Collective Hill Country - a Retreat at Montesino Ranch

This is by far our best experience staying outdoors. Very friendly staff and every single staff that works here is the best at his or her job. Very quiet, away from noise and has nice views. Gated community, so felt a little safe too. Check-in was fast and very smooth. They communicate with you via text, all room services are provided via text message, the accommodation was as good as described and posted pictures. Very clean rooms. The room has coolers to make you feel comfortable during a hot day, room has a small fireplace too for winters. Yes, with a completely outdoor living, you get to share your space with nature and its little flyers and crawlers. But, that shouldn’t bother much, if you understand that you are staying outdoors and love nature. From the Manager to the staff, everyone was very polite and accommodating. Chef deserves a mention. We are vegetarians, and the kitchen staff even made it comfortable by procuring and cooking vegetarian options for us. Kids loved this place, and the chef was even able to accommodate their specific vegetarian asks. The front desk is always available to take care of your needs. They have an outdoor room for smaller parties, a fireplace with a view, hammocks, and a nature friendly play area. This place by itself does not have all the additional recreations you may be looking for, but has a small trail. Wimberley city is like 15-20 minutes away, so if you are picky about food, groceries and other forms of entertainment, you have options there. Yes, there is good phone service here and they provide internet options but we didn’t really need it. To summarize, staff here are a great example of going that extra mile to make your stay a pleasant one to remember and make you come back. Also, we love country style life and quiet music, so this worked really for us. Will definitely visit this place again. Worth the price. We needed a quiet and relaxing weekend, and got what we wanted.

This resort sets the standard for premium excellence with its impeccable hospitality and service. The ladies at the front desk are truly exceptional, making our stay unforgettable. In all my years of travel, I've never experienced such exceptional service – it far surpasses a mere five-star rating. My family, friends, and I were thoroughly impressed with every aspect of our stay, from the luxurious tents equipped with both AC and efficient heating systems to the overall ambiance of the resort.

This is one of our favorite places to go in Texas. We started going for special weekends in 2023 with our dog and keep coming back. Holston took incredible care of us this visit, making for another great trip before the holidays. Coming back in 2025!

The entire experience surpassed our expectations! The staff was amazing in every aspect, the tents were beautiful and set up so nicely, and we couldn't have enjoyed our stay more! Did I mention how awesome the staff was?!?! We can't wait to go back and would highly recommend to anyone looking for a glamping getaway with top tier accommodations!

Loved the experience, location, activities and atmosphere. The tents were amazing and our first night of the trip host Betty was absolutely delightful and accomodating to us. However we went on the trip for my birthday and the chef was out sick, so instead of the multiple course dinner and birthday cake - we had to go in town to a restaurant. There wasn't any type of discount or apology for the chef being out and the on-site team being unable to make the cuisine throughout the trip that was expected.

Giving this place four stars because while it is overall very nice, I think not quite worth the price. It misses on the overall premium experience they’re trying to deliver. Came here with my husband for a Valentine’s Day weekend. What we really liked: The tents themselves were extremely nice. Wood flooring, comfy seats, high end finishes and soaps in the bathroom, and a heated blanket in the beds. The staff was also extremely friendly. What missed: The biggest miss was the food service. They advertise a great breakfast but at present it’s really just some mini pastries, yogurt, and peel it yourself hard boiled eggs (nothing warm). The coffee was burned. For dinner, they no longer have their chef’s tasting so we tried their BBQ box. While the idea is nice, it was not worth the $130 price tag. The pork was tough, the pasta salad had way too much mayo, and even following their detailed instructions, we ended up with some items overly charred and others not quite hot. A couple other misses - they advertise fiber optic WiFi yet I couldn’t stream a show. We tried to order tea at the bar one night and the person working there said they didn’t have any which seemed surprising given they had tea in the rooms (felt like they could’ve just gotten some from their stockroom). Again overall the place is nice but if you’re going to position yourself as a premium place/price point, you’ve gotta deliver an excellent experience and I don’t think they’re quite there.

Everything about this property was well thought out, up kept, and immaculate. As a multi family property manager, I pay attention to all the details. Faculties we’re gorgeous. Property was insanely beautiful. Even how they trimmed the landscaping is so well thought out. Do yourself a favor and take your partner and or family on a weekend trip or longer to Collective Hill Country. My husband and I just celebrated our 11th anniversary there for a weekend. I cannot express how impressed my husband was with the safari tent and everything else. Being outside and still being as comfortable as you are in your own home is a feeling like no other. The tent views over the hills with the fog in the morning with our French press coffee was my favorite part. We love being away from everyone and in nature, so this was more than perfect for us. The views throughout the property are impeccable as well. Great place to reconnect or connect further and makes you realize how important time together truly is. Highly recommend!

Stayed there for a couple of days on our wedding anniversary. The idea of this arrangement is cool, and being so close to nature left us really amazed. Beautiful surroundings, nicely designed and furnished tents, a decent hiking trail. The lodge for meals/drinks is very inviting, and so is the fire pit area. Views are amazing, but not every tent comes with an open area view. We had morning coffee on our porch and enjoyed birds and nature sounds. Staff at the Collective is professional and friendly. Communication was easy, we were greeted and checked out smoothly. Breakfast is made from the locally sourced ingredients. A pastry box in the morning is a very nice touch, but I wish the pastry was at least warm if not freshly baked. Self cooked prepackaged BBQ dinner was less interesting as suggested cooking times didn't work with the heat intensity, and we ended up waiting for our dinner a bit too long. Also, not a big deal but it would have been nice to receive a small acknowledgement for our anniversary, since upon booking I was asked about the occasion for the stay. A truck noises nearby each morning were a bit annoying, but I guess not much could be done about that, and it might be temporary. Maybe it's just the beginning of the season, and later things will get into their places. To sum up, I'd go back again but would plan my stay to include more sightseeing and possibly different dining options.

Outstanding facilities and service. I cannot recommend this place enough. My family of four had an excellent time in November 2023. We stayed in a family tent, which was perfect. We cannot wait to return.

This place is truly beautiful. Unfortunately, we were left with a bad taste in our mouth after 1) being booked in the wrong tent and never being notified of the switch and 2) waiting almost 2 weeks to be refunded, only to receive less than what was due... It wasn't handled well at all and it's just so disappointing for such an extremely expensive place. This was a big splurge for us- we were celebrating our engagement and had booked the honeymoon tent and chefs tasting. It just sucks because we really loved the views, the food was great, and we were ready to tell everyone we knew to book this place asap! But the business/financial/email communication/handling of refund side of things was just so so poorly handled :/

This is a late review! We stayed at Collective Hill Country in September and had an overall great time. The grounds were beautiful and the tents were super cute. However, we didn't receive most of the amenities and didn't receive a heads up. There was no cook to order breakfast, no chef's table dinner, no collective hill bandana...but we were charged the same price. If we would have known about the limitations beforehand, we would have booked our stay for a time when everything was available. The representatives were very dismissive when we brought our concerns to their attention. It just left a sour taste in what would have been an overall great trip.

I had a great time at Collective Hill Country, it was a peaceful retreat from nearby Austin. Highlights included the picturesque tent, happy hour, s'mores and exceptional staff. I stayed in Bluebonnet (tent 1) and it had easy access to the Three Peaks Lodge. A water jug, cooler and lanterns were provided. I visited in January when temperatures dip to the 30s overnight so the in-tent fireplace, heated blanket and space heaters were essential! The Chef's Tasting Menu was unavailable during my stay so I opted for the BBQ box which included a smoked chicken, two different kinds of sausage, shrimp skewers, potato salad, slaw and rolls. I didn't mind the hands on experience but I wasn't wowed for the $60 per person price. During my visit, they were building a new South African tent so there will be more to look forward to for future stays!

This was my first time Glamping, and I believe I started at the top! Collective Retreats was such an incredible experience. From the service, to the tents, to the location....this excursion fed my soul. I had the king size tent and really enjoyed the wood pellet stove (which for right now is only in tent 12 - I got lucky! Haha). To be able to relax and enjoy the exquisite peace of nature and still be able to not have to "rough it" with traditional camping was such a treat. The toilets, hot water and shower were luxurious. And with a zip of the comfy tent, the countryside was at my feet! Ahhh I can still feel the warmth in my heart as I sipped my freshly pressed coffee each morning. Speaking of each morning - this location in Wimberley has a farm onsite which is where breakfast is sourced - how cool is that?? And you get to place your complimentary breakfast order via your concierge assigned to you to simply text your requests. It just gets no better! I was concerned about bugs and creatures entering my tent and let's be real - we are all up in nature, so it's possible. The most I saw were spiders (eek) and some bees BUT... the good folks at Collective equipped us with a bug zapper so you could show the critters whose boss. Yasss!! Back to being a happy glamper! Omg and the BEDS!!! Felt like you're sleeping on clouds.. or a pile of the softest cotton or toilet paper (since I know you boarded it ) ever. Layers of sheets and blankets to keep you warm if you choose not to put on your pellet stove. Luxurious living! The camp site is a few minutes drive from downtown Wimberley, so if you want to stroll, shop, dine, or see all of the beautiful wild deer that roam around, that's also a lovely option. You're also just about 45 minutes from Austin if you crave that city life...but once you make it out to Hill Country, baby, you won't want to. I already cannot wait for my next glamping adventure and you bet your sweet tent it'll be with Collective Retreats! The only negative I have is that my other friends in other tents that had the old wood-burning stoves did not get any response when messaging to get their fires lit in the middle of a VERY cold night that was not enjoyable. Overall a great experience I would highly recommend.

Update 12/8/2022: we visited again after two years and sadly, so much changed. I'm not sure if the pandemic affected business but we would not visit again. Services that used to be include was a handwritten note welcoming our stay, a packet of s'mores materials (now everything portioned out) , a large jug of water (now two rainwater drinks) and a hot breakfast. On this last visit we were expecting the same and were disappointed with the lost personal touches. $45 a night resort fee included: a breakfast basket consisted of overdone hard boiled eggs, scoops of yogurt and granola, old muffins and I actually received expired orange juice. It used to be a cook on site that made breakfast-- they have no one on site. The rooms and view were comfortable and one night there was loud music at midnight where I had to text the manager to tell our tent neighbor to let them know. Only one person was there running the whole show midweek, I'm not sure if the weekend population has a different experience. We will be trying Walden Retreats next time.

Everything that everybody has already said. The tents are truly luxurious with excellent private bathroom facilities, the views are incredible, service is awesome. Truly a retreat for the mind and soul.

DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY HERE!!!! TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE + CUSTOMER SERVICE! I brought 9 ladies together to celebrate my bachelorette weekend & chose Collective Retreats Hill Country as our destination. Our experience & the service we received was not what was promised to us & was absolutely unacceptable. We were all very disappointed & extremely underwhelmed. Other than the cute aesthetic of the tents, nothing was as advertised. It honestly feels like we were sold a scam. We genuinely feel duped + bamboozled. This whole experience feels like 'instagram vs reality'. Collective Retreats markets itself as a luxury experience & charges luxury prices but our experience was anything but. VERY deceptive website & marketing. What customers need to be aware of: -We requested + prepaid for an extra bed for one of the tents. When we arrived it was not set up in our tent. It was never properly made or set up at any point during our stay. -It was 9pm when we arrived on property & the weather was extremely cold (30s). We contacted the property when we were 30-45mins away per their request. When we entered our tents, they were freezing. No fires were started to warm our tents prior to our arrival. The heating/cooling unit was not turned on to help heat out tents. No heated blankets were provided for our first night. Neither the heating units nor the heating blankets worked in any of our tents during the duration of our stay. We could see our breaths in our tents. It took hours for our tents to heat up. -The heating units in our room did not produce heat. They were blowing out 47degree air even after leaving them on all day & setting them on the hottest setting possible. We were never given enough fire starters for our tents to keep our tents warm thought out the night. We were constantly texting the staff asking for the necessary resources we needed in order to keep warm. We had to set alarms every few hours during the night to stoke or rebuild our fires in order to stay warm. It was 30 degrees out & we did not have the proper supplies to keep warm. We seriously considered having all 9 of us sleep in our two cars or driving back to Austin & staying in a hotel. It was that unbearable. -We booked yoga for all of us & the yoga tent was also not properly heated. It was freezing & we could see our breath. -The complimentary breakfast was laughable. Not only could we not order made-to-order hot breakfast options that we were promised, but the breakfast that was served in the main tent consisted of store bought, cold, stale muffins + croissants, frozen apples, frozen hard boiled eggs, frozen butter, and one small bowl of granola + yogurt that was supposed to be enough for all of the guests staying on property. Breakfast was to run from 8am to 10am, but the kitchen ran out of food each day by 8:30am. No one apologized for this nor tried to remedy this issue in any way. The staff was very dismissive. - Our tents were not properly serviced. Not once during our stay was the trash, dirty towels, dirty mugs/wine glasses removed from any of our tents or replaced with fresh ones. -One of our tents in the group was unable to get hot water in their tent to take showers. There was no maintenance person on site to help fix this issue. When one of the staff was unable to remedy this issue & nothing more was done - we were told 'it is what it is'. -The property was completely understaffed. They seemed completely annoyed anytime anyone requested anything or had any questions. -Upon departure there was no clear instruction on how to check out or how to get our luggage back up the hill. No one asked us about our stay or even acknowledged us upon our departure. -On our last night, we texted the line an hour & a half before we were going to be back on the property (we wanted to give them ample time) requesting to have the fire + s'mores ready for our arrival. When we arrived, neither were ready for us. We had to ask several more times before our request was accommodated. The 'campfire' & s'mores advertised on the website was a LIE. The 'campfire' experience was everything short of a proper campfire. The 'campfire' was gas fueled and was a steel structure in the shape of a star that had little holes that each produced a tiny flame. It reeked of propane gasoline as the flames kept going out and leaking gas. I wouldn't eat one because I didn't feel it was safe to eat. It produced no heat. Half of our party saw that 'campfire' & set up and called it a night. It was far too cold to be outside with no real fire. Collective markets a 'gourmet smores experience'. We received broken crackers, marshmallows, & Hershey's chocolate on paper plates. We reached out to the property manager directly and she basically said sorry to hear you had a bad experience and thank you for the feedback. She did not offer any kind of solution or reimbursement. We reached out to the owners of The Collective Retreats and they did not care to help at all either.

We stayed during the Thanksgiving holidays and it was very cold. The tents had a wood burning heater and a small ac/heater unit but it wasn't enough during the cold winter nights. The wood fire heater had to be constantly maintained and didn't give off enough heat. There was an electric blanket but you shouldn't sleep with those turned on the whole night. When we arrived for Thanksgiving dinner at the lodge tent, we sat by the fire but soon we're forced to move and sit right at the opening of the tent where there was a constant strong gust of cold wind. We were cold the whole dinner and had to grab blankets. The food was good but they could not do any food substitutions for those with food allergies or sensitivities. The next night we had a chef's tasting menu and they asked in advance about any food sensitivities. When we arrived they didn't take into account all of the food sensitivities and ended up serving foods we couldn't have. Other dishes they just omitted the main protein like pork instead of actually substituting with another protein. Also one dish came with very salty collard greens and we mentioned it to the server. The server was rude and dismissive. At the end the chef came to say hi to all the tables and we thanked him for the dinner. When he asked how everything was he couldn't take feedback and became also dismissive when we mentioned something was very salty. Not a good approach with your customers, chef. Most of the time the servers were very friendly. Tim was especially nice and did his best to meet our needs. We needed help starting the fire and he came right over and got it going for us. Just super! During the day we explored the grounds and the short 2 mile walking path. There are grazing cattle by the pavilion so be careful when walking around. FYI...The bathroom tent is a separate tent next to your main accommodations so it doesn't get any heat during the chilly nights. The shower has running water but it has Luke warm water the whole time. Not so great during 45F day. One of the activities we enjoyed a lot was the horseback riding lessons. It's at the Montesino Ranch, 5 min drive, and it looks like they have cute cottages you can rent there. Much more affordable than the tents and near the river. Will probably try that place next time.

This place is MIND BLOWING!! You see the pictures and think "nice.. a little photo shop will make anything look good..." NO, these are truly what you will see in person! Our firSt trIp was in January of 18, our second is March of 20 and we cAn not wait to return. Lookup and see the Stars, close your eyes and hear the sounds. Let them cook for you before your Somors! If you so choose to stay, as long as you put down the phone and live in the moment, you will NOT be disappointed.

My husband surprised me with a birthday weekend at Collective Hill Country and needless to say it was an awesome birthday. The views make you feel like you're in another state and the staff is very friendly (Shout out to Dane and Kaylee!) There were electric heaters, a heated blanket, and a wood-burning stove, so although it was chilly at night we slept very comfortably. Not to mention, Wimberly itself is a beautiful area with great wineries, restaurants, and breweries. Definitely recommend this place for a stay!

I've visited this area and would recommend couples and families to visit Wimberley and Canyon Lake areas. I love the idea of camping in a canvas tent with all the comforts of a hotel...Collective definitely has a beautiful place to relax and rejuv! A fantastic business idea for this area as it can be a retreat from the city life and reconnect you with nature and the charm of Texas Hill Country. Make sure while you're here that you visit the brewery on the way in to Wimberley and make a day trip to Canyon Lake and rent a boat.

Went with my sister. Spent one night. Next time, I will book it for two nights to get the full experience. So beautiful! And the service was great! Staff was so friendly and willing to do anything they could to make our stay even better. The french toast at breakfast was delicious. I will definitely be back.