Fontana Village Resort & Marina

Our 2nd stay in this hotel and they did a great job renovating the rooms/bathrooms. It is the closest to the Tail of the Dragon so very convenient. The place was beautifully decorated for the holidays! The staff were very nice and friendly. I would suggest getting a better brand of coffee pods and microwave for the 2nd floor. I saw one on the 1st floor. I also noticed the vending machine was almost empty. Please tell your housekeeper not to vacuum the hallway early like around 9am. Other than that, our stay was great! Will def stay here again.

Nestled out of town quietly secluded next to the Great Smoky Mountains Natuonal Park. This hidden gem has extremely comfortable rooms, wonderful dining options and exceptional service. Everyone there was so nice and accommodating. Room had 3xtremely comfortable bed, large balcony with fantastic mountain views. This Resort is only a few minutes from downyown Bryson City as well as Rilobbinsille. A very quaint General Store is Lodge check in and boasts a full coffee bar as well as ice cream and an assortment of goodies. A wonderful Resort for a night or a week. Great for families as well as a couples getaway

Thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Fontana Village Resort. We stayed in the lodge & had a beautiful room...very modern, yet clearly mountain themed, exceptionally clean. The service at the coffee shop, grill & bar was excellent. The casual food & coffee menus were quite good. Beautiful grounds, extremely well maintained. A highlight was the Fontana Marina historic boat ride around Fontana Lake. Captain Carl was a great historian & story teller! Overall, a great weekend in a beautiful location.

This picturesque resort was perfect for my daughter’s wedding. We had a glorious experience. Accommodations were great and the staff attentive and kind. Both Hazel’s and Dam Garage had decent food. Lodging options were good too!

I stayed here Friday October 10th and Saturday the 11th 2025. This is a specctacular location with unique acomodations. We had Quill''s Canteen on Friday for dinner. We were late comers and they were running out of many of their entres. I had a burger that was fine. We shared an appetizer that was excellent. It was nachos over homemade potatoe chips. We had breakfast at the restaurant in the main lodge, Hazel's. I had biscuits and gravy with a bowl of fresh fruit and coffee. The buscuits and gravy were okay but not great. The fruit was good and the coffee was okay but I recieved two refills; each was colder than the last. I don't recommend Hazel's. The room was fine but the Wifi was intermittant. I would go back but I might go offsite for food. I was surprised that many of the guest were car enthusiasts driving the dragon.

Charged my card without authorization. Had an annual reservation for a number of years. Two years ago I could not make it. Though I called in advance, they refused to refund my deposit, said they would roll it over for one year and then I would lose it. I was unable to make it that next year so lost the deposit. I have not stayed there for at least two years now. Suddenly they charged my credit card over $170. For two years I have not called them, emailed nor had any other type of communication with these people. When I called to see what it was about, they said it was for my deposit. I said what deposit!?! They said ok, so we will cancel your reservation. I said I didn't make a reservation!!! They said ok, we'll cancel it. Literally acted like I was in the wrong. No, nobody had the authorization to run the card in the first place. The last time I stayed there my patio door didn't even have a lock on it for the entire week I was there!!! They were like sorry, we're fully booked and don't have parts.

Pontoon boat rental was easy. Staff was helpful getting us on the boat and giving us tips on where to go. We enjoyed every minute on the lake. Beautiful scenery and cool to see the floating cabins. What a gem this place is. We didn't stay at the resort as we were camping in the National Park.

Went for a convention with 2 others. The room we had was 2 queen beds. Room was dirty and smelled like bleach, and the smell did not go away. Doors for restrooms would not close. We went to customer service, the only other room they had was 1 king size bed room. We had to make a bed on the floor for one of the people with us, and they wouldn't even provide extra blankets to assist with this. I asked for a half refund, it was for a single night. They declined saying they would provide a $50 refund and that was all. Terrible experience and annoying to deal with while there are others with us. If the room we asked for was prepared for us to safely use, I would have given a better review. The mountains in the area are beautiful, I wish the quality of the hotel could match.

Fontana inn is very nice. Comfortable hotel with ample opportunities for dining in the area. Quiet and comfortable inn with a high quality staff.

We stayed here one night for a wedding. The location is quite remote. It's a little past Cherokee. They have everything you would need on the resort though. I believe there are two restaurants. We only ate what was served at the wedding. The food was standard, catering type food. They offer a bunch of wedding venue options. Ours was next to tge main building on the sun deck. The staff was great. The resort has a store with wine, snacks, and souvenirs. Our room was large with a balcony overlooking the woods. The temperature was comfortable. The bathroom was pretty outdated, but clean. There was a mini fridge and a loveseat. The bed was comfortable but the pillows were a little soft for me.

Decent little place. Very remote, no cell service. WiFi is available, although quite spotty throughout the grounds. No cell service was actually nice! GREAT pool, especially for the kids. The room is in serious need of updating; it is from the mid 80's...maybe the 90s. A major lack of outlets in the room and those that were in place were broken. Insert a plug into the outlet and it pushes into the wall. The room door was swollen and we had to slam it shut. Parking spaces are a bit small, but you park right infront of the room. This was awesome! The bathroom was a bit rough. Old shower / tub combo and very poorly lit. Low water pressure and the tub drained slow. The building was very old so I can be understanding of those things. The heat lamp in the bathroom was a cool 'feature'. The bathroom fan did NOT work. One of my kids went and 'blew it up' ...entire room smelled like they sold their (_!_) to the devil. Plus with that heat lamp running. Mother of God! Had to open the door. hah! The staff was SO nice. Absolutely polite and a wonderful check in / check out process. Nice activities on site including a playground, swings, GREAT pool & pool area, fire pits, etc. We would definitely stay again, but not in the "garden" buildings. EDITED: Most of the grounds and buildings are *definitely* not ADA accessible by any means; at least the areas Many running slopes are quite steep (+5%) and cross-slopes are well over 2%. That is to be expected with older facilities and being in the mountains. It did not impact us, but something to consider for those who require ADA facilities.

We stayed at the Fontana Campgrounds at the Fontana Village Resort. We were there in April and the weather was a little cool but nice. The campground had water and 30 amp electricity which was perfect for my RV. The dumping station was a the entrance of the park and was never crowded. Actually I was able to rinse my black and gray tanks and also hose off the bugs on my RV. The park wasn't crowded mostly motorcycle riders with small tents. We had two spots for our 2 RVs and one had a covered over a picnic table which was nice especially on one rainy night which gave us a place to keep our motorcycles dry. We were told we had access to the resort pool and store but never went. Overall it was a nice clean campground. The river flowed alongside the campground.

I've stayed here a few times over the years, and it's definitely lost its luster for me personally. I rented a "cabin" for a few days and could not have been more disappointed. The 1975 modular home....aka mobile home/trailer could not have been more unappealing if they tried. I'm ok with little to no amenities if it's a true cabin with that cabin feel. This does not give you that. The staff did a good job cleaning it, but it's like putting lipstick on a pig. I was embarrassed, to say the least, since I invited others to come and stay. For the price I paid, even with a generous military discount, I could've found a much nicer actual cabin elsewhere. The staff, restaurant, and the activities available were all great, but the 1970s called, and they want their trailers back.

My husband and I have been camping at the Fontana Village campground for years. The cleanliness standards of the restrooms are NONEXISTENT. The restrooms haven't been cleaned for five days, so I reported this to the front desk and they assured it would be taken cared of. Later in the afternoon when I inquired if it ever got cleaned, they said it was. The pics are of how well they "cleaned". Their standard of cleanliness is seriously making us question whether we want to continue coming here every year. The restrooms are missing side vents to keep the bugs and critters out. The shower walls are covered with mildew. One bathroom door even has graffiti from 1982! It hasn't been painted since?? Especially astonishing considering they doubled the price of the nightly rate of the campground. You would think their quality standards would go up with the rate.

Put a nice beautiful pool back at the Inn. Put in clean new a/c or at least change filters and clean the units regularly. Go back to the old menus and prices . Quit price gouging for everything from rooms to food ,drinks and more. Cabins need to be healthy. They are musty and the a/c filter in one our daughters looked at was o painted over and an inch of dust in the filter . Keep prices at the Marina reasonable . Have pre taped patriotic music playing during fireworks as you always did . Turn out parking lot lights . Have more tubes available at lazy river. And have them kept in lazy river . More umbrellas . We have heard everyone even new guests and people Who Have been coming for years complaining this year. You are taking a good th

It was difficult to contact for reservations and difficult to get them to return my calls. On arrival the staff at checkin and in the restaurants was friendly and accomodating. The room was a little tired, in need of a freshening, but clean. The food was average. The grounds were attractive and well manicured. The new lodge was nice. Location was great for our car club trip to Deals Gap and the Cherohala Skyway.

If you have been coming to Fontana Village for years as our family has , you may be in for a disappointment this year. This is the first time in 35 years I would have considered a negative reviews . It is under new ownership , who I understood were local but they have hired a management company that has messed up the experience for our family this year. After reserving poolside rooms a year ago, we were shocked to find out a month or so before our trip that the poolside rooms are now dirtside. the whole pool was filled in and what we understood would be a courtyard wawa circle of dirt surrounded by rocks . The view of the mountains was the only consolation to what we were used to there. the rooms habe been renovated , which I nice but the price is unreasonable . the air conditioners are still the old wall units and the filters and dust are caked onto it. New TVS but only streaming service which is practically non existent . Wifi is spotty and cell service also . What wifi there is is not reliable and stops your streaming constantly. I could not reach the office or front desk for 2 days . I found out they rely on wifi calling for communication . I had to call the restaurant and martinis to complain about heavy equipment left in the Dirt outside our rooms blocking the views. The front desk manager Donna who I got to finally had it moved immediately . I told her the new mgm company is killing Fontana for those of us who have loved it so long . Also I work up the next morning to a landscape crew with their truck working . we had no Privacy to enjoy our balcony and patio after paying 6k between our whole party for a yearly vacation. We need the privacy of having a great pool out there to enjoy apart from basically a public pool and lazy river which is nice but not the same . We had babies who nap and booked a year ago to be able to have them nap and the big kids swim whiel we were on the patio. One of our couples had no Lock on their adjoining door. They accidently wanted into another room that was occupied while Testing the door knob. They tried to move them to a cabin but wven this renovate the air system and filter was caked with dust. Both having asthma , they stayed in the room and had remove a lock From one of our other adjoining rooms and place It on there room so it was more Secure . Speaking of security , all check in has moved out of the inn. there is no one in the lobby to help or talk to if a problem or moniter the door 24 hrs . the Marina was still great and our day on the lake was the highlight so far if they don't raise rates rentals we're still reasonable the service was good . The whole restaurant menu has changed , and what used to be a full service sit down restaurant is an overpriced counter order . the food we had was good but expect 9 bucks for a kids kids hotdog and 20 bucks for a pastrami sandwich or burger.. For a large family like we have that breaks the bank. Son Changed his room And one if his Rooms was billed at 200 a night becauae he didn't book a year ago with us. Outrageous . I'm glad horseback riding is back. I want to have the attention of the owner group not Managment. Please bring the old Fontana back! You have many of th old Staff ! Put them in charge! Bring back The country cookiny and down home Feel. Fontana has been a big part of our life and memories . Don't wreck a good thing . The service people at the pool did not tell Us the truth about some Issues I am too tired to bring up And type . we Had to point out sone destructive Behavior They finally corrected . Service was not good anywhere to be found except Marina. What can I say. We are sad. Cabins may be an option in the future but not if they are musty moldy and unhealthy. Get to work! K Carter Hislop

DO NOT BOOK the lady on the phone was very rude with us when we were asking questions about accessibility because i am in a wheelchair, she would not email me pictures to make sure it was fit for me. she said it would be handicap accessible but i need WHEELCHAIR accessible. and she said it would work, then we got there they had upgraded us to a cabin for free which is nice but there was three steps and no pull down shower head, i had to shower with a bucket. im paralyzed so this was very difficult to me and my family. there is roaches everywhere, we stayed in 977. they are no kidding 5 inches big. then at the end of our stay, my brother left his firearm in the drawer and we turned around 10 minutes later and it was GONE. the manager would not pull the housekeeper and employees out so they could figure out the problem, after the manger admitted that someone turned it in the lockbox, one of the housekeepers said it wasn't there. one of the workers are armed with HIS firearm in HIS name. we called the cops but it took three hours for him to get there and we could not wait. the report is up in the air and this place will be sued.

I'd call the cabins a dump but they need about a million dollars in renovations to be considered a dump. The amount of things that are broken, unusable, and in disrepair is too many to list. Here are a few: holes in the walls, only 1 stove eye worked, mold on top of the fridge, doors won't close, door frame was broken and parts were laying in the floor, holes in siding of the house, and many others. In addition it just isn't nice. Furnishing is very old and much has not been updated in the last 50 years. The good is they do have some fun activities including some really talented musicians they hire to play. The pool is really nice and even though I didn't play I could tell the frisbee golf course was top notch and saw some really fun holes. There are great hiking trails nearby too. This last one could be a positive or negative but a positive for me to force me to unplug is that there is no cell phone service on the grounds unless you go towards the marina and internet doesn't work in the cabins but you can get internet at the main check in area.

Wonderful stop for the evening. The rooms are good at a reasonable price. Great bartender and god food. Excellent wait staff. Stop here, you won't be disappointed!

I reserved a room on 2/5/24 for an Oct/Nov one week vacation at the MMI Hotel Group managed/owned property of Fontana Village Resort. I confirmed the reservation by phone with Fontana a few days after the online RCI reservation was made. Seven weeks later I was told by RCI that Fontana was under new ownership/management of the MMI Hotel Group, and my reservation was cancelled, despite numerous vacancies of the unit I wanted for my vacation week. I emailed and called the Fontana and the MMI corporate office and did not even get the courtesy of a response. Bottom line - have a backup trip vacation plan when you book Fontana or a MMI property - your reservation may get cancelled two months later.

This is an older but well-maintained resort. It's got some cool 70's vibes like the sunken seating area in the lobby by the fireplace. It's got several types of lodging to choose from. There are hotel rooms, cabins and poolside cabanas to suit any traveler. The Mountainview Bistro served one of the best meals I've ever tasted! Roasted Duck and Scallop Alfredo had us in gastronomic heaven! Our room was clean and very comfortable! If you are ok, getting away from it all, because there is no cell service, this is a great summer getaway! Reminds me of the summer camps like you see in Dirty Dancing!

Let me start my review by saying we stayed here before for a family reunion about 18 years ago..and boy have things change...we visited in mid July for another family reunion with about 60 family members.. ..day 1. The lazy river sprung a leak so the whole time we where there the lazy river was broken..now I have 4 kids and and reunion had slot of kids. So this being broken was a huge disapointment...so after promising my kids a lazy river I had to drive an hour north in to Townsend Tennessee where they allow small children to go tubing at the river rat tubing Outpost which was very nice also ...now the whole Fontana village had to share the small pool located near the lodge..and this pool is in bad shape 2.. issue 2 where mice and ants our room had mouse traps everywhere around and other relatives actively Saw mice running around ..our cabin had a triped mouse trap so something was in there.. my brother-in-law in the cabin next to us had ants all over his counter and the ants got into their food and destroyed all of it 3.don't bother Renten the huge fire pit that they charge a lot of money for.. each cabin has a fire pit in front of it ..our cabin was right next to my sisters and we had a huge party in between the two cabins and used the fire pits 4.issue number four was a lot of wannabe race cars racing up and down the streets at night very loud if you're trying to enjoy the nature this might not be the best place for you.. 5.the website says they have a softball field which is a huge joke it's more like a rock pit all the kids wanted to play kickball so we just used the grassy area instead of the unsafe Rocky field.. 6.it seems as if the resort was understaffed certain days the restaurant did not open on time 7.upon checkout I asked to speak with a manager about the lazy River conveniently the manager was in a meeting so the front desk lady gave us the name Meredith for the next few days we've played phone tag with Meredith theto tryry to get a discount about the broken lazy River and all the mice and ant issues finally the last phone message we left we just ask for a discount and then Meredith never returned our calls after that. this could be a nice resort it was 18 years ago when we came for the first family reunions now it seems as they have full-time residents living in trailers on the backside of the village.. 8.no Wi-Fi in the cabins you have to go to the lodge I understand your nature but don't advertise Wi-Fi.. .9.. I get it it's a nature resort but for ants bugs and mice in the room you shouldn't expect people to deal with that and don't try to charge upscale prices for the room ..you can't have both. in the end the kids had fun but for next family reunions we will definitely be choosing another location

We stay here every year for miatas at the gap! I always tell myself to write a great review about the stay/ the cabin/ the staff but I always forget and the wifi is hit/miss. First things first, you are staying in the MIDDLE of the mountains with no signal. It is no ones fault the wifi isnt great sometimes, the staff are working very hard and a little thing such as wifi isnt a huge deal. Though you will get the best wifi in the lodge lobby/common room. We stay in a cabin every year and it's always great. They provide towels/ some hand soaps too. The rubbish is right outside the cabins and the driveway leads right to the front porch.

Early April has up and downsides. Fewer people but some services were closed. The restaurant in the main lobby was closed. One restaurant opened the week we arrived. It was perfectly ready for business. Service was great both times we ate there. Prices are quite reasonable and the food was very good. There is WiFi at the restaurant. The staff of the resort was helpful and pleasant always. Our cabin was roomy enough for 4 but it was just two of us. It was raining that week and it must have driven the ants inside. They were on the kitchen table, sink and counters. There is no WiFi at the cabins and phone service was unavailable. So, DON'T HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY! We didn't. This is being worked on and hopefully will be corrected soon. The surrounding area is a wonder to behold. Take in the sites. The dam and marina staff and facilities were excellent. The car teams are everywhere and loud but all in all a great group of folks having a fine time. The small store had lots of things you might need. Well thought through selections.

This place is run down, dirty (dead bugs in my room), not enough electrical outlets for the lamps in my room, ice machine broken, coffee maker in main lodge broken. The place needs total rehab.

I would like to give them negative stars. I booked a room here for a wedding I was attending. Unfortunately, the wedding was cancelled and I called almost two months prior to my check-in date to cancel. The confirmation email I received when I booked my room stated, "Reservations canceled more than 30 days in advance of arrival will not be penalized." A very unpleasant and borderline rude woman named Erica accused me of lying saying that their policy has always been to charge a cancellation fee. I sent her a copy of my confirmation email to prove I was truthful and was transferred to someone named Danielle who very curtly told me that I had been sent the incorrect email by mistake and that I would be charged. Even though I told them this was illegal since my paperwork said otherwise, they acted completely unbothered with no apologies or attempts made to rectify the situation that was, by their own admittance, THEIR mistake. If this is the way they conduct business before I even arrived, I would never want to stay here as I can only imagine what other scams and false charges they have for their "guests."

First visit this weekend. We came to meet with a car club and had a great time. Rooms are large and clean. This resort is very close to the Appalachian trail and in the Smoky Mountains. This area is popular with auto and motorcycle enthusiasts because it has some of the most beautiful and windy roads in the mountains. Google the Dragon's Tail and the Cherohala Skyway. Room was comfy. Staff was friendly. Food was very good. Location is amazingly beautiful. We intend to come back in the spring. One thing to note. ATT cell phones don't work here. And the WI-FI only really works on the main lodge. So be prepared to be cut off. And have a printed map so you don't have to rely on your phone's gps.

We were here with a group for a convention and we got a three bedroom cabin which was very deluxe and included all the sheets pillows and towels. If you wanted your towels changed each day you would hang it outside over the rail and they would give you a new pile. If you wanted daily cleaning service you had to pay $50 for each day. One bedroom had a king size bed with a large bathroom and that included a Jacuzzi tub and a shower. The second bedroom had a queen size bed and the third bedroom had two twin size beds. There was a second bathroom that included a shower and that bathroom was quite small. There was a washer and dryer a large kitchen area with all appliances and a large living room area. The showerheads were a little tricky to figure out I still don't know that I understood it by our third day there. I actually would just play with the knobs until I got the correct temperature. This resort is very isolated but it has one pretty good restaurant on site. The convention room we were in had a large wooden floor and was very nice but we got a little bit warm in there. we walk to the restaurant the first evening and that was nice but remember to bring a flashlight because it gets very dark there and there aren't lights everywhere. The walk back to our cabin was pretty much straight up hill in the dark so we learned our lesson and drove to the cabin and lodge each time after that.

The beautiful scenery and the hiking is the best part about this place. The cabin we rented, well had more spiders and bugs than we encountered while hiking and the beds were hard as rocks. The pools were closed, ice cream was closed. The restaurant on-site was responsive, quick and pretty good. I think it's time for a makeover for there "cabins" though. There is a lot of potential here with all the beautiful wilderness around, but the conditions of the accommodation definitely would turn visitors away.

Well, we survived the wedding. The resort was not friendly to people with mobility issues at all! When I asked about the A.D.A. they laughed at me. When we went to the lodge to eat I could not get to the dining room from inside of the lodge. I had to go outside and around the building, down a small hill on a knee scooter. I had a hard time controlling the speed of the scooter going down the incline so I had to use the breaks the whole time. I had contacted the event coordinator via email before arriving telling her my concerns with me using crutches and a knee scooter and my wheat gluten allergy. The event coordinator-Tabitha wrote me back telling me it wasn't their fault I broke my foot! I replied with an email telling her I never said it was their fault. This set the tone for the whole event. The customer service was awful in every department even with the check in clerk who couldn't find our reservation and we had prepaid for our accommodations. I am a retired flight attendant who is very well traveled and has stayed in hotels all over the United States, Canada and Europe? I have never had such poor and disrespectful customer service as I did at the Fontana Village Resort. The closet had only four hangers In it, the ironing board was a tabletop child sized which made it hard to iron wedding clothes on. The iron was found in the front door closet not the bedrooms' Closet where you would think it should be. The kitchens were not really stocked for cooking. We never got a fresh towel set in the three days we were there. The cabin had a lot of little things wrong with it which their maintenance should of taken care of. Examples: rubber seal around shower hanging and dragging on floor, no phone service between cabin, to the front desk, or to the outside world but we had a phone in the living room area. If you get seriously ill or hurt, your cell phone won't work. There is no EMS, ambulance service at all in this area. The resort would have to call an emergency ambulance helicopter. You would probably die of a heart attack before it ever arrived. Fontana Village Resort is very remote and almost an hour away from the little town of Bryson City. We had requested a gluten free dinner for myself and a plate for my little cousin who has multiple food allergies worst than mine. They served her chicken which was on the list of things she couldn't eat! When I asked for my plate the chief told me there was gluten free on the buffet to go get that! I am traveling and was afraid of cross contamination of dishes. I can't afford having stomach issues on a cross country flight! The chief told me that there were spoons in each food item that I would be ok. How many of you have seen people switch spoons or use a spoon from another dish which can cause the problem? He got snobby and acted like he knew how I would react and I wouldn't have any problems! This is the kind of chief who probably doesn't really check food labels. I and my little cousin did not eat a single bite for dinner at my daughter's wedding. The resort had beautiful scenery. It could be a top notch place if they spruced up the worn cabins and got a staff who really wanted to please their guest. Food allergies should be taken seriously and people should not act like it is a made up thing in your head. Kindness goes a long way! If there had been any effort to try to accommodate my mobility issues there and the chief had a better attitude, I think it would of made a much more pleasant experience. I would not recommend Fontana Village Resort.

This is the 5th year our Christian Riders Retreat has been held here at Fontana. Because the lodge rooms were completely full, we were booked into one of the Garden Rooms. The rooms themselves are nice. However, the price was the same as the lodge rooms ~ which IMO they should not be! Unfortunately, it rained and because the tiniest coffee pots are in these garden rooms (seriously tiny!), we had to walk in the rain ~ quite a distance ~ before reaching the cover of the lodge to have a cup of coffee vs having rooms and hallways under the cover of the lodge. Second disappointment: the lodge has always had coffee in their lobby. Not anymore! When we inquired at the front desk the not so nice male employee simply said, "Not any more. People wanted them in the rooms." Period. Nothing more. Hmmm...perhaps he missed "customer service" training day :( Third disappointment: we then decided to ride over to the ice cream store to grab a cup of coffee. They were closed! So we then rode to the Wildwood Grill for a simple cup of coffee. They were closed! Neither of these places open until 9am. Most disappointing because people do want to drink their coffee and get on the road early.

I came here as a hiker last minute and it was wonderful. The price was perfect for 4 hikers to split (about $20/pp, and there is laundry!) The lodge feels very nice for a hiker, and everyone treated us superbly. Beats the Fontana "Hilton" any day (having towels when you shower is amazing). They treat hikers with such respect, it is in great contrast to some of the hostels we've stayed at in Franklin and Hiawassee. Bottom line, stay here. You won't regret it. It's a great place to recharge before the Smokies.

Our cabin was great. We loved it. The front desk people were great too. We were there for my sons wedding which was also outstanding. The only reasons for the 4 star rating was the orange mustang group and the porche group that were there. They were extremely rude taking up several parking spots for each car, reving their engines up and down all the streets at all hours, running stop signs, and just rude. Also the wildwood grill service was awful. We waited at our table for 45 minutes and a waitress never came. We finally left. They are extremely unorganized at the restaurant. If I ever do come back I would just cook in my cabin. Food is hard to get because that is the only option for lunch and dinner.

You do not go to this place for its modern amenities, cell service, or WiFi, but if you can live without those things you'll have a great time. We go with our car club every year and while the cabins could use furniture upgrades and paved driveways they have everything we need. The general store has ice cream for hot days. There is a gas station on site since the closest town is 30 mins away. There is a pool, putt putt, car wash stations, and bonfire pits. The biggest downfall is the grill. They have not figured out how to deal with the rush of a big crowd. We believe they would do better buffet style.

I have been coming to Fontana Village for years off and on. It is a great place to go on a family vacation. We have only been in the summer. The 4th of July show is unbelievable. Sadly they took out the big water slide and pool a few years back. The lazy river is nice but our kids ride the water slide all day long back in the day. There is no cell phone service but you can get wifi coverage at places in the village. It is a great place to escape from it all. We cooked our own meals when coming but have indulged in ice cream several times and have always been pleased. Have stayed in Cabins and camped. The campground bathroom is a little iffy but usable. Bottom line if you are expecting lush 5 star accommodations you are in the wrong place. This place is simple, nice, relaxing and beautiful.

We rented the Willow cabin. Don't expect much; it's a prefab tiny home; the toilet seat wobbled (it's sitting on a piece of wood and the seat was loose and kept sliding around ; it's in a bit of disrepair....and the cabin was not clean! Webs and dirt between the bed & the wall.....ick.

My husband and I have ridden our motorcycles in this area for a long time but never stopped at the lodge. I am glad that changed, because this is an amazing place. From the moment you walk in you can feel the warmth of the lodge sucking you in and removing your stress. The front desk staff were welcoming and very knowledgeable when explaining where every thing is located on the grounds. We rented one of the Sweetheart rooms and were not disappointed. The first thing I noticed was the cleanliness of the room which was on par with what you would expect from a resort. The Jacuzzi was clean and did not disappoint. We have stayed in places with a Jacuzzi before and there was always something a bit off about it, but not this one. The bed was also comfortable, but the pillows left a bit to be desired. This may just be a personal preference. It was chilly enough when we were there that we walked to the General Store and bought a Duraflame log to burn that evening. The fireplace is a great addition to the room and very enjoyable. We also purchased a couple of hoodies since neither of us were prepared for chilly weather. Attached to the General Store is an ice cream shop serving Mayfield ice cream. You can't go wrong here! We dined at the Mountainview Restaurant for breakfast which consisted of a well-stocked, clean buffet with a nice selection of breakfast items. Stacey was our server and she was fantastic. She was very personable and talked about how much she enjoyed working there, which says quite a bit about the owner and the establishment itself. For lunch we dined at the Wildwood Grill which was also pretty good. We both highly encourage you to visit the lodge. You will not be disappointed. We are already planning a return trip for us as well as a family trip for next year. There are cabins available that would be suitable for families and grilling/cooking is allowed here, unlike in the lodge. There is plenty to do onsite so you will never be bored! We also took advantage of the hiking trails around the lodge which is where we spent the majority of one of our days. You may even run into the hunting dogs that roam around. One stuck with us on the trail for about two hours. She was awesome.

We stayed here a week in 1716, a 2 bdrm 2 bath cabin with a fireplace. It was nice to have a fire every night since the temperature ranged from 18 degrees to the low 30's. They start you off with your first bundle of wood with a little starter, and it's $4 a bundle after that, and they deliver it to you. The front desk staff was very attentive and responsive to our needs, and friendly as well. One of the nicest things about the resort is that they have a good number of hiking trails on the property, and there was a trail head steps behind our cabin. The restaurant at the lodge was just okay, and since we're foodies, I can't recommend it. You will definitely need to have all your groceries, drinks, and gas before you arrive, because the Pitstop charges $1.20 per gallon more than the next closest station, and they mostly sold snacks and hot food like hotdogs. The grocery on site is closed during the winter, and the front desk clerk said the closest grocery store was 35 miles away. I don't think it was quite that far, but I'm sure you know what I'm saying. If you're wondering why I gave 3 stars, it's because there was no wifi available in our cabin. We were told it could be spotty from day to day, but we had zero. I think for the size of this resort, they could spring for a router, especially for families with children and people like me that rely on internet service. Zero cell service too. I had to put all my winter gear on and walk 2 streets down to get reception in a pinch, or drive or walk down to the lodge to catch up on email and social media. It was inconvenient, and that's a 2 star deduction for me.

We had a wonderful experience at Fontana Village. The cabins are very nice and clean. The air conditioner worked great in our cabin which was very nice due to the humidity outside. There is lots to do, including a great pool area geared toward kids with a shallow area for littles and a lazy river with a plethora of tubes. There is a cute general store and ice cream shop. While we were there, they hosted a bluegrass festival which was quite fun. There are outdoor BBQ areas to host bigger groups getting together. We went for a family reunion weekend, and it turned out very nice. Tip: bring your own pillow if you care about that sort of thing.

My first and last stay. 1. There is no pool or lazy river. Both were closed. 2. Only one restaurant which is completely under staffed. 2hour wait for a meal and then the order comes wrong. 3. Toilet barely flushes and seems like it's falling out of the wall 4. No cell service (understandable) but the phone in the room also does not work. Need ice ? NOPE ! Not without hiking or driving to the lodge the ice machine is also broke. The ice cream shop? CLOSED. The little store ? CLOSED. I could have had the same "amenities" at a roadside hotel. The floor of our room was also so dirty I had to throw my socks away.

Money comes before customer service here. If there are parts of the resort that you paid to enjoy are out of commission (i.e. lazy river, etc), you will not receive a partial refund or credit to future stay. Recommend another location nearby.

My husband and I stayed here this past weekend and I feel that I need to leave a review, There were some major good things and there were some minor bad things so I wanted to give a very detailed review so if you want to visit you have all the information to make a decision on this Resort. Pros: We had the sweetheart suite and it was a large lovely room by the pool with a big Jacuzzi and a cute stone Fireplace. If you come in the colder months I think that Fireplace would be wonderful. The windows and door were quite nice so we did not hear our neighbors much and that is an essential for me. Room was clean and there was an extra blanket if you got chilly at night. There is Thankfully a fridge in this room. The Grounds around the hotel offer lots of day time things to do. At night there is a fire pit so great to hang out or meet new people. Cons: 1. The A/C In our room was running at full capacity on an 85 degree day and our room never did get very cool. 2. Their pillows were the worst thing I have ever slept on, Lumpy, bumpy, and tiny, they gave us 5 pillows but 2 piled together still did not give enough support, Next time I will buy pillows on the way so I wasn't in constant neck pain in the 3 days we were driving around the Dragon etc.. 3. Saddest coffee maker I have ever seen and NOTHING opens until 8 am to get a cup of coffee.. for those of us that want to hit the road early, having things around the grounds open at 8 and 9 is inconvenient. 4. The remote on our TV would not do volume or change channels. 5. It says they have wifi but the connection was terrible unless you were standing right next to the Lodge where you check in. Expect to be pretty disconnected the whole time you are here. We did eat at the Wood-fire Grill which had excellent French fries and great staff. The staff overall was Friendly and nice and when we left an item of clothing behind after we left they did go and find it so we could have a friend pick it up. Overall I would recommend this for a fun weekend of driving the mountains. If you want a Full Concierge and room service this might not be the right place for you.

What a lovely gem in the NC mountains. While its not a posh, luxury resort, it gets 5 stars for having much more than expected for the price and an all around lovely experience. We stayed in the lodge on the 2nd floor facing the pool and limited smokey mountain view. Lodge Pros: friendly hotel staff. All were fantastic! The rooms were clean, well maintained/repaired, and comfortable. I liked the clean white sheets and down comforter. Despite other reviews, the pillows were comfy, so I'm assuming they are new. Coffee, tea, water, and cookies in the lobby. Excellent restaurant on site with great mountain view. Pool wasn't crowded. Lodge Cons: not many, but the bathroom is older and small. No counter space. The village Pros: so much to do!! We enjoyed putt putt, disc golf, golf cart rentals, smores, pools, lazy river and square dancing. The marina was neat and the sunset cruise tour was worth every penny and more. The lake is beautiful with the surrounding mountains. Free WiFi for the entire village which is necessary without cell service. Cons: disc golf course does not actually accommodate golf carts well due to the terrain. I thought there could have been more activities especially for younger children given the number of recreation staff, and the rec staff could have been livelier as I got the feeling they were already bored/burnt out by mid July. I would have also liked more nature/history/educational programming. Maybe a story or nature tidbit along with smores since the staff are already there anyway. Tips: Book early and ask for a discount when booking your room. Mon-thur in mid july wasn't busy at all, but I think we missed any big groups coming through too. Meals in the lodge are large, don't order too much. Hot dogs at the gas station are decent, and staff are great. Definitely go on the Sunset cruise at the marina!

My family has been visiting Fontana Village for 45 years. We had grown to love this place. However, for the past 10 years we have seen a steady decline in the resort, the management and the overall customer service in general. The fact that the general manager changes hands on a yearly basis could have something to do with this. Every year we get our group of 100+ people together to vent our pros/cons and the following year there is new management and yet we see no changes. The cabins are run down and we still see no results. Last year we had to be moved from our cabin to another location because we were infested with termites. This year we didn't have termites, but we did have a broken kitchen table, ants, hardly any pots and pans, no screen door, leaky ceiling, etc., etc. The floors were so dirty you could not dare take your shoes off, but that is always the case. The cabin is supposed to sleep six, but for some reason, they always put four towels and two wash clothes in the cabins. I still have not figured that one out. We ALWAYS have to drive down to the lodge and ask for extra towels. Oh, yeah, and two rolls of toilet tissue for a week. Even with the horrible conditions that we pay almost $300 a night for, we tried to book to come back for next year. You see we have been coming for 45 years. We meet the same group of friends every year, same week. Like I said, we come for the people, not the place anymore. When we tried to book, they once again told us they had all of the three bedroom cabins blocked off for a group, who in the heck knows what group. Well, this time, I decided enough is enough. We didn't book. After 45 years, we are not going back. We are looking for a new place. There has to be somewhere out there where we can gather as a group that has a lake, clean updated cabins, volleyball court (with a ball), hiking, an ice cream shop (and maybe it will stay open past 8:00 pm), a workable laundry mat, recreation hall (they let you use and don't keep locked), friendly staff. I mean come on people. Let's face it, the only reason people are staying here are to drive the Dragon Tail. It's certainly not for the overpriced food at the grill. The pizza oven was broke. You could only get a few select items, and they were horrible. The putt-putt course had half the lights burnt out and full of debris. They claim to offer golf carts, but I believe they had maybe three or four that were actually working. Oh, to go back twenty or thirty years when Fontana was a true vacation paradise. People just don't care anymore.

Furthest thing from a resort! This place is plagued with problems that get worse every year. For about 8 years now we have been coming here only due to the location. The location is the absolute only reason our group continues to deal with the massive amount of problems year after year. To start, reservations are always a nightmare. We book sometimes a year out and still have issues with members of our group showing up to check in and finding out they don't have a cabin or room. Have been told multiple times they have no cabins, or they are out of certain ones and a week later had other group members book those cabins. Nobody doing reservations seems to ever have a clue what they are doing and there is always issues. Even times when we make the reservation and actually lock in a cabin number "usually to stay with our group" we have been moved around sometimes to the other side of the park completely cut off from the rest of our group. The cabins themselves are completely outdated, minimally maintained and basically falling apart. I wouldn't really call them cabins, more like an old 1970's single wide. They are all extremely dim lit, which is probably done to ensure you don't notice all of the issues. I don't think any of them have more than a 40 watt bulb installed and you're lucky if any one room has more than a single light source. Don't use the ceiling fans as they will probably fall off if you turn them on high. The rooms are dirty and moldy. Cleaning crews do the minimum, sweep/vacuum and wipe counters. That's about all. Bathrooms are usually moldy from lack of upkeep and usually the exhaust fans don't work. The AC on these units can barely get the rooms down to about 77 degrees in the summer days, if they work at all. Kitchenettes in them usually consist of a somewhat functionally falling apart oven, A dishwasher that sounds like dump truck, $5 coffee machine and toaster, dirty microwave "if functional" and a refrigerator with all of the racks in the door being broken and a freezer with a broken ice maker. They also include the absolute bare minimum Dollar Store bought plates, cups, pots/pans, etc. Wooden porches and decks are usually rotting away and falling apart so don't stand out on them for too long. At least the bathroom towels were clean.... As for this "Resorts" amenities... Let's go down some of the list. Free Internet - Free is the only accurate word. You're free to find it. You lucky if it works. Whomever set this thing up should be shot for incompetence. 90% of the grounds are not covered and the 10% that is is so slow and connection is so flakey.. best to not even bother trying to use it. Pool - The lounge pool is somewhat small and falling apart. Floor is cracked all up, lounge chairs poolside are all junk. The main pool/lazy river - main pool is more for kids and the lazy river is somewhat nice. They have not had pool floats for the river in many years so bring your own. Again the lounge chairs and all junk and falling apart. This year for our trip the pool and lazy river was completely closed. Citing a pipe had broken and only posting a sign on the pool gate that it would be open in two days, then stating is would be closed for a couple weeks. No notice was sent out to guests until a couple days later. Their idea of a solution was to have staff pass out flyers on a golf cart to guests with directions to the beachfront 43 miles away.... Managements excuse was that things like this happen. This again was negligence in regards to maintenance for the pool. Even though they denied any maintenance issues on their part, pipes encased in concrete do not randomly break unless you fail to properly maintain the overall system. As they already have a history of not maintaining anything and just waiting for things to break, this just adds to it. The restaurant food is not worth what you'll pay for it. Especially the breakfast bar which mostly tastes like instant eggs and cardboard. Wait staff at breakfast is usually pretty rude. The general store falls in line with the rest. Outdated, falling apart and dim lit. I worry how many items they have that are years past their expiration dates. I'm sure the ice and beer are the only things that rotate enough to not have to question. An idea on how well this place is run, a guest in lodge had their room fire alarm randomly go off. Front desk was called and supposedly maintenance was sent to fix it as it would not shut off. 6 hours later is was still going off and nobody had shown up. Fontana Village is sub-motel quality, run by bad management with questionable experience running a resort, that is completely un-maintained/un-funded, surviving strictly off of its location.

We visited in November, week of Thanksgiving. Very quiet around here. One couple, we stayed in a 2-bed, 2-bath cabin that "sleeps 6" and our friends from Asheville will arrive for a couple of nights. It will be tight - the "kitchen", while pretty well stocked, is quite small and it is in open area with the dining room table and living room. It's clean and staff have been very nice to us. Not 5 star- more like simple, sufficient. Everything works. Bedroom closets are fine, only a couple of hangers, so we put our coats on shelves. One has two beds, one has a queen. Quite sufficient. There is no cell phone service. We could get wifi in the cabin with varying degrees of consistency, which was fine. It was, as another reviewer said, "a great place to escape from it all." We, too, cooked our own meals and we hope to make one meal at the dining room later this week. We hiked several of the listed hikes from the front desk - they have a nice map and the signage along the way in the woods is pretty reliable. We liked the "lookout rock" hike best - could see Fontana Dam from way up on the ridge. Nice 2 1/2 hr hike. As previous reviewer said, "This place is simple, nice, relaxing and beautiful." thanks, Fontana Village.

We reserved a cabin at Fontana Village in December last year for a wedding in April. With the coronavirus pandemic happening, the bride and groom decided to cancel their wedding to ensure all family and friends stay safe and healthy! Fontana Village does have a cancellation policy and under normal circumstances I would totally agree and understand about not getting my deposit back. But these are not normal circumstances. Not sure of the lady's name who answers the phone at reservation but she is extremely rude and wouldn't even let me get a word in edge wise. The wedding party has not rescheduled the wedding so my only option I was told I had, rudely, was a gift card or lose my money. Why would I need a gift card? Because with them not even helping the wedding party out during this time by giving them at least a portion of their deposit back, why would I want to spend my money there. During times like this, you can truly tell the compassionate companies from the heartless ones. Well done Fontana Village!

Eveything has been great - with the exception of no microwaves in the rooms or mini fridges. Which turns out to be okay because the wildwood grill restaurant was amazing. Hippie burger is where its at. Still wanted a microwave for popcorn though

We stayed here last week on a road trip. We didn't expect the Omni, and knew it's the off season so all of the amenities wouldn't be available, so I'm being reasonable. The good- the views are incredible. We drove north on Moonshiner 28, and the next day south on the Tail of the Dragon when we left. Just gorgeousness all the way. We stayed at Fontana because they have a disc golf course and this was a dg road trip. The course was okay, not the best or worse I've been to. The lobby of the main building is very lodge-y and comfy. There was only wifi in the lobby so it was the popular place to be. This is also a Sierra Club meeting place and there were a lot of hikers around. The not-so-good to bad- The food was kind of ick. We ordered fried green tomatoes and some of them were STILL FROZEN in the middle. That was the app, and nothing else came frozen but we were wary. I had breakfast the next morning, and heartburn all day. (I don't have heartburn problems.) The ugly- there were dirty drippy hand prints in the shower. I have never seen such a dirty hotel bathroom. I didn't even wash my hair in the shower, and wished I'd brought my flip flops. Just jump in, wash the butt, jump out. What the cleaning ladies could have been doing at an empty lodge in April besides actually CLEANING, is beyond me. Totally gross. Next time, we will just find an open campground. I bet the bathroom would be cleaner.

I came down here with a group of 18 cars from all over the northeast to drive the famous Dragon and other local roads for a week. I stayed in one of the cabins and others stayed at the lodge. The room was clean and well kept. WiFi is only available in the lobby of the main lodge however so keep this in mind for those that need to stay connected. My Verizon phone had no service here as well. This was perfect as it forced me to interact with my fellow travelers even though I was one of the main organizers of this trip. The Bistro in the lodge did a great job of accommodating the group during our stay and there were no complaints from anyone regarding the food or service. Can't say much about the other amenities of the place, no one used them. We were there to drive and we drove the piss out of our cars. I had the pleasure of seeing more than one passenger retching on the side of the road after a few passes. With the right car and proper alcohol content the previous evening, the local roads are the best for doing this!

I drove from Fort Worth Texas to Fontana Village Resort for MINIs on the Dragon 9 !!! the Cabins are wonderful! this place is very relaxing! and driving the dragon was a hoot!!! I could not get any cell phone service at the Village! I had to drive up to the top of the Dam and then I could use my cell phone!!! but its so fun driving to the top of the Dam a lot of twisty!!!! I would recommend Fontana Village Resort to anyone looking for a great place to sleep,eat and play!!!

Not recommended. This place caters to car shows. Loud cars zipping up and down the road all day long with loud, growling engines. Total disregard for people walking in the road. Good luck sitting on the porch of your cabin and enjoying.

So the area to beautiful and the location is nice, but my actually stay at this place was not the best. It's nice that there is a big lake nearby and that its in the smokey mountain foothills. The amenities that come with your stay here sound good. Pool access, mini golf, arcade room, and a bunch of other things if you sign up for their group package. I came here for a 4 days, 5 night say with a big group (about 50 people). We got non of the group stuff that they promised and when we ask they also said they would talk to the faceless supervisor. The arcade room is litter rotting away. The only think that half way works is the air hokey. The foosball table was all messed up in so many ways, all the paddles for ping ping were broken or breaking and you had to scavenge for balls that don't bounce well. All the "arcade games" we're out of order or just broken. It still turned on. The polls were ok. The general store was nice but over priced. The gas station nearby was about $.70 more than nearest city which was about a 40 min drive through the tail of the dragon. But you don't come here to be close to a city, you come here to relax and get into nature, so that wasn't a big deal. The mini golf was way way dated and need maintenance. When we got there to check into our room they would let us check in until 4...ok no big deal but that was extended until like 5:30!! A few of our groups room were given away the day before we got there even though we had reserved them over a year in advanced to that we could all be next to each other. They just gave the room away for these people that decides to stay there on a whim...not good business. They didn't upgrade any of there room, just moved them away from everyone else In the group. The rooms are another story completely. Not updated, the floors were stained in the bathroom, barely any hot water, the vents in all the rooms vent from the ground, which is not usually a big deal, but the vents were in annoying places like in the middle of the kitchen or living room. Like what the heck. To top it off there was no signal anywhere and wifi was spotty at best...but once again that's not a big deal because you go to a place like this to get away from things like that. All in all I did not enjoy my time there very much, but I did enjoy the time with my extended family!!

I've stayed here three times over the past few years - in both the lodge and the cabins while visiting to drive on local roads. This became our place to stay after our normal spot closed, and while I definitely miss that spot, I didn't think it was so bad until this past weekend. Every single time it's been part of a large group, and they're pretty accommodating. They even put up with us standing around in front of their lodge at 10pm drinking beer last year. Thankfully this year since they reserved a group of cabins together for us, we had a fire pit on Friday night....the only problem being they changed it to on us to one further away from our group of cabins. Not really a big deal but bad planning. Our previous problem was that not everyone was nearby. Some of us stayed in the lodge, the cabins were spread around, and some people were even camping. The group reservation is definitely the way to go, even though still we had too many people for what we had booked in cabins. There's a ton of stuff to do beyond drive around on curvy roads and hike outside of the resort. They have a couple of pools, a mini golf course, a general store, and even their own gas station. There are a couple restaurants on site too, and you are better off going into Robbinsville to eat. Seriously. I have never had a good experience at either restaurant, mainly because they seem to have no idea how to deal with large groups. The grill just all around is pretty blah, they couldn't get our pizza order right. It's not as bad though as the bistro. The bistro inside the lodge is a fancier type of restaurant with steaks that are awful. Worst steak I ever had, and one guy with us had to send his back because they overcooked it...and then the very next one was still overcooked, but by that time he just wanted to eat. The server was terrible and didn't care whatsoever, probably because he knew he'd get a nice tip without doing much. It's also overpriced as hell from a breakfast buffet to those steaks. Surprising that none of us ate there this year, right? And this place was going to get 3 stars from me until I got there this weekend. This year, my boyfriend had to book a lodge room Thursday night as our cabin reservation was not until Friday, when we were originally going to come up. It took forever to get it, and then the people in our cabin didn't even check out until an hour and a half past the check out time. We had to keep moving our stuff around to our friends' places, same as Thursday when we couldn't get in our freaking room until after 4. They pretty much screwed us out of 2 days worth of fun driving because of this. The regular cabins suck, to be honest. We ended up going to Maryville to get a non-disgusting blanket for our bed just to not have to deal with the front desk people anymore (worth it). The tubs are made for people under 5' 6" that's for sure. They barely provide you with anything if you want to make food in there, although remarkably there is a dishwasher. The guy in charge of our meet got what they called a member cabin though...freaking thing had better appliances than my apartment.

Lodge is very reasonably priced, and they gave us quite a bit of freedom to roam around and have a few brews. It really is the perfect combination of everything - well maintained cabins, beautiful location, and a lazy river. Didn't use the tiny TV (who needs tv in a place like this?) and the bed was a bit stiff. Only real ding is that they have multiple WiFi locations around the park, but none of them have a stable enough connection to do anything more than get a few emails at a time before it cuts out again.

It's a bit rustic, but generally clean and the service is good. I find the food at the restaurant here better than one might expect. Wish they had better wifi, but we are here for the roads.