Lake Palestine Resort

We stopped by the grill at the Lake Palestine Resort for a drink on the patio. We have frequented the Resort for years. On this lovely March 2016 afternoon, I ordered a glass of Malbec from the wine list. As the employee started to pour my glass of wine, I noticed that ⁸⁄₁₅ was written on the bottle. I asked if the wine had been opened since ⁸⁄₁₅ and was told «yes; management told me to serve it until it was gone». I am not a wine snob but I do not drink wine that has been opened for 7 months! That is ridiculous. It is obviously time to find another patio…

If I could give it no stars I would. This weekend our family reunion was held at the resort. Those that brought their own motorhome, RV, or 5^th Wheel had a great experience; however, those of us that stayed in the lodging available to rent did not enjoy their stay. The fellowship with my family was great, but I had a miserable 3 day weekend preventing my kids from getting injured in this unsafe, uncomfortable environment. Nails sticking up, holes in the wall, doors that open to a 4 ft drop with no warning, floors so filthy bare feet stick to them and turn black from walking across the floor. The vent-​a-​hood has no fan and most windows had no screen, so if you opened them your living quarters was swarmed with bugs. Black mold in the shower and around the tub. Piles of sheet metal and glass surrounded our cabin when we arrived and I was given grief initially for asking to have the glass picked up as there would be many children joining us. One guarantee, we will not be back and if those with trailers chose to go again, we will either only come for the day or get a hotel as close as we can find.

After reading the bad reviews on Unilocal and bad reviews received from friends who’ve stayed at the RV sites we called and spoke directly to Scott who assured us the place had been updated and we would really enjoy our stay!
NOT the case!
The mobile home we rented was severely run down with the following issues (aka Cabin #1):
*Carpet was dirty, stained and had an odor. We literally didn’t want to walk barefooted!
*The furniture was also stained and in horrible condition. When you sit on the love seat the back folded around your head!
*The curtains in the living room literally fell off the wall and the curtain in the bathroom was falling off the wall.
*All of the parts that fell off the trailer were in the closets (window screens, trims etc etc)
*One of the twin mattresses had totally collapsed
* the linens smelled!
*The entry into the shower when you stepped into the tub/​shower shell was very weak and close to breaking.
*The entire trailer leaned to one side!
*The skirt around the bottom of the trailer was all pulling away from the trailer and the front door paint was peeled away!
*The AC was not working properly and the entire trailer was warm!
*When we went to use one of the plastic bowls for salsa it was FULL of spider webs!
*bugs everywhere
Even tho housekeeping had been there just proior to our arrival, we found a purse in one
Of the kitchen cabinets apparently belonging to a prior guest, filled with credit cards!!! We’ve looked up the owner and are mailing the purse back to her!
On the bright side… the manager Scott
& his wife were VERY nice and pleasant!
We were there for a fishing tournament and the majority were staying either in the RV sites or cabins. We will def not be returning.

Not impressed. Not RV friendly. Out to rake over any one. The owners that is. Employees are very helpful but have nothing good to say about managers. Expect to be overcharged for anything.

First, the positives — the staff we dealt with was very friendly, and the water pressure in the lodge can put out the Chicago fire.
The low points — This place is slightly better than a deer camp. I take that back. It is on the same level as a deer camp. The furniture in the rooms was cheap when it was bought decades ago. And like another has said, it is now outdated. The mattresses on the beds are what I call «hotdog buns,» they roll up around you when you lie down. The Dish TV system is very difficult to operate, the fridge is very small, the AC has to work overtime to keep the place cool. Wife and I both took showers after a day on the water and the water did not drain out! After informing the office, the maintenance kid said they had been «very busy» for the last two weeks (doing what??) but they would snake the drain and remove the builtup hair that was most likely clogging the drain. Uh, dude, hair does not suddenly clog up a drain, and that water sat there over night without a bit seeping through a «hair clog.»
The parking area for vehicles and trailers is in SERIOUS need of grating. It is in bad enough shape to shake your boat off the trailer if you have to drive through it! Pitiful.
Marine gas for $ 5.89/gal? No, thanks. We trailered up, drove a mile and got premium for $ 4.01. Add a little Sta-​Bil and you’ve saved a bunch.
The food? Avoid like the plague. My wife threw up her lunch the last time we ate there. And I’ve experienced the same exact thing as another reviewer. Waiting forever for food, watching people that ordered after you did get theirs. But I wasn’t as patient when it happened to me. I demanded and got my money back. If you trust the kitchen in the rooms, go to the Brookshires on 155 and bring your own food.
It’s sad that a nice lake in a fairly highly populated area like Lake Palestine does not have a better lake facility than this. Maybe if you’re with a group and cooking out and partying, you might have a decent time at this place. But I look at their boat slips and see about a 95% occupancy rate so I know they’re making money at that. Spend a little, bring your rooms up into the 2000’s (1990’s at least), improve your parking, and improve the restaurant, and maybe I’ll stay again. Maybe.

Great spot to chill with a bucket of beers ($ 9!) on the back porch on a Friday or Saturday night during the summer. They have a guy who plays guitar on the backporch who is really fun. You can also grab some food while the sunsets! See my photos – it’s a cheap, low-​key and fun date night. They close around dark time in the summer.

Went to this place for a family reunion. Feels like it hasn’t been touched since the 60’s, not in a good way. The cabins were dirty and small. Sheets on the bed were old and musty. One 15″ tv in the whole place and it is in with the «kitchen» which is a sink, stove, fridge combo. Didn’t even know they made such a thing.
Went to the restaurant/​office to check out the live entertainment. There were smokers everywhere, which didn’t work out well for my pregnant wife. We waited 15min before a waiter would come and talk to us. Finally put out orders in. 45 min later after watching several people get there orders who showed up after we ordered out food comes out. They got our order wrong, twice. Food was not good at all. Service was worse.
I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.

With all this beautiful land out here what’s the best option to do?
Enjoy the lake of course!
Well there’s a problem. This lake is basically all private property so you either got to know someone with a lakehouse or own your own boat to dock. They have rental stuff but it all closes down at 6 pm. Sucks when it doesn’t even get dark until closer to 8:30 pm. They do offer swimming in the lake if you can call it that. They circle off a small area where you can pay 5 bucks a person to swim in the lake. Bring your own boat if you are in the area. Or check out Tyler State park instead.