Abbey Resort & Avani Spa Lake Geneva: The Perfect Girls Weekend

The Abbey Resort and Avani Spa is a small slice of heaven. Hot tubs bubble, prime rib gets carved, and middle-aged women party like it’s 2002 (until their bedtimes at 11:00 p.m.). The resort skews adult, a huge plus if you are traveling without your own children. It is a bit of a haul through the middle of nowhere to get to this Lake Geneva resort, but it is totally worth the trip.

What Should You Consider When Planning a Trip to The Abbey Resort and Avani Spa?

1. Abbey Resort at Lake Geneva Rooms

2. Abbey Resort Lake Geneva Restaurants

3. Avani Spa Lake Geneva WI

4. Abbey Resort Activities

5. Ways to Save Money at the Abbey Resort and Avani Spa

6. Abbey Resort Wisconsin Planning Tips

7. Abbey Resort FAQ

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Quick Verdict: Is the Abbey Resort Worth It?

Worth it for a girls’ weekend or a couples’ escape — skip it as a small-kids resort. The Avani Spa is the whole reason to come, the lake views are genuinely lovely, and the place is quiet because nobody’s toddler is melting down in the lobby. Here are the bare facts before you book.

• Where: 269 Fontana Blvd, Fontana-on-Geneva Lake, WI 53125 — about a 90-minute drive from Chicago.
• Phone: 800-709-1323 (resort); 262-275-1806 (spa booking line).
• Check-in / check-out: 4:00 p.m. / 11:00 a.m. Early check-in before 2:00 p.m. runs a $25 fee.
• Resort fee: $25 plus tax per room, per night (covers Wi-Fi and spa-area access perks).
• Parking: complimentary valet and free self-parking — a rarity worth celebrating.
• Spa age limit: 16 and up, so the wellness areas are blissfully child-free.

Abbey Resort and Avani Spa Wisconsin

1. Abbey Resort and Avani Spa Accommodations

Property

The Abbey Resort property is beautiful. Sitting right on Geneva Lake in Fontana, it gives you views of the water, the boats coming and going from the marina, and sandy stretches of shoreline. With 334 recently renovated rooms spread across the grounds, the whole place has a very chill vibe, unlike most spots we visit with the kids.

Abbey Resort and Avani Spa Guest Rooms

You can book guest rooms with one king or two queens at the main property. The regular rooms are like any other hotel room in that they come with beds, a bathroom, and not much else. If you are traveling with a group of women who are too cheap social to get their own rooms, I highly recommend a suite.

Abbey Resort and Avani Spa Suites

The Abbey Resort suites come with couches, a table, and a ton of room to spread out your chips and hard seltzer. The rooms have a mini-fridge, but no freezer. The downside to the suites is they hold up to six but only come with one bed, so four people have to sleep on pull-out couches. The suites were clearly designed for couples as opposed to a slumber party, but the extra space is worth a little discomfort in my opinion.

The suites also come with huge balconies.

Both guest rooms and suites have resort, pool, and Abbey Resort harbor views available. If you’re booking for the lake itself, ask for a water view when you call — it’s the difference between staring at a parking lot and watching the sun set over the marina with a cocktail.

Abbey Resort Condos and Vacation Villas

The Lake Geneva Abbey Resort villas offer more space and kitchens, but lack the convenience that the rooms in the main building offer. They do not include housekeeping, and their cancellation policy is stricter — villas require seven days’ notice rather than the standard 72 hours. If you are traveling with a large party and don’t care about easy access to the spa, these may be a good option.

2. Abbey Resort Dining

Does the Abbey Resort have a restaurant on site?

Yes, several, and there are some great ones. There are also plenty of restaurants near the Abbey Resort in downtown Lake Geneva that warrant a trip off property.

Abbey Resort Restaurants

Abbey 240° West

240° West is the main table-service restaurant at the resort, serving breakfast and dinner, both with gluten-free options. Breakfast runs 7:00–11:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday (until 10:00 a.m. on Sunday) and is good food for a reasonable price. Dinner is fancy pants and expensive, served daily from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m.

The restaurant runs specials throughout the week. The standout is the Sunday Harborside Champagne Brunch, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., with bottomless mimosas — recently around $52 for adults and $26 for kids ages 4 to 12. Check current pricing when you book, because brunch math has a way of creeping up.

Here’s the big change since I first wrote this review: the old Saturday all-you-can-eat prime rib and crab leg buffet is gone. In its place is a Prime Rib Prix Fixe — a three-course plated dinner (shrimp cocktail, a 12-ounce slow-roasted prime rib, and dessert) for around $65 per person, served 5:00 to 10:00 p.m. with live music. Reservations book up fast, so make them.

I’ll be honest: I miss the buffet. There was a certain dignity-free joy in serving yourself an eighth cluster of crab legs with nobody watching. The prix fixe is a more grown-up affair — plated, portioned, and priced higher — but the prime rib is excellent and the live piano still leans hard into show tunes, so it remains an always-stop for us. Confirm the current menu and price when you reserve.

Waterfront

Waterfront is the casual dining spot, open for lunch and dinner. It features things like sandwiches and tacos and is very reasonably priced. Gluten-free and vegetarian items are marked on the menu. There are also several fun girly cocktails.

Abbey Resort Bar West

Bar West is a lounge that opens in the evenings. In addition to drinks, it serves a limited dinner menu and late-night lounge food. When we went, that meant a startlingly expensive steak and bar bites like pizza and cheese curds running late into the night — but the exact offerings rotate, so don’t plan your whole evening around the cheese curds.

Cafe Latte

Café Latte is the quick-service coffee spot in the hotel lobby, and it now pours Intelligentsia coffee — a real upgrade if you, like me, treat your morning espresso as a personality trait. It opens early and runs into the evening, so it’s there when you need caffeine before the spa or a pick-me-up after.

Gazebo Grille

Gazebo Grille is an outdoor, quick-service location that’s open seasonally by the pool. Think “it’s too much work to get the kids to leave the Abbey Resort Lake Geneva pool” food and “I need alcohol to enjoy this pool day with the kids” drinks.

In-Room Dining and Terrace Dining at Abbey Resort and Avani Spa

In-room dining is an option if you want to avoid other people enough to pay a premium to do it. You can also order food to eat on your terrace, which comes with a different but similar room-service menu.

Off Property Dining

Lake Geneva has an adorable downtown with tons of dining options. It also has lots of fun shops and pretty views of the water. You should definitely visit at some point during your trip.

How far is the Abbey Resort from downtown Lake Geneva?

Downtown Lake Geneva is about fifteen minutes from the resort by car. A few of our favorite restaurants are below — call ahead or check that they’re open before you make the drive, since small-town hours shift with the seasons.

Popeye’s Lake Geneva

Popeye’s Lake Geneva, not to be confused with the fast-food establishment featuring fried chicken, is a Lake Geneva gem that serves lunch and dinner. It’s located downtown with a view of the water. The menu is extensive, and they serve gluten-free bread. This restaurant is full of kids, but that shouldn’t deter you from visiting with adults only.

Egg Harbor Lake Geneva Wisconsin

Egg Harbor Café Lake Geneva is a chain that serves breakfast and lunch. There are a ton of gluten-free options, including rare finds like gluten-free cinnamon rolls. This place always has a wait, so arrive early or prepare to walk around downtown while you do.

Sprecher’s Restaurant & Pub

This restaurant is open for lunch and dinner. It features a gluten-free menu with lots of options including tacos and sandwiches with gluten-free buns. Gluten-free beer is also available.

Sopra Lake Geneva

Sopra Bistro Lake Geneva is a small Italian restaurant downtown. The food is good, but not my favorite for gluten-free. They don’t offer gluten-free pasta, the choices are limited, and it’s pricey for what you get. If you can roll all night with a couple of scallops and some spinach, more power to you.

Kilwins Lake Geneva Wisconsin

Kilwins in Lake Geneva is the next natural stop after a small dinner at Sopra. This paradise is a candy and ice cream shop filled with treats, many of them gluten-free, with a million calories each. No girls’ weekend is complete without a couple of pounds of fudge.

3. Avani Spa Abbey Resort

The Avani Spa is the single biggest reason to visit the Abbey. At roughly 35,000 square feet, it’s a full wellness destination now, not just a treatment room with a hot tub. The treatments are amazing, the space is serene, and you can easily occupy yourself there all day.

How Much Is a Day Pass at the Avani Spa?

The spa areas are only open to guests ages 16 and over, so you will not see a child the entire day. To get in, you either buy a day pass or book a service. Day passes run around $40 per person Monday through Thursday and $50 per person Friday through Sunday — and here’s the catch: they’re sold only on-site, the day of your visit, and you can’t pre-purchase them. On busy weekends and holidays, day-pass access is limited by demand, so it can sell out. If a spa day is the whole point of your trip, book a service rather than gambling on a pass.

Better yet: if you book a spa service costing $100 or more, admission to the spa areas is complimentary for guests 16 and up. That’s almost always the smarter play — you get a treatment and the run of the place. Prices shift, so confirm the current day-pass and service-minimum amounts with the spa when you call.

Common Areas

The spa has a whirlpool and an adults-only atrium pool.

There is a large pool that, somehow, no one ever seems to use — which is exactly why I love it.

It also has a steam room, a sauna, a salt-therapy room, outdoor lounge areas, and plenty of chairs on which to relax. You’re assigned a locker with a robe and flip-flops to use while you’re there.

You wait for your service in a peaceful room with a fireplace.

There are showers and hair dryers to use when you’re finished.

Abbey Resort and Avani Spa Life Fitness Center

The Abbey Resort fitness center is a small gym with machines. Complimentary group classes like yoga and sculpt are offered periodically. The fitness center is accessible to all guests ages 16 and up, not just guests visiting the spa.

Avani Spa Services

The Abbey Resort spa menu has services that are pricier than the average spa, but they are amazing. Access to the rest of the spa more than makes the inflated price worth it. You can get basic services, like massages and facials, as well as unique scrubs and body wraps. The wraps involve several steps, including some time in a soaking tub and a shower the size of Montana.

Pro tip: Book your Avani spa reservations early if you want a weekend treatment, particularly if you’re traveling with several people. People book months in advance. Don’t sit on this until the last minute. The dedicated spa booking line is 262-275-1806.

Abbey Resort and Avani Spa Service Cancellation Policy

Plan on roughly a 72-hour cancellation window for spa services, and a no-show will generally cost you. The exact fees can change, so confirm the current cancellation terms when you book a treatment — a quick question now beats an ugly surprise on your bill later.

Spa Memberships

I debated including spa memberships in the ways-to-save section, but who am I kidding? This isn’t a savings.

If you plan to go to the spa a lot (like all the time) or will replace your gym membership with it, a membership could be a good deal in theory. Avani offers tiered memberships — typically a one-time initiation fee plus a recurring 3-, 6-, or 12-month commitment, with senior and couples options — and they generally include:

• Access to the water areas, sauna, and steam room
• Access to the Abbey Resort gym
• A discount on spa services and Avani products

Membership pricing isn’t published online and changes over time, so call the spa for current rates before you commit. Whatever the number, it will set you back a pretty penny — these are a splurge, not a hack.

No Outside Food

Near the pool, they offer complimentary infused water and coffee. You can order food to be delivered to the spa. They say no outside food is allowed, but I don’t believe this rule is heavily enforced. We brought food in several times before we were aware of it, and no one stopped us.

4. Abbey Resort and Avani Spa Activities

Is the Abbey Resort popular with families?

I’ll be straight with you: this is not my favorite spot for families with small children. The whole appeal is the quiet, adult-only spa and the low-key vibe. If you do bring the kids, there are a few family-friendly activities to lean on, and for a genuinely kid-centered Lake Geneva trip I’d point you to Timber Ridge Lodge down the road instead.

On Property Activities

Abbey Resort Pools

The Abbey has both indoor and outdoor pools open to the entire resort. The outdoor pool gets bananas crowded in the summer.

Live Entertainment

There’s live music at the restaurants in the evenings and during Sunday brunch. I don’t think it holds any special appeal for kids, but a piano player rocked The Little Mermaid soundtrack during Saturday-night dinner despite the complete lack of children in the restaurant.

Rainbow Point

Rainbow Point is the kids’ activity center, with crafts and games. The resort posts a weekly schedule of events, often including scavenger hunts and movies — check current hours when you arrive, since the program runs seasonally.

Abbey Resort Ice Skating

In winter, the resort has been known to turn its patio into an ice-skating rink with complimentary skates for guests. It’s weather- and season-dependent, so confirm it’s running before you build a trip around it.

Off Property Activities

Lake Geneva has a lot to offer when you venture off property. You can golf, rent boats, hit a beach, zipline, ski, snowboard, play mini golf, and hike, to name a few. In winter, Lake Geneva has ice castles to explore. If you’re weighing where to stay for a more active, family-style trip, my Timber Ridge Lake Geneva guide breaks down the kid-friendly alternative.

Safari Lake Geneva is a drive-through wildlife habitat that’s sure to be a hit with kids.

5. Ways to Save at the Abbey Resort and Avani Spa

Discounts

The hotel routinely runs specials. They vary, but you can consistently find midweek deals, deals on extended stays, and military discounts. You can also usually bank on something for couples and — my personal favorite — Avani spa packages. Membership discounts and AAA/AARP rates have been offered in the past; ask whether they apply to your dates, since the exact perks change.

Abbey Resort Spa Packages

The Avani spa packages are where the real value is. On past visits we’ve stayed on overnight packages that bundle a spa credit and a dining credit per person, and once you factor in those credits and the suite, the per-person math has worked out to a genuine deal. Bundles and credit amounts change seasonally — a current “Summer Spa Day Special” has been running on weekdays, for example — so compare the package math against a room-only rate plus à la carte spa before you book.

Pro tip: Don’t book a multi-night package online unless you actually want spa access every single day. Call the Abbey Resort reservations line and ask them to book one night at the package rate and the other nights at the room-only rate. This can save a ton of money.

Abbey Resort Membership to the Lake Club

Area residents can join the Lake Club. The term “area residents” isn’t clearly defined, so I’m not sure how liberal the club is about admission. If you make the cut, benefits have historically included discounts on food and beverage, retail, Avani day-spa services, and guest rooms, plus perks with partners around Lake Geneva. Confirm the current benefits and eligibility directly, since member programs get reworked.

Abbey Resort Groupon

You can sometimes find Abbey Resort Lake Geneva Groupon deals. It’s unlikely you’ll be able to book a package this way, so do the math to figure out the best deal for you.

Check Third Party Providers

You can often find deals for the resort on third-party sites like Expedia, Hotels.com, Travelocity, Tripadvisor, and Booking.com.

6. Abbey Resort and Avani Spa Planning Tips

Booking the Abbey Resort and Avani Spa

To book a room, you’ll put down a deposit of one night’s stay plus the resort fee — currently $25 plus tax per room, per night — and taxes. Most rooms carry a 72-hour cancellation policy; villas need seven days’ notice. Sometimes you can book a cheaper room with less flexibility, so read the terms before you confirm.

What are the Check-In and Check-Out times at the Abbey Resort?

Check-in is 4:00 p.m. and check-out is 11:00 a.m. If you roll in early and your room is ready, they may let you settle in — but a guaranteed early check-in before 2:00 p.m. runs a $25 fee, so don’t bank on the freebie.

Can I Park a Car at the Abbey Resort on Lake Geneva?

Yes — and here’s a rare bit of good news for your wallet: the Abbey offers complimentary valet and free self-parking. No $80-a-night valet shakedown like you’d get at a big-city hotel.

Is the Abbey Resort Pet Friendly?

Hard no. Pets aren’t allowed (service animals excepted). I don’t understand this policy, because dogs really spruce up the place, but you’ll need to leave them at home — and they mean it: a violation can cost you your stay, your deposit, and a cleaning charge running well into the hundreds.

Smoking is Not Allowed

I might disagree with the dog policy, but I’m a huge fan of this one. The whole property is smoke-free — rooms and balconies included — and lighting up where you shouldn’t comes with a hefty cleaning charge.

Wi-Fi is Included at Abbey Resort and Avani Spa

Both wired and wireless Wi-Fi are bundled into the resort fee, so at least you’re getting something tangible for that $25 a night.

7. Abbey Resort and Avani Spa FAQ

Is the Abbey Resort good for a girls’ weekend?

Yes — it’s practically built for one. The adults-only spa, the suites with room to spread out, the prime rib dinner, and the lakefront views add up to a near-perfect childless weekend. Book a suite if your group is splitting a room, and reserve spa services well in advance.

How far is the Abbey Resort from Chicago?

It’s roughly a 90-minute drive from downtown Chicago to Fontana-on-Geneva Lake, traffic depending. That makes it an easy weekend escape — close enough to do without flying, far enough to feel like you actually left town.

Does the Abbey Resort still have the prime rib buffet?

No. The old all-you-can-eat Saturday prime rib and crab leg buffet has been replaced by a sit-down Prime Rib Prix Fixe — a three-course plated dinner (around $65 per person) with live music. It’s a more polished meal but no longer a self-serve free-for-all, so adjust your crab-leg expectations accordingly and make a reservation.

What should I pack for the Abbey Resort?

The spa supplies robes and flip-flops, so you can travel light there. Bring a swimsuit for the pools, layers for the lake breeze, and a nicer outfit for a prime rib night. If you’re someone who still likes a face mask on hand for travel, toss one in — it weighs nothing.

Is the Abbey Resort good for kids?

It’s fine, not great. There are pools, a kids’ activity center, and seasonal extras, but the resort’s whole personality is built around the quiet adult spa. For a genuinely kid-centered Lake Geneva trip, I’d send you to Timber Ridge Lodge with its waterpark instead.

Abbey Resort and Avani Spa – Final Thoughts

The Abbey Resort in Lake Geneva is one of my happy places. It crams most of my favorite things into one weekend — the spa, the lake, the prime rib — all while rolling childless and having a blast with my ladies talking hair dye and Botox. I do not think it’s your best option for a kid-centric weekend. In Lake Geneva, that would be Timber Ridge. And if you’re the type who’d rather leave the kids home for any getaway, my take on the Waldorf Astoria in Chicago is cut from the same cloth.

Visit the Abbey Resort and Spa in Lake Geneva, WI for a girls’ weekend. You will not regret it.

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