French Lick for Families

I am posting this because this info just doesn%26#39;t seem to be out there yet but I am sure some former guests are wondering the same thing I was.

If you have questions about French Lick/West Baden with kids or about how it has changed, feel free to message me.

We just returned from a wonderful trip down there. Though excited to see the renovations, we were also a little anxious as we aren%26#39;t gamblers and have always loved the family/resort aspect.

We were pleasantly surprised at how much things changed and stayed the same. Hope to share more soon.

French Lick for Families

We are planning on a family trip to french lick. What can you tell me about it? I have 3children. 12 years, 5 years and 3 years old. Any advise? Would we be comfortable staying at the French Lick Resort? Any advice would be appreciated.

French Lick for Families

What time of year will you be going and for how many days?

I think a family would be comfortable at FLS resort. It%26#39;s nice being there b/c you have the pool/bowling alley/arcade, etc all right there in the hotel. You have access to both resorts by staying at one. I would definitely recommend going over to the West Baden just to see it b/c it%26#39;s so rich in history and absolutely breathtaking.

Another option is to stay at the French Lick Villas that are on the drive right behind the resort. Depending on what building you stay in there, you could potentially take the sidewalk trail from the villas to the resort but even if you have to drive down, it%26#39;s right there. They have a web page too that will give you an idea. Be aware that they are a bit dated, but they are more secluded and I believe all units have full kitchen/washer and dryer, saunta, etc. so that seems to be a good trade-off for our family.

We have done both the hotels and the villas depending on whether our kids are with us or not. If you call the villas, ask for a deal b/c you might just get one.

***Important to note that you used to be able to use the resort when staying at the Villas, but now I think they charge a daily fee. How much you will use it will probably determine which way you should go.***

There really is a lot to do, but what the resorts plan is pretty much it. The area outside the two resorts doesn%26#39;t have much shopping or dining, but we think it%26#39;s nice to just hang out at the resort and I think there is enough to keep your kids happy too if they like the pool or bowling. Shopping inside the resort is upscale though there were a few stores stores that were more affordable than others. Neat things anyway even to window shop.

There is a sports complex there at the hotel, Patoka Lake is near if you wanted to get out on the water, and an Amish area (Gasthoff Amish Village) which is a good drive but awesome lunch buffet for around $5 or so. Not much else there but worth the drive if you like pie!, maybe not with a three year old though unless you%26#39;re going to be there for awhile. Certain times of year not much is going on there, so I would call first to see if you are not going in the summer.

I would also suggest calling the resort to see if anything special is planned for your particular week. When we went they had some neat things listed like special outdoor movies, vintage baseball game, etc. that I didn%26#39;t remember seeing on the web page. Those are the type of unique things that my family loves so hopefully the timing will be right.

Hope this helps. If I think of anything else, I will try to add it.

Thank you so much for the info. It really helps.

I almost forgot, the train is neat too. It%26#39;s kind of long if you are just wanting the experience, but it%26#39;s also relaxing and goes through the Hoosier National Forest. Kids would probably enjoy it.

We always like to get pizza at least once, so I should share this:

I would NOT, repeat NOT recommend Off the Brick Pizza in town. Seriously, trust me on this. If I went into more details I would feel guilty for being so negative, so just don%26#39;t go there.

Godfathers in the gas station across from the resort has carryout. I know it%26#39;s doesn%26#39;t sound appealing to get pizza from a gas station, but it%26#39;s not gas station brand, it%26#39;s real Godfathers Pizza and is GOOD. (They used to have a restaurant in Indy when I was younger.) They have good specials too.

If you go up and eat at the golf course, it%26#39;s pretty good food and a nice view. It%26#39;s just a couple minutes up the hill and I think still part of the resort.

When you get to FLS resort, go to the activities desk and they will give you a binder to flip through with all the area restaurants and menus.

Thinking of kid-friendly, the Mexican place next to the grocery store up the street was good too but I haven%26#39;t been to it in years.

We are planning on going to the railroad museum. One of the kids is crazy about trains. We are going the last week of July. We are also going to drive down to Santa Claus and go to the amusement park one day. Again, thanks for all the info. It really has helped.

We%26#39;re also planning a trip there this summer in the 2nd week of August - we%26#39;ll be staying at the Villas where we traded for a timeshare. In addition to Holiday World and the Amish areas we%26#39;re also planning to check out at least one of the caves - there are many web pages describing them (google Indiana Caves) and a few are within an hour%26#39;s drive of French Lick.

One of our other trips will be up to Indianapolis for the state fair, which will be on during the week we are there. We%26#39;re also going up to Bloomington to visit the IU campus (my wife attended) and they usually have things going on during the weekends in the summer. I believe there is also a science/children%26#39;s museum there.

Enjoy your trip - and don%26#39;t forget to update this forum with your trip report!

should she tell someone