An amazing week

Guest: Nicolas R. (Montreal, Quebec)
Date of Stay: 11/23/11 Review Submitted: 12/01/11

The location of this house is its #1 feature. We had beautiful views of the sea, as well as Culebrita and St-Martin from the terrace (and from the pool!). The house is big and the main room is perfect for dinners and hanging out. You'll need a car to get there, it's about 4-5 miles from the village, where there are a few grocery stores and restaurants. Overall an amazing week. I'd come back anytime, thanks Angus.

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Best View on the Island

Guest: High Above (Sidney, Maine / USA)
Date of Stay: 02/16/11 Review Submitted: 02/26/11

Our party of 6 just returned from an unforgettable week at this incredibly beautiful and private retreat. This is one of the first residences to be built on the northeast end of the island, so the present owner's family had first choice of locations. The constantly changing view beyond the large deep infinity pool is of pristine Zoni Beach, Cayo Norte, Culebrita and the Virgin Islands. Daily, we rose before dawn as to not miss the enchanted sunrise. We watched in awe as the full moon rose over the occasional passing cruise ship and twinkling lights of St. Thomas's Charlotte Amalie, seemingly so close, yet we were a reassuring 14 miles from the bustle of the crowds there. In our opinion, nearby Zoni is the best beach on the island as it is lightly visited, clean, the palms provide some shade, there is some snorkeling and the surf isn't too extreme, as is the case with the more inaccessible and remote Brava and Rosaca Beaches. The separate bedroom buildings and central "lodge" surrounding the pool provide opportunities for either privacy or socializing, depending upon your mood. What you should not expect are 5 star hotel services such as an unlimited supply of clean towels, housekeeping and daily pool maintenance. It's more like a remote fishing lodge. We saw no sign of the owner, a caretaker, or any other visitors, until the end of our stay, and there were some minor issues such as a toilet back up, smells emanating from a grey water tank under the master bath, and a pool in need of more frequent maintenance. Since there are many personal items throughout the home, and food in the refrigerator and cabinets, it's as if you are a guest in someone's home, yet you're paying for it. It was reasonably clean, but not immaculate. It seems the absentee owner has difficulties finding reliable help. The access road is rough. Since you are on your own, clearer, current and more consistent instructions on household operations are recommended as there are many quirky issues related to the cistern, sewage, toilets, electronics, phones, doors, windows, pool, cats, trash and thorns. Military occupation until the mid 70s postponed the overdevelopment and consequent damage found on other islands. I can only hope tiny and vulnerable Culebra will be protected through sale of conservation easements instead of development rights, recycling instead of the landfill that towers over Tamarindo Beach and solar charged electric cars instead of spilled petroleum.

Owner response:This is a very fair review. I regret I was away on business while the guests were in situ. My new cleaning crew did not know to leave the robotic pool vacuum permanently in the pool. Had I been on-island I would have been to the house more frequently to oversee issues. I notice many guests want laundry services, but since we state that we live off rainwater caught on the roof -- like a true Caribbean Home -- we recommend either hiring a local lady to do laundry or to do it yourself at 1 of 2 laundromats. Frankly, since visitors spend so much time in water, most clothing stays clean all week and there is a clothes line. That said, these guests did recommend getting a guest book with plasticized pages to make recommendations to other guests. I thought this an excellent idea. I have already purchased a binder and need now only to get into the house to print out the manual. Fortunately or unfortunately, the house is booked solid until later in March, and Culebra no longer has a store to take care of printing and scanning. Maybe I'll try the new library... Finally, also responding to these guests' suggestions, I have just bought new beach towels. So I appreciate your honest criticisms. Come back soon!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with teenagers.

Just what we wanted!

Guest: Shelley Simonton (-)
Date of Stay: 05/30/10 Review Submitted: 10/26/10

Angus - House was great! Just what we wanted. The views and quiet were perfect. Come visit in Jackson some time. Thanks Again. Shelley

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Remarkably Beautiful

Guest: Debbie and Stephen Haynes (-)
Date of Stay: 06/05/10 Review Submitted: 10/26/10

Angus, Thank you. The views were fabulous. looking over the edg of the pool with a glass of wine as the sky changed every evening was remarkably beautiful. monday morning there were tracks on Zoni Beach from a mother leatherback turtle nesting. Tuesday we missed the one baby that hatched! The no-seeums put a damper on lying on the beach in the evenings. However, the sailing and the snorkelling were the best Stephen and I have experienced. Thank you Angus for a great time. We enjoyed meeting you and your family. I hope it all works out. Take care, Stephen and Deb

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Thanks sooo much....

Guest: Carrie DeWeese (-)
Date of Stay: 06/25/10 Review Submitted: 10/26/10

Angus Thanks sooo much for letting us enjoy your house. Again we had an excellent time. Let us know about New Years and if we forgot anything. You are out of moist catfood and they were a good group of animals, especially Basil. Take care and hope to talk to you soon!! Thanks again. Dale DeWeese, Carrie, Kelly, Mark, Samantha, Nicole, and Cameron

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THANKS! AN AMAZING PLACE TO STAY.

Guest: Amy Roman (-)
Date of Stay: 08/01/10 Review Submitted: 10/26/10

Angus. Thanks. This was an amazing place to stay. The views during every hour of the day were spectacular. The house provided everything to make the stay even more perfect. Will def be back and recommend to others. One suggestion is to tell renters to rent a car for sure. Most taxis don't come out here and the one that did kept switching the prices once he saw where we were staying. We're already planning our next vacation and plannning to go out on the boat with you. Thanks Again. Amy and Group

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I would not rent this property again

Guest: fabiangp (denver)
Date of Stay: 02/19/10 Review Submitted: 03/08/10

Overall my experience in Culebra was really good, except for the rental property that I chose. First the landlord rented the whole house to me, after I sent the full payment, he wanted to make me believe that he rented me only 2 rooms, so I had to pay extra to get the owner to open a third room so my kids could sleep separated. Second, when I first arrived to the house, it was dirty, smelly, the fridge was disgusting with dead roaches in it. I had to clean the whole house.... Later than same day I had to put mice traps because there were 3 rodents in the house and I clearly stated that I had a baby boy.... The owner also locks the laundry room and the phone service does not work. TV has 4 working channels, one of them is PBS at least... The house is also extremely dangerous for adults and kids as well, it has a very low approx. 2 ft walls around the backyard to protect you from falling into a 30 ft cliff. 50% of the edge of the pool in not protected at all. The view is amazing from the backyard, unless you notice the really dirty pool that the owner did not even bother to clean during the 9 days that i was there. He provided us with 1 towel per person and does not want to provide clean towels or sheets during the rest of the stay. It is also important to consider that the house is around 5 miles from town, 10 miles from the best beaches. Zoni beach is the only close beach 1 mile down the road approx., but it is probably the worst beach in the island, no food or restaurant close in the area. I also should add that the tenant is in charge of feeding the landlord's cats... it did not bother me much, but it is certainly a responsibility i was given without even ask for it, and off course he did not pay me for it :>/ Do yourself a favor, chose a different property, there are plenty of them and you can call information in the island and find out the best places to rent, I have also just find out that this property is not among the recommended places to rent.

Owner response:Dear Potential Renters: We deeply regret the review published in March-April 2010. However, when you read our lease you will realize most of the issues the renter complained about are well covered in the lease -- including the house being secluded, away from town, and surrounded by nature. In fact, many of his complaints are addressed on the website itself. On the website we wrote disclosures about feeding the cats. In fact, it’s right above the "Write a Review" part of the website. Further, because of the infinity-type pool, we require Renters to indemnify Owners if they have children below the age of 10. On the top of the first page of the lease, it enumerates how many guests are allowed -- and how many bedrooms will be opened. Each bedroom villa opens onto the pool. Not only does it offer privacy but it enables us to rent to as few as one person or to a group of eight. The renter wrote his review because he was angry. He wanted a couples' rate so in the lease we noted clearly what bedrooms were to be locked. We sent him the lease. After signing the lease, he complained. The renter wanted all four bedrooms opened. I asked why? Long and short, he then admitted that there would be more guests than approved. I opened more rooms. And I charged him accordingly. Bottomline: he wanted additional guests at no extra cost. He broke the terms of the lease, got caught, got angry and wrote the review. As to his other complaints: The part about the beach below the house is misleading. Zoni is a fantastic beach. But it's a natural beach. There are no taco stands, for sure. It's an amazing palm lined beach with good snorkeling. The renter complained about being too far from town; well, Culebra is 7 x 3 miles. There is no way the house is 10 miles from anywhere. To be exact, the house is about 5.6 miles from town. Also, the part about bugs in the fridge is just fiction. Bugs are around for sure. But we personally clean the home, and my wife does the refrigerator before each rental. (Why would bugs want to freeze anyway?) We are out in the country. In the tropics. Mostly there are lots of lizards. But the house is fumigated monthly and bombed semi-monthly. That said, it is an indoor-outdoor home and if doors are left open, critters may get in. We did have mice that week. That is not a lie. We trapped them. And let them go. Now they are gone. I hope this helps. Culebra is very yesteryear. Funky. Marga

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Ces't Magnifique, Beautiful

Guest: Jose A. (San Juan, P.R.)
Date of Stay: 07/06/08 Review Submitted: 07/18/08

The property was excellent. It has such a beautiful view of Zoni Beach and the Islands, that we were all the time at the house and on the infinity pool (that was really spectacular) and never want to go outside the property.The property was clean and well- mantained and it has everything you need, so you only have to take the clothes you are going to wear. I really recomend the property to anyone who wants to relax in a beautiful place. It's very peaceful there and we have such a good time, that we would rent it again. A perfect property to rent.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, age 55+.