Grand Bear Resort at Starved Rock

Definitely needs an update and outdoor cleaning. The restaurant inside did not have a good selection for lunch at least. They charge $10 a person for miniature golf..def not worth it because the course is very uneven and holes were broken. But we did have a good time at the waterpark and arcade. The rooms were very nice and clean. The staff were also very nice and helpful.

The pool water was freezing

The carpet was a little bit old and needed to get cleaned. The beds were super comfy! The hotel is super quiet and has a peaceful atmosphere. The pool was very clean. The gym was very nice. There was ample parking. And we were five minutes from Starved rock.

No coffee maker in room as advertised. Everything, coffee shop, restaurant, bar and water park, are closed Monday-Wednesday! We were not aware of this and were extremely disappointed. The only time they are open all week is spring Break and summer.

I was fully aware we were visiting in an off season and were there to hike. We knew the water park was closed however; the hotel was very limited, the eatery was not open, the bar was not open and for breakfast was mediocre coffee.

This was once a great hotel property. There are so many negative post that I will be posting more positive things. Yes other hotels like Great Wolf is slightly nicer but more expensive. The hotel for families with younger children is perfect. The kids love the Waterpark. The new bar is nice with hot gambling machines. Outside the putt putt golf is fun for the whole family and Bear Island is an adult favorite. Live music on Friday and Saturday nights. Great place to relax for the most part.

It would of been nice to know that tge waterpark and the restaurants were closed Monday-Thursday!

Everything was great, except for WiFi and a few other small things. WiFi was terrible which made it difficult to even watch TV. The TV kept turning off randomly. They had a wedding in the open area which made it very loud in hall with kids running late into the night and loud music that could be heard throughout the hotel. Pool was closed for portion of the time and hot tub was down most of the time.

Very nice room and a great stay for 1 night while we explored Starved Rock. Super close drive to the trails! The jacuzzi in room was amazing. The water park is definitely for kids, and the wave pool wasnt operating and neither were the slides. But the lazy river and hot tub were nice! We had a lot of fun in the arcade too.

DO NOT GO HERE during off season and Monday - Thursday, everything is closed, Pool, inside Bar, Outside Mini Golf, Ice Cream, Arcade Room, EVERYTHING. Plus breakfast is a box breakfast.

Room was well worn and not clean. Internet service was not available in the room. I had to leave the room and go to the lobby to do any simple work or send receive files. It was not a good experience.

The main reason we chose Grand Bear Resort was the water park. It was very disappointing. Locker rooms were very dirty. Water park had rusty looking water and many unsafe areas. Towels given we very small and old. The Villa we stayed in had many issues. Large bedroom sink did not have running water. Bathroom door would not stay closed due to door handle being broke. Refrigerator did not stay cold even at highest setting. Washer machine had water under it. We could not see a leak. We were unable to use. The hot water was scarce. Hot water heater looked rusted and leaking. Rooms were not clean. Cob webs on walls and ceilings. Sheets and blankets were poor quality and uncomfortable. Hot tub did not work. All of this was reported to front desk before we checked. out. We will never stay at this facility again.

Key cards didnt work after going to front desk 3x upon check in. Battery died in door. Took maintenance over an hour to fix. Manager had no sense of urgency and only texted maintenance to actually come. Dirty curtains - brown and black stains on the window side of them. Paid extra for patio. No patio chairs and the view was rubble/rocks in the back of the building. Waterpark left a lot to be desired. Floor of locker room always wet and slick. 2 days in a row someones wrist band was in same spot near kiddie pool rock so no one cleans. Found a few different hair accessories randomly in the water. Not much to do overall in waterpark and mostly all too shallow to do much. Arcade game ate our money and air hockey table had to be wacked by worker to evem drop the puck. Food at Jack's was awful and overpriced. Very limited menu. Internet worked only half the time and being on the lower level we had bad reception even with ATT and Verizon. Beds were comfy. Shower water pressure was weak and turning the nozzle didnt help the stream. Tv kept turning on multiple times after turning it off for the night. I reached out to hotel via email and facebook. They said that id hear from operations but also id have to re-explain everything. Goodie. Booked on expedia to do a partial deposit and pah remainer at check in. Deposit never came out. Chatted with expedia and they said talk to Grand Bear. I call Grand Bear and they say talk to Expedia. People were loud at night. Just no

The location is ideal everything is nearby. But the water was black and smelly and slimy. We called maintenance and they said its fix but after they left the water in the bathroom and hot tub was still disgusting. Overall experience is a 2/5

I would never go back. The pictures they post are far from the reality. The waterpark was dirty, bathroom was filthy and the door of the stall wouldn’t close, no privacy to change clothes. The water had so much chlorine that our eyes were itching. The lifeguard was constantly blowing the whistle. We had the villa and it was really outdated and dirty. Carpet had stains and if you walk barefoot your feet turn black. There were dead bugs and spiders in the bathroom and ants crawling on the kitchen counter. Very old appliances and an empty dish soap dispenser. The pans and cutlery were not washed. Bed sheets had holes in them. Overall bad experience.

The water for the shower and sink had quite the well water smell and even the ice for our bottles each day. Pillows were flat and there was mold on the back of the bathroom door.

The water in the bathroom smelled like rotten eggs. It was digusting. Thankfully we only stayed one night. But having to bathe in water that smells like sewer water and leaves that smell on your skin was not a good experience. They said it was sulfur from well water.

Easy access to hiking. Restaurant and sweet treats. The pool definitely needs a DEEP cleaning and the room could of been cleaner.

Everything was great except the carpet in the room, it felt sticky,your feet were dirty just from the carpet. I had to keep shoes

The staff here were super friendly and the facilities would potentially be ideal for a family weekend. However, cleanliness was a let down; the room was dim and dusty and the pool area was pretty dirty with food trash, beer cans and even used bandaids discarded around the facility.

The room should have been cleaner. There were some cobwebs on the ceiling and stuff behind the bed that has not been vacuumed in months. Sheet on top of bed instead of comforter. Dead bug on bathroom floor. Shower head had to be replaced ( which they did after we told them). Receipt was found on the floor by dresser (not ours) so it was from a previous customer. No iron ( had to request it).

Room was well worn and not clean. Internet service was not available in the room. I had to leave the room and go to the lobby to do any simple work or send receive files. It was not a good experience.

Good location, a short drive to Starved Rock and Matthiessen parks. The water park is a paradise for kids. Unfortunately, the bathrooms operate with well water that has a foul smell. Also, the wifi is spotty in the rooms, better in the lobby. The grounds need some TLC.

Nice decor. Clean room. Good bed. Problems with credit card machine, room was dark, bar closed early than posted hours.

The rooms were clean, the amenities were nice, I never saw the miniature golf open even on Saturday in July. They advertise wi-fi, but it is so slow that it is unusable. I couldn't even load a web page. The wi-fi is non-existent. If that's not a big deal for you then, over all it was a nice place to stay.

The check in desk was very nice . The room was nice and spacious but the bathroom was very small. The tv was small and had a very limited selection with no ability to stream any apps on the tv. The restaurant, jacks place had an extremely limited menu and the quality was lacking. The food was fresh but flavorless and bland

I really liked how spacious it was, the large windows, the beds were very comfortable, and above all, it was very quiet. It was an excellent place to relax. I just think some details need to be checked regarding cleaning. For example, the refrigerator and the dining room window didn't have a blind that could be closed for more privacy.

Everything was great, except for WiFi and a few other small things. WiFi was terrible which made it difficult to even watch TV. The TV kept turning off randomly. They had a wedding in the open area which made it very loud in hall with kids running late into the night and loud music that could be heard throughout the hotel. Pool was closed for portion of the time and hot tub was down most of the time.

This is our family’s first water park resort stay. We booked only a couple weeks before our trip and only a suite was available with two queens and a pullout queen sofa bed. We are a family of 5: a 9yo and 6yo twins plus my husband and I. We paid a little extra for early check-in and an upgrade to VIP pool access which was worth it because the check-in line got long some days. Check-in was a breeze and the staff was great. My kids loved the water park and arcade. The lazy river is chaos with a lot of kids swimming in it. We would go to the pool at night after dinner around 6:00-6:30 and they consistently did not have towels. The woman running the prize counter at the arcade has the patience of a saint. The rooms are in fair condition. The room description says it includes a kitchenette but it was just a mini fridge (with mini freezer) and microwave. We did not dine at the hotel at all and opted instead to explore Utica and Ottawa for meals. The big downside was that evenings were loud. We usually went to bed around 8:30. Quiet hours are 11PM—8AM. We usually turned in around 8:30 PM. There was a fair amount of talking, yelling and running all three nights. The 2nd night, some people got trashed at the bar and were yelling profanities as they walked down the hall. The 3rd night, someone was smoking weed in their room and the smell was very strong in our room. Overall, my kids loved it. It was a family friendly place but is a little beat up.

Old facility, needs renovations and upgrades in room, bathrooms and flooring. Bed too high to get in and out. Lumpy old mattress. Stinky carpets. Single vanity which is May be 18” long!!

Enjoyed our stay. The staff were very friendly and helpful. Really nice reso

Nice place, great front desk and food & beverage staff. But the facility seems understaffed and managed. We enjoyed the indoor waterpark.

EVERYTHING WAS WRONG, would like a refund. This place shouldn’t be open in the “off season” Staff was completely unhelpful. Person checking us in was paying more attention to the football game and his friend than checking us in. Later in the day, we forgot our room keys and went to the front desk to ask for a key- the person there didn’t even ask my name or for an ID, just gave us a room key (hi, major security issue there). Only one place to get food and I’ve never had a worse meal in my life- we were the only people in the restaurant and it took close to an hour for our food. The food was basically inedible (rotten lettuce, rock hard pita bread, chicken so salty I couldn’t eat it), mushy French fries, some weird mystery substance on my husbands burger, every drink we tried to order was “sold out”, food made my child double over in pain. Water in the water park was frigid. Tried to get coffee in the morning (no on site breakfast in the “off season”) and the coffee dispensers didn’t have pumps to get the coffee out so my husband was told to just try pouring from the coffee urn into a cup which spilled all over. Thin sheets for blankets. The absolute worst. Close the place down in the off season if you’re going to treat people like this.

We had a very lovely stay at the grand bear lodge. I felt it was clean. And very friendly

The person that check us in wasn't welcoming and after my stay I was double charged for the room that is taken longer to get resolved

Staff was frequently away from the front desk, waited several times for service. Flattest pillows I’ve ever experienced at a hotel & the lighting in the room was dismal at best, I could not see into my suitcase due to the poor lighting. Shower temp was luke warm with the hot water on all the way, bathroom door would not remain open unless propped. Room was cleanish but could have been better. Automatic doors at the entrance would be a plus, hard to manage luggage & open the doors. Food service at both the bar & restaurant were very slow. I expected better for the amount I paid.

Very courteous staff, clean rooms, easy access to various activities both at Grand bear and in the surrounding area. Also surprisingly quiet considering the amount of families that were there. Better Sound insulation than expected.

We called to see if we could check in a few hours early, the lady who answered the phone was extremely rude. Other then that it was excellent

Melissa who checked us in and ran shifts at front desk was incredibly rude and was not willing to help with any requests we asked her. When we arrived after hiking all day and went to our room there was no working air conditioning and could not get couch to setup correctly. My husband went down to Melissa where she said very shortly that he would have to wait on maintenance then turned her back on him. I then went up there asking when maintenance would be there because I wanted a shower. She said there were calls ahead of us (which we found out there were not) and we had to WAIT! I then asked if we could switch rooms with everything else going on and she told me "there was a process" with a snarky attitude. I said can we switch rooms i would like a shower and she flat out said no! We then said we wanted to leave and were requesting a refund where she stated "no" again! She was rude and would do nothing to make us feel like we were valued there. Nick, maintenance, came in and was fantastic and Jamie at front desk was also understanding to our concerns. I have never been treated so ignorantly when I AM PAYING for a service and I expect to be treated like a guest. I almost walked out and completely forfeited our super expensive stay there for no amenities because it was "off season" Website needs to explain the use of the water a lot clearer or we would not have stayed there. The pool/whirlpool and our Waterpark was what we wanted after long days of hiking. Melissa has horrible

I checked in july 16th and the lady in the front desk was rude and not professional at all!! Very disappointed.

Good location, a short drive to Starved Rock and Matthiessen parks. The water park is a paradise for kids. Unfortunately, the bathrooms operate with well water that has a foul smell. Also, the wifi is spotty in the rooms, better in the lobby. The grounds need some TLC.

The carpet was a little bit old and needed to get cleaned. The beds were super comfy! The hotel is super quiet and has a peaceful atmosphere. The pool was very clean. The gym was very nice. There was ample parking. And we were five minutes from Starved rock.

Hotel is really nice/ cute. Staff were friendly and helpful. Rooms very clean. Lots of good food. Water park was great.

Great place to stay when visiting the state park

We stayed at the cabin (townhouse). The cabin was very large, clean and quiet. The waterpapk was great! Not too big and not crowded. Exactly what we needed for the weekend with kids. Dining options are limited in the area but we could always find something to eat. We had to drive and park the car yo get to the start of hiking trails but it wasn't bothersome.

Our room was quiet and comfy. Being able to visit starved rock so close by and go on a hike was a plus! We genuinely enjoyed our stay at Grand Bear!

Right next to the state parks. Great property

The resort was very convenient. It was so close to both State Parks in the area!

Nice water park across the road from starved rock State Park. Best water park in the area but showing it's age. Convenient location to stay and visit the sites in the area.

The property is older but clean and in good condition. The main building of the resort houses the water park, cafe’, bar and restaurant and the ‘hotel’ style rooms. The room we had was upstairs and over looked what was a volleyball court. This looked like it needed some work or grass laid around the court- there was a lot of gravel and not very appealing. The food in the restaurant was fair but not what the photos around the resort showed. The bar’s version of tapas was not what I would call tapas. The menu was small and varied from toasted raviolis (6 pieces) to southwestern egg rolls - which we did not get. The bed was comfortable and actually a queen sized bed! The staff at check-in weren’t ’overly friendly’. The younger guy in the morning at the cafe was about the only person with a personality. The resort location is close to the state parks. The small town of Utica was quaint and the ‘downtown’ area had outdoor seating. The resort is close to Ottawa to the east and LaSalle and Peru to the west. I would stay again but probably go off property for food.

Didnt realize everything was closed on the day I stayed. No dining, nothing was open. Staff wasnt friendly

The food at Jack's place wasn't great. I would of like to know that it was a charge for the breakfast it was expensive. I am glad the IT guy fixed the TV. The water park was pretty rough. The room overall was comfortable and great. But that is it hotel part of the resort was the great part. The cafe had better food and the prices were affordable. I expected more from a resort but it did not meet my expectations.

EVERYTHING WAS WRONG, would like a refund. This place shouldn’t be open in the “off season” Staff was completely unhelpful. Person checking us in was paying more attention to the football game and his friend than checking us in. Later in the day, we forgot our room keys and went to the front desk to ask for a key- the person there didn’t even ask my name or for an ID, just gave us a room key (hi, major security issue there). Only one place to get food and I’ve never had a worse meal in my life- we were the only people in the restaurant and it took close to an hour for our food. The food was basically inedible (rotten lettuce, rock hard pita bread, chicken so salty I couldn’t eat it), mushy French fries, some weird mystery substance on my husbands burger, every drink we tried to order was “sold out”, food made my child double over in pain. Water in the water park was frigid. Tried to get coffee in the morning (no on site breakfast in the “off season”) and the coffee dispensers didn’t have pumps to get the coffee out so my husband was told to just try pouring from the coffee urn into a cup which spilled all over. Thin sheets for blankets. The absolute worst. Close the place down in the off season if you’re going to treat people like this.

The property needs some renovations (especially the bathrooms) both public and in the rooms. They should also offer free breakfast. My family and I ate at the only restaurant on property and it was not great and very expensive. How do you mess up breakfast? Everything was cold when it should have been hot or even just warm would have been nice. We were able to eat hot pancakes after I requested they make some fresh ones but even so, I feel the price was too expensive for just pancakes because that was the only thing worth eating and they weren't that great either. Definitely needs improvement for sure.

We loved the waterpark but were disappointed that some of it wasn't working. Loved that the hot tub was HOT. The breakfast buffet was expensive and not great.

Nice room that had a refrigerator and microwave, clean and spacious, restaurant has good food, nice water park, not super crowded.

You get for what you pay. We had a restaurant in the lobby and drinks were horrible!!! Not a lot of options for food in or around the property.

The property is older but clean and in good condition. The main building of the resort houses the water park, cafe’, bar and restaurant and the ‘hotel’ style rooms. The room we had was upstairs and over looked what was a volleyball court. This looked like it needed some work or grass laid around the court- there was a lot of gravel and not very appealing. The food in the restaurant was fair but not what the photos around the resort showed. The bar’s version of tapas was not what I would call tapas. The menu was small and varied from toasted raviolis (6 pieces) to southwestern egg rolls - which we did not get. The bed was comfortable and actually a queen sized bed! The staff at check-in weren’t ’overly friendly’. The younger guy in the morning at the cafe was about the only person with a personality. The resort location is close to the state parks. The small town of Utica was quaint and the ‘downtown’ area had outdoor seating. The resort is close to Ottawa to the east and LaSalle and Peru to the west. I would stay again but probably go off property for food.

Bed was comfy. The only downsides were that the restaurant wasn't open and some light switches weren't working. Other than that, our stay was decent.

Checking in was easy and the hotel is conveniently located by the State Park. I was surprised with the limited hours of the restaurant: kitchen closes at 7.45pm. I ended up having to drive out for dinner.