One of our favorite places for a quick long weekend getaway is the Texas Hill Country, and we recently found the perfect all-encompassing resort just outside of Austin: the Hyatt Regency at Lost Pines. We tagged along with some friends as they attended a conference at the resort, but we quickly found that conferences are a small fraction of what you can do on your visit. The hotel has thought of everything you would need for an amazing weekend without ever leaving the property – regardless of the reason you’re staying there!
Whereas we might typically suggest one or two of our favorite specific activities, the best thing about Lost Pines is how much there is to do, and that applies to virtually any age – they truly do seem to have something for everyone.
For us, our favorite activity was easily the pool. We’ve been on a bit of a tour of lazy rivers, and this one stands out as one of the best. It’s one of the longest we’ve seen, so there’s plenty to enjoy, including a fork in the river that leads to a bar for the adults to enjoy as they float. Again, in an effort to appeal to all ages, the pool has a solid water slide for those that need a bit more of a thrill, and a splash pad for the youngest members of your party.
Not to rave about the pool exclusively, but they seem to have thought of everything in terms of amenities – we left Lily’s swim jacket at home, and thought that it would really put a damper on the swimming portions of the trip (which she was most looking forward to), but they actually had a wide variety of things to purchase at the pool gift shop/stand, and the toddler-size swim jackets they had for sale came to our rescue. Furthermore, their poolside grill had the perfect snacks available: the watermelon was a huge hit with us.
The pool was just one of a number of things the resort had to offer, though, and we took advantage of countless other areas and activities. The resort actually had a petting zoo area (where guests can meet the resort’s “mascots”), and Lily insisted that we visit her newfound animal friends each morning we were there.
One of the best parts of Lost Pines is the evident level of thought put into the design of the resort. They make a point to use every inch of the resort to create something that stands out as yet another activity. The golf course, tennis courts, and spa are all amazing amenities that appeal to a wide variety of guests, but the small things like complementary s’mores on the lawn each night, or turning an area of grass into a butterfly garden for kids to explore are the extra steps that set the Lost Pines resort from your typical hotel. They seemed to have thought of everything their guests might need!
Of course, one of the most important amenities a resort guest looks for is dining options, and we enjoyed everything that Lost Pines had to offer on that front. From the delicious pretzel and bar food at Shellers Barrelhouse Bar…
to the extensive options for breakfast at the Firewheel Cafe…
to the top-quality steak that we had at Stories Ranch Kitchen…
…we didn’t have a bad meal at Lost Pines. We’re generally pretty positive about the various places we visit, so you might roll your eyes at the “everything was delicious” line, but the number of diverse options to eat at Lost Pines is one of the larger selections we’ve seen at a resort that isn’t all-inclusive. They’ve done a really good job of ensuring that you don’t feel as though you have to leave the resort for anything, but they ensure great quality in all they do as well (and the dining may be the best example of that).
Lost Pines has become well-regarded throughout Texas as a great destination for families to visit, and if you can’t tell from our notes above, we whole-heartedly agree. Lost Pines really excels at appealing to all ages – anyone can find a number of things to enjoy at their resort, and we found something at every turn. For us, our visit to Lost Pines gave us exactly the type of long-weekend we were looking for.
