Family Lodging at Eagle's Nest Resort in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri

(disclosure: my trip to the Lake of the Ozarks was sponsored, however, all thoughts and opinions are my own, unless you want to travel with me then I will share yours) 

Here is the secret to saving money on your travel to Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri - splurge for a condo or rental house - forget the cheap hotel, think about the cheap dinners!

Eagle's Nest Resort at Sunrise Beach (Lake of the Ozarks) is a true vacation rental  - as you vacation from the chaos of noisy neighbors, loud boats, and hustle in bustle of town traffic.  

The resort nestled in a quiet part of the lake, is very much family friendly, and as my kids say "They have a Hot Tub" - woohoo!  It is always the little things in life that impress them!  

As we approached Eagle's Nest Resort I was greeted by this: 

Is he not the sweetest?  This only goes to show how quiet the area is! 

Arriving at the resort I got a personal tour of the grounds from the owner and a list of the properties rules - yes unfortunately they do have rules, but as I have often found - rules are for the your own good. 

We visited the dock  - Note those life jackets are provided by Eagle's Nest Resort.  Ms Johnson showed me where they are kept when we arrived, informed me that it is required for the kids to wear them while on the dock, so she provides them free of charge.  Kudos to the Johnson's for understanding that life jackets are not something everyone owns and wants to splurge on.  

From the Dock, this was our view - talk about breathtaking.  

We also spent some time in the common area of the resort - or you could call this the recreation area. 

We did a little of this! 

The resort keeps on hand plenty of toys (basketballs, bad mitten sets, volleyballs, and more) to help keep your family entertained - not only can this save you money, but it can also save you luggage space!  

Inside out condo  we had plenty of room spread out - in fact I was sort of grateful there was no housekeeping as my kids tend to dump every bag out to find the one item that they did not pack! 

At night I tucked my sweet little angels (sarcasm intended) in on the couch bed - with their favorite Disney cartoon (satellite tv and internet comes complimentary with the rental) - so that I could sleep in here all by myself. 

The room kind of reminded me of my Aunt's house - as I am not a huge fan of flowers, but it had that homely feeling about it - and to be honest after our busy days at the lake - it took me about five minutes to pass out. 

In the morning I was grateful for 1 thing:  My condo had a REGULAR SIZE Coffee Pot - anyone that knows me, knows that 2 cup thing in regular hotel rooms just do not do the trick.  

I also enjoyed the fact that my condo had a regular size kitchen so at night I could actually cook dinner and save my money for the real fun! 

The resort also has a full coin operated laundry facility available for their guest - and many other amenities you will not find at your every day hotel. 

Check out had to be the easiest part of my visit - we had to leave extremely early for a fishing trip with Big Ed's Guide Service - so I asked the Johnson's the night before how to check out - they told me to leave the keys on the table and have a safe drive home!  When was the last time check out was that easy????? 

While I dream of there being a day that I could just lay around a resort and soak up the sun, I realize that is not practical for most.  Here is a few more places near by Eagle's Nest Resort that are fun family stops. 

Ha Ha Tonka State Park - I absolutely love this place, and have not visited the Lake area without stopping by.   

Bridal Cave - absolutely the best kid friendly cave tour, the guides are very much hands on and they give you an in depth tour of the mystery behind Bridal Cave. 

Big Surf Waterpark - if you want you kid to look like this on the ride home -  the park is HUGE an a ton of fun for all ages!  The wave pool - where my kids spent most of their day at only has 375,000 gallons of water rushing at you!  Good times I say!  Check out their second wave prices also, and Facebook deal of the day to save a few extra dollars on your visit!   

Main Street Music Hall - another one of our all time favorite stops!  The music hall is great for all ages and puts on shows year around!   

Gran Rally Karts - on D-man's bucket list (no it is not normal for a 6 year old to have a travel bucket list) was GO KARTS - he so wanted to drive them, unfortunately he was too short, but they do offer double cars so he rode with Momma.  Gran Rally is very family friendly, the staff is nice, and ride is smooth!