Member Testimonials
My son enjoyed Watia mainly because of the great counselors but loved the ropes course and enjoys the water time. It's really just getting to hang out with old friends and meet new friends and play every day!
My son has been at Watia for four years and loves it! From the traditional camp activities to the fun themes to the bonding with cabin-mates to the digital detox, it's always a highlight of his summer. It's affordable, close and the facilities are beautiful.
My daughter had a great time at Camp Watia Session 7. She enjoyed the camp counselors and her cabinmates, as well as variety of things to do. Our daughter Grace Last name removed has an eating disorder and luckily Shannon suggested that we send along our protein shakes for lunch. We did provide a list of foods she will eat and spoke to the chef, however most of the food was not anything she would eat, so she mostly ate toast/bread. I would have appreciated a bit more accomodation than that based on the time and information I spent with Shannon and the chef. It was nice to have access to photos, but me and other parents thought there might be more communication outward to the parents, perhaps every other day to send a recap or when pics are posted. Thanks for everything you all do and making memories for our kids!
They have a very wide variety for all kids to be included!
Programs are activities are fun, creative and appropriate for all ages. Cabin Magic and all evening full camp activities have been my camper’s favorites. They love the dance parties, open mic night, jam sessions, etc!
Great facilities, appreciate the day options of rafting and horseback riding, staff is fun and supportive, my kid really loves peer campers. Also like the location and communication leading up to camp day.However, this last year in session 3 the communication was poor once my child was at camp.
I love that my kids completely unplug and spend so much time outdoors getting fresh air and exercise.
I love that my daughter loves the camp!
Great staff who are engaged with the kids and a wide variety of activities including white water rafting, horseback riding, ropes course, climbing wall, archery, arts and crafts, and more. Watia leadership does a great job of setting a positive, engaging culture.
My daughter really enjoyed the camp in general. Her favorite part was the Corkle boards in the water and the ropes course. She made a couple new friends as well that she has continued to talk about.
The campus, add on activities like white water rafting, and our camper specifically commented on how inclusive and kind everyone is.
Kid loves everything
Camp Watia is such a gift for the youth in WNC, and has been a wonderful experience for both my kids! They get to meet kids from all over WNC as well as from out of state, and always ask to stay additional time each year! They have returning friends they look forward to seeing each year. They have been going since the camp began in 2016, and my oldest daughter completed the CIT program last year, and my youngest is looking forward to doing the same.
Watia is the best!
Great staff
Great variety of activities to choose from, including options for rafting and horseback riding. My son loved his counselors.
My kiddo really loved being there. All the activities were amazing. The stories he told on our drive home had me laughing so hard! The kids have so much fun and make amazing friendships.
I like that there are always little groups of activities for them to do. When I go to pick my short friend up I can tell just how much fun they have had! Always fort, bracelet, coloring or art table available.
We loved working with Kat for our aftercare program at the YMCA. Our child has behavioral challenges and she was amazing at working with us to help him be successful at afterschool (probably more-so than the school itself!) Together with Kat our child made a lot of progress over the year and even made friends in afterschool. Kat would create star charts with goals that focused on his behavioral skills as well as his social skills. Toward the end of the year it was amazing to receive more good reports than hard day reports. We hope summer program serves him just as well but we are eternally grateful for the support we received from Kat and her team with our child!
Lexi made effort to include all children and was always a pleasure to work with. The staff was engaged with the kids and kind, they spent a lot of time getting to know the kids.
The counselors were wonderful at our school this year. Very sweet and fun. My daughter had a great year.
The after school and summer programs are awesome. My child loves both programs. The staff monitor who pick up children so that all security measures are firmly followed. It is comforting to not have to worry about my child at either program.
Reliable. Safe.
Cheyenne and Yulia are great and my children love them.
I love that the programs and activities are beneficial to every student and teaches something. It is made tailored for them, keeps them busy and best of all they have fun and want to talk about their experience at home.
In summer we go to the pool and the walking tacos
Overall we had a very positive experience with the after school program. There were a couple of times throughout the year that I felt like my child was being singled out by a certain teacher. He seemed to only have "bad days" when she was there but anytime anyone else was supervising the group he had good reports.
Afterschool has become a big part of my children’s school and social lives. They love YMCA Afterschool and the friendships and sense of community that it has fostered. It has been awesome for my kids.
So fun and the kids love the counselors!
Great, dedicated, friendly staff! Affordable and convenient. We love it and don't know what we'd do without it.
My daughter had a great time at camp. She liked the 2-week version and had fun over the weekend, it was a little more mellow which she enjoyed. She did both the horseback riding and the rafting, and had a great time. Daily schedule and cabin dynamics were great, and she really liked all her counselors. The one complaint she had was that the food was not as good as last year. I was also sorry to hear that disposable plates and utensils were the norm. From a sustainability standpoint, this seems like a step backward. But otherwise, she had a fantastic time and will be back!