Gary Babineaux and his wife, Pam, have crisscrossed the U.S. in their 45-foot Entegra Anthem diesel pusher.
“We’ve traveled coast to coast,” Gary Babineaux told GoRVing. “We try to go camping somewhere every month.”
But when the Babineauxs feel the urge to take a swim, there’s no place they’d rather be than El Campo Lost Lagoon RV Resort in El Campo, Texas, which has what could be the largest RV resort swimming pool in the country.
Park owners Kenna and Stephen Lucas opened the resort in 2019 around what the Houston Chronicle and other media outlets had previously called the world’s largest residential swimming pool, which was located in the tiny rural community of El Campo, about 70 miles southwest of Houston. The Lucases acquired the two-acre, 650,000-gallon, beach entry swimming pool in 2017 and built a 255-site RV resort around it, which they opened in 2019.
While the main pool area has many amenities, including a rope swing, rockslides, and a 500-foot lazy river, the Lucases have continued to make improvements over the years, adding extra decking and palapa-style cabanas as well as a kiddie lagoon, a multilevel water play structure, and a large serene swimming pool, which they call the Oasis Cove Pool.
(Photo courtesy of Gary Babineaux)
“What we did this year was a redesign, focusing on elevating the overall pool experience,” Kenna Lucas said. “Our emphasis was on redesigning the seating arrangements throughout the pool area, including the introduction of a stylish bar equipped with in-water tables and stools. Additionally, we expanded seating options around the outer edge of the pool to enhance comfort for our guests. Year after year, we strive to bring new and exciting elements to the main pool area. Each addition is a testament to our commitment to creating a captivating and dynamic environment for our guests.”
The Lucases’ guests are thrilled with the results.
“We’ve been from the Florida Keys to the West Coast, and we’ve never seen anything comparable,” Babineaux said, adding, “It is absolutely the most incredible swimming pool. It has swim-up bars and tables and umbrellas and bar stools in the water. You can reserve a table for the day. We live in the pool.”
Lunches and dinners served at the resort’s restaurant are so good that the Babineauxs eat most of their meals there, rather than cook themselves.
The Babineauxs typically travel to the resort with their adult friends. “There’s 10 of us, and most of us travel in 45-foot, high-end buses,” Babineaux explained, adding that they visit the resort as a group at least “three or four times a year.”
But while El Campo Lost Lagoon has a loyal following of adults, the resort is also a favorite destination for families with children.
(Photo courtesy of Gary Babineaux)
“We try to go two to three times a month. It’s very family oriented,” said Bethany Hobbs, who frequently camps at the resort with her husband and two daughters, ages 10 and 7, in their fifth wheel. “We know when we go there that we will have the best adult time while making memories with our children.”
Hobbs added that the resort not only has a huge swimming pool, but a separate sports park with a floating climbing structure, called a Wibit, which is popular with children. “We literally plan our vacations a year in advance to get RV sites by the Wibit,” she said, noting that she likes being able to enjoy adult conversation at her RV site while also being able to keep an eye on her kids. The resort also has rental accommodations for those who do not have an RV.
"This is the kind of place where the kids can be entertained and you can also have enough adult time to reconnect and recharge with your friends and your partner,” Hobbs said.
Other resort amenities include a catch-and-release fishing pond with 30-inch catfish, a remote-control car track, a mining sluice, a gaga ball pit, an arcade, an exercise room, a playground and volleyball and basketball courts.
Special events with live music also take place at various times during the year, with upcoming events including the resort’s 5th annual “Crawfish and Gumbo Cookoff and Car Show” on Saturday, May 4, with a Barbecue Cookoff taking place the weekend of May 17-18. A Polka festival takes place every November. El Campo Lost Lagoon provides such a safe environment that Hobbs said she feels comfortable allowing her daughters to ride their bikes around the resort. “It feels so homey and safe,” she said. “They also have security all night long.”
