Riverside Resort — Hotel in Cherokee Village

I don’t normally waste my time writing reviews though I do use them when buying goods and services. I must share my bad experience with Riverside Resort yesterday. My brother-in-law Tim has fished and stayed at Riverside for decades and he chose this place to rendezvous. You see he was bringing his 88 year old disabled mother to stay with his sister Cindy and I for a week in Mountain Home. So the plan was to fish at Riverside for a couple of hours and depart. After Tim had driven 3 hours from Tennessee the Riverside gate attendant who was nice btw informed us they are no longer doing day passes during holiday weekends which are normally $7. He said we would have to pay for 3 nights of camping each which would have been around a $100 for a couple hours of fishing. Btw the day passes are clearly advertised on their website and there is another statement that includes come just for the day idea. So we decided to drive a few miles up the road to a public access up the river called Dam#3. My mother-in-law wanted to watch Tim catch trout for a few minutes Being disabled she uses a walker forcing her to stay on pavement. We set up a camp chair for her at the edge of the payment to overlook the fishing hole. FYI there was plenty of room for vehicular traffic. So we were sitting there enjoying the view when here comes a Riverside van pulling a trailer too fast and swerved so close to us that it came within 12” to 14” of our chairs almost hitting us. I got up to confront the Riverside on how dangerous he was driving and he just started using the F word and and saying he was watching his mirrors. This clearly told me he didn’t like us sitting there and was trying to make a malicious point by purposely driving close to us to scare us. I called the resort owners and they apologized and said this employee was not good with people. I tried to get his name but he wouldn’t tell me. To be more vindictive, the driver then called Arkansas Game and Fish to try and get us “in trouble” which btw he cowardly left the scene before the game warden arrived. So to compound the situation the driver caused, now he was wasting state resources for a problem he created. Btw The game warden was very professional and nice and understood my elderly mother-in-law’s situation immediately. So after having two bad experiences in about an hour with Riverside Resort and their irresponsible driver, I in no way can recommend them and suggest a more friendly environment with more...

I know this place well! I am personal friends with the family who owns and operates this beautiful campground and resort that lies along the Spring River that feeds out of Mammoth Spring State Park. This facility offers cabins of different sizes and accomodations, RV sites and tent camping facilities. Sites have fire rings to build a campfire to warm yourself by or make your favorite treats like hotdogs and smores. Please don't bring your own wood for it is kept there and can be bought there for a very low fee. There are onsite bath houses and bathrooms and a store that offers most anything you may need. The facility also offers floating trips with the availability of rafts, canoes and kayaks. These are offered at different prices depending on what water excursion you choose to take. Floaters are provided life jackets and paddles to go along with their water craft and then are taken by bus to Dam 3 near Mammoth Spring and unloaded into the water to begin their fun filled day of floating the beautiful Spring River. There are also places to swim, like the creek adjacent to the spring or in the spring itself. A particularly great place to swim is at the boat take out. There are many great family oriented things to do at Riverside, they have a volleyball court, horseshoe pits, nice gravel roads for kids to ride their bicycles and plenty of room to play other games they may bring. You can enjoy watching the wildlife (deer) as they often come out especially in the evening and graze. They also offer during the summer season a 24/7 security team for your safety. The store opens on the weekends around 7am and stays open till 10. During the week the hours vary, but if you need something normally someone from the office will attempt to accommodate you. The owners are Sonny and Susan Chaffin, and their youngest daughter Andrea run the facility along with a plethora of hand chosen individuals to make up a great staff. Come on down to Riverside Resort and Campground, you will make it your spot of choice. I recommend...

What an amazing place - owned by an amazing family! This was my first visit and I will certainly be planning more trips in the future. I stayed a few nights in a small cabin down by the river. It had a full size bed, a bunk bed and an air conditioning unit, which I was thankful for. Be sure to bring your own linens and of course towels, etc. They have a large shower house with seemingly endless warm showers, which were always clean and very well maintained. They have a well stocked and reasonably priced camp store with just about everything you could have forgotten or didn't realize you needed or wanted. ABSOLUTELY NO PETS! They will turn you around if you bring a pet with you - no exceptions! This is true of most all the river resorts in that area.

This place is perfect for a lone getaway, a family, or a large to very large group. They have tons of cabins - some with a full kitchens etc., RV sites, and lots of tent camping sites as well. They also sell day passes so you can enjoy the river and fish, etc. They rent large river rafts, kayaks and canoes, and have multiple buses and passenger vans to shuttle groups of all sizes for a very reasonable fee. This place is truly a gem and is situated in a beautiful part of the river. I brought my bible and my paddle board and had an amazing few days! I highly recommend this resort - hands down a 5 star...