Bayview RV Resort in Rockport, Texas - Lots to See, Do

We stayed at Bayview RV Resort in Rockport, Texas, for two weeks. I'm sorry to say it turned out to not be one of my favorite parks. Why? Well, my reasons may not be the same as yours and you may love the park while I don't but upon arrival things didn't run very smoothly. For some reason, we had to check in right at the gate. Sometimes that's the way it's done and sometimes not. This park has an office but we were told to drive up a little ways and come back to check in. A little bit of an inconvenience but not too bad a request. We walked back to the gate and they were in a panic as to where to put us. It didn't seem to matter that we had made the reservation a month in advance. They were a little disorganized and after several minutes decided what to do. They sent us off to the site they chose.

The road leaving the gate was extremely rough. Ok, they had tons of rain and you have to give them that, but when you're driving your rig into a park, you don't want to rock and roll. We learned later that the park roads had just been recently grated and that's the best they could do.

The site given to us was already taken when we got there. We called the gate and they instructed us to take anything open and call back with the site number. In the meantime, the second site had just been given out and that party was there wanting to use their site. When you're driving these big rigs and towing, it's not easy to keep moving around and when it's rutted and muggy, it's even worse.

So, we drove over to what they called The Village and was told to take a particular site over there. Not a good site for a 40' rig. So another call back to them. We told them what site we wanted and they said ok. We were finally happy with the site we chose.

There's so much to see in the Rockport area. We thoroughly enjoyed the island parks, the Fulton Oyster Day Parade and Festival. Corpus Cristi is only about 30 miles away and we spent two days shopping there. We had a lovely day at the Goose Island State Park........a little spendy at $5.00 a person for the day but we really enjoyed relaxing in the sun on the beach, beach combing and reading and it turned out to be well worth it.

We loved the Joe's Crab Shack in Corpus Cristi and Victoria's in Aransas Pass. We didn't have bad food anyplace we went.

A little bit about the park now.There are two swimming pools, one at the time was under repair and the hot tub was not filled. We were told the park had just been purchased and the day we got there, the new owner took over. There's lots of things that are in need of repair. The miniature gold course was so bad, it couldn't be used. Many of the roads were muddy. There is a very nice clubhouse, two in fact. One for adults and one is a family clubhouse. The shuffleboard platforms were not in good repair and couldn't be used either. There are horseshoe pits, sport courts and lots of fishing and bird watching around the area. Walking in the park was OK on a dry day and there's lots of trees for shade so make sure you request a site that gets satellite TV.

Area attractions include the Fulton Mansion, Texas Maritime Museum which was wonderful, The Rockport Center for the Arts, Aransas wildlife area, Whooping Crane Tours, which I heard are outstanding, birding tours, don't miss riding the FREE ferry to Mustang Island and Padre Island, lots of public beaches, deep sea fishing, US Naval Station, Ingleside Naval base, the USS Lexington is in Corpus, Texas State Aquarium, boating and several fun shops and many fine restaurants. Ask some of the locals or full timers in the park and they'll tell you the best places to eat. Hummingbirds migrate through Rockport each year and the town hosts a festival in their honor. Not sure when that is.

I cannot forget to let you know that because of all the rain this year, there are monster mosquitoes there. I, for one, am affected rather badly from these bites so I wasn't able to spend a lot of time outside. Not good when you're a walker.

The lake is quite large but there's no swimming in the lake because of alligators. I was told you could catch fish in the lake and there's fish cleaning stations located at the lake but if there's alligators in the lake, can there be fish?

The park has park models and a motel that sleeps up to 4. Check in time is 2 PM, check out 11 AM. The nightly rate for park models and the motel rooms is $40 (call to confirm that) and linens are not provided. Reservations can be made by calling 1-800-378-3709 up to 60 days in advance.Check to make sure the check in and check out times are still the same.

RV accommodations include 228 full hook ups and the maximum amps is 50. (50 amp, for us anyway, was an extra $3.00 a night). Reservations are required. You cannot receive mail unless you are a member of Western Horizon Resorts as this is a membership park. They are open to the public, also. The last I heard, it is no longer a Western Horizon Resorts park, but that doesn't matter unless you are expecting those special amenities and rates. Call ahead and ask.

They use Tengointernet for wifi, they have a bath house, exercise room, laundry facilities, library, pavilion, sauna, arcade/game room, badminton, pool tables. As I said earlier, many of the courts need repair. They advertise the arcade/game room but I did not see an arcade while there.

There is certainly a lot to do in Rockport and if you're visiting for a day or just a night or two, this park is for you.