Dylan Matteson, general manager of the UCLA Lake Arrowhead Lodge explains it this way, “All these connections bring them back to UCLA. During meals, they may find out they were in the same fraternity or perhaps lived on the same street or dorm in Westwood. When folks come back to Bruin Woods, they rekindle their love for UCLA as a whole. Some will even buy season tickets afterwards.”

Bruin Woods Family Camp runs for 10 consecutive weeks from Week 1, starting on June 25, 2022, to Week 10 ending on Sept. 3. The Lodge employs year-round staff for its operational departments, including housekeeping, dining, front desk, maintenance, and for those 10 weeks, 54 eager and carefully selected UCLA students serve as boat drivers and lifeguards, age group counselors, outdoor adventure rovers, arts and crafts instructors and more.

Their rates are comparable to any family vacation and is inclusive of lodging, dining and activities: $1,694 for adults and grade-based rates for kids ranging from $315 to $1,449. Not just anyone is eligible to come. At least one person in the family must be UCLA alumni, staff or faculty to enroll. The choice week out of the 10 is often determined by lottery due to high demand. However, after attending, priority is given to families to reserve the same week for the following year. This ensures the continuity of campers being with the same people for their annual getaway. For new families looking to get into the fun, Week 10 has been designated for them as an entryway into Bruin Woods, which then guarantees their spot for any of the earlier weeks for the following year.

Unfortunately, even the happiest place for Bruins couldn’t avoid the impacts brought on by the pandemic. Matteson recalled, “When everything began to shut down in March 2020, Bruin Woods student staffers were just hired for that summer. We wondered how are we going to change? How are we going to keep our people working? How are we going to remain financially viable.”

Matteson explained that while the Lodge and camp programs are part of the University, they are completely self-supporting and receive no funding from campus or the state. They are reliant on revenue from the summer camp, as well as from Bruin Family Holidays, which are mini-versions of the summer experience but transpire over fewer days and during school vacation periods such as Thanksgiving, New Year’s and spring break. These were all negatively impacted by the pandemic.

Fortunately, they were able to continue generating income from UCLA Lake Arrowhead Lodge stays and onsite events that occur year-round. Like most resorts, they welcome vacationing couples, business conferences, staff retreats, weddings, etc. when the summer camp and family holiday groups aren’t occupying the property. To reserve lodging, eligibility is offered to all, with or without a UCLA affiliation. Plus, by using the promo code Alumni when booking online, guests automatically save 25 percent of the cost.

Matteson said, “The first few months of the pandemic became an opportunity to get some critical infrastructure done. We replaced decks, the main lodge roof and the ceiling in our biggest meeting room, and redid the spa room — the kind of stuff we wouldn’t have been able to do if we were fully operational.”

For the 2020 Bruin Woods summer camp they quickly had to shift gears. They allowed individual family stays at the Lodge but there was no in-person programming. Daily activities were all virtual and offered at no cost. This obviously wasn’t the same guest experience and resulted in a steep decline in revenue.

Fast forward to the summer of 2021, and the Bruin Woods Family Camp became operational once again with the help of some innovative solutions (at the time) that were later adopted by other institutions. They required either a full vaccination or a recent test for all their guests, plus an additional mid-week test for all unvaccinated guests. They migrated almost all their activities outdoors, including beer tasting and Bingo, which wasn’t too hard to do on their 50-acre property. They reduced the overall capacity by 8% to allow for more spacing, but was also the result of staffing shortages that impacted many other businesses. They also adopted various COVID protocols that modified meal service, housekeeping and some forms of guest interaction. These safety measures proved to be very successful. Among the thousands of guests who came through during that 10-week period, only two had tested positive.

Matteson is optimistic for the summer of 2022. He said Bruin Woods will go back to its full capacity of 330 guests per week. Most of the activities will continue to be outdoors, and they will keep the safety measures in place even if things were to dramatically improve. “We’re still going to do everything we can to provide the magical top notch experience, but at the same time not compromise the safety of our team or the guests” he said.

Matteson has experienced the magic of Bruin Woods in more ways than most. He started as student staff 16 years ago and he and his wife were the first to ever get married on the property. He can attest to the dedication and care the entire staff have for their role and he thinks the guests really appreciate that. He said, “People have a clearer understanding of what’s important in life and for many that’s family. Coming back to Bruin Woods to reconnect truly feels like a family reunion each time. There’s a Bruin connection, a Bruin love that’s just unmatched anywhere else.”

Explore all that Bruin Woods has to offer at https://bruinwoods.ucla.edu.