2 Great Lake Resort Vacations for Summer 2017
Cool breezes, scenic cruises, kayaks, sailboats and organized children's programs make summer at a lake resort fun for families. The following resorts in Vermont and Wisconsin feature water activities plus a boatload of land sports. Read on to find out if a lake vacation is right for you.
The Basin Harbor Restort & Boat Club provides endless possibilities for you and your family this summer
Going to the lake is a classic American summer destination. Stay at a resort and you can enjoy the water without the work of bringing your own equipment and boat. Some properties offer boat slips for rent so that you can cruise the lake on your own and enjoy resort facilities such as golfing, horseback riding, swimming and dining. Two summer options are the Basin Harbor Resort & Boat Club in Vergennes, VT, and the Geneva Resort and Spa in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.
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Basin Harbor Resort & Boat Club, Vergennes, VT
Located 30 miles south of Burlington, the Basin Harbor Resort & Boat Club, situated on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, sprawls across 700 acres. You can sail, fish, kayak, waterski and swim. Other activities include golf, tennis and bicycling. After a day of outdoor activities, grab an Adriondack chair, pour a glass of wine and savor the lake views.
At Basin Harbor’s Kids Camp, offered for ages three to 12 from mid-June through Labor Day, kids fish, play tennis, hike and do arts and crafts. Teens meet and mingle at the Basin Harbor Teen Escape while kayaking, cruising the lake, bicycling and taking offsite field trips.
The resort, operated by the Beach family for more than 100 years, exudes a sophisticated country ambiance. At Basin Harbor, everyone dresses for dinner in the main dining room. As the website states, the tradition of a jacket and tie is maintained for gentlemen over the age of 12. The Red Mill offers a casual alternative.
The Boat Club offers rental slips so boaters can enjoy the resort’s facilities. At the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, situated on property, learn about the lake’s 300-plus shipwrecks. On a guided boat tour to a wreck site, you stay onboard while a Remotely Operated Vehicle sends back video of the undersea sites. The resort offers 47 guest rooms and 77 cottages.
Grand Geneva Resort & Spa, plus Timber Ridge Lodge, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Grand Geneva Resort & Spa, located just an hour from Milwaukee and 90 minutes from Chicago, stretches 1,300 acres. The resort is only five minutes from historic downtown Lake Geneva and one of Wisconsin’s largest, deepest lakes. Take a lake sightseeing cruise, golf on two courses, tone up at fitness classes, work out at the gym or relax at the spa. At the Adventure Center, you can sign-up for mountain biking, hiking and disc golf. In the evening, make s’mores around a bonfire.
Grand Geneva Resort’s more casual sister property, Timber Ridge Lodge, is a family-friendly, all-suite hotel that comes with a 50,000-square-foot, indoor-outdoor waterpark. At Moose Mountain Falls, get happily drenched by barreling down one of the 35-foot waterslides or meandering along the lazy river.
Grand Geneva Resort guests may obtain passes for a day at the waterpark. The Kids Are Grand program offers care for tots under one year old (call to confirm), as well as for ages one to 12. Grand Geneva Resort offers hotel rooms and villas ranging from studios to three-bedroom units.
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