Big Cedar Lodge

Reviews

• MT

  Mark Tait

  1 day ago
  5.0
  Big Cedar is an epic venue for a family vacation. It's close to Branson but you feel like you're in a totally different world. The land the property is situated on is an absolutely stunning track or sprawling Ozark forests. The property itself is gorgeous -- everything from the Registration office to the dining venues to the cabins are filled with intricate details, taxidermy pieces, hunting equipment. The staff are delightful. One of our favorite moments was our shuttle rides with Chez (shuttle #11!) blasting 80s hits. There is so much to do with kids. We should have stayed there three more days. Don't hesitate to book Big Cedar for your family. It's spectacular.
• CP

  Chris P

  2 days ago
  1.0
  First, the Glamping tent is very nice. The employees are also very nice. That’s it though. The property is so spread out, that it’s impossible to understand what’s going on where. The restaurants / dining options are closed on a holiday weekend, where every room is booked by the way. The hours for anything that is open is strange. A restaurant that’s only open till 4? Oh, and let’s have in-room dining, but delivery times are two hours! This could be a great resort. But for $550 a night, they better have all the amenities, and be open all the time! We won’t be going back
• IB

  Ivy Buch

  Oct 4, 2026
  3.0
  The setting at Big Cedar is truly special. Sunset at Top of the Rock, especially the daily sunset ceremony, was absolutely awesome and easily one of the highlights of our stay. The property itself is spectacular and there is a lot about it that feels genuinely unique. Unfortunately, the dining was disappointing for us personally. At Osage, almost everything arrived cold and we found the food mediocre, followed by an awkward confrontation with the host who explained that steaks are rested and therefore aren’t supposed to be piping hot. We understand that steaks need to rest, but there is obviously a difference between rested and cold. More importantly, almost everything else we ordered, including the brie, meatballs and asparagus, arrived cold too, so this clearly wasn’t simply a difference of opinion over how hot a steak should be served. We ended up barely eating and paying around $500 for a dinner we didn’t enjoy. It was also surprising that a restaurant with a wine program featuring bottles in the multi-thousands, such as Screaming Eagle, didn’t have a sommelier available upon request or someone with substantial knowledge of the list. As it was my birthday, we had planned to splurge on a special bottle but ultimately chose something much more moderate because we didn’t have enough confidence in the wine service. The Worman House was better in our opinion, although still not great for the prices, while Arnie’s Barn was unfortunately so bad in our experience that we couldn’t eat the food. That said, the servers across all three restaurants were absolutely lovely, and our tips reflected their service even when we were disappointed with the food. I also struggle with the $50-per-day resort fee when almost every substantial activity carries an additional charge, including a surprise $130 for the golf cart nature trail, which we had assumed would be included given the cost of staying here and how much my husband was already spending on golf. Our room wasn’t serviced during our stay, nor were basics like water or towels replenished, which made the daily fee even harder to understand. The biggest issue, however, was the shuttle system. We consistently waited 30–40 minutes, sometimes watching the estimate in the app jump from 10 minutes to 20, then 30 or 35. My husband nearly missed a tee time after waiting almost an hour. This seemed more like an operational or dispatch problem than simply high demand because when shuttles finally arrived, we were frequently the only passengers or one of only two parties. It’s difficult to believe we were the only guests trying to get to Top of the Rock for lunch, return from dinner or reach a golf course around a tee time. At a property this large, where the resort explicitly encourages guests to rely on its shuttles, transportation needs to work reliably. I’ve read reviews from guests who had much better experiences, so perhaps we were particularly unlucky, but the repeated waits genuinely affected our weekend. One other small disappointment: my husband had noted in advance that we were visiting for my birthday, but there was no acknowledgement of it at any point during the stay. I certainly didn’t expect anything elaborate, but even a simple happy birthday or a candle at dinner would have been a nice touch. There is so much potential here. The setting is extraordinary, Top of the Rock at sunset is absolutely worth experiencing, and the staff we encountered were overwhelmingly warm and lovely. But at this price point, the food, added fees and especially the transportation operation need to match the caliber of the property. During our stay, unfortunately, they didn’t.
• SC

  SHELLY COBLE

  Sep 30, 2026
  5.0
  Big Cedar Lodge and Camp Long Creek, is an experience like no other. The grounds, pools, staff, and the cabins are immaculate with such detail on the guest experience. My husband and I spent 5 days at Camp Long Creek, cabin 82, which was nestled in the wood with a rustic design with the luxury of having the finest, sheets, pillows, bed, towels, and toiletries that you will not miss home. The cabin is spacious, clean, and has everything you need to cook or grill at your private fire pit. There is a beautiful pool, dog park and free paddle boating. We rented a care but the Shuttle runs all day long and there is an App for that service. The staff is wonderful and their attention to detail is like no other, daily you are texted with updates and if you need anything they are quick to help. There is great communication within the staff. Our cabin was cleaned daily, restocked with coffee and all the essentials we needed. It’s a short drive to Big Cedar Lodge from Camp Long Creek, if you get a rental car, about 3 miles and Thunder Ridge Nature Arena, is about 2 miles, so very close. You have access to everything at Big Cedar, pool, mini golf, movie night on the lawn, and restaurants. Devils pool restaurant and the Buzzard Bar are exceptional and Truman’s Cafe has the best Chicken Salad wrap! Lastly, I will say, Big Cedar captures the 4 senses, sight, hearing, taste and smell. You will find yourself wanting to buy the smell for your home, Blue Ice, this smell is everywhere you go, it’s refreshing, not overwhelming for you Allergy folks. There is not a dirty place in Big Cedar. This place knows customer service. Plan to visit Top of the Rock, it’s amazing and the Bat Bar has great cocktails while your on your adventure through the canyon. Plan your trip, you want regret it, I can’t wait to return next year
• MR

  Merrill Dean Rogers

  Sep 26, 2026
  5.0
  I got married here in 2024 and this resort/ and the way they executed everything brings me so much joy till this day. It will forever be the best day of my life. So good I look back and don’t feel like it was real! …. And our honeymoon was in Tuscany and I’d say it was equivalent to that. My husband and I have agreed that they truly have such great employees and everything is well run with good management! I can’t wait to go back and eventually take my children. It is truly such a special place! We are soooo glad we chose Big Cedar Lodge for our wedding day and weekend!

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