Hyatt Lost Pines: When it takes more than a spa to get away from it all

The name Lost Pines — referring to the region in and around Bastrop, just a 15 minute drive from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport — is a reference to the loblolly pines that are more associated with East Texas, but certainly a welcome surprise in this part of the world.

But there’s also a connotation of Lost Pines being a place to get away from the urban bustle and lose oneself in nature. The 491-room Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa, which opened in 2006, takes that idea of getting away from the urban jungle to a tranquil forest — a journey that starts with the gently-winding, park-like entry road leading from Highway 71 to the resort’s front entrance.

Hyatt Lost Pines has familiar resort amenities like a golf course and a spa, but it also takes the best elements of summer camp and infuses them into the resort experience to create something pleasantly unexpected.

Attractions include horseshoes, bike rides on the hotel grounds and a nightly ritual in which guests make s’mores around a kid-you-not campfire. But then there’s a whole other level of getaway, which allows guests to fully know the LCRA-managed McKinney Roughs Nature Park that abuts the 405-acre hotel property. These amenities include 18 miles of hiking trails — trails with views of the Colorado River and an American Bald Eagle nest — and opportunities for horseback riding and birding.

“We’re not far from Austin and Bastrop, but given our scenic wilderness setting and all there is to see and do, you certainly feel worlds away,” said Amanda Fier, a spokesperson for Hyatt Lost Pines.

The resort is also designed with families in mind, with innovations that take family vacation to new levels of engagement. The hotel features a kids’ spa in addition to its adult spa, the kids’ menus in its restaurants will be revamped July 19 to feature healthy-yet-tasty “For Kids, By Kids” options, and there’s a sizeable number of daily activities during high season, an annual Family Olympics and a New Year’s Eve stay-in celebration for families in which the hotel grounds are converted into a carnival.

However, the resort’s not exclusively for out-of-towners — spa, golf and horseback riding activities are available to non-guests who reserve through the reservations desk, and its upscale Stories restaurant (which played the part of a Parisian restaurant in Richard Linklater’s Bernie) will seat non-hotel guests who make reservations. (Note: Reservations are recommended for guests and non-guests alike.)

For more info about the hotel and the region, head to visitlostpines.com.