Horseshoe Valley Resort
Category: Active Life Leisure Centres Leisure Centres [Edit]
1101 Horseshoe Valley RdRR 1
Barrie, ON L4M 4Y8
(800) 461-5627
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
5 reviews for Horseshoe Valley Resort
5 reviews in English
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Review from Behrouz M.
Toronto, ON
2/28/2012
I went to Horseshoe Valley recently for snow tubing with a group of 10 people and I gotta say, HVR is clearly not your best spot for snow tubing in Ontario but it wasn't bad either! Granted, they don't have the steepest nor that longest (or even longish) rides but hey, we had fun!
Highlights:
- For a weekend with gorgeous sunny weather, this place was DEAD, which meant we went on the rides until we got sick of 'em!
- Relaxed, fun staff. While most places frown upon group rides of more than 3 or 4 people, at HVR they allow as many as 12 people to go on the rides in tandem!
Tips:
- Get a 2 hour pass ($20) and that will translate to about 10+ rides on an average day. The alternative, $4/ride, seems like a rip off unless it's super busy and/or you just want to go for a few rides. -
Review from Jason B.
8/26/2011
Great on a summers day!
I'd always wanted to go 'ZORBing' and was very excited to hear that I didn't have to trek to New Zealand before I could try it! While Horsehoe calls it OGOing... the extreme zorbing is basically like a huge waterslide, though, you are within a large plastic ball filled with water. Its way better than a water slide as you can easily rotate around inside the ball - and its quite safe!
Its one of the most extraordinary things I've ever done!
I also tried the version where they strap you into the ball in a harness, but I'll probably never bother again. It was dizzying and just not all that fun, especially when compared to the water OBO.
My friends and I (we are mid to late 20's) enjoyed the rest of the activities at Horseshoe also... the maze, mini golf, and they also have a zip trek, though it was booked up for the day... book it early I suppose. But we did the incredible on-site 3-hour tree-top trekking and zip trekking anyway.
Then, we had an incredible 3-course price-fix dinner at the hotel's restaurant following our big day. The food and service were fantastic! -
Review from Karen S.
9/30/2011
The last time I was here, the space that the adventure park now occupies was a whole lot of nothing... they've actually done a nice job of cleaning the place up and putting in all these activities in for this little adventure park.
I was expecting something a bit more grown up and intense, but this place turned out to be a pretty good silly day out anyway. It brings out the kid in me!
There's a maze that is as fun as you make it. Once you enter, you are to look for the four letters that make up the word M-A-Z-E. A basic climbing wall is good for anyone who have not tried rock climbing before. The OGO ball thing... I can see how some people might think it is fun, however, it just makes me feel old. Strapped into this giant plastic ball, I was rolled down a hill like a hamster... in a giant plastic ball. At least now I can cross this off my list of things not to do again... If it rolled for any longer than it did, I swear I might have gotten sick! Note: there's a 200 lb weight limit on this. They also have another type of OGO ball that has the occupants sliding around inside the ball when it rolls down the hill. If you're planning on this version, bring extra clothes! You will be WET. The waits for the harness version takes forever. Even though the line is short, prepare for at least an hour wait, if not more. The water ball version goes by much faster as two people can be in it at the same time and there is no time wasted strapping in.
Overall, an interesting place to try out with a group of friends or with children, if you have a lot of time. -
Review from Joe H.
1/17/2011
Lets be honest, we live in ontario... and it's flat. This is one of the few places we have to ski and it's about 1 hour outside of toronto. I guess it's really all we have so we can't complain that much can we?
Out of the big 3 ski resorts in barrie/collingwood area, this is one of them. The others are private/semi private resorts which will cost you a pretty penny.
For something in ontario, this place is a big "Meh". The hills or short, the difficulty of everything in my opinion is sandbaged (ie. the black diamonds feel like blue or red [depending on where you live]). The good thing though is that this would be a very good place to learn how to ski/snowboard/mini-ski etc.
One thing that really bugged me is how flat the "bunny hill" was. I was trying to give a couple of my friends lessons, and realized that it's too slow on that hill to even do anything. I guess it's really good for people that absolutely can't even stand up, but common I believe you can do better.
The main chalet itself doesn't seem like it's changed since I used to come here at high school, but it did seem like their rental section keeps getting new equipment. I did have a chance to also visit the "Crazy Horse Restaurant" as well. I'll write that review shortly.
Why would I come to horseshoe? Probably because I got a group deal for a ticket for half price. It's also a great place to teach your friends how to ski/snowboard before you dump them on a bigger hill. -
Review from Chantal m.
Scarborough, ON
8/17/2011
This review is mainly for the adventure park as I don't really see a point in making another business for the same place. The adventure park I would say is best for ages 6-16, some of the activities you needed to be a certain height or weight limit so some younger kids weren't able to participate.
By far the best was the OGOing (hampster ball filled with water) that you took down the dry ski hills. It was terrifying and exhilerating at the same time. Your sloshing around in there with no sense of where you are but by the end your laughing your ass off in freezing cold water at the bottom of the hill. The other activity that I found awsome was the zip flyer, you get to sit in a seat and fly from the top of the ski hill, through the park to the top of the OGO hill. This is an amazing experience if you get a Group On pass, however if not your going to end up paying $24 for it which I don't think is reasonably priced.
They have a good twist on the maze where you have to find letters attached to hole punches and make the word MAZE on your card before punching out. Other games included rock climbing (not very high) and euro bungying (jumping on a tramp with a harness).
To buy all these activities together (minues the zip flyer) is $29 however we got a GroupOn Pass for unlimited everything for $19 and our included the zip flyer. A much better deal I think. If you had to pay for everything I think it would be pointless and a waste of money, if you have a group on pass then why the hell not, you're only going to get to roll down a ski hill in a hampster ball once in your life.
