Vacation Rentals by Owner

Escape we did

Guest: Angela M.
Date of Stay: 05/04/12 Review Submitted: 05/08/12

This was a wonderful home. We had a ball. Literally. The indoor basketball court was way more fun than I thought it would be. We enjoyed the firepit and sitting out at night. Helen and Unicoi were 10 minutes away. We went ziplining and horseback riding which was about 15 minutes away. Make sure if you go to visit Aint B's for their famous cinnamon roll do it on any day other than Monday as they are closed. If you take a small car stay to the left coming in as there are two car swallowing holes. Once you get past those you are good to go.

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What a Great Place!

Guest: Kathy (Arizona)
Date of Stay: 04/18/12 Review Submitted: 04/26/12

We had a fantastic time at Misty Ridge Escape. My husband, 3 kids and I decided to spend a week in the mountains to relax and enjoy the Mountain Laurels, Flame Azalias, etc. We were not disappointed. They surround the cabin and it is breathtaking. The cabin is very clean and well maintained. We had plenty of room for all activities. There is a video player for each of 2 TVs in both the living room and game room. The boys had a great experinece playing basketball INSIDE while it was raining outside. The ultimate game room is fantastic --- my husband and I played ping pong with the kids and also by ourselves while the boys played basketball. We also loved the hot tub. We were just a couple of miles from Anna Ruby falls and spent one afternoon there. It is only 10 minutes to Helen, so we went there frequently to enjoy the shops and the atmosphere. I would recommend this cabin to any family or group with or without children. If the rating scale were higher, I would give it 6 stars!

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harrmel

Guest: Melharr (monroe ga 30655)
Date of Stay: 04/13/12 Review Submitted: 04/16/12

The cabin was very nice we felt relaxed and need more time next time. It was to quick!!! Loved it!!!

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

Pay close attention to your contract!!

Guest: Tonya (Maysville, GA)
Date of Stay: 04/03/12 Review Submitted: 04/09/12

Possibly poor timing on our part.We arrived on 4/3/12 at 4:30 pm - as checkin is not until 4:00 pm for Spring Break with our children.During our hour and half trip to the cabin we encountered a thunderstorm yet when we reached the cabin it was all sunshine.At 9 pm, the children (we have 3) attempted to take showers but we had no water.Apparently the "storm" caused a breaker to flip in the pump house and in order to get it switched back on, one must call the "landlord" or local water company - even though it is well water.We did both and finally had water about 10 pm and hot water by 10:30 pm.And since we called the water company ourselves and spoke to them, we know first hand this happens frequently with storms.So, in my opinion, this should have been checked first thing after the storm and before we arrived or shortly there after.There is no excuse and it was huge inconvenience with children who were tired and needed baths.Also upon arrival we noticed the hot tub was merely warm.We gave that a pass the first night as everything else was blamed on the "storm".But on the second day/night it was no warmer. Upon calling the "landlord" again, he called the spa company and they apparently came the NEXT day while we were out fishing with the kids.The hot tub "supposedly" needed a part in order to work properly and we were scheduled to checkout the next day. After finding this out, we left that night at 7:30 pm and headed home - at least there we had reliable water and our own spa.So to sum things up, no water until late on the night of our arrival, no hot water until even later that night and no hot tub at all while we were there.Also, the "landlord/caretaker" is basically a middleman for everything. He never actually showed-up or acted concerned in regards to any of our calls.He was like "Oz" behind the curtain, just getting paid to take messages and make calls to the appropriate people. In the contract it clearly states NO refunds will be given for anything pertaining the cabin not working or not working properly.As a business owner, I believe this is a horrible way to treat customers who were paying a great deal of $ for 3 nights(& ending up leaving on the last night)Clearly the owner is trying to make money on this property while living in Arizona - as he NEVER tried to make things right, only excuses were given. We could have and should have took our money and went to the beach (like the kids wanted)instead of promising them a good time at Misty Ridge

Owner response:There is no landlord, there is a caretaker. There was a thunderstorm and the renters indicated that there had been a direct lightning hit near the cabin. The lightning apparently disabled the water pump (not sure what damage was done). The water pump and well are owned by a private water company, so we called the company for repair. The water company had the water system up and running within an hour and a half after the renter had notified us of the loss of pressure. The hot tub was slightly damaged by the lightning strike. It was working again within 24 hours of the reported malfunction. Prior to that it appears the renters had been using it. We have a great deal of confidence in our professional team and believe their reponse to this situation was made in a professional and timely manner within a reasonable period of time.

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Great place for relaxing or the highly active

Guest: Jeff (Birmingham, Alabama)
Date of Stay: 03/17/12 Review Submitted: 03/22/12

The cabin has everything you will need, period. We have three boys ages 12, 10 and 8 and regardless of the weather, there was plenty to do inside and out! We spent more time just relaxing around the cabin and playing with the boys than we did at the local tourist spots (unicoi state park, helen and gem mining, although they were fun as well!). Our first day was spent in Cleveland at the Gold n gem mining attraction where we found lots of neat stones and even a little gold. The boys loved the ultimate playroom downstairs and we all took part in ping pong, basketball and games. The deck was great in the morning and the fire pit fun at night. We even made friends with the horses down by the creek. All in all this was a great vacation and we would stay here again for lots of reasons. A great cabin, beautiful surroundings and local interests to experience North Georgia. Thanks for everything. P.S. Nice touch to be welcomed by the supply of hot chocolate, coffee and popcorn.

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

Quite comfortable, if not perfect

Guest: Charles T.
Date of Stay: 03/10/12 Review Submitted: 03/22/12

Stayed for a full week. My overall evaluation is positive, and I would recommend the cabin to others. It's a good location for visiting Helen and surrounding places of interest. It's very comfortable and spacious. It was well cleaned and prepared for our arrival. Plenty of plates, dishes, glasses, towels, blankets, toilet paper. We used all the amenities and they worked fine: hot tub, basketball court, ping pong table, televisions, kitchen, clothes washer and dryer. My bed was very comfortable. Slept very well there. Never ran out of hot water for showers. The wi-fi and pool table were the only exceptions (see below). Some in my group complained about the taste of the water from the refrigerator's dispenser, but I thought it was fine. The place even came with a dog. It is a neighbor's dog, but it may as well have been our dog while we were there. A friendly, mellow dog named Bear. Greeted us every morning and only left when we shut down for the night. We had two young girls with us and Bear was glued to them the entire time whenever they went outdoors, which was very comforting given the potential for real bears in the area. (I hasten to add that we never let the dog into the cabin.) Never did see a real bear, though. The few negatives: We had trouble with the wi-fi for the first day or two. For the first evening and into the next day it was simply non-functioning, then it was intermittent, but for the last four or five days it seemed to work fine. Perhaps the cloudy weather the first couple of days affected it. Lost power for about ten seconds once during rain storms. Have to point out that the pool table is useless because it is apparently warped. Even after serious efforts at leveling it by adjusting the feet, balls still rolled off toward BOTH side bumpers. Ping pong was fine though. Basketball court is perfectly useable, but the floor, painted black, is in bad shape and constantly flaking paint chips. The channel selection on the TVs was, I thought, disappointingly limited. Some of what I consider to be "basic" cable channels were not available, e.g., ESPN, AMC, and FX, among others. Perhaps that's not important if you're not spending much time at the cabin, but we were there for a week, so we missed having those channels. But none of those flaws are deal-breakers, and the cabin was pleasant. Look for Bear if you go there. Great dog.

Owner response:Thanks Charles for the positive review and recommendation. Sorry you had some initial trouble with the Wi-Fi. Like all phone-line provided broadband (DSL), it can become unstable during bad weather, especially since it is being strung a mile into the woods. Windstrean is usually a very relaible provider, and we have had very few problems with it. We will work on the other things you mentioned.

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Christmas 2011 Memories

Guest: Carol (Cartersville. GA)
Date of Stay: 12/21/11 Review Submitted: 12/30/11

My family and I had a great time at the cabin at Misty Ridge. It was everything the owner said and more. We enjoyed the cabin so much we only went into Helen once and went mining in Cleveland twice. We never got around to using the firepit (but bought wood, hope someone else will enjoy it). We also didn't use the hottub. Both would have been great but we used most of our time cooking, eating, and playing games. My 2 grown sons made us all play H-O-R-S-E on the basketball court. We also enjoyed the ping pong table. We took alot of board games (alot was at the cabin as well). Lots of great memories. First time in years our whole family had been together since 2 of my children are in the military and one out and remained in California. I would/will recommend this cabin to anyone. Very clean, well maintained, and furnished. I would also recommend going to Cleveland to mine. We mined many gems. Most of all we loved staying at this cabin for the size, location, the beauty of the surroundings, the beauty of the cabin, and what the cabin had to offer. You won't go wrong with this place!

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

Wonderful weekend get away

Guest: TheBridges (Valdosta, GA)
Date of Stay: 12/02/11 Review Submitted: 12/07/11

We had a wonderful time staying at the Misty Ridge Escape. We met friends of ours that we were stationed with in Germany, since Helen is like a tiny piece of Germany. We enjoyed walking around Helen, the Christmas market and parade. This is a great time of year to be in Helen. And the weather was perfect! The cabin is located in a great location right outside of Unicoi Park. On Sunday, we walked up Anna Ruby falls. Such a beautiful place. The Cabin is great. We enjoyed the fire pit, playing basketball and the game room. The twins (4 years old) enjoyed rolling down the hill the most! There was a dog named bear that hung out on the porch and at the fire pit with us. We all enjoyed him. Not sure who he belonged to but he followed our car once down the road when we went into town on Saturday. Thanks for lots of great memories! We would stay here again and again!

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

weekend retreat

Guest: cory and jessica (graniteville sc)
Date of Stay: 04/08/11 Review Submitted: 04/12/11

this cabin is very clean and nice . my wife and i celebrated our anniversary and enjoyed time to ourselves without kids . the cabin has all that you need except food and clothes . thanks so much for sharing your cabin with us cory and jessica graniteville sc

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

wonderful and relaxing

Guest: Jane (Atlanta, GA)
Date of Stay: 10/08/10 Review Submitted: 10/11/10

The description is accurate except the picture of the dining area. The table in the dining area is now rectangular and will accomodate eight. Very comfortable cabin. The grill is nice. I visited with my mother and two teenage boys. We had friends visit for some meals. We stayed for three nights. We ate all meals in. The kitchen was clean and well equipped. The boys hiked for miles around the woods and near by stream. They loved it. My mother forgot to bring reading material, but that was not a problem. The owners provided a variety of various books and magazines to keep her occupied. We always bring big towels with us when we travel, but lots of nice towels were hanging in the bathrooms when we arrived. Back up blankets were in the closets too. Nice touch! The boys enjoyed the basketball downstairs and the pool table/ping pong table. It is so roomy down there that you could put a blow up matress down there for kids and leave them there. On Friday, when we arrived, the boys only came up from down there to eat and use the rest room! Some of us fished at Smithgall Woods and we all went zip-lining in Lula which was amazing! We went into Helen for a little shopping; however we all enjoyed our time at your cabin with friends and family, cooking, eating, laughing, exploring, reading, playing cards, soaking in the hot tub, playing pool and ping pong, enjoying old friends, hiking, getting lost, fishing, drinking wine (adults only!), and relaxing. What amazed me about the trip is that, I kid you not, by 10:00pm every night the kids fell out asleep. They were worn out! That NEVER happens on a school night, and these little buggers were on vacation with no bed time!

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

Wonderful Getaway

Guest: Suzette & Ken (Bartow, Georgia)
Date of Stay: 09/04/10 Review Submitted: 09/14/10

We had a great week at your cabin. We were looking forward to a quiet week away from our busy schedules and that's exactly what we had. We also enjoyed the game room (even at our age). The weather was perfect and we look forward to another trip later in the year.

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

Misty Ridge Escape

Guest: Angie & Shane (Lakeland FL)
Date of Stay: 07/31/10 Review Submitted: 08/10/10

We had a great time for the week we stayed in the cabin. The cabin is beautiful, very clean, and well maintained. We have 4 boys and the gameroom was a plus for them. I loved playing ping pong I have not played that in quite a few years. We made use of the grill while we were there. The wi-fi worked great so that was good to be able to look up places around Helen. We went tubing down "The Hooch" which needs about a foot of rain but it was a good time. We went to Anna Ruby Falls & Tallulah Falls and then went to Brasstown Bald where you can see 4 different states. Thanks for everything, Angie & Shane

Owner response:Thanks Angie & Shane, Our goal is to have all our guests enjoy the kind of positive experience that we would want to have on our own vacation. Thank you for all your feedback and we hope we see you again soon. Best regrads, Terry

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, families with teenagers, sightseeing.

Wonderful vacation!

Guest: TMP (Southwest Florida)
Date of Stay: 08/02/09 Review Submitted: 08/31/09

We had an amazing stay at Misty Ridge Escape. My husband, two children and I decided to spend a week in the mountains to relax and refuel this summer. The kids had a blast playing basketball and exploring the property and we really enjoyed the jacuzzi and the pool table. The cabin was very clean and well maintained. There are two televisions in the cabin but we did not even make use of them. The only problem we encountered during our stay was a few missing pieces in the board games that were provided but the kids were so busy during the day they barely noticed. We were just a couple of miles from Anna Ruby falls, 10 minutes from Helen and about an hour from Blairesville. I recommend eating at Ain't B's during your stay, the food is great, the prices are reasonable and it's just a mile or two from the cabin. If you are looking for some great family fun, I suggest tubing on the "Hooch." We enjoyed tubing so much that we went again a second day! We also enjoyed hiking and checking out numerous local waterfalls.

Owner response:We are happy to hear that you had such a wonderful time at Misty Ridge Esacpe. This is always our goal. There is always a lot to do at Misty Ridge Escape, both inside and outside. Thanks for the tip regarding the missing board game pieces. We are in the process of replacing those games.

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

Guestbook Comment

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 03/01/09 Review Submitted: 03/20/09

We really enjoyed our stay in your beautiful cabin. The master bedroom and bath were very private. Downstairs was a big enjoyment for our boys. The pool table and how amazing to have a basketball court inside!! We were there for three nights and it was rainy and cold. It was a great place to be on a weekend like that. The hot tub,fireplace and the entire cabin was a lovely retreat away from the real world. Thanks so much for sharing it with us. Jeff,Darlene,Jordan & Jared Spencer Dalton Fowler

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 03/01/09 Review Submitted: 03/12/09

We loved the cabin and can't wait to get a chance to go back.

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 02/01/09 Review Submitted: 02/24/09

We enjoyed our visit to your great cabin. Thanks for all of the amenities.

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Guestbook Comment

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 01/01/09 Review Submitted: 01/28/09

My husband and two kids and I stayed last weekend and had a great time at Misty Ridge Escape. The area was very quiet. The woods were beautiful even in the winter. We saw several deer. We all used the Wi-Fi system and it was very convenient. It worked out well for directions on Mapquest. The indoor basketball court was a healthy place for our son and daughter to pass their time when we weren't in Helen or playing ping pong or pool in the game room. All in all we had a great time. Though we brought the kids, my husband and I had plenty of privacy up in the loft bedroom suite. It was very romantic. Would like to come back again!

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