Pine Terrace Resort — Hotel in Crosslake

I took my family to Pine Terrace Resort for the first time this past summer. I found their website the previous winter and hopped at the chance to reserve cabin 10 over Fourth of July weekend. My wife and I had our two-year-old son with us and we also had my mom and stepfather stay for a few nights as well. We loved everything about our cabin. It was at the end of the property and very private. It had plenty of space for two couples and a small child. ||||Shortly after checking in, I made a run into Crosslake for some supplies. It wasn't until I saw the madness on the Whitefish Chain (between Rush and Crosslake) that I realized that it was actually the Fourth of July! You'd never have known it if you'd stayed within the quiet confines of Pine Terrace Resort. Star Lake isn't attached to the Whitefish Chain, and there is no public access, so the lake is very quiet, clean, and peaceful. I couldn't believe how wild and secluded it felt despite being very close to the most popular chain of lakes in the state. ||||One of my favorite things about the resort is the hiking trails. I took my son on a nice long nature walk. We never saw another person back there. All we could hear was the wind in the trees and the birds singing. My son had an absolute blast back there.||||Another family friendly feature of the resort is the playground and the beach. They also have kayaks, canoes and paddle boats available for use, along with life jackets and oars. My son wasn't old enough for it yet, but the water trampoline seemed very popular with the bigger kids. ||||We rented a pontoon with a 40 hp motor for the length of our stay. It was nice to be able to putt around the lake, teach my son how to fish, and point out the loons. My only complaint would be the lack of chairs on the pontoon. It had basic plastic lawn chairs, but nothing particularly good for lounging. I can't complain too badly though as the modest weekly rental rate included gas and saved me the headache of bringing my own boat. ||||One word of caution for those that intend to bring their own boat (as my step dad did). Make sure you keep your boat out of any lakes that are infested with zebra mussels for at least 10 days before bringing it to Pine Terrace. You'll be asked about where your boat has been and when it was there. You can't blame them. They have a clean gem of a lake and their business depends on it not getting infested. ||||Speaking of the lake, our cabin neighbors caught a ton of bass during their stay. I hadn't fished in years, but I did manage to snag a couple of bass and a northern during our stay. Steve can help give you some advice on lures, spots, and techniques for finding fish. The office is loaded with pictures of past guests and their catch.||||We plan to come back again next year and will have a baby with us this time around. We hope to bring some other family members along for a night or too as well. We promise not to show up before...

The place itself is great however there are a few things I didn't like. There were no towels in the cabin or soap for the dishwasher. Even if there is a little extra charge, it's about the convenience of not having to go get some. The cabin we were in sleeps 30 people at $x amount per night, but the owner, after seeing the family, told us that after the first 10 people, he charges per person even though it sleeps 30 people. There is no indication of this rule anywhere except on the website (we still didnt see it). There's ridiculous rules like not being able to swim underwater in "episodes" and not allowed to have jetskis even if the wake is a half mile out. He lied to our faces saying he doesnt allow them cause of the noise (theyre actually pretty quiet) then switched it up saying hes never allowed them. He then said we cant use it because it was in a contaminated lake (we had it decontaminated and we even told him that) but he allows any other watercraft without checking if it was in a contaminated lake. Owner is overall very weird and makes weird comments/jokes. We found that after swimming in the lake for a bit we'd keep getting water in our nose and ears (this happened rarely in other lakes but happened every time in this lake) and also would feel very ill and groggy afterwards. Would not recommend this place to anyone who is looking for a fun experience, it could be okay for people who just want to relax in a boat or something (the beach is very small). He also charges for people who just came to visit, regardless of how long they stayed there whether it be a day or just 2 hours. They did have ping pong, volleyball, and use of kayaks and other watercraft but the owners rules and regulations along with the lack of convenience made this a bad experience and we won't be...

Nice place and seemingly a decent rate to begin with but there are a few good reasons why I wouldnt stay there again. The owner kept a very close eye on our activities and was quite nit picky about every detail. His 20 page rule book filled with exhaustive rules and regulations put a damper on any feeling of freedom that we had. We were threatened that if we were noisy, we would be kicked out. He also did a head count of all the people over the age of 4 in our group and charged us an extra 400$. Apparently cabin 13 which sleeps 30 has a base rate for the first 10 people. Anymore and you get charged extra. Sadly it isnt mentioned on the website.. There was a washing and drying machine which was a $1.50 per load which felt a bit stingy. We also noticed that there was no towels or soap to use in the cabin. We had to buy soap from the owner or leave to the store to get some. The website also claims free wifi. There was wifi, but only at the registration cabin. The signal didnt reach ours. The owner also refused to let us launch our jet ski despite having it de-contaminated. Although the amenities were decent, and the cabin was clean, the feeling of being nickeled and dimed was enough to loose the desire to ever go back. Easy solution to the problem: Owner Steve, please let your guests have their freedom and dont intrude on their vacation. Charge a slightly higher base rate, and remove all the petty charges so your guests dont feel nickled and dimed. With this done, you will have happy repeat customers without relying on trying to convince pregnant women to have their babies at your resort so that they keep returning every year like salmon! (Yes he said that...