The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee

This is an update to my previous review. Spent the weekend at The Ritz Lake Oconee where we were celebrating my husbands milestone birthday December 2024. I used to live in the neighboring Reynolds community and was very familiar with this property The resort has become very family oriented. There were lots of kids and our adult weekend was sadly lacking We have since been contacted by Ralph Vic, the property’s General Manager He has kindly offered us compensation in the form of an additional room night We will revisit “The Ritz experience” but only during the week, and not during school holidays We are parents and grandparents but not all people have the same ideals regarding acceptable behavior amongst their children We will update our experience at that point and are hopefully optimistic

Wow, what a wonderful hotel, grounds, facilities and area. Flew into Georgia to watch The Masters and had the pleasure of staying at this amazing hotel. The staff, cleanliness, F & B offerings, gym and grounds are second to none. Can’t wait to return!

To travel 25+ hours to reach this property to attend an executive retreat, only to be given a dark ground floor room, overlooking a corner of the lake overshadowed by a wall, presented as a Bonvoy Titanium-level upgrade, was a fitting start. Worth noting that besides this “upgrade” there was zero recognition. No welcome note, no lounge access - zilch. In fact throughout the stay it was hard to believe this had anything to do with a Ritz-Carlton. Narrow corridors and thin walls offering very limited noise dampening from other guests, very mediocre service and food, poorly maintained rooms, appalling housekeeping, nothing much reminiscent of a RC aside maybe from the Dyptique amenities. Location itself is challenging, as completely isolated, to the extent that even usually ubiquitous ride sharing apps are non-functional. So forget about even trying to go to the local shops for a respite from the very obvious price-gouging on display. Room itself was poorly maintained with a number of broken fixtures. Low water pressure, and a very lumpy bed. Housekeeping is extremely poor and contrary to the food, which is admittedly always complex to manage for a larger group, is categorically unrelated to having a portion of rooms booked. Very rough employees with little manners and mediocre cleaning standards. On two occasions I was in room when the turndown staff came and the banging on the door was more police raid than Ladies and Gentlemen trying to offer the service. On another day I returned at 4pm, more than 8 hours after leaving, only to find the room not cleaned. On the last day despite having confirmed a late check out, and with the privacy sign clearly on display (a hanging sign by the door), I was disturbed twice, an hour apart by housekeeping keen to clean the room. Housekeeping service itself was approximative and on all days missed replenishing obvious items. In-room dining equally unimpressive, 45 minutes for a simple toasted Turkey sandwich which arrived ice cold and without fries. Food provided was sub-par considering the expected standards; very poor selection and quality. Much worse however was the service with again very rough staff, seemingly unaware they were there to wait tables. Likely the hotel was using temporary event staff with no training whatsoever. Seems logical at a low cost property but here it is jarring. One clear exception was the super friendly staff, including the senior bar manager and various qualified wait staff (Andrew was awesome) who arranged a mixology activity. They were excellent and a pleasure to deal with, with a really good mindset joining in the fun with guests and having great interactions. Overall, and that one team aside, a mediocre and over-priced property, no reason whatsoever to recommend. At a broader level, this confirms an impression that the Ritz-Carlton brand is not faring too well under Marriott, with an increasingly dated style of service which cannot accommodate itself of modern hospitality expectations.

I’m so in love with this property. I stayed for 3 nights last week with my pup and thoroughly enjoyed all of it. Has to be the best bed I’ve slept in other than my own. All of the staff are extremely pleasant, nice to chat with (I traveled alone so chatted up quite a few). Morgan at the main hotel bar is such a joy, they better not ever lose her! Main reason was to stay at a nice property that allows pups, did not disappoint. Loved the walking trails, the lake, the gym, and of course the indoor pool/hot tub. I will definitely be back soon!

We went to The Ritz at Lake Oconee for my birthday with our children and 4 grandchildren. We had 3 suites. They were all very comfortable and had been renovated since we were there 5 years before. Comfortable beds and plenty of room for clothing. We rented a boat for a ride around the lake and most went swimming in the heated pool. We also had s'mores around the fire pit in the evening. Breakfasts were ample, with a well done breakfast buffet. Our dinner the first night was lovely out at Gaby's by the Lake. The food was decent, nothing too special, but it was great overlooking the lake. Dinner at Linger Longer Steakhouse the next evening was a disappointment. It was very expensive (typical of steakhouses), but the steaks were not great and the sides were not very good. I would definitely not go there again. I felt everything in the resort was well run but just a little overpriced.