Vacation Rentals by Owner

Nicest Vacation Home we've ever found

Guest: Lindy (Wisconsin)
Date of Stay: 04/14/12 Review Submitted: 04/23/12

Our two families (4 “40-somethings”, with children now aged 20, 19, 16, 12 & 8) have been vacationing together on Manasota Key for years. This year, we were lucky enough to have discovered the Spofford property, and are now spoiled for anything less than this fabulous place! It’s not easy to find a vacation home that sleeps nine. This place could not have been more perfect! TWO master King suites plus plenty of other comfortable “real” beds (not pull-outs) made for happy, well-rested people. And no fighting over bathroom time, with 3 ½, plus the outdoor shower. (nice!) Incredible views from the spacious covered balcony! A perfect spot for watching the sunset and sunrise, every day; as well as feeling like you’re practically on the beach, but protected from the elements. MANY hours were spent there reading, doing art projects, and having great family time. The Kitchen! Excellent – amazing array of equipment, and the separate grilling balcony was a big hit! We only went out to eat for one meal during the entire weeks’ stay. So many things designed to keep everyone happy. The 1st floor family room with its Wii games was great for “indoor times”, keeping younger ones occupied, which provided others some peace and quiet ?. Didn’t even need to bring beach towels, and they had several beach chairs and a bunch of sand toys. All in all, LOVED IT; we can’t wait to come back. Highly recommend! (p.s. do note, as the owner describes, there are lots of stairs here)

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, girls getaway, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Family Vacation

Guest: Ellen (Traverse City, Michigan)
Date of Stay: 03/17/12 Review Submitted: 04/09/12

Our family ranging in age from 2 mos. to 94 yrs. gathered from Maine and Michigan to enjoy this heavenly spot. The house was beautiful inside and out-very clean and well-maintained. Its high construction provided spectacular views and the fenced area under the house was a cool place for little ones to play. The Gulf beach , a short walk away, was almost private. All of Manasota Key was surprisingly quiet for March in Florida. Stump Pass Park, the playground at the public beach (very close), boat rentals at a place near the bridge all provided lots of fun. We ate out just once at Mango Bistro in Engelwood because we so enjoyed the kitchen with a view, but there are restaurants within walking distance. The owners were very helpful and pleasant. We would recommend this to others and hope to return again with our family or friends.

Recommended for:Age 55+, families with teenagers, families with young children, girls getaway.

School brake family vacation

Guest: Francois (Montréal, Canada)
Date of Stay: 03/03/12 Review Submitted: 03/11/12

Perfect house for a great family vacation. Plenty of space, perfect spot, very clean, with all the amenities.

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, families with young children.

Fabulous house and area

Guest: s (Minnesota)
Date of Stay: 03/26/11 Review Submitted: 05/25/11

My family and I spent a wonderful week on Manasota Key. This is a spectacular house in a beautiful area. The house has all the comforts and amenities you could ask for. Manasota Key is a relaxed, beautiful area. Lovely beach, restaurants within walking distance, close grocery store, spectacular sunsets, kayak and jet ski rental, para sailing. This was a fabulous vacation, one I did not want to leave. I hope to be back soon. Thank you!

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Amazing

Guest: Nadja, Rene & Nick (Westport, CT)
Date of Stay: 11/20/10 Review Submitted: 12/14/10

This house and place is absolutely amazing. Our 16 months old loved the house, the beach and the water. We have to agree with all the prior reviews. The owners are great to deal with. If you are looking for a little place of paradise - this is it. We will be back.

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, families with young children.

Florida's Best Kept Secret

Guest: Arlene and Chuck (Levittown, PA)
Date of Stay: 10/09/10 Review Submitted: 11/04/10

What can I say without being redundant. Our stay was awesome. The best vacation, I believe, that my family ever had. It goes without saying that two master bedrooms make for two happy couples. The children stayed comfortably in the "double" bunk bed room and the room with the single beds was perfect for my single daughter. There were plenty of bathrooms to keep everyone happy and the outdoor shower was PERFECT. Warm water cascading over you after a hot sandy, salty day on the beach...just gave you a satisfied feeling to end your day. Our stay was in October and we pretty much had the beach to ourselves where we swam, snorkelled and fished daily. The weather was cool in the morning and HOT during the day. The dolphins and manatee swam by almost daily and we filled our coffers with shells and shark teeth. It was paradise. The sunrises and sunsets were magnificent from the views on the upper deck. Lynda was a pleasure to deal with and we felt like we were at home. The house was well stocked from linens to condiments, we couldn't ask for anything more. I could probably go on and on about our stay here but can only say...rent it, experience being in paradise with all the comforts of home. We did and we are looking forward to going back because I believe this vacation home ruined us for all others.

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, girls getaway, romantic getaway.

Great house on a beautiful beach

Guest: Tony and Christine (GA)
Date of Stay: 06/19/10 Review Submitted: 07/12/10

We absolutely loved our stay at Manasota Key. The owners were very helpful and easy to work with. As for the house, it was bright and clean and perfect for both our families. Having two master suites kept us from trying to remember who had the nicer bedroom last vacation. The smaller kids piled in with the bunk beds and the older ones liked having their own room with the twin beds. We even placed the baby's bed in the large walk in closet so she had her own quiet space for napping. The house was a VERY short walk to the beach with a lot of nice little extras such as beach towels, games, books, and some staples already in the kitchen. We spent the week floating in the clear water on a beautiful, quiet beach. A great trip and we hope to go back!

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, families with young children, girls getaway.

Excellent Vacation

Guest: Jarrod W. (Murfreesboro, TN)
Date of Stay: 04/09/10 Review Submitted: 04/20/10

We stayed April 9th - 17th in this beautiful beach home. Everything you could possibly want this house has (excellent location, beautiful views, beach, restaurants close by, fully furnished and everything you need for cooking, etc). For my first VRBO experience, this one will be hard to top. We rented a boat and caught over 40 sharks and many different types of fish. The fishing in the area is excellent. The neighborhood has plenty of activity, but is extremely quiet and peaceful. Everyone was very friendly. If you want an organized stay, and a vacation that you will not want to ever end, then this is the place to stay.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, age 55+, families with teenagers, families with young children, girls getaway, tourists without a car, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Guest: Kay Martin (Somerset.UK)
Date of Stay: 11/05/09 Review Submitted: 11/05/09

We have just returned from spending 10 idyllic days at Lynda's beach house.This is our second visit and hopefully not the last!We travel 5000 miles to get here and it is well worth it.It is our vision of paradise -- Magnificent house,restaurants and bars within walking distance,wildlife in abundance and the finest sunsets anywhere.

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Guest: The Spadafora & Fancher Family (Clarkston, MI)
Date of Stay: 09/17/09 Review Submitted: 09/17/09

We rented this house from Lynda & you couldn't ask for a nicer person to deal with. This is a dream home. The moment you walk in it says, welcome, relax, put your feet up & stay a while. You bring the food, friends and family, the rest is here. The views are fabulous & even in August the breeze on the upper decks were great. It's beautifully furnished, very clean & room for all. The beach is so close we could spend the day and go back & forth as needed. There were 7 of us, 5 adults 2 kids (12&5) we had a great time & will cherish the memories. When asking my husband if he had a comment to add he simpy said,"I'd like to go back..how about tomorrow.

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Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 07/27/09 Review Submitted: 07/27/09

We stayed in this wonderful house from 7/18-7/25/09, we had 5 adults and 5 children. The online photos don't compare to what you will find!! It must be the biggest and newest house in the area! Everything you could think of was provided - from the kitchen to the beach towels. The view from the top deck is amazing! We also happened to witness a sea turtle come out of the water one night and nest! We will have memories of this trip for the rest of our lives and hope to return next year.

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Guest: Vicki Lieuwen (Sioux Falls, SD)
Date of Stay: 07/03/09 Review Submitted: 07/03/09

Our family had the opportunity to stay in this beautiful beach home May 9-May 16. We had 7 adults and one 2 year old. There was so much room that we never felt crowded at all. The decor of the home looks like it was a magazine featured home. There are decks off of almost every room in the house which offer beautiful views of the ocean. We spent many hours sitting out on the deck. Absolutely everything that we could have wanted was available for us to use. The home is located within just a couple hours drive to Tampa or Olrando so some of us took the opportunity to do some things there but we also spent many hours just relaxing on what felt like our own private beach just a few steps from the home. This was definitely one of the most enjoyable vacations we've had. Thank you for allowing us to use your home. We hope to be back sometime!

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Guest: John Smack & family
Date of Stay: 03/03/09 Review Submitted: 03/02/09

We had an amazing time. Having gone there for 8 years this was by far our nicest accommodations. You are very generous with what you leave for guest and we appreciated it. Every other place we stayed everything was cleaned out prior to the next tenant. It really felt like home. Only thing I would have changed would have been taking 2 weeks instead of one....maybe next year :)

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Guest: Nancy E. and Canadian friends
Date of Stay: 02/19/09 Review Submitted: 02/18/09

We loved your home! We are now spoiled...nothing else compares to your Beach House! It was SO nice to have two master identical suites...we didn't have to "flip" to see who got the master suite. It was great to be able to open the windows at night and hear the ocean. We loved to have the option of two decks to take advantage of the sun. (We had our morning coffee on the BBQ deck every day.) We loved that you had a library....my husband actually read 3 books by a local author. Having WiFi was important to us to keep in touch with our families plus check out activities while here. We really loved your home. Like I mentioned, we are pretty spoiled after staying at your Beach House. Thanks again, Nancy

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Guest: laura klein (new york)
Date of Stay: 12/07/08 Review Submitted: 12/07/08

our family, we have 4 kids (9-16 yrs) stayed at this beautiful beach home. We had an amazing time. It's just steps from the beach and the views from the house are incredible! Entering this home was like entering the pages of a Pottery Barn summer catalog. We can't wait to go back!

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Guest: Peter Martin (Somerset,U.K.)
Date of Stay: 06/28/08 Review Submitted: 06/28/08

Well,what can one say? My family spent 2 wonderful weeks at Lynda's beach house and it was everything that a Florida beach holiday should be.Weather to die for,Osprey's,turtles,dolphins,pelican squadron,and a house that left nothing to wish for.Don't miss this one or you will regret it!

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Guest: K. SACK (CHESTERFIELD, MO)
Date of Stay: 04/08/08 Review Submitted: 04/08/08

What a fantastic home. The pictures don't do it justice. Everything was so very nice and it really was a treat to stay in such a beautiful house. We really enjoyed it and hope to return.

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Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 03/13/08 Review Submitted: 03/13/08

We spent a wonderful 6 weeks at this beautiful home. It has a great floor plan, great view of the ocean from the upper deck and is in excellent condition. We found plenty of things to do in the area: beaches, Stump Pass Park, fishing trips, nature cruise on Lemon Bay. We would highly recommend this home to anyone. The owners are very helpful and accommodating. A great change of pace from Wisconsin!

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Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 08/24/07 Review Submitted: 08/24/07

We had a wonderful stay at your home. The weather was sunny every day and the ocean water was warm and clear. Your home was perfect. It had everything we could possibly want and the neighborhood was charming. We are looking forward to our stay in November/December.

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Guest: deborah c. (El Sobrante, Ca)
Date of Stay: 04/29/07 Review Submitted: 04/28/07

We just rented this fantastic home for our spring break vacation. My parents from Port Charlotte came to stay with us and had some special grandparent time with our 14 and 17 year old children. The house is so well designed that we could have plenty of together time or privacy time, which was perfect during those rainy days. The upstairs living area gives the feeling of being in a crow's nest, high above the tree tops. I was captivated by the pelicans flying in formation close by. The home is painted in relaxing colors and is beautifully furnished. The bedding is very comfortable, the kitchen well stocked with quality cookware, plenty of linens, a library, games, movies. The beach is lovely and that end of the Key is quiet and good for walking. I hope to return again and again!!

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Guest: Leanna2 (Pickerington,OH )
Date of Stay: 04/20/07 Review Submitted: 04/20/07

Our family of 4 stayed here for our Spring Break. After searching several areas for a home this is definately the best home I found. It was very cozy for us, but would be great for larger families or multiple families. The kitchen is well stocked with anything you would need for cooking and baking, including tupperware for leftovers. The bedrooms have extra blankets and sheets should you need them, and plenty of towels. The extra living space is nice should the kids want to play games or watch something else on tv. I can't think of anything that wasn't provided and was pleasantly suprised with some of the things that were thought of that go above and beyond. Books, movies, games & beach towels to name a few. The beach was private with tons of shark teeth, shells and fishing. My boys (ages 11 & 12) fished right off the beach and caught around 30 fish in a 2 hour time frame. In my opinion this is the best home on Englewood Beach!! We can't wait to come again next year!!

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Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 03/28/07 Review Submitted: 03/28/07

Our family (4 kids 3-12yo) had a great spring break. Beach time, geocaching, and lookin' for teeth was a nice getaway. The house is fantastic, and needed nothing. Highly recommend!

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Guest: Peggy & Bill R. (-)
Date of Stay: 03/23/07 Review Submitted: 03/23/07

Our family of 7 had a wonderful vacation here. The house is spacious, beautifully decorated yet practical, immaculate, and stocked with everything you need to feel right at home. The views from the balconies are incredible, and I loved the freedom that it allowed my kids to be playing on the beach while I watched from the comfort of a lounge chair sipping an iced tea on the SW balcony (precious "Mom-time"). Aside from enjoying the home, we ventured out to nearby Boca Grande for a day trip, Busch Gardens which was less than 1 ½ hours away, did some boating, wave-running and fishing. Renting a house as opposed to a hotel is new to us, but the process went flawlessly and we will definitely be back again...although one week may not be enough next time.

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Guest: Bill8 (-)
Date of Stay: 02/10/07 Review Submitted: 02/10/07

Our family of five, with three young boys (8yrs, 5yrs, 3yrs) stayed at this beautiful brand new home for 1 ½ weeks in January of 2007. The house was set up perfectly for us, plenty of bathrooms and very private bedrooms. The upstairs, where we spent 90% of our time, is equipped a great kitchen set up, outside decks, entertainments area, and a grill. All in all, it would be very hard to think of anything you would need that’s not thought of and supplied in this home.The location is great, it’s on very quiet dead end street, and the views are even better.The owners are very responsive and make the whole process very easyIt’s right up there as one of our best family vacations. We can’t wait to return.

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Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 11/29/06 Review Submitted: 11/29/06

My wife and I spent much of Thanksgiving weekend at this Beach House, which included 23 people and three turkeys. What a great place! Plenty to do all the time and lots of room inside and out. We even participated with the neighbors in putting up a Christmas Tree on the beach. What a friendly street!! The kitchen worked especially well with all of the finest appliances and the arrangement worked great even for feeding so many people. Plus a fabulous sunset!

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