Location: Ithaca, Cayuga Lake, Finger Lakes, New York, USA (2 minutes from Cornell Vet School, 10 minutes to Cayuga lake)
Accommodations: House, 3 Bedrooms, 2 Baths (Sleeps 5)
Mockingbird Cottage is settled in the middle of the Finger Lakes Region in central New York. Our beautiful home has three bedrooms, two bathrooms and sits on 1.3 acres. This house is nestled among mature trees and several meticulously maintained perennial gardens. The property has been professionally landscaped for over ten years and is gorgeous.
On the outside, this house has a fenced in back yard with a deck, Adirondack chairs and picnic table with umbrella. Eating outside on the deck in the summer is one of our favorite things to do. It’s also a great way to stay dry and watch while one of the occasional ten-minute summer storms rolls in and has it raining buckets one minute and the next not a cloud in the sky. There are extensive perennial gardens and beautiful natural stonework. There is also a large organic vegetable garden with several raised beds that bring in a huge harvest of blackberries, strawberries, amazing tomatoes, peppers, squash, and herbs. Everything that the garden produces is available for our guests.
Our cottage is of moderate dimension, and though it looks small from the outside, it is rather deceiving. With eight rooms and pleasant sense of space, there are essentially three living rooms in this cottage. The first one is more cozy than spacious. The couch is a large sectional and the end chair reclines to a full lay down position. The 27-inch TV and gas fireplace are also in this room. The second living room is quite large and has sliding glass doors that go out to the deck and yard. The third living room, is the smallest of the three. It has a wood-burning fireplace, a love seat and chair. With the fireplace sitting area as the center, the downstairs also has two of the three bedrooms, a bathroom with a small shower (the upstairs bathroom is a full bath), laundry room, and separate entrance to the backyard. The downstairs feels connected, yet separate from the upstairs. In terms of space, and the way it's laid out, the cottage has a feeling of privacy for those who need it while having adequate space for a group to feel connected.
The cottage has hardwood floors, new paint and carpets, one wood-burning fireplace (with plenty of wood provided), one gas fireplace, central vacuum, washer and dryer, living room, dining room, and family room with television, DVD player and a extensive DVD library with over 300 movies. There are lots of unique built-ins throughout the house that add to its cottage-like character. The first-floor bedroom has a queen bed, built-in dresser and sliding glass doors that look out to several acres of soothing pastoral views. The entire house is beautifully furnished in Pottery Barn style and has a library of with several hundred books, including a large selection of cookbooks. Fine linens are provided, accompanied by down comforters.
The Finger Lakes Region is a beautiful area with many lakes. Our cottage is located just five miles southeast of the tip of Cayuga Lake, where you can participate in kayaking, waterskiing, sailing, power boating and water sports. Also, the cottage is about 40 minutes from Greek Peak Ski Resort, several state parks, and dozens of wineries, and just under one hour from Skaneateles Lake. For anyone considering visiting Cornell University, we are only two minutes from the Cornell Vet School, two minutes from East Hill Plaza and six minutes from Cornell’s main campus and Ithaca’s downtown Commons.
Vacation Rental Features
- Amenities
- Air Conditioning: Two portable window units available upon request
- Washer
- Dryer
- Linens Provided: 600 thread count linens
Rate Details (In US Dollars)
May 01-Oct 15 .. $250/night (3-night minimum) .. $1,400/week
Oct 16-April 31 .. $175/night (2-night minimum) .. $ 1,100/week
Payment in full is required at time of booking.
Full refund if property is rebooked
$300 security deposit
Higher rates during holidays Cornell and Ithaca graduations. $500/nt-(4 night min)
Available monthly for $2,800 during the summer.
$100 cleaning fee during high season- $75 during low season
Note: Until confirmed, rates are subject to change without notice.
Property Photos
- Cottage in Late Summer - Finger Lakes Vacation House Rentals
- Back Patio and Yard - Finger Lakes Vacation House Rentals
- Back Yard - Finger Lakes Vacation House Rentals
- Dining room and Kitchen
- Kitchen
- Upstairs Living Room
- Master bedroom
- Upstairs Bathroom
- Downstairs Living Room and Fireplace
- Downstairs Single Bedroom
- Downstairs Double Bedroom
- Cottage In Winter
Guest Comments (7)
First (6) of (7). View all comments
Vacation Rentals by Owner Listing #163824
There have been 15627 visitors to this page since the counter was last reset in 2008.
This listing was first published here in 2008.
Date last modified - November 18, 2009


Positive Rating
What a lovely house in beautiful surroundings. We enjoyed the view off the deck. Tried some really good wines and saw some great waterfalls. Will definitely recommend your vacation home to friends. The Koholka's
Positive Rating
It was our first time to the Finger Lakes Region and we all loved it. The Mockingbird Cottage with its amazing gardens was wonderful and very relaxing. The weather wasn't as good as we had hoped it would be but we were still able to explore the region. Went shopping at the Commons downtown Ithaca and had a yummy sandwich and coffee at the Mate Factor. Drove part of the Cayuga Wine Trail and visited several wineries, had a wonderful dinner at the Pumpkin Bistro near Aurora. Visited the Lively Run Goat Dairy near Interlaken, hiked part of the Gorge Trail in the Robert H. Treman State Park, the waterfalls are spectacular! Too bad we have to leave tomorrow, the Mockingbird Cottage was truly a home away from home. Thank you!
Positive Rating
Held a fire fly for the first time...have only seen them in movies! Enjoyed pulling some weeds, they are so much prettier than the ones that grow in California. The waterfalls were so beautiful. July 7th- Richard had an exciting day soaring in Elmira at the glider fields. Went to the Corning Glass Museum and got to blow my own Christmas ornament. Everything here is so beautiful I don't want to go home. I want Richard to buy a house here. I love it here. July 8th- Went geocaching it was so much fun,we saw things we wouldn't have seen. July 9th- did more geocaching. Hiked and saw more waterfalls. July10th- went to Lake Skaneateles today and rented a boat. spent the whole day on the water. As for the cottage, we couldn't have been happier. The gardens were amazing! House had everything we needed. The attention to detail was unparalleled. The linens were wonderful and the master bedroom looked out onto the most beautiful gardens. We will be back for sure!!! Thank you so much for a wonderful vacation. Joan Alegria
Positive Rating
We had a fantastic holiday. We enjoyed being close to Ithaca while having a quiet country retreat. Take Care! Robert Morgan & Company
Positive Rating
Rita & Gary , Montvale, NJ
Positive Rating
What a special place! Thank you for making it so lovely. We have enjoyed all of the thoughtful touches and have been thrilled to watch the flowers bloom & the birds feed!