Vacation Rentals by Owner

Wonderful month in October

Guest: Jane O. (South Georgia)
Date of Stay: 10/01/11 Review Submitted: 11/10/11

Spending a month as the leaves turned was a great adventure. The house was arranged well with a full screened back porch on the back and porches on two sides in the front. The Bear Lake staff members we encountered were helpful without being intrusive. Our dinner at the lodge one night was delicious and we enjoyed watching low clouds come in over the lake. The pictures do not give a complete vision of how much room and what amenities the house has. The kitchen is well equipped and met all of our needs. Having wi-fi was great since our cellphones could not get service at the cottage. The owners were very responsive, answering all of our questions in a timely way. We recommend drives down side roads along streams, unique restaurants in Cashiers like the Cornucopia and in Sylva like Annie's Naturally Bakery which serves wonderful sandwiches and baked goodies and going to spectacular waterfalls like Whitewater Falls. We recommend arriving in daylight so that the drive up to the cottage (which involves a lot of turns and curves) is easier to negotiate. Once you are used to it (and you learn how to use gears to keep your brakes from being used up) it will be an adventure, but not difficult.

Recommended for:Age 55+, families with teenagers, pet owners, sightseeing.

Second time,

Guest: Heather w. (Atlanta)
Date of Stay: 11/21/10 Review Submitted: 11/27/10

We just got back from our second trip to this cottage and it was terrific. We had better prepared ourselves for supplies: the grocery is about 30 minutes in either direction. The cottage has everything you need to prepare meals! The beds are comfortable-not too soft and not too hard. The furniture is perfect for curling up by the fire with a book. The dining table is huge! It seats 8 with room for more! We had a few heated games of monopoly and pictionary around it. The lake club was busy with families. The gym was great, never a wait for a machine except the day after Thanksgiving. We had family staying in another cottage down the hill, which worked out great! The Cohen's cottage was better equipped for families with kids: the 2 bunk beds, screened in porch, yard. Another great vacation at Jason and Dianas!

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

Beautiful beyond belief!

Guest: Kay (Boyle, MS, USA)
Date of Stay: 10/17/10 Review Submitted: 10/24/10

My husband, sister and brother-in-law were so excited when we opened the door to this absolutely beautiful home. This property's pictures do not show the real beauty of the owner's home. All three bedrooms have very nice furnishings as well as the den and kitchen. The screened in porch with the outside fireplace is a huge plus for the home. The four of us spent hours at night around the fireplace enjoying family time and not watching television; that in itself is HUGE for these two guys. We felt the price for this property was very fair. It would have possibly cost us a little more to stay in a hotel room and we would not have been able to enjoy each others company cooped up in a hotel room. Just having a home like the Cohen's made our vacation a very special getaway for the four of us. The home was very clean and the owners are absolutely wonder people to deal with!

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, age 55+, families with young children, girls getaway, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Mountain Home

Guest: L&A (Houston)
Date of Stay: 09/24/10 Review Submitted: 10/05/10

We wanted to thank you for the lovely welcome gift and the wonderful days we spent in your cottage. The weather wasn't very cooperative last week so it was especially nice to have a warm and nurturing place to call home! We hiked most of the trails between showers, from the beautiful Mill Pond Pavilion area to the top of Bear Pen trail. One night we returned to the mountain top above the golf course and made a fire at the gazebo, watched the sun set and then did some star gazing - so peaceful! We canoed around part of the lake and climbed to the waterfall - it was breath taking! Each time we returned to the cottage we were impressed again with the beautiful job you did with the furnishings and decorating! It couldn't have been more perfect if we had done it ourselves! We hope to move to this area in a few years but until then we look forward to several more stays in your lovely home in the mountains! Thanks for making this trip such a pleasant experience!

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, age 55+, families with teenagers, families with young children, pet owners, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Bear Lake Reserve is wonderful!

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 09/03/10 Review Submitted: 09/07/10

Our family of 2 adults, 4 children and 10 month old golden retriever (named Bear) had an absolutely wonderful time at Bear Lake Reserve over Labor Day weekend. With hardly a cloud in the sky and highs in the low 70's and lows around 50, the weather could not have been any better. The Cohens made our rental a true pleasure. The greeting gift was a nice touch. Also, the cabin is set up for any of the amenities you want to use - stack of firewood on the back screened porch with lighters on the mantle to start both inside and outside fireplaces, coffee and sugar/creamer in stock,fishing rods and reels for use at stocked trout pond, etc. made it very convenient. The cabin had plenty of sleeping room with the four bunk beds in one room and very comfortable king and queen beds in the other 2 bedrooms. There is so much to do in the area with hiking (Whiteside Mountain, Chimney Top Mountatin), falls (Silver Run Falls, Big and Little Sliding Rock, etc.) and shops throughout Cashiers. Also, the area is very pet friendly. Our golden retriever was able to go with us most anyplace we went - swimming in Bear Lake, hiking up mountain trails, going to the falls, etc. We highly recommend the sandwiches at Cornucopia in Cashiers (particularly the Red Reuben). We had a wonderful time and cannot wait to come back.

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, families with young children, pet owners, sightseeing.

Beautiful..

Guest: dmmarchfam (Lawrenceville, ga )
Date of Stay: 05/29/10 Review Submitted: 06/01/10

This was a beautiful property. Very clean and furnished beautifully. We had a great time eating on the back porch and making s'mores in the fireplace. Took some of the trails and had a picnic lunch. Enjoyed the pool,hot tub and kayaking. Very nice property. Quiet and relaxing. Owners are very quick to respond to inquires and very nice. We will definately stay here again. We saw, rabbits, beavers, turkey and even a snake (in the road) Weather was beautiful. Try to get to the top of the mountain, it is a breathtaking view!!! Thank you again for a wonderful family weekend getaway

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, families with teenagers, families with young children, girls getaway, pet owners, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 01/21/10 Review Submitted: 01/21/10

We really enjoyed our stay in your beautiful home. All the furnishings were top of the line and very comfortable. The weather was very cooperative (thank goodness) and the fall colors were simply beautiful. Ample firewood was provided, so we made good use of both fireplaces during our visit. We grilled steaks and had dinner on the porch one night by the fire – Very Nice. For anyone visiting, you must plan a trip up to Sylva. They still have and old fashioned downtown that you can stroll through. A must visit in Sylva…Annie’s Naturally Bakery. They make simply incredible desserts; I promise you will love them. We took a day trip over to Franklin and took in their Fall Festival, another great place to visit. Of course we saw our share of deer, but we also got lucky and had a wild turkey walk right down the driveway one morning as well as seeing a groundhog on our way to clubhouse one day. We’re animal lovers, so a big selling point on this home for us was pet friendly. Our chocolate lab had a wonderful time too. (haha) We rate this vacation home an A++Thanks Jason & Diana!Jamie & ScottJacksonville, FL

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Heather w. (Atlanta)
Date of Stay: 02/01/09 Review Submitted: 02/11/09

This was the best place for my family of 5! The house was perfectly set up to meet our needs: the little ones got the top bunks (so no fights about it), the pre-teen got his own room, and we, the parents, were on the other side of the house. Jason and Diana go above and beyond the call of duty to make sure to answer all of our questions. They are terrific to rent from. Everyone had a great time spending Thanksgiving at Bear Lake Reserve. (the buffet was pricey and limited in the restaurant, so next time we will "rough it" at home) The Bear Lake Clubhouse offers all kinds of activities for children, and a massive bar upstairs overlooking a beautiful lake. I am sure summers are busy and wonderful. We will be renting again from these great people at this terrific house!

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 09/01/08 Review Submitted: 09/14/08

This vacation was wonderful from beginning to end! The house is perfectly secluded to be able to relax and enjoy nature but also within a short distance to activities. We took full advantage of the lake club and basically had the whole pool to ourselves! We rented a pontoon boat on the lake one day and enjoyed just being lazy. The house was perfect! It was clean and we enjoyed many nights out on the screen porch eating dinner or in front of the fireplace. I definetely recommend a walk around Sylva (about 20 minutes by car) if you have a rainy day. The perfect relaxing vacation get-away!

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 09/01/08 Review Submitted: 09/07/08

We stayed for a week at this property with our 5 kids (11 thru 3)in June. I can speak for all 7 of us when I say it is the best family vacation we have ever taken. The house was perfect for us, pristinely clean, the kitchen was well suited if we wanted to eat in and my kids loved the outdoor fireplace for smores. The house was nicely situated on the property for convenience to the lake house, golf course or going to town. There was so much to do there, the TV was never turned on. We kayaked, hiked, swam, golfed and generally layed around. The lake house was set up so the kids could eat outside by the pool in a relaxed atmosphere then they could go into the kids room or movied theater and we could eat an adult dinner at the restaurant. Everything was reasonably priced and much less money then any of our many trips to Disney World. My kids still ask all the time when we can go back to NC. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking to just relax and enjoy time with your family!

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Guest: Indy Buzz (Indianapolis, IN)
Date of Stay: 08/07/08 Review Submitted: 08/07/08

Our stay at the Flocco vacation home was terrific and exceeded our expectations as experienced VRBO users! The home was impressively appointed with leather living room furniture, a dining room table that seated 10, screened-in porch with fireplace, slept 10 comfortably, and had wireless Internet service to stay in contact with the world we left behind. We found the kitchen and grill sufficient to prepare any meal we desired from biscuits and gravy to Adana Kabobs to pork loin with peanut sauce over noodles. The cottage was nestled into a beautiful mountain resort community where we took full advantage of the Bear Lake clubhouse. At the clubhouse we swam daily in the saltwater pool, kiddy pool, and hot tubs as well as the lake, enjoying lunch poolside with summer drinks from the Tiki Hut. The kids loved the virgin margaritas! The wait staff was terrific. If you get a chance, you must take one of the high quality kayak and/or canoe (available on first come first serve basis, at no cost!) to the little island in the lake (20 min trip) and jump off the big rock and swim; then, paddle another 20 minutes to the shores of the “Bear Lake Falls”. From there it is a 20-minute hike from the shore up the eastside of the stream to the base of the falls. It was beautiful. The location was the perfect base of activity for all and we had 7 children to accomodate. We slid down little slippery rock falls in Cashiers (40 min S; directions in the Bear Lake Reserve activity book), went whitewater rafting on the Nantahala River outside Bryson City (70 min WSW; Adventurous Fast Rivers Rafting), and, for the little ones, we visited The Factory, an arcade/bumper car/go cart/mini-golf center in Franklin (60min) on our sole rain-out day. A couple of things to note: (1) the Lake Clubhouse is ~4 miles away on windy mountain roads, but within the resort community, which was fine for us as we often made a day of it working out in the top-notch workout room, swimming in the pool, and eating at the restaurant/bar and (2) you will have absolutely no cell phone signal, with the possible exception of Verizon, so get the phone number to the house phone from the owners if you want some one to contact you or bring your wireless computer. The house was the perfect family get-away with a porch table and the dining room table perfect for those nightly games of Hearts and Scrabble. We spent every

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Indy Buzz (Indianapolis, IN)
Date of Stay: 08/01/08 Review Submitted: 08/06/08

Our stay at the Flocco vacation home was terrific and exceeded our expectations as experienced VRBO users! The home was impressively appointed with leather living room furniture, a dining room table that seated 10, screened-in porch with fireplace, slept 10 comfortably, and had wireless Internet service to stay in contact with the world we left behind. We found the kitchen and grill sufficient to prepare any meal we desired from biscuits and gravy to Adana Kabobs to pork loin with peanut sauce over noodles. The cottage was nestled into a beautiful mountain resort community where we took full advantage of the Bear Lake clubhouse. At the clubhouse we swam daily in the saltwater pool, kiddy pool, and hot tubs as well as the lake, enjoying lunch poolside with summer drinks from the Tiki Hut. The kids loved the virgin margaritas! The wait staff was terrific. If you get a chance, you must take one of the high quality kayak and/or canoe (available on first come first serve basis, at no cost!) to the little island in the lake (20 min trip) and jump off the big rock and swim; then, paddle another 20 minutes to the shores of the “Bear Lake Falls”. From there it is a 20-minute hike from the shore up the eastside of the stream to the base of the falls. It was beautiful. The location was the perfect base of activity for all and we had 7 children to accomodate. We slid down little slippery rock falls in Cashiers (40 min S; directions in the Bear Lake Reserve activity book), went whitewater rafting on the Nantahala River outside Bryson City (70 min WSW; Adventurous Fast Rivers Rafting), and, for the little ones, we visited The Factory, an arcade/bumper car/go cart/mini-golf center in Franklin (60min) on our sole rain-out day. A couple of things to note: (1) the Lake Clubhouse is ~4 miles away on windy mountain roads, but within the resort community, which was fine for us as we often made a day of it working out in the top- notch workout room, swimming in the pool, and eating at the restaurant/bar and (2) you will have absolutely no cell phone signal, with the possible exception of Verizon, so get the phone number to the house phone from the owners if you want some one to contact you or bring your wireless computer. The house was the perfect family get-away with a porch table and the dining room table perfect for those nightly games of Hearts and Scrabble. We spent every evening on the porch listening to the tree frogs, eating Sam ores, and playing games. What amazed us was how dense the forest was and how “hilly” the hikes were. This place must be amazing in the fall since the forest is primarily deciduous. This was a first class vacation in a resort area that provides an experience worth remembering.

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