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North west of Austin, you’ll find this lovely RV and cabin resort in Texas hill country, right on Lake Buchanan! Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief) in Burnet, Texas is a hidden gem where you can really get away from it all – whether its fishing, wine tasting, exploring or relaxing. We spent a couple of nights here while traveling in a Class C RV that we rented through RVShare.
First up, we want to let you know up front that we were invited to stay at Big Chief as guests of the park’s owner, Alan Warren of the RV Show USA, so we did not pay for our stay. We have been guests on Alan’s radio program several times, so it was a great opportunity for us to finally meet up in person! Alan did not ask us to write a review – or promote the campground in any way. But we so enjoyed our time at this hidden gem, that we really WANT to share it with you. While we had heard Alan talk about Big Chief on his show, he is a very humble guy and didn’t talk it up too much. So we were pleasantly surprised to discover just how lovely this place really is!
This wasn’t our first visit to Texas hill country, but it ended up being one of our favorite places yet. You’ll find links to our reviews of other parks in this region, at the end of this post.
Meeting our friend Alan Warren, of the RV Show USA, in person
Location of Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief)
Burnet, Texas is about 60 minutes northwest of Austin in the beautiful hill country. Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief) is open year round as it is far enough south and only 1,000 feet elevation so it does not get too cold. We visited in winter (early February 2020) their slowest time of year, and it was not full. But it was definitely a bit chilly on the days we were there, as we were parked by the lake.
From what we understand, being located right on Lake Buchanan, this resort is really popular and gets very busy in the summer. Larger groups will need to made reservations well in advance.
The surrounding area is mostly undeveloped rolling hills, and waterfront residential areas. About 12 miles east, you will find the town of Burnet. It is a relatively small town but still has a main street and a number of shops. Kingsland is another small town about 12 miles south, with Ace hardware and a HEB grocery store. The much more substantial town of Marble Falls is about 25 minutes away.
Austin and Fredericksburg are about an hour’s drive, and you will find Waco and San Antonio about a 2 hour drive each way. So it can be a great base for multiple day trips and exploring a wider area during a longer stay, if you don’t mind a 1-2 hour drive (which we are usually happy to do).
This is a great, lakeside campground for those who like water activities
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Area Attractions
This area is known for world class wineries, golfing, hiking, fishing and other lake activities. Even museums and caverns can be found nearby. Hill country offers some of the most scenic areas in Texas. We hear it is especially beautiful in spring when the bluebonnets are in bloom.
Lake Buchanan, accessed directly from the resort is known to be a top fishing lake by enthusiasts. It is a large 30+ square mile lake with clear water. The shoreline is mostly granite gravel which helps keeps the water clear.
Marble Falls is about 25 minutes away, with some beautiful waterfalls and waterfront areas.
Amenities and Activities
Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief) is a relatively small and simple resort, with a great deal of charm and native American theme and decorative touches. The pool and hot tub area is among the nicest we’ve seen, with a natural feel of landscaped rock and waterfall, and an Indian chief sculpture looking out.
There is a clubhouse, covered pavilion, guest lounge and small general store. Being located on a sizable lake, it of course has a boat ramp and boat trailer parking. Kid’s playground, volleyball court, horseshoe pits, disc golf and a nature trail are available as well.
We really loved the homey and welcoming feel of this small RV park. It is obvious a lot of care and attention to detail goes into creating a warm and friendly experience for their guests. The resort is open year round, and many guests are return visitors which helps to create a great community feel. Like other RV resorts in Texas, they are very welcoming of their ‘Winter Texans’. This was noticeable, as we have often found some other sun belt states seem to have a more ‘tolerant’ acceptance of their winter visitors, compared to the warmth and hospitality we experienced in Texas.
Beautifully landscaped and designed pool and hot tub tub area
Picnic tables under the trees, down by the lake
Get your fishing and camping supplies in the camp store
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Practical Amenities
On the practical side, there is a small laundry room with two washers and two dryers. Have your trash picked up from your site before 11am, or you can walk to the dumpsters yourself.
Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief) is on well water and safe to drink. However, many guests prefer to bring their own drinking water, because it has fairly high levels of chlorine.
Mail / Packages
When we visited, they did allow packages for guests, but we always recommend you check with the office first to make sure, before shipping any packages (or mail) to any RV resort. Not all allow this, and policies can change at any time without notice.
WIFI / Cable
There is limited WIFI, so we just used our own cellular hotspots for connectivity. We had 3 bars of AT&T, 2 bars of Verizon and 1 bar of T-Mobile during our visit in February 2020. We not use or ask about cable.
Inside the guest lodge
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RV Sites and Cabins
Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief) has about 70 RV sites and 10 cabins. All RV sites are full hook up with 30/50amp power. Twenty four of the sites are back-in, and the other 46 are pull through.
Many of the sites have water views, even if they are not listed as such on the map. The RV resort is on a bit of a sloped hill heading down to the water, but the sites are mostly level. We did see a few RVs that needed leveling blocks. RV sites felt large and spacious, and some have mature trees for shade in the summer.
The cabins are fully furnished and nicely decorated with an ‘old west’ cabin feel and decor. They seem to be relatively modern buildings, clean, very comfortable, and right down by the lake. They also have a porch so you can relax outside with your favorite beverage and take in the view.
PROS
- Beautiful pool and spa
- Lakefront access to Lake Buchanan
- Welcoming/homey feel
- Charming native American decor, statues, sculptures
- Spacious campsites
- Nice part of Texas
- Open year round
- Easy access, big rig friendly
- Affordable rates (especially monthly)
CONS
- Some road noise and visible power lines when at pool.
- Pool is not big, so can get crowded on busy weekends
- Public WIFI may be limited (check as we did not use)
Honestly, it’s hard to find knocks on this campground. While small and simple, it really does deliver for those looking for a relaxing and affordable getaway campground, in a small town next to a scenic lake with plenty of things to see and do.
Rates at Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief)
RV Site and Cabin rates are variable depending on type of site, the day of the week, and the season. Lowest rates are Monday through Thursday in the winter. Highest rates are weekend rates in the summer. Nightly rates thereby range from $30-$50. Monthly rates for extended stays are $400-$450, which is basically just 10 days worth of nightly stays. So, monthly stays are excellent value.
There are also different types of cabins, with corresponding rate changes. Nightly rates vary from $94 -$164 per night. Monthly rates vary from $850-$1,350 plus electricity.
Please check their website at for the most accurate and up to date information on rates and inclusions.
Learn how we camp for (almost) free with our Thousand Trails membership
Getting There
Being in Texas, the roads into the general area are big, wide, and relatively flat. But, being in hill country there are some hills and curves as you get closer. In our research we didn’t find any significant grades to be concerned about, and found all the roads very easy to navigate. Highway 29 and FM 690 are easy for RVs.
Once at the resort and checked in, the internal roads are either paved or gravel. There are a series of speed bumps to make sure people keep their speeds down. The roads are wide and many of the sites are pull through. We would definitely consider this a big rig friendly park despite being a relatively small one. A large percentage of the RVs at the campground during our visit were over 40 feet in length.
Summary
We had a lovely, warm and welcome stay at Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief). It is a very scenic, charming and relaxing lakefront campground, especially if you like water views and activities. With the beautiful pool and hot tub area, thoughtful decor touches, peaceful location and proximity to some of the area’s best attractions (and Austin) it is easy to understand why this place is very popular with repeat visitors. In our opinion, Texas hill country is one of the best parts of Texas.
Other Texas Hill Country RV Resort Reviews
Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any RV park, campground, or RV resort, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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2 thoughts on “Lake Buchanan RV & Cabin Resort (formerly Big Chief) in Texas Hill Country”
I had a chance to stay 4 nights at Big Chief RV Resort this past week, and it was a great place. The sunsets from down at the water level were amazing! There were little clumps of bluebonnets growing on the beach. The April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse will cross Lake Buchanan, so this RV park might be a great place to stay to see it.
Oh yes – that would be a great place for that! Glad you had a great stay too!