Hales Bar Marina & Resort — Hotel in Jasper

They will rip you off and lie to do so. Don’t even stay here if you value your bank account or moreover your health. The first cabin we stayed in, #11, was a land cabin. Though it wasn’t filthy it wasn’t squeaky clean either. There was a large spider in the bedroom complete with large spiderweb, apparently this isn’t housekeeping’s forte. When I pulled out dishes to cook, two of the pans were not clean at all - I had to scrub them before using them. By the way, dish soap was provided, but scrubbing pads or a sponge were not - I had to go and purchase those. We were lucky enough to be provided with a broom and dustpan. So, because we have animals, I made sure to sweep every single day and sometimes twice a day; just to ensure the pet hair was kept to a minimum. Ha! That did me no good. #11 has a questionable stucture issue going on at the back. There is a noticeable pull when you’re standing in the middle of the cabin. At some point, my husband was told we could have a lake cabin and we were all quite excited. Yeah, don’t even try to stay in #7 unless you like getting sick. The overwhelming stench of raw sewage was absolutely disgusting and so was the response, which was that it just needed to be pumped out. Um, we just watched the guy do that. No, the fact the floor between the toilet and shower is squishy tells me there’s a little more going on there. We requested to return to a land cabin. Sure. Oh but wait! According to them, cabin #11 was filthy with pet hair (lies) and smelled of cat pee. Oh really? When pressed the lady couldn’t tell me where in the cabin the cat had supposedly peed (please lie to me some more), but rather stated that they could smell cat all throughout the cabin. That’s funny, you see the cat didn’t have access to the entire cabin. Nope, not even access to the bathroom or the bedroom. The bedroom is where my dog eats and sleeps and he prefers to do both without strange company - including cats. But, the manager insisted on strong arming my husband out of an additional $175 for the “extra cleaning.” Yeah okay, I kept it up and I kept it spotless. The new land cabin. Let’s go over how well housekeeping does here shall we? Behind the couch is full of dead bugs, next to the mini fridge is full of dust bunnies, the corner of the bathroom behind the door - nothing but dirt, behind the toilet there is a toothpaste cap, the desktop in the back bedroom is full of enough dust to fill every single one of my fingertips, and lets not forget dishes - yes this cabin includes pre-dirtied dishes as well. The difference? I sure as hell ain’t washing them! Let’s talk about maintenance and upkeep. The windows? Filthy and most have no screens. This third cabin is supposed to have an enclosed porch; there is no door and there is a whole lot of screening missing. That’s not enclosed. Bottom line? It sounds neat in theory, but if I were you...I’d just keep on going. I was told there’s a much better place (Shell Mound) not too far from here. And why would they strong arm? Simple, we have no place to go until we close on our house (thankfully in 3 days) and we’d already prepaid a bunch. What’s a little more? After all they don’t give refunds. Well guess what? There ain’t no broom in this other cabin and I ain’t putting another red hot cent into this place. Time to start earning that extra $175 you just had to have; liars...

Hales Bar has several different offerings and I will rate each one according to my experience after staying there over a long weekend (three nights) in October 2020. Overall the location and setting are nice, the views are good and the history is very interesting - in fact the place as a whole has all the ingredients to be super nice. In reality it is a mixed bag - let's go: RV Park - 3 stars - had two cousins staying there and the rates were good, sites were OK, not sure about the bath house, etc. because they had their own set-up in their RV's. It could be cleaner and the areas around the parking pads could be cleaned up and levelled. We spent most of our time here in the RV park because it is the nicest part of the 'resort'. Marina - 2 stars - appeared to be OK. Our only experience was renting their pontoon boat. It was not an ideal experience. It was run-down, in need of a lot of cleaning and TLC, but most importantly was not up to par from a safety standpoint. Loose railings, broken fuel gauge, not enough life preservers provided, and several smaller issues. From a looks perspective the seats were ripped, spider webs everywhere, old worn out carpet, and some bonus catfish bait and half a natty light on the upper deck pointing to the fact that no one bothered to clean it. We were given a break on the rate based on our experience so that was at least some small recompense. P.S. gas is not included and you pay for what you used at the end then dock it and tie it up yourself. I have rented pontoons at several places around the Southeast and this place is at the lowest end of the scale in terms of quality, value, and service. Floating Cabins - 2 stars for quaintness, but there were some issues during the stay. Small and well worn, in need of a substantial investment. Land Cabins - 1 (one) star - we apparently had the cream of the crop - the three bedroom double-wide that will set you back over $250.00 per night (hint - go find a nice hotel somewhere else). Oh and they get you for a $49.00 'cleaning fee' as well ... Sticky floors, uneven floors, sliced vinyl, unpainted, unkempt porches, missing trim on the outside, water stains on the ceiling showing evidence of mildew and possible mold, TV's that didn't work, and semi-functional shower in the master. Not sure exactly how the cleaning fee works because I'm fairly certain it was cleaner when we left than when we got there. Bottom line, not worth the money! During the month of October they run a haunted house and paranormal tours through the old dam powerhouse. By their own count they run 500-700 through on Fridays and 700-1000 through on Saturdays - if that is what you are going for have fun, but if not, be aware! This seems to be their big money maker if it is owned by the same bunch, and if so they should reinvest some of those proceeds into the rest of the place.

Overall the place is unkempt, trashy, run-down, and un-inviting. If the grounds were well maintained and the trash picked up it would certainly have improved the overall impression. Some of the staff were great, some could use some customer service training or just a better attitude. In closing I want to reiterate that the setting is nice, and with some investment and work it could be a showplace. Unless that investment and work is done, this guest won't...

Went for a weekend getaway/fishing trip and let me tell you it was AMAZING! DO NOT LISTEN TO OTHER REVIEWS FROM PREVIOUS OWNERSHIP. NEW OWNERS ARE TOP NOTCH! The view was incredible on the river. Stayed in a floating cabin during visit. The cabin was clean and cozy. Cabin included pots & pans, garbage bags, coffee maker with supplies, cups, bowls, mugs, S & P, silverware, extra blankets, towels, soap, shampoo & conditioner, TP, chairs on porch, and booklet with menu for the Dam Grill (on site) as well as “how to survive cabin life”. The main office is in a new location, which seems better than the last owners location, and stocked with food, ice, drinks, alcohol, extra supplies like a little convenience store. They provide carts to bring your baggage to and from your floating cabin, which was very useful. Pets are allowed. Remember all cabins floating or non floating are rustic and are in the great outdoors so dont sweat it when you see a spider or bird poop... OUTSIDE, or ducks are lingering by. Treat this as you are camping and you are just lucky enough to have a solid shelter over your head. WILDLIFE: Was able to see a beaver and multiple species of birds up close (Coots, Cormorants, Canadian Geese, Swallows, Osprey, Mallard Ducks, etc.) STAFF: The staff was very welcoming and accommodating. Owner always came and talked to us before he head out for the day to ask how we have been and if we needed anything before he left, if he saw us. After he leaves his # is posted on the office door if anyone needs him for anything. Very nice people. They are encouraging visitors to write a review because the last owners were terrible and they want to get rid of all those bad reviews (i could not agree more). LOCATION: Besides them having almost everything you could need at the office, the closest walmart is 10 minutes away and near restaurants, gas stations, other stores if needed. Only 25 minutes away from Chattanooga which allows you to go explore the zoo, aquarium, local/well known restaurants, museums, etc.There is a restaurant on site called the “Dam Grill” and there is a local restaurant 2 minutes down the road with cajun fare (was always hoppin when we drove by). FISHERMAN: They allow you to tie your boat up near your cabin if you trailer one in. Multiple docks to fish from as well as right outside your cabin. Area surrounding has plenty of potential for a great catch. Personally we caught some small bass, shad, eating sized bluegill, and trout. Neighbors caught a 9lb bass while there as well as other fish. Lots of people fishing for catfish at night. Local bait shop 2 minutes down the road. They say “no cleaning of fish on property” but that’s because people were leaving a mess behind when doing so. They have a designated table near the main row of floating houses that is designed for cleaning fish if needed.

THANK YOU HALES BAR MARINA FOR A WONDERFUL WEEKEND! WE...