Island Retreat Motel, Port Aransas

We stayed in one of the motel rooms....its was nice and clean, had dishes and microwave toaster oven and a flat panel tv...pool was large and well mantained...short walk to the beach...deff would book this room again....# 402

I have stayed her twice over the past summer. June was nice, nice room, close to the beach and clean pool. I stayed in July and was not happy. I booked a room to accomodate 8. We got bumped from the 1st floor to the 2nd floor the day we arrived, we only had room for 6 and the condo was horrible. The unit was not ready, it was stark plain, dirty stained pots and pans, nasty furniture and uncomfortable beds. No towels and on and on. I made it plain how upset I was at our room was substituted at the last minute because the other unit was housing a relative of the people that owned the other condo. We had booked out unit to be directly under my other family so we could all be together on a family vacation. I tried several time to get a response out of the management at Island Retreat and the one time I got a response I was told management would call me back promptly. I am still waiting. This was a lot of $$ to spend and was unacceptable. It is apparent that Island Retreat really didn't care about it guests happiness. I will not stay there again. I will take my $800.00 and spend it at another newer nicer and cleaner condo.

Port Aransas, or Port A as the locals call it is a small seaside town on the Gulf of Mexico. You can find loding for any budget. Best website is portaransas.org . It may not appeal to some who are looking for lots of action,i.e. arcades, amusement rides ect.. but if you simply want to be at the beach and relax, maybe do a little fishing...this is a great place to go! There is plenty of live music to be found at the local establishments. We rented a 3 bedroom condo at Island Retreat. July rates are a little high..we pain 280/nt( in the older section)( newer section was 350/nt) but split between 3 couples is only $93/nt, and, you are right on the beach! There is a large swimming pool in the center of the 'older' section, my grandkids loved it! The condo was fully furnished with everything you could need and the local IGA grocery store has decent prices. Plenty of restaurants or if you want something quick & fast there is Quiznos, Subway and What-a- Burger. Fishing charters are easy to book. A word to the wise, book the 8 hour charter, not the 5 hour- you don't go out far enough to catch anything except for small sharks( 3 foot) or many times, nothing. You can also fish from one of the jettys. Port A is a fun little town, family oriented, and a place to just lay back and say "Ah!" We can't wait to go back! DP San Antonio Back to Island Retreat, they have laundry facilities on the premises, some units have them inside. There are also efficiency units as well as motel units . The motel units all have a microwave and a full size refrigerator. Some motels have kitchenettes.A fish cleaning station by the office allows you to clean your catch of the day. Buildings are 2 story, no elevator and no beach view from the ground floor units due to the height of the sand dunes. There are bar-b-que grills and picnic tables to use as well.

Growing up in Houston, our annual beach trip was to the Island Retreat in Port Aransas. It is a great place to stay. What stopped our family from staying at the Island Retreat was not of our choice but of those who brought about the new "no pets allowed" policy. For many of us our pets are our family too. We always kept our pets clean and tidy. There was also no noise from our dog. We loved being so close to the beach line. As I said, this policy stopped our traditional stay at the Island Retreat-regretably so. Maybe in the future this policy will be revoked- one can hope. T. Bostick

I called to book a room and told them the price that was displayed. They told me that they did not post that price and they would not honor it. I will not stay at a place that does not honor what is advertized!

We stayed in a privately owned condo that was like new and needed nothing. The newly renovated complex is a quiet older beachfront complex minutes away from great seafood restaurants and fishing. It is literally just a few steps over the boardwalk to the beach! Great place for an extended stay.

When checking in, the place needed a good cleaning and it stunk. Smelled like dog urine. Sheets were clean although the bedspreads were nasty. This was an owned condo was being rented by island Retreat for its owner. Dark cheap wood panelling, handle to patio door broken, patio door window fogged up or stained because we could not see out of it. It rained very hard and leaked by the door but we put trash can under leak. maid service consisted of new towels and trash pick up. First day maid came into room and then forgot to lock the door. Good point it was next to beach. Bottom i won't stay there again if I ever go back to PA.