Port Lavaca / Matagorda Bay KOA Holiday — Hotel in Palacios

Beyond sad that I have to write this negative review. Had plans to come with friends this weekend but because of the storm we are having to cancel. I have been calling since Tuesday to cancel, I have been told that my call would be returned (never had this happen with KOA, but because of the storm I went with it). Tuesday and Wednesday looked at the KOA app and nothing. Called again Wednesday and spoke to someone about the storm and cancellation. Informed, I would be called back. Spoke to Camyrn on Thursday as I had not seen the cancellation email. She informed me that she would be taking care of this and calling me back. Not suprising that I received a comfirmation email on Friday, confirming my visit today. Called back and Camryn told me that I had not spoken to any one (essentially calling me a liar) and that I shoulnt worry because they send the confirmation (Welcome email to everyone). Really, KOA lieing about a campsite and cancellation, I have better things to do! I KNOW THE CANCELLATION POLICY AS I AM A KOA REWARDS MEMBER!!! I thought KOA was one of the better campgrounds! Camryn also says that I will not get my money back as she was yelling at me to stop talking!!! WOW KOA. Then she tells me that when I get the text regarding my visit today to respond back and this is the only way I can speak to the owners. This would have been our second time here in months. NEVER AGAIN, customer service needs to be worked on, really your employee Camyrn. Not the way to treat people especially when we are waiting patiently for you to return my call.||||UPDATE: STILL HAVE NOT RECEIVED A CALL FROM ANYONE. SO I TRY TO CALL AGAIN ON FRIDAY AT 11:20 AM AND CALLS ARE BEING SENT TO THEIR VOICEMAIL. THE RESERVATION HAS NOT BEEN CANCELLED AS I HAVE REQUESTED THIS FOR 4 DAYS NOW.||||Finally received a call from the owner who took up for Camryn initially, it seems as though they missed a huge point Customer Service!! They finally cancelled my reservation without a refund. So I guess I could have been a aweful person and never called to cancel! Sucks because we would have continued to come patronize with our friends but...

Absolutely do not reccomend this campground. I would never stay at this campground again. The staff is very rude and unprofessional. You address an issue with them like an adult and they hang up the phone while you're speaking to them because they know they are in the wrong. After staying for 3 months they decided our dog was not allowed anymore and that we weren't even allowed to leave our lawn chairs or bbq pit out over night. Since our dog was not allowed to stay we decided to leave 9 days after paying for the whole month knowing we would not recieve our money back for the other 22 days we would not be staying that we paid for . Somehow in those NINE days we did stay they charged us close to 200$ for the elctric bill without even informing us they would be taking it out of our account. They just charged our card without even speaking to us about it. Which 200$ for 9 days of electricity is absolutely not feasible. Especially when we have paid that for the whole month the last 3 months we stayed. When we addressed the issue with the electric we had to call several times because they kept placing us on hold and then hanging up on us. When we finally got it figured out they told us they "accidently" double charged us for the electric bill, which seemed to be on purpose because they did it to three other campers that left when we did because of similar issues with the new owners. The new two men who came in absolutely ruined our stay as well as many other people we have met out there. They day we left 5 other campers left as well because of their outrageous rules and the terribly rude and unwelcoming new staff. Not to mention they only have 3 washers and 3 dryers and the dryers never dryed my clothes on the first cycle. So had to pay for the second cycle as well each time I washed clothes. Absolute worst campground I have ever stayed at , and I have stayed at several. I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS...

I really wish I could give 4 stars, but too many little problems added up to lessen the enjoyment of our stay.

First, the pros... There are lots of activities and rentals both off and on the water. There are (or will be, when they finish building this place) several places to sit and watch the bay water. They have a lot of different types of camp spots or lodging.

Now, the cons... Their security is a bit over-zealous. This place is as far off the beaten path as any KOA we have stayed at, yet they have a gate at the entrance that requires a barcoded slip of paper. And the first day we got here we pushed the buzzer at least 3 times with no answer, then called their phone number and got someone in South Dakota. By the time someone finally answered the buzzer, we had been waiting for some time; however, the lady never apoligized and was not friendly or welcoming at all. Another con was the public restrooms/shower rooms. There were 3 on the back side of the main building. Aside from the fact that twice my husband went in only to find no toilet paper, these rooms were not designed by anyone who regularly travels. Two of the three had "benches" (they were medical shower seats) you could put a small bag on, but the sinks had no vanity table or area to put toiletries. Towel racks and coat hooks were all there was to use. Another con was more about another camper, but it shouldn't be allowed to happen: every night there was a barking dog left outside to "yip" it's head off. My big problem with this is I have small children that go to bed early (8:00ish). But I also do not wish to hear such an irritating sound on vacation regardless. And children brings me to the final issue. We have stayed at multiple KOAs and I have never been charged extra for my children until this one. An extra $6 a day for my 3 year old seems a bit much.

Overall, a nice place, but our experience could have...