and only national hotel chain to have all U.S. properties Green Seal^™ Certified – Silver.

The company’s resorts are family-oriented destination facilities that generally feature 300–600 rooms and a large indoor entertainment area measuring 40,000–100,000 square feet. The all-suite properties offer a variety of room styles, arcade/game rooms, fitness rooms, themed restaurants, spas, supervised children’s activities and other amenities. Additional information may be found on the company’s website at www.greatwolf.com.