Excellente location

Guest: Carole (French Polynesia)
Date of Stay: 12/28/11 Review Submitted: 01/10/12

Nous sommes restés 4 nuits dans cette maison dont celle du 31 décembre. Nous étions 4 adultes. Le quartier est vraiment très tranquille ; je craignais un peu les nuits car une chambre a sa fenêtre directement sur la rue, eh bien, il n'y a eu aucun bruit la nuit, ce fut très calme. La maison était très propre à notre arrivée et nous avons beaucoup apprécié le cadeau d'accueil de Kathryn : une bouteille de vin et des chocolats, c'est très gentil. Cette maison est vraiment très bien située pour visiter Los Angeles et ses environs, et nous avons mis 15 minutes en voiture pour rejoindre l'Aéroport International. Nous avons bien profité de Santa Monica, sa plage, les boutiques (c'étaient les soldes !). Autre point positif : Kathryn, la propriétaire. C'est une personne charmante, très disponible, et la communication est très facile (malgré mon très mauvais américain) ! Nous avons passé un excellent séjour et sommes près à revenir !

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, adventure seekers, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Sunny Santa Monica!

Guest: Traci H.
Date of Stay: 11/20/11 Review Submitted: 11/30/11

Great location! Quiet neighborhood that was clean, felt safe and convenient to everything we needed. Loved the Whole Foods store in Venice! Parking was a little funny, but we figured out the street cleaning and extra parking worked out fine. Walk to the beach was nice and only took 15 min. Loved riding bikes on the beach! We explored Malibu ( recommend Grom Gelato), Hollywood (don't miss the observatory), Long Beach (Queen Mary was very interesting), Studio City (City Walk is great fun at night), Burbank (recommend Chevy's Mexican restaurant) and it was all easy to navigate from the casita. Traffic is crazy in LA and not for the faint of heart! The casita was squeaky clean, well stocked and we appreciated the chocolates and bottle of wine as a welcome gift! Nice touch! Would love to do it again some time.

Recommended for:Tourists without a car, sightseeing, pet owners, girls getaway, age 55+.

Nice small house close to beaches/shops/entertainment

Guest: Jo (Luxembourg)
Date of Stay: 09/03/11 Review Submitted: 09/21/11

The Spanish Casita is a very convenient place to stay if you want to go to the beach every day but also if you want to go shopping in the famous streets of Santa Monica. It's also very close from Brentwood, Belair, Beverley Hills, Hollywood and all the other attracting areas of Los Angeles should you have a private car. Do you have kids : then this place is very appropriate to go to Disneyland ; it's less than an hour away. The nice bottle of wine and biscuits on the welcome table were very appreciated.

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

GREAT PLACE

Guest: zeeke67 (methuen mass)
Date of Stay: 06/03/10 Review Submitted: 07/29/11

I stayed there last year with 3 of my friends. The place was beautiful and clean. It was very homey. It was everything I hoped for and more. It was fully equiped we needed nothing. We were all very impressed on the place and the location. It was close within walking distance to everything(beach, 3rd st. prominade super market ect). I plan on booking it again in October for 5 days and I can not wait.Three of us going in October have already stayed there . We are all looking foward to it. Kathyrn was very nice and returned my deposit within a day or two. I just wanted to share my experience with you's. Give it a shot you will love the place. thanks Mike L (Boston) .

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with teenagers.

Good value, but it has potential to be excellent

Guest: MK (East Coast, USA)
Date of Stay: 06/29/11 Review Submitted: 07/15/11

The bedding was a great positive surprise to all of us. Beds are very comfortable, so sleep is great and refreshing like at home. We were a bit taken aback on the entry, but were happier every night spent in the property. It is comfortable, but it does not present itself like the pictures posted on the rental pages. Overall we are glad we have stayed there. The property is an old no thrill, well-used structure, but it has a cozy antique feel, so this can be counted as plus for many. It has a wireless service our Windows and Apple devices had no problem to access. We have not used flat panel LCD TV, so I cannot tell what is available on the TV service, but there is so much to do outside that TV should not be a concern there. We were counting on updated bathroom promised in some answers to prior comments. It really needs a true cleanup and an update. The mold was painted over, so Casita got some high marks recently, but the mold eventually will go through paint if not properly treated before painting, and it already did by the time we have arrived. We have just stayed in Casita a week from June to July 2011. Every time I was in a bathroom I wished it was clean and had no mold. Even fixture over the bathtub was brown/gray with mold. It has an antiquated difficult to clean shape, but there should be no excuse for the state of it. Fortunately, with windows opened there was no smell problem in the unit. Some tiles were broken in the flooring too. The condition of the bathroom and damaged flooring tiles are noticeable and greatly contributed to our poor initial reception of the property.

Owner response:Update 2/12: We have remodeled the bathroom with a beautiful glass vessel sink, granite vanity, ceramic & glass tile surrounding tub, new tile floor, new toilet, mirrors & artwork. We also installed a new custom kitchen with granite counters, stainless steel appliances including a dishwasher, and new hardwood floors throughout. It looks & feels amazing :-)

Recommended for:

Great for getting around in LA!

Guest: Family of 5 (Finland)
Date of Stay: 07/06/11 Review Submitted: 07/13/11

Our family of 5 really enjoyed the stay in Kathryn's house - the location is perfect for getting around the beautiful Santa Monica (beaches stretching out all the way to Venice, the Santa Monica Pier is a must to see!) and further out in the Los Angeles area. We drove around Hollywood, Beverly Hills, even Malibu beach... seven eleven just around the corner from Kathryn's house for quick snacks. Highly recommended!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, families with teenagers.

Never again!

Guest: Mrs. Guide (Holland)
Date of Stay: 08/15/10 Review Submitted: 07/05/11

When we arrived it looked as if the house hadn't been cleaned for months - dirty windows - bathroom covered in mould, bathmats and chair cushions full of stains - dishes dirty. Overdated food in the cupboards. We confronted our host Kathryn who did a brave attempt to clean everything saying she sacked the maid (which made me feel bad!) asking us to please give het a chance to put things right, which we did. But it didn't really change the fact that most things were just worn down, and dirty. What should have been highlight of our 2500 mile road trip turned out to be a big disappointment.

Owner response:I was so surprised to get this review a year after this guest stayed. If I recall, I think there was a mixup and perhaps the place didn't get cleaned. At any rate, it did get cleaned once she contacted me & I, of course refunded her cleaning fee. Some of the furniture has been replaced since last year including the sofa bed, coffee table, rugs & linens, as well as the entire place having been painted, the tub reglazed etc. Hopefully future guests will find things in order. I am always striving to make improvements & want guests to have a good experience.

Recommended for:

Had a great stay

Guest: Ben Stricker (Sacramento)
Date of Stay: 04/15/11 Review Submitted: 04/19/11

Really enjoyed our time at the Casita. Decorated nicely, great front porch for just chilling out. Good location from Santa Monica Pier & the beach. Coffee Bean & Roastery right at the corner!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Awesome location

Guest: oscar (Vancouver, B.C. Canada)
Date of Stay: 03/18/11 Review Submitted: 03/26/11

We just spent 1 week at the Casita ( 2 adults travelling with 3 teenage girls). The location was fantastic for our planned day trips ie. Magic Mountain, Knott's Berry Farm, Universal Studios, Laguna Beach,local shopping. The location could not have been more central to all of our activities. Access to the freeways and to Santa Monica Promenade was a breeze. Local grocery shopping was awesome as well---we filled the fridge daily with good food from Von's--three block drive from the home. We enjoyed the tv at night and appreciated the washer/dryer option in the back yard , seeing that the heavy rains made for a lot of damp clothes. The layout allowed us all to have privacy which a hotel room could never offer. Kathryn was very responsive to all of our needs and very organized with our reservation. If I had to say anything negative, my friend and I found the pullout couch quite uncomfortable and would have needed a warmer comforter to sleep with. The heater was finicky but we quickly learned how to control it. The kitchen could use a few more utensils-- we cooked most nights and needed sharp knives and a cutting board. Other than that, we rate this home away from home an 8 and a half out of 10 and would definitely return in a heart beat. We were sad to leave. Thank you Kathryn for everything...... we have lifelong memories.....our stay at your place plays a huge part in that!

Owner response:Thank you so much for nice review. I'm so glad you had a good time. You have a great point about the utensils, there used to be plenty of knives and 2 cutting boards, but it sounds like it's time for me to check the inventory & restock. I'll also add another comforter & a memory foam topper for the sofa bed which will hopefully make it more comfortable. Please come back again :-)

Recommended for:Sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, families with teenagers.

Santa Monica Casita

Guest: Suzanne (Chestertown, MD)
Date of Stay: 12/19/10 Review Submitted: 01/12/11

We traveled from Maryland to Santa Monica to visit my oldest daughter for Christmas. The casita was very comfortable, clean, and convenient to everything! We went shopping on the prommenade and the Century City mall, visited the LACMA, enjoyed some wonderful dinners out, and took in the sights. Four women shared this cottage; we cooked and did some laundry, but the shower door needs caulking (or a replacement) so it won't leak. Thank you for providing games and beach towels (yes, it was sunny enough to hike and picnic in Malibu). I most certainly recommend this property and will stay here again when visiting my daughter next year.

Owner response:Thank you so much! I will look into getting the shower door caulked right away. We are planning to do a nice bathroom remodel in the spring or fall but I'll address the shower door right away. I'm glad you enjoyed your stay & hope you come back next Christmas :-)

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