Guest: Robin and Barbara, Cary, NC (-)
Date of Stay: 02/26/11 Review Submitted: 03/05/11

What a perfect way to celebrate our Anniversary!!! Your place is beautiful - decorated "just perfect" with everything either color or theme coordinated - Beds so comfy, kitchen well stocked, TV/Sound system great, deck with rockers wonderful, ocean views w/dolphin sightings awesome - why go anywhere else??? Thanks for making our celebration so special !!!! You are the best !!!!

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Our 2010 stay at "Just for the Halibut West"

Guest: Byron, Ann & Lollipop (Littleton, NC USA)
Date of Stay: 12/08/10 Review Submitted: 12/08/10

Dearest Martha, Our stay in "Just for the Halibut West" was perfect! We can't wait to return next year. You and your hubby have thought of every necessity and convenience, plus some. One could prepare a gourmet meal in the compact kitchen. We could have eliminated any number of items that were crammed into our car had we realized all the amenities you provide - you've thought of everything! Halibut West proved to be "as advertised" in every way- clean, fresh and beautifully maintained. You've included so many thoughtful extras. Our contact with you has been delightful! You've always been more than gracious, generous and extremely helpful. As senior citizens, we appreciate being on one floor and found the front steps easy to manipulate for loading and unloading. Once inside, everthing needed is available and the ocean is right in front of your eyes to enjoy. The proximity and ease of getting to the beach is fantastic! Lollipop, our toy fox terrier, adored walking/running the beach. Her most favorite thing was lounging in the sun on the back porch and sticking her head out between the rails to dog watch. Emerald Isle offers all ages many activities and attractions for an enjoyable vacation. The NC Acquarium, a theatre and terrific shopping are close by. We always help keep Emerald Isle's economy growing while we're there. At least once, we eat at RuckerJon's restaurant and we purchase fresh seafood from the Willis Seafood as many times as possible. Other restaurants, grocery, ABC and hardware stores are available on the island and there's a Wal-Mart within driving range. You can easily make day trips to Beaufort, Harker's Island and Atlantic Beach. For years we had a summer lake home, now in our retirement years, we are lake front residents. We've had many wonderful vacations but a vacation stay at the ocean continues to be our favorite get-away. Staying at Halibut West ranks Number One in our book! Note: We'd highly recommend Halibut West to others, as long as their "dates for rental" did not conflict with ours. Byron, Ann and Lollipop thank you for sharing your darling vacation home with others.

Owner response:Ann, Bryon and Lollipop...Thank you for your kind words. We are very much looking foward to again welcoming you to our home this year. If there is anything we can do to make it better for you, please do not hesitate to let us know. Thanks again. Martha & Rob

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, pet owners, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Felt like home - only better!

Guest: Justin & Dee Dee (DeKalb, Illinois)
Date of Stay: 03/28/09 Review Submitted: 10/31/10

My wife & I brought our two teenage daughters & our two dogs to this wonderful home-away-from-home in the spring of 2009. It is even better than the photos. It is so warm, comfortable, & cozy - and I don't mean small. There was plenty of room for all of us. The girls loved their bedroom as much as the beach front porch. The kitchen had everything we needed. We cooked at least one meal a day during our trip. The view from the living room window is fantastic by itself, but even better is the porch. Such a fantastic place to sit back and relax. Our dogs enjoyed the porch, too, but not as much as the beach! Everytime we opened that back door they jumped up in hopes that someone was going to walk down the pier. That trip turned our dogs into beach bums forever! This past spring we went to Cape San Blas, Florida. It was nice, but for our next trip we're looking to return to this lovely corner of the world. This house is in such a beautiful spot. Peaceful, charming, scenic, and yet, not far from many other activities and great places to see. For a nice thirty minute drive, we loved Beaufort. We took one of the tours there. We highly recommend it. Beautiful old coastal town full of history as well as great places to eat. The whole Emerald Isle area is nice with wonderful, friendly people. Our family always likes to try new things, including different vacation places, but it's too hard to pass up this spot again. I don't think we could even try a different beach house. Martha (owner) took great care in making us feel at home right away. She is, by far, the best owner we have rented from. Martha thinks of everything. You will not be disappointed.

Owner response:Thank you so much for your kind words....We look forward to welcoming you and your family to our home again...

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, pet owners, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Guest: Paula & Richard, - Franklin, NJ (-)
Date of Stay: 08/25/09 Review Submitted: 08/05/10

We highly recommend Emerald Isle if you are looking for that perfect vacation. The house is in a perfect location. We felt at home, we are originally from Eastern Long Island, NY and we felt close to our roots. THANKS TO ALL FOR A MEMORABLE VACATION. Looking forward to returning. Rated 5 stars out of 5.

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Good to return to Just For The Halibut-West!

Guest: Jazz, Ruthie & Scott (SE)
Date of Stay: 04/10/10 Review Submitted: 05/10/10

This was our third stay here; and we enjoyed the other two visits so much that we decided to rent for 2 weeks this time, though wondering whether we would get bored or tired of it for the longer stay - well, suffice to say that we didn't want to return home at the end of the 2 weeks! Emerald Isle is so pretty and nice, laid back and with very friendly people; and this home is just lovely - truly all of the touches of home but with an incredible view! The owners are so friendly, helpful and accommodating, wanting to insure that you have a wonderful stay at their Home. This is, and I believe always will be, our rental of choice when visiting E.I. - I don't know what we would do if we wanted to go to E.I. and found that Just For The Halibut-West was not available! OMG! :-) Thank you Martha, Rob & Sasha for once again sharing your Home with us - it was great! You can be sure that we WILL be back! P.S. We noticed on this visit that it appears that a few owners along the beach are not doing a particularly good job of maintaining their properties (this, of course, comes from just seeing the exterior so have no idea of what they may have done inside), but Martha and Rob seem to have always done whatever necessary to keep their property/home looking new and fresh. Scott, Ruthie & Jazz/April 2010

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, pet owners, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 01/09/09 Review Submitted: 01/09/09

This is a belated entry, as you did not have an online Guestbook when we visited your lovely home 5/24-30/08 and am pleased to find that you now do. First, we have stayed at a number of VRBO's over the years but have found you to be the absolute best & most thoughtful hosts. You are the only people who have ever sent us a wonderful "welcome" gift, and then we were delighted & impressed to receive your lovely Christmas card - thank you! Y'all are the Best! Your home is absolutely delightful, beautifully decorated, spotlessly clean and includes everything that one could imagine needing to feel right at home - oh, and have I mentioned the magnificent view and how close to the beach & ocean you are?!! Just sitting on the porch and relaxing with that view was all I needed! Of course, the kitchen had everything I needed for making meals when we didn't want to go out (which basically was most of the time!); and we used the grill on several occasions as well. Thank you so much for your gracious hospitality and for sharing your wonderful home with us; I would most definitely recommend it to everyone! We hope to return again this year! All The Best To You! Scott, Ruthie & Jazz

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Guest: Cindy C. (Reston, VA)
Date of Stay: 09/30/08 Review Submitted: 09/30/08

Greetings from your wonderful beach home: We just couldn't be happier, Martha. Your home is so cozy, clean and every accommodation and need has been met! We are thrilled to be here. The attention to detail and comfort is just outstanding and so appreciated. It really feels like a home, not a rental - hence your message, "Enter as Strangers * Leave as Friends" hits it right on the head. My sister wanted to extend personal thanks for the fabulous directions for the washer and dryer - the risk of someone damaging it would be great without the instructions. It works wonderfully. Mom is really enjoying the master bed/bath - we didn't realize it had a walk in shower and since she is partially handicapped, its perfect!!! Just a quick thanks and to let you know when the VRBO calendar is available for August 2009, we would like to book this week again!!! Cheers and warm regards, Cindy

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Guest: Cheryl C.2 (Huntington, WV)
Date of Stay: 09/30/08 Review Submitted: 09/30/08

We LOVE your beautiful beach house! It was SO relaxing. Just what the pediatrician ordered and desperately needed! You were so right about the porch...totally relaxing. I could have lived out there 24/7. The storm really was not a problem, although we had to shelter in place for about 30 minutes during a tornado warning for Emerald Isle. We needed a little excitement! My hobby/passion is photography, so the 8 foot waves were fantastic! My dad said he had never seen so many pictures taken of waves. My parents had a wonderful time and many memories were made. We loved the basket of goodies! What a wonderful and thoughtful surprise. We were not quite sure who was knocking at our door on a Sunday. Many thanks! My dog has been pouting since I returned home Sunday! I think she prefers the beach over our boring backyard/woods in KY. It was wonderful to be able to take Ruffles on vacation. She was so cute carrying around sea shells and intently watching the waves, Many thanks for the information about the vet. Fortunately, we did not need their services. Thank you for sharing your little bit of heaven! I would love to reserve it in May for a couple of weeks. Let me know when you post the 2009 calendar.

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