Lake Murray Lodge — Hotel in Ardmore

Management integrity issues here.

My stay was yesterday through Wednesday, August the 7th for a planned family vacation with people that we do not get to see often. While our stay has been wonderful thus far, this morning took a turn to reveal some true issues with management.

This morning, August 5th, at about 10 am, a low-hanging power line near the camp office was struck by a Coca-cola truck, leaving a large portion of the campsite without power. It is now 6 PM and still no power restored. Additionally, It is 94 degrees leaving Women, Children, and families with no choice but to stay outside of the cabin due to the excessive heat. Since the cabins only provide a mini fridge (not a full size refrigerator) there was large amounts of meat and other produce that we were keeping cool inside the cabin with ice, which was no problem with coolers and an air conditioned room. Without power, we were not able to keep those items cool either, forcing us to leave our afternoon at the cabins as a family, purchase dinner (which we had not planned to do), and find air conditioned facilities to enjoy the afternoon elsewhere until power was restored. I have a background in business and customer care and understand that all of these issues can happen. I was also taught that in these cases, the right thing to do is to empower leadership and management to take control and facilitate customer satisfaction. We very politely approached the staff to ask for a refund for today ONLY for our inconveniences, and politely asked to speak to a manager. We were told by a very rude staff that the manager was not there and had left for the day. After asking a few more pointed questions about the refund process, Michael Cooley gets out of a chair in the lobby that he was sitting in during the entire conversation. He immediately states with a very rude, stern tone of voice, “ I’m not refunding anybody. We didn’t cause this.” First of all, it was obvious that a dishonest staff misled us to believe he wasn’t there, when the chair he got out of was in direct sight line of the employees there. Secondly, it was obvious that he was not only there, but listening in to our conversation without offering to come introduce himself or anything. We were told from Michael in addition to not compensating us for any of our stay that the resort is state owned, which is also not true as there is private owner information posted in the cabins.

This was a poor, sad example of leadership and management that should take ownership and lead the way to customer satisfaction in issues like this, not hide behind un-informed employees that are not empowered or trained to handle the above mentioned issues.

It is 7 PM and we are currently still sitting in the driveway of our cabin with no power, and no answers or empathy at all from...

The Cabin Crawl: My Bedbug Horror at Lake Murray Lodge:

I came to Lake Murray Lodge expecting a peaceful getaway by the lake. What I walked into felt more like the beginning of a horror movie than a vacation. From the second we opened the door, something felt off. The air was stale, heavy with mildew and something else… something rotten. The place looked like it hadn’t been properly cleaned in weeks—dusty corners, sticky floors, stains on the sheets. But nothing could prepare us for what came next. I pulled back the covers on the bed, and there they were. Bedbugs. Alive. Moving. Crawling across the mattress like they owned the place. I froze. In shock. Then disgust. Then panic. We immediately contacted the front desk. A maintenance guy showed up, glanced at the bed, and with a shrug said: “Yeah, we know about them.” No surprise, no urgency—just business as usual. As if this infestation was a routine part of staying at the lodge. When I pressed further, a staff member let it slip that an attorney had already been involved in the issue. That’s when it hit me: they’ve known about this. For a while. And they’re still renting out these cabins to unsuspecting guests. And it’s not just the bugs. The whole place felt neglected. The bathrooms were grimy, the boats had mechanical problems (which, again, staff casually admitted had been happening for a while), and the general attitude from the team was a weird mix of denial and “it is what it is.” If you’ve never dealt with bedbugs, I urge you to do a quick search. They’re not just a nuisance—they’re a psychological and financial nightmare. They follow you home, infest your furniture, and take months (and thousands of dollars) to get rid of. And now, because of this place, that fear is real for me. The most horrifying part wasn’t the bugs. It was then that I realized the lodge knew about the issue and chose to say nothing. No warning, no apology, no urgency. Just silence and a vague promise to “look into it.” Final Word: Don’t Risk It If you’re thinking about staying here, do yourself a favor and don’t. No vacation is worth the mental and physical toll this kind of infestation brings. You deserve better, and you shouldn’t have to bring home literal parasites from what’s supposed to be a relaxing getaway. They can try to downplay it, they can dodge responsibility—but the truth is out there now. You’ve...

I'll start with the lodge is newer and rooms were nice. The view is right on the water! Beds very comfortable. Parking is plenty. The pool was really fun. It had a ramp if you need help walking in or out of a pool. The kids area looked really fun. The lake rental place is right there with a little of everything to do! Great place to bring the kids.

My grip is mostly with housekeeping. Our room looked half cleaned when we arrived. Bed was made (thank goodness!). Floor had crushed chips, glass door to the water view had 20+ hand prints on it. NO towels. Call the desk right as we walked in at 4pm they said they would send someone. After 2 hours passed, I called again at 6pm. They said housekeeping was gone for the day. Thankfully they had towels at the front desk. We only had a 2 day visit. But I did expect housekeeping to make the bed, vacuum the chips and clean the glass the next day (especially since we called twice the day before). NOPE. They only brought us towels. I almost forgot...we ran out of toilet paper!! In all my travel I've never had that problem. Seriously?! POOR HOUSEKEEPING!!

In the other room we had the previous guest had left french fries for the stray cat. This brought a bunch of ants to the patio. I think housekeeping should of broomed those away. That shouldn't of been my job.

If you are chilly ask for blanket (in one room, not the other). We had older people with us who were cold with the a/c on. The A/C was great in both rooms!

On our first night we dined at the Blue Heron. HUGE MISTAKE! Dinner was a buffet. It was like if you went to the dollar store and bought frozen meals. Maybe if you were 5 you might want corn dogs and bad chicken strips. Even the soda was flat. It was horrible! Friends who had been here a month before us said they waited 30 mins for a side of bacon. So obviously this restaurant needs some help!

Overall if housekeeping had done their job our visit would of been a lot better. I hope the management gets the restaurant and housekeeping worked out so everything...