Time slips, and slides, away too fast at Red Jacket

The resort always has a stash of sleds for guests to use on their front lawn hill. (Lebanon Voice/Harrison Thorp)

NORTH CONWAY, N.H. - What do you do in North Conway when it rains all day when your family is up on a ski weekend?

If you're staying at the Red Jacket Mountain View Resort you do very little, just walk downstairs through the hotel lobby and into Northern New England's first indoor waterpark, the 40,000 square foot Kahuna Laguna.

Inside the waterpark it's a constant 82 degrees, with a ton of different activities to choose from, from the 900 feet of waterslide included in their four separate tubes, to the tidal wave pool and pool basketball court to a kiddie park and hot tub that holds 25.

And those four tubes aren't just for kids. Two of them are enclosed and two are open, so you have to determine how you like your slide, open and airy, or dark and scary.

A view of the Moat Mountains and Saco River Valley below. (Lebanon Voice/Harrison Thorp)

Two of the tubes are body slides, while the others are tube slides. The thing I like about the tube slides is you can go down in a tandem. That's my kind of doubling down.

One side note attesting to the thrill factor. Having been down many waterslides in the past several years, whether at OOB or Weirs or Splashtown, I've always worn my glasses, just holding onto them as I hit the water. So when I saw the sign that said "No eyeglasses on slides" I calmed the young attendant who pointed out the sign to me, saying, that I was used to going down the slides and it wouldn't be a problem. He acquiesced. Moments later I naturally hit the pool below sans glasses, causing them to halt the tubing while I used my feet to gingerly feel around the bottom for the aforementioned specs, which I found quickly, thank goodness.

Four slides whisk kids and adults, alike, on a thrill-seeking adventure that always ends with a squeal and a splash. (Courtesy Red Jacket Resorts)

Needless to say, for the remainder of our waterpark adventure, the glasses were left with my beach towel.

At the end of the day, whether you spend it at the waterpark on the slopes at nearby Cranmore or Attitash or just shopping at some of the hundreds of outlet shops North Conway is home to, you'll return to the Red Jacket's downhome family hospitality.

Dinner is held in Champney's Restaurant or the informal Palmer's Red Ridge Grille. The night we ate at Palmer's, there was a live guitar duo, four- and five-year-old children frenetically dancing to the group's pop standard mix as parents howled at their antics.

If you wanted a quiet dinner, you were out of luck. But if you wanted an informal, fun, kid-friendly atmosphere you were in seventh heaven.

For those wanting the former, however, the upstairs Champney's is a lot quieter and more sophisticated. Here on this night, they had their signature prime rib all you can eat for about $23, which included chef-carved prime rib, baked native haddock, chicken marsala with rice, chicken fingers with french fries and mac 'n cheese plus everything from soup to desserts.

Many of the resort's rooms face the beautiful Moat Mountains and Saco River Valley and include balconies with breath-taking views. There's also family suites and pet-friendly rooms.

Room rates for a typical weekend night are around $200, $100 on many weeknights. The 164-room resort offers discounted waterpark tickets for guests and many packages include a buffet-style, all-you-can-eat breakfast, which is outstanding and free waterpark admission.

Business conference and wedding facilities are also onsite.

Red Jacket owns five resorts on Cape Cod and two in North Conway.

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