UPDATE 1-Great Wolf Resorts posts Q3 loss

* Q3 net loss $42.1 million vs profit $2.2 mln

* Q3 same-store RevPAR falls 5.5 pct

* Sees Q4 loss/shr $0.55-$0.65

* Sees '09 loss/shr $2.26-$2.36

Nov 4 (Reuters) - Indoor waterparks operator Great Wolf Resorts Inc (WOLF.O) swung to a quarterly loss, hurt by asset impairment charges and higher interest expense, and forecast a loss for the fourth quarter.

Great Wolf expects a loss of 55 cents to 65 cents a share for the fourth quarter.

In the third-quarter, same-store revenue per available room, or RevPAR, a key measure of hotel performance that accounts for rate and occupancy levels, fell 5.5 percent, much slower than the industry wide fall of 16.9 percent.

Great Wolf has fared better than the broader industry as its drive-to resorts appeal to cash-strapped consumers looking to vacation close to home.

The company said its adjusted EBITDA rose 7.7 percent to $24.8 million.

For the latest third quarter, the company posted a net loss of $42.1 million, or $1.35 a share, compared with a profit of $2.2 million, or 7 cents per share, a year ago.

Analysts on average had expected the company to lose 4 cents a share, excluding special items, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue rose 11 percent to $76.8 million, but fell short of market expectations of $77.9 million.

Shares of the Madison, Wisconsin-based company closed at $3.26 Tuesday on Nasdaq. (Reporting by Abhishek Takle in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)