For Immediate Release Media Contact: Steve Kappler or Marjorie Beenders
June 23, 2008 Phone: 573-636-8282 « Email: info@tbwgroup.net
All Sorts of Resorts Welcome Visitors
at Central Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks
Lake of the Ozarks, Mo. –Central Missouri’s scenic Lake of the Ozarks offers all types of accommodations: hotels and motels, bed-and-breakfasts, condos and campgrounds, even houseboats. But for many families, vacation is spelled “r-e-s-o-r-t” … and the Lake of the Ozarks is the place to find an outstanding selection of large full-service and small family-owned resorts.
Full-Service Resorts
When you’re on vacation, do you like to eat, sleep, play and relax without leaving the premises? Then the Lake area’s full-service resorts are for you.
With its white stucco buildings and red tile roofs, the Mediterranean-influenced Country Club Hotel and Spa in Lake Ozark is secluded and serene, away from the busy Lake but close to golf and other attractions. Although it’s not located directly on the Lake, the resort sits atop the highest point in the area. “You can see the Lake all the way around us. It’s a spectacular 25-mile view,” says Lance Utley, sales manager at the Country Club Hotel and the Resort at Port Arrowhead.
The Country Club Hotel has 83 rooms, including 60 suites, as well as two- and three-bedroom villas with common areas that easily accommodate families. The resort opened in 1998 with a focus on tennis, fitness and spa amenities, Utley notes. As a result, it offers 12 outdoor and four indoor tennis courts (including clay courts) and year-round tennis programs for adults and children, coordinated by an on-staff tennis pro. There’s also an indoor, Olympic-sized heated pool and seven outdoor pools, plus a full-service spa. There are activities for youngsters to keep children busy having fun. Guests and locals alike enjoy dining at the Country Club Resort’s Bourbon Street Grill, featuring New Orleans favorites and other culinary delights for breakfast, lunch and dinner. For more information, call 800-964-6698 or visit www.countryclubhotel.com.
One of the best-known resorts at the Lake of the Ozarks, The Lodge of Four Seasons offers 300 rooms and 50 condominium units, including the brand new, upscale Avila condominium hotel. “Families love it that the Lake of the Ozarks is right in our backyard, but also we have a lot of amenities here for families to enjoy, such as four swimming pools, a spa for mom, world-class golf for dad and Adventure Club for the kids,” says General Manager David Griffin. There also are three restaurants on the premises, including the popular HK’s steak house, named for The Lodge’s founder, Harold Koplar, whose family still owns and operates the resort.
Just outside the oversized guest rooms there’s plenty to explore at The Lodge, which has received AAA’s three-diamond rating for many years. You can sign up for a scenic excursion or fishing expedition, or rent a boat or jet skis at the full-service marina. There’s also a cinema, arcade, fitness room, trapshooting and horseback riding. “A lot of guests simply enjoy strolling on the grounds and visiting our beautiful Japanese gardens,” Griffin says.
Golfers will appreciate The Lodge’s championship courses that have earned The Lodge a 4-Star rating from Golf Digest. Lodge guests may reserve tee times at The Club at Porto Cima, a Jack Nicklaus Signature Course. The public is welcome at Seasons Ridge Golf Club and at Witch’s Cove, a Robert Trent Jones Sr. Signature Course scheduled to undergo major renovations starting this July.
A major attraction at The Lodge is Spa Shiki, a serene and beautifully designed retreat offering a variety of massage therapies and salon specialties. Its signature treatment, the Japanese Cleansing Ritual, combines herbal exfoliation, a Japanese bath and an aromatherapy massage. Other popular treatments are the Couples Massage and Golfer’s Delight. For more information on The Lodge, call 800-THE-LAKE or visit www.4seasonsresort.com.
Opened as a Holiday Inn in 1963, The Resort at Port Arrowhead in Lake Ozark has 207 rooms, including six suites, offering views of the Lake, the pool or Port Arrowhead Marina. A major property-wide remodeling recently was completed.
“The Resort at Port Arrowhead is a kid-and-pet-friendly hotel,” says Lance Utley. “We offer family suites that can sleep more people more affordably. Kids age 12 and under can eat free with an adult purchase. Plus there are always new and fun summer activities around our pools, including a DJ, games, great food at the poolside Tiki Bar and of course, the popular Saturday-night Dive-In Movie.” The resort also offers two hot tubs, complimentary miniature golf, heated indoor pool, fitness room and the popular Portside Restaurant complete with a fabulous Lake view.
The Arrowhead Activities Program is offered daily during the summer for kids age 4-16. “The children’s program really is exceptional,” Utley says. “A lot of people come back year after year just for that.” He adds, “Guests really appreciate the resort’s compactness and convenience. Also we are close to more than a dozen championship golf courses and Lake attractions.” For details, call 800-532-3575 or visit www.theresortatportarrowhead.com.
Another renowned Lake-area resort is Tan-Tar-A, which opened July 4, 1960 with 12 cabins. Today Tan-Tar-A Resort, Golf Club, Marina and Indoor Waterpark in Osage Beach is the largest resort at the Lake, covering 420 scenic Ozark acres and offering 497 rooms in the main hotel complex and 400 condos in Tan-Tar-A Estates. “We are a main destination for families from throughout the region throughout the summer,” says General Manager Fred Dehner. “There’s so much here that appeals to families and we’re constantly building on that.”
Tan-Tar-A’s indoor waterpark, the 20,000-sq.-ft. Timber Falls, is the largest in Missouri and great fun for kids and grownups alike. Guests also enjoy the Bears Den Arcade and updated 8-lane bowling alley. Tan-Tar-A also features two world-class golf courses, The Oaks, designed by world-renowned architects Bruce Devlin and Robert Von Hagge, and Hidden Lakes, ranked by USA Today as one of the best 9-hole courses in the United States. The miniature golf course recently was renovated too.
Tan-Tar-A’s Windjammer Spa is a bright, comfortable, two-floor facility offering massages, facial treatments and full salon services. At the Tan-Tar-A marina you can rent a paddleboat, ski boat, fishing boat, pontoon boat or jet skis. Guests may go horseback riding, parasailing or take a cruise on an excursion boat. The fitness center offers exercise equipment, an indoor pool and tanning beds. Kids age 4-10 can participate in Kids Kabin, a supervised activity program including movies and games.
Tan-Tar-A also features several specialty shops and four restaurants, from fast food to the AAA three-diamond rated Windrose Restaurant and the rustic Black Bear Lodge. For more information, call 800-826-8272 or visit www.tan-tar-a.com.
The Lake’s newest full-service resort, opened in early June, is The Resort and Yacht Club at Toad Cove, located next to the Horny Toad Entertainment Complex in Lake Ozark. “It’s the first new property to open at the Lake of the Ozarks in 10 years and the only luxury waterfront property at the Lake,” says Lagina Fitzpatrick, director of sales. The six-floor resort consists of 116 one-bedroom suites of varying sizes. Most have balconies and a Lake view, some have Jacuzzis, and all have top-of-the-line amenities such as fireplaces, plasma TVs in the living room, bedroom and bathroom, surround sound, fully equipped kitchenettes, pillow-top king mattresses, and more. “Every suite also has high-end cabinetry and beautiful leather furniture,” Fitzpatrick notes.
Also on the Resort & Yacht Club premises are a spa and salon, fitness center, indoor/outdoor pool with a swim-up bar, pool deck with a waterfall, indoor heated sand volleyball court and upscale shops. “Since it is a hotel, guests also will enjoy concierge and turndown service and valet parking,” Fitzgerald says. The resort also includes 10,000 square feet of meeting space and a full-service marina featuring more than 100 slips, convenience store and wave runner and pontoon boat rentals. For more information, call 573-365-5620 or visit www.toadcove.com/accommodations.aspx.
Small, Family-Owned Resorts
As development continues at the Lake of the Ozarks, the number of small family-owned resorts is decreasing. According to the Tri-County Lodging Association, in 1958 there were 358 such resorts at the Lake. Today there are slightly more than 100 – still nearly half of the 250 total lodging facilities in the area.
Still, the third and fourth generations of many families now bring their own kids to spend a week or two at a small Lake resort. In many cases, families stay at the same place they visited year after year when they were kids. In other cases, they find a resort that resembles the one they used to visit, even if it’s no longer around. Cabins and amenities at these cozy resorts most likely have been updated, but the laid-back ambience hasn’t changed a bit. Two outstanding examples are Alhonna Resort and Rock Harbor Resort.
General Manager Sheryl Elia’s family bought Alhonna Resort in Lake Ozark in 1980. “The original owners, named Al and Honna, built it in the 1950s,” Elia says. “Basically we are very family-oriented, and also have a huge fishing clientele, especially in the spring and fall. We have customers who have been here as long as we have and longer.”
Elia says when her family took over Alhonna the resort had 12 units. “Now we have 60 units including cottages, condos and apartments, plus three pools that we put in, and the largest boat-rental fleet on the Lake,” including pontoons, ski boats, and bass and fishing boats. Other amenities include a sauna and two hot tubs, full-service gas dock, enclosed fishing dock, bait shop, meeting room and game room. The popular Bobbers Restaurant and Lounge also is located on the premises.
Truly a family operation, Alhonna employs Elia and her two sisters, their parents, her son and husband. “My cousin runs housekeeping,” she adds. Open year round, the resort accepts pets with advance notice.
Elia estimates about 80 percent of Alhonna’s guests are repeat visitors. “We also are seeing more families from resorts that have closed or disappeared,” she says. Although running a resort is hard work, she adds, “We wouldn’t do it if we didn’t enjoy it. There’s something about seeing the same customers every year as well as welcoming new guests who may start a new tradition with us.” For more information call 573-365-2634 or visit www.alhonna.com.
At Rock Harbor Resort in Sunrise Beach, owner Curt Mooney explains his in-laws bought the resort in 1973 and he joined up in 1975. “Half of the resort was built in the early 1960s and the rest since we’ve been here,” he says. Today there are 38 units including motel rooms, cabins and condos. Rock walls and foundations add a real Ozarks flair to the surroundings. “Some of the buildings are original but have been updated,” Mooney says. “We’ve also added modern kitchens, two pools, a recreation hall, playground, mini golf, jet ski and boat rental, gas stop, tennis courts and more.”
The family-oriented resort also hosts a lot of fishing tournaments, including several that have been held at Rock Harbor for more than 20 years, Mooney notes. But he believes Rock Harbor especially appeals to families. “That’s because of our setting, our nice cottages and the fact that we are pet-friendly and family-run,” he says, noting the resort staff includes himself and his wife and daughter, his mother and father in-law and brother-in-law and his wife. “Our customers become our friends and keep coming back,” Mooney says. “My kids grew up with a lot of our customers’ kids. But we’re always glad to meet new people too.”
Rock Harbor is open March 1 to December 1. “When we are open I put in a lot of long hours,” Mooney says. “The night office is my house too, and I get phone calls and knocks on the door at all hours. But wintertime makes up for it! Then I can pick my own hours and fix things up and relax a little.” For more information about Rock Harbor Resort call 573-374-5586 or visit www.rkharbor@lakeozark.net.
And for more information about resorts as well as other Lake-area accommodations, plus dining, shopping, golf, attractions and events at Central Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks, call the Lake of the Ozarks Convention & Visitor Bureau at 800-FUN-LAKE (386-5253) or visit www.funlake.com.
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