Sweet Deal at Honeycreek Resort

It's 2:30 in the afternoon. Beautiful, sunny fall day outside. I'm sitting at a table in a gorgeous hotel room as Shawn, Mazy and Bo take naps. We're on fall vacation at Honeycreek Resort at Lake Rathbun.

It's our first trip here. And I can say without a doubt, we will be back! It's simply a beautiful, charming place. Very new. Everything is still shiny and perfect. They've decorated in a Craftsman style -- the hotel rooms have REAL wood doors. Lovely dark brown wood throughout the rooms. The main lobby has a breathtaking three-story ceiling with a huge stone fireplace in the center that runs to the ceiling. We're in a room with two doubles, and it's easily one of the biggest hotel rooms I've stayed in.

And the price.

Hold on to your hats. We booked during their Fall Deal -- two nights at the resort, 8 day-passes to the indoor waterpark, 20 tokens for the arcade, and four half-day bike rentals -- for $189. Seriously, how can you pass that up? Their Winter Deal is even cheaper -- two nights for $169! I can't remember the other stuff you get with the winter deal but it's a steal.

We arrived at about 8 last night. The boys wanted to go swimming so we took them to the waterpark for 45 minutes before it closed at 9. There was one other family there but otherwise we had the place to ourselves. There's a lifeguard on duty, but the waterpark is designed for the young and old. From the 6-inch pirate ship pool to the 3-foot lazy river to the water slide and hot tub -- it's got something for everyone.

The only drawback is the waterpark is already on winter hours, which means it's only open from 4 to 9 p.m. Which is kind of weird. Those should be the summer hours. There's so much to do at this place outdoors -- 11,000-acre Lake Rathbun with boat rentals, fishing, beaches, etc., the DNR hosts daily programs like kayak lessons and nature hikes, there are bikes to rent and miles of bike trails, there is one of the coolest playgrounds I've seen in a long time, there's an 18-hole golf course and probably other stuff I haven't discovered yet. So it seems the waterpark should have short hours in the summer when you can be outdoors, and long hours in the winter when Iowans are tired of the cold and want to enjoy a humid, sunny pool area. But hey, I'm not the management. They must know what they're doing.

While the boys and Shawn napped, I drove into nearby Moravia to see what was there. The answer: not much. I went into a seriously old-school Meat and Groceries store on Main Street where they made deli sandwiches to order. I got two, a bag of chips and some iced tea for us to have a late lunch before swimming at 4. Then I just drove around the lake, checking out the campsites and different areas. It's pretty cool.

And you can also rent 1, 2 or 4 bedroom cabins that are within walking distance of the resort. The cabins are awesome. They look so nice! They all have wraparound porches and fire pits and grills and I could just imagine a big family reunion with little cousins running back and forth between the yards.

So that's our day so far. Hope you're having a good one.