We have been enjoying Sandy Beach Resort every week of the Fourth of July for the past 25 years…read more Very relaxing and beautiful spot on Gull Lake. Yes, the beach is sandy indeed. One disappointment is that a year ago they changed their store hours to close at 6:00 PM. Short on milk at supper time? Sorry you are out of luck. Want an after dinner frozen treat -- nope! I hope the owners will see this post and add go back to their previous 8:00 PM closing time -- a little customer focus will help keep your business healthy.

Sandy Beach Resort makes it feel like you have your own cabin for the week. The family who owns the…read moreresort is highly responsive and very welcoming. Would definitely recommend this resort for anyone looking for the classic up north Minnesota feel!

My family has come here for the last 3 years. After the first year, I was excited to bring my side…read moreof the family for relaxation and fun at a reasonable price. Things I love about Gull Four Seasons: the activities - swimming (outdoor and indoor pools are a great option in case it rains. Kids can still swim!), kayaking and paddleboarding with beautiful views on the water, park for young kids, arcade for the older kids, and pickleball/tennis. No shortage of things to do. the staff - very helpful and friendly. Make you feel like you're coming home when you arrive. friendly community that returns year after year (that is a true testament of an excellent experience) and finally - surrounding area is beautiful for biking and running. Can't recommend enough.

We were supposed to stay here for two weeks in unit 61. We got settled in, unpacked & right away,…read morewe started killing spiders . The first night, we killed 4 spiders. The next morning, 5 out of 6 couples woke up complaining about the beds. There were 6 beds in the unit & 5 of them felt like sleeping on a box spring. Some of the pillows were so flat that it was like sleeping on a towel. Then we noticed spider webs all over the unit, some with eggs in them & some with baby spiders crawling. I called the office to complain about the spider infestation we had & was told no one has ever complained about spiders. Dan came in & killed a couple of the huge spiders with a broom & sprayed stuff on 3 base boards. After he left, we took the vacuum cleaner & vacuumed all the spider webs & spiders we could find. By the next morning, we had more spider webs. Long story short, we vacuumed spiders & and cobwebs every day for our entire stay. We had spider webs in our shoes, fishing rod holders & just spiders everywhere. I stopped in the office after we'd been there for 5 nights & still complained about spiders. Again, I was told no one has ever complained about spiders. We left our paid vacation early 4 days early with no refund, but we just couldn't take it anymore. People were getting bit by spiders & the beds were just killing us. The couch in the unit was so uncomfortable, as were the kitchen chairs. Our lawn chairs were more comfortable to sit on than the furniture in the unit. The docks were so high that it was tough to get in & out of the boats from the boat lifts they make you rent. I paid $65 for extra people to stay & was still charged $3 for one set of clean sheets so someone else could use that bed. The unit was so dry that we got nose bleeds, sore throats & the chemicals sprayed stirred up our allergies. After the chemicals were sprayed in the unit, one of our people went home sick. The owners don't care about the people, just the money. I paid $5,600 for a vacation from hell & I definitely wouldn't recommend this place for even my dogs.

This place has fallen apart into pieces! We have owned a timeshare here for over 25 years. The…read moremonthly maintenance fees per year are outrageous! Maintenance fees for WHAT?!!! Nothing is fixed, nothing is repaired, and every time we come it falls more This place is a Timeshare Resort of absolute GREED! The hot tubs in the units are completely broken and UN-Usable! This was the very reason we wanted to own a timeshare to have our own hot tub but it's been broken every time we have come for years and now it is completely useless and empty with no water in it! The exact same couch in the living room is the same couch that has been there for over 25 years! The cushions literally sink into the couch when you sit on it! These couches belong in the corner outside with a FREE sign on them for the Squirrels to make a nest out of them! Oh and if you want to sit outside on the porch swing and chairs? Those are gone too! They were replaced by $Dollar Store chairs! So if you want to come for vacation and have zero place to comfortable sit...this is your place! It was 85 degrees out in September and the outdoor pool AND hot tub were closed for absolutely zero reason! It is usually open when we come in September! But NO not anymore! The washer and dryer were out of use! The tiny dollhouse size cups and glasses and old non working kitchen utensils are less than Good Will value. Talk about a DUMP!!!! I am LIVID!!!!!!!!!!! Do NOT stay here!!!! A tent is more comfortable or just stay home!

For the living room alone, this place is a solid 5 stars. The sky high ceiling and numerous large…read morewindows let in so much natural light. We were lucky enough to score a unit facing Gull Lake and the forest. The views were the absolute highlight staying here. But taking away a star for several reasons: 1. Both beds could use replacement. They were saggy soft, uncomfortable and challenging to get a good night's rest. 2. All in unit whirlpools were down due to plumbing issues/violations. We were so looking forward to it and bummed out to learn this. 3. We were told our unit would have washer and dryer at time of booking. However, our unit didn't have one at check in and we were told there was no other unit available to swap. 4. We found 6 mouse traps in the unit. Not the greatest thing to see or realize there was a rodent problem. 5. The pool is in a separate building from the sauna. Not even next door. Doesn't make for a convenient walk if you're wanting to enjoy both. 6. Only 1 parking spot per unit. However, we saw numerous units parking in non-designated spots so we followed along.

We'd heard really great things about the food here, so we were really looking forward to trying it…read moreout, but unfortunately the experience was all-around bad. Service was pretty rough from the start. Our server was friendly, but they spilled our drinks at the table and then had to take them back because they'd been made with bad milk. It took forever to get the first round and even longer to get the second. You'd think they'd move faster getting us the second round given the first was spilled and made with bad milk! Definitely a missed opportunity to make up for the poor overall service. The bread was the highlight of the night, which is very telling given it was standard crostini bread. That said, it was warm, fresh, and served with delicious butter. Unfortunately, the rest of the meal didn't live up to that start. The food took far, far, far too long to come out and when it finally did, it didn't all arrive together. Half the table started eating while the other half just sat and watched and continued to wait for their food to come. I thought they brought it out separately to serve things hot, but the food that was first brought out was only lukewarm. I got the steak sandwich, which was fine but pretty bland. Even the sauce couldn't save it... The fries were well-seasoned but soft and floppy, which just made them feel sad and unappealing. I had an espresso martini with dinner and it was basically a chocolate drink with no real espresso flavor. Overall, the setting was fine, but slow service, uneven timing, and subpar food made this a disappointing experience.

We'd heard so much about this place we tried it for our Anniversary dinner. Made a reservation…read moreearly and we were the only ones in the dining room. We ordered the swordfish special and the short rib dinner plus a crab cake app. The short rib was very good. The rest meh. The service was really slow. Just glad it wasn't busy. Probably won't be back.

My family had a great time at Towering Pines. We loved our cabin overlooking the lake. The family…read morethat owns it is super nice. The grounds are beautifully kept with lots of fun things to do. Our kids are teens & tweens and they enjoyed themselves on the water tramp, bikes, canoe & water playground. I can see that this would be a fantastic place for smaller kids too. The beach is protected and shallow entry, the water playground is surrounded by dock, also feels very protected and safe. It's a quiet section of lake with perfect access to the chain of lakes great for boating, skiing etc. there's a convenient boat rental place right up the lake too. We will definitely be back.

This has been a fantastic family resort that we have been coming to for many years. They have 3…read morelarge cabin's set back from lake that are great for large family's or groups. Along the lake they have many smaller cabins that have great views of the lake. This family friendly resort has ton to keep you occupied! Mini golf, basketball court, old fashion arcade, swim area and raft, and tons near by to head off too if you feel the need. They have a boat launch and docks with boat rentals and a variety of water craft that require human power to move. The owners are super friendly and have something going on all week long to help if the fishing is slow. The gift shop is great if you need T-shirt or some basic kitchen items to save the run into town. This has been our favorite spot for the past 15 years and will be for years to come

Absolutely love Sunset Bay Resort. Never fail to impress with clean facilities, great hospitality,…read moreand sunsets that will take your breath away.

My husband reserved a cabin here over a month in advance (we have to plan anything well ahead of…read moretime because of a complicated parenting schedule for his older kids, and a problematic ex-wife). Today, the day before we were to drive up and check in for our week-long cabin vacation, a man at the resort called and cancelled our reservation. My husband said the reason given was storm damage. I called the resort to gather more details--I wondered if perhaps the storm damage may have affected features of the resort we weren't planning to take advantage of. I didn't think it would hurt to double-check. The man on the phone was needlessly aggressive and excessively rude and disrespectful to me. It turned out that the real reason they cancelled our reservation was that we were supposed to have mailed in a deposit, in the form of a check, to hold our place. He claimed that he'd tried to call many times to ask for the deposit (IF that is true, he never left a voicemail). I offered to pay over the phone or via PayPal, but this business apparently exists in the dark ages; in addition to avoiding voicemail technology, they don't accept credit cards or payments over the internet--only checks or cash. So I assured the man that we could pay the full amount in person when we arrived, to which he rudely retorted with "Well why should I believe you? You're untrustworthy. You probably won't even show up." I assured him that we had planned our entire summer around this trip, that my husband and I are people of our word; it was our first time renting a cabin, we didn't have all the information necessary, and we would have sent the payment if we'd been properly informed. He continued to be rude and needlessly attack my character. I calmly told him that I would call my husband and see if he wanted to speak with the resort owner himself. He said he was glad to get off the phone with me because there were some "real, paying, GOOD customers there [he] wanted to talk to instead." I then called my husband, who said he'd never spoken with the man or received phone calls or voicemails about a deposit problem. My husband revealed that he'd just talked to a woman at the resort on Sunday (5 days ago). He isn't naturally a detail-oriented person, so when he realized he'd forgotten to send in the deposit, he called to apologize and assure her we still planned to come. The woman told him that up until he called, they had been considering canceling our reservation, but because my husband called to explain, she said that was confirmation enough and agreed to let us pay upon our arrival at the resort. Now we have to scramble to figure out what to do with the coming week--a week that my husband and I both requested off from work (I don't get paid time off, so I've forfeited a week's pay for this!). Will any other resorts have affordable cabins available at the last minute to accommodate 8 people for a week? I doubt it. This was our only opportunity to go somewhere special with my husband's older children this summer, and the man at Sunset Bay Resort in Aitkin, Minnesota, has ruined it by being 100% unwilling to be flexible or understanding, and adjust for his own failure to communicate with his female colleague. I called him back to let him know that my husband HAD been in communication with the woman at the resort, and she had said the amended plan to pay upon arrival was fine...but because the man had been so rude and disrespectful to me over the phone, we will never give them our business. I recommend all prospective customers do the same.

I've been going up to Gull Lake Resort for 30 years. My husband's family had been going for over…read more40. It's always a good time and my kids look forward to it. It's a dog friendly resort which is nice. The cabins are clean and have modern amenities including air conditioning. It's located close to town so you can run in as needed. Outside of the cabins you can dock your boat. The lake provides amble fish for our annual end of week fish fry. The garage mirage as the kids call it has ice cream, slushies, candy, games and other necessities. There is laundry facilities in case you need to wash something. You can also grab a sweatshirt, t-shirt, hat or other souvenir. Nisswa is just down the road with lots of shops, restaurants, and coffee shops. Pirate's Cove is also just down from road. Zobaz's is easy to get to by boat or car. Lots to see and do!

Went up for a week and had a great time! You can rent pontoons, kayaks, canoes and paddle boats to…read morekeep yourself entertained. Plenty of room for sure. Rustic and on a great part of Gull Lake. They have a store on site but not much for groceries but plenty of grocery shopping close by. They have stuff for the kids to do and if you have a boat bring it! They have plenty of docks. Very relaxing time! Staff is great!

Great place right in the middle of all the places on the lakes you want to be. We had a 4 bedroom…read morecabin, awesome lake views, very close to the private beach, and direct access to our boat dock. Family owned and operated, attention to details both inside and out. Cabin and RV options.