Staycation at the Hilton Anatole – Jade Waters Review – Travel Thursday

by Digital Mom Blog | Aug 11, 2016 | Dallas, Travel

A few weeks ago, we enjoyed a staycation at the Hilton Anatole here in Dallas, TX to review the new Jade Waters pool complex. It was amazing, stress-free and close to home. All things that make this mom of 4 happy.

Hilton Anatole – Dallas Family Hotel

The Hilton Anatole is a favorite of our’s, mostly because this family of 6 requires unique hotel accommodations. Our kids are still little, so it’s not feasible for us to have 2 rooms unless they are connected. Plus, bringing all the kids – the hotel in general needs to be a family friendly hotel. The Anatole definitely fulfills that need. From the roomy, CLEAN and upscale accommodations to family friendly activities and restaurants – we always know that when we stay there, our family’s needs will be covered and a good time is to be had by all.

Jade Waters Review

The Anatole recently opened their new pool complex, Jade Waters. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but was pleasantly surprised. Previously, the Hilton Anatole had a beautiful area in the middle of the resort with statues, a pool and running trails. This has been revamped with a resort-style pool complex that does NOT disappoint.

The Jade Waters area is open from 9am – 9pm and is only available to hotel guests (though I did read, hotel guests can pay for up to 2 outside guests to join them.)

Here’s a glimpse at what Jade Waters has to offer:

• 4,000 sq. ft. Leisure Cove Pool
• 7,000 sq. ft. Activity Bay Pool and Panda Play Area for the kids
• 630 ft. Jade River
• Two 180 ft. winding water slides
• Seating for more than 800 people
• Private cabanas and daybeds
• 23-seat Swim-up Bar
• 120-seat Jade Waters Grill & Bar

The pool area is extremely family friendly. I have 2 littles who are NOT good swimmers, so we have to keep an eye on them at all times.  The pool has a large kids play area with a children’s slide and various water activities. This is all very shallow and perfectly positioned so you can safely let your children play – while you lounge.

There are 2 water slides, 1 enclosed and another open. What I loved about these is that they do not dump into a large water pool – rather you land in a very shallow water pool “runway” per say.  This was fabulous because both of my littles were able to fully enjoy the water slide and I didn’t have to worry about them going under or what not at the end of the slide ride. The line moved very quickly, my kids probably rode this at least 20 times each – not exaggerating on this!

My favorite was the lazy river. I could float ALL DAY LONG. The lazy river is only 3 feet deep. Adult-size floats are provided, just jump in a float and relax. This is where I spent the bulk of my time. If you do have younger kids, do consider bringing a smaller inner tube with you – the large ones work but little butts can’t fit in the tube without falling thru.

There also is a hot tub area, a swim-up bar, deeper pool and a shallow area where you can play basketball in the water.

While the pool complex has a lot to offer, it’s not massive in size. It’s perfect – the kids could swim and play, I never felt like they would get lost. There were life guards positioned in various locations and again, felt like my kids were safe – and moms know how important it is to feel like that!

Outdoor Activities

In addition to swimming, there are a plethora of other activities offered at the hotel, both inside and outside.

Outside, during the day – there are games on the green, you can enjoy games like corn hole to giant Connect Four.

While we were there, a DJ was constantly spinning tunes – keeping the pool atmosphere hopping. The kids enjoyed a “pool party” with hula hooping and other fun games.

There are cabanas and day beds available to rent, along with poolside service – plus an outdoor eatery, or you can get food to-go and eat next to the pool. The eatery offers a bar with the best Pina Coladas!

The kids enjoyed eating snow cones, these are available at the to-go eatery.

At 9 pm, after Jade Waters closes – while we were there, there were movies on the green. One night the kids watched Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, another night – Zootopia.

Learn more: hiltonanatolehotel.com/resort-style-pool-at-the-anatole

Indoor Activities

The Hilton Anatole offers several restaurants on-site, as well as a 24-hour cafe. We snuck downstairs on Friday night and loaded up on late-night desserts.

V-Spa

My daughter and I left the boys at the pool for an hour and headed to V-Spa for mom and daughter mani and pedis.

The spa itself is gorgeous, it was so relaxing, fab to spend time alone with my daughter and plus – cute nails are always a good thing.

Learn more: vspadallas.com

Geppetto’s Theater

I was so bummed, we had the wrong time down or we would of loved this. Inside the Anatole is Geppetto’s Theater. It’s a Marionette Theater (puppet theater) that offers a fun variety of shows that are sure to create fun memories for the kids.

We’re going to have to get back downtown to see their STAR WARP show – it’s a Star Wars variety show that looks like a blast.

Learn more at: geppettostheater.com

Art at the Anatole

The Anatole offers a huge selection of art to admire. Make sure to make your way around the building – even though I’ve been to the Anatole a number of times – there seems to always be something new.

Learn more at anatoleart.com

Pokemon Go – Pokemon Hunting

The husband took the kids all around hunting for Pokemon. Pokemon Go is used like Waze in our family – it’s open anytime we go anywhere!

Good news, there was a LOT of Pokemon activity around the Hilton Anatole.

Indoor Pool

Off the atrium, next to registration there is an indoor pool that is open until 11 pm.

Staycation in Dallas, TX

If you are looking for a staycation in Dallas, TX – look no further. The Hilton Anatole has you covered. The resort is gorgeous, extremely clean and VERY accommodating for families. Thanks Hilton Anatole for having us out. Stay tuned – the Anatole always does a fun family Christmas event that you won’t want to miss. Here’s a glimpse of last year’s Anatole Christmas Event.

Learn more about the Hilton Anatole: hiltonanatolehotel.com

Travel Thursdays

This is our first of many Travel Thursdays. I know what’s it like trying to travel with 4 kids – – finding hotel rooms is never easy. Eating out is always expensive. Finding things for various ages can be a pain in the butt. On Thursdays, i’ll share what we’ve learned about traveling with a large family and a glimpse into our 6000+ mile road trip across the left coast that we took this summer. Stay tuned!