Vacation Rentals by Owner

Memories for a Lifetime!

Guest: Kevin (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA)
Date of Stay: 04/21/12 Review Submitted: 05/06/12

It's been one week since we returned home from Mar Azul. I went there with my wife and three adult children (ages 18, 24, and 27). When I made the plans for our time away I was hoping for something really special, since it had been nine years since circumstances had allowed us to all be together for a week's vacation. Now looking back on it on a chilly Sunday morning in Wisconsin, I realize it could not have been more perfect. Mar Azul is just amazing. The pictures on this site look incredible, but it's another thing to see it and to feel it for real. We are Midwesterners and have vacationed in the Keys, other Florida locales, the Bahamas, Dominican Republic and other Carribean settings...but we had always stayed in resorts or high-end hotels. I know thousands of people rent vacation homes every year, but we were frankly nervous about getting scammed. The proprietor, Lisa, answered my many inquiries at length and with kindness. In the end I needn't have worried, because Lisa and Mar Azul either met, or over-delivered on, all promises. For our part, we treated the home as if it were our own during our stay (you get the feeling everyone does), and our security deposit check almost beat us home! I can be a critical person at times, but Lisa and the home didn't give me or my family anything to complain about. We liked Marathon Key too. We have stayed in Key Largo and Islamorada before, and Marathon compares favorably. We've snorkeled the reef off all three islands, and the one off Sombrero Beach in Marathon offered as great an adventure as the others. I could go into more detail, but you should probably experience it for yourself. Just please leave a week in March or April for us!

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

The best place to stay in the Keys!

Guest: claface (Bothell, WA)
Date of Stay: 02/18/12 Review Submitted: 02/24/12

Mar Azul was such a pleasant surprise! The pictures on this site don't do it justice. Lisa was wonderful, she was pleasant and prompt. By far, the best experience we've ever had with vacation rentals. Absoutely no (bad) surprises. I could have spent every hour of our vacation by the pool or on the spacious decks. Thank you Lisa for beautiful spot to vacation. Henry Bothell, WA

Owner response:Thank you very much!! We truly appreciate your time and effort in sharing your Mar Azul experience! It was our pleasure to have you stay and certainly hope to have you back down again soon! All our best wishes to you and yours, Lisa

Recommended for:Age 55+, families with teenagers, families with young children, girls getaway, tourists without a car, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Beautiful Home, Great Location, Attentive/Helpful Owner

Guest: Donna (Ormond Beach,FL)
Date of Stay: 07/09/11 Review Submitted: 07/23/11

This home matched the description, was VERY CLEAN and met all expectations. Lisa was extremely helpful prior to the trip and responded immediately to a question we had while at the home. She also was very prompt in returning our deposit. Ocean views beautiful; great access to go fishing, snorkeling or head out on a sunset cruise All-in-all - great place to spend your vacation!!

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

College Graduation Trip

Guest: Penny (Spring, Texas)
Date of Stay: 05/21/11 Review Submitted: 06/12/11

My husband and I took our two sons and their girlfriends to the Florida Keys for their College Graduation gift. Although we have taken very nice family vacations throughout their childhood, both said this was the best trip ever! Mar Azul was the perfect place to stay. It was located in a quiet neighborhood with a beautiful private pool, relaxing outdoor grilling area, and excellent balconies on the second/third levels. We cooked almost every evening in the fully equipped kitchen and enjoyed the view from the second floor balcony as we dined. We loved relaxing and lounging by the pool several afternoon and evenings. There were nice chaise chairs around the pool, very comfortable table and chairs in the grill area, and a large table and chairs just outside the kitchen on the second floor balcony. This home is as beautiful inside as outside and it is immaculately maintained. Since we had a keen interest in the NBA playoffs, we found the living area very comfortable for all six of us to watch a couple playoff games. The master bedroom was extremely spacious and my husband and I felt pampered staying there. The other two bedrooms were very nice, as well. It was so nice to have the convenience of a washer and dryer so we could wash a few things before starting home. Since Marathon is centrally located in the Florida Keys, we enjoyed the short drive to Key West to take in the beautiful sites there. As many have mentioned, Lisa was so responsive, attentive to details and accommodating when our travel plans were pushed back several hours on our day of arrival. We all are looking forward to returning again next year!

Owner response:Thank you VERY much, Penny - we truly appreciate your wonderful review and look forward to having you and your family back again - Have a great summer over there! Lisa

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

College Graduation Trip

Guest: Penny (Spring, Texas)
Date of Stay: 05/21/11 Review Submitted: 06/12/11

My husband and I took our two sons and their girlfriends to the Florida Keys for their College Graduation gift. Although we have taken very nice family vacations throughout their childhood, both said this was the best trip ever! Mar Azul was the perfect place to stay. It was located in a quiet neighborhood with a beautiful private pool, relaxing outdoor grilling area, and excellent balconies on the second/third levels. We cooked almost every evening in the fully equipped kitchen and enjoyed the view from the second floor balcony as we dined. We loved relaxing and lounging by the pool several afternoon and evenings. There were nice chaise chairs around the pool, very comfortable table and chairs in the grill area, and a large table and chairs just outside the kitchen on the second floor balcony. This home is as beautiful inside as outside and it is immaculately maintained. Since we had a keen interest in the NBA playoffs, we found the living area very comfortable for all six of us to watch a couple playoff games. The master bedroom was extremely spacious and my husband and I felt pampered staying there. The other two bedrooms were very nice, as well. It was so nice to have the convenience of a washer and dryer so we could wash a few things before starting home. Since Marathon is centrally located in the Florida Keys, we enjoyed the short drive to Key West to take in the beautiful sites there. As many have mentioned, Lisa was so responsive, attentive to details and accommodating when our travel plans were pushed back several hours on our day of arrival. We all are looking forward to returning again next year!

Owner response:Thank You, Penny & Ron! We hope that you'll have a wonderful summer and hope you'll consider Mar Azul as Your place in the Florida Keys! We'd be honored to have you spend your family vacations at Mar Azul! Thanks again for your kind words, we really appreciate them! All the best to you and your family - Lisa

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

Key West Family Vaction

Guest: Lemdogs (Wisconsin)
Date of Stay: 03/12/11 Review Submitted: 03/30/11

We love, love, love the Florida Keys!!! The weather, the fresh fish, sunsets, cool breeze and relaxation. All were part of our family vacation to Mar Azul. Our children are in their 20's and we were very excited to find this awesome house for our trip, You will never tire of the view when you wake up in the morning! Absolutely breathtaking :). The trips to Key West, snorkeling, jet skiing, deep sea fishing and spending time with each other is still all we can talk about. Having a pool in the backyard was an added bonus. Mar Azul is the perfect place to stay-it was for us. Lisa-you were great to deal with. Thanks so much for all your help. One thing we did forget to bring and that was music. I would of liked to listen to Bob Marley-Margaritaville throughtout the day. Instead I had to sing!!?? :) Thanks again Lisa, Jack & Rita

Owner response:Thank You, Rita and Jack!! We are so very happy you had a great time - we enjoyed having you and hopefully you found the "boom box" that could accompany your songs?! Have a wonderful spring and summer and hope to see you next year! All the best - Lisa

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WOW!

Guest: Angie K. (Skandia, Michigan)
Date of Stay: 02/26/11 Review Submitted: 03/10/11

The first day I woke up in the master bedroom and looked out at the view, I could not stop saying Wow! The pictures you see here on this website are great, but to be in the house and experience the serenity and beauty of the ocean and sky, with the warm ocean breezes coming into your bedroom through the large open balcony doors, is a feeling that will give you sweet contentment. I sat out every morning, drinking my coffee and slowly immersing myself in the surroundings. My husband and I enjoyed every minute of our stay at Mar Azul and were very sad when the week ended. There is so much to do in this area but we spent most of our time enjoying the home, heated pool, cooking out on the large grill and fishing off the dock behind the home. We caught several kinds of fish off the dock as well as a blue crab. We also saw several blue jelly fish that looked like royal blue balloons floating on the sea grass. Lisa, the property manager, set us up with a private fishing charter for a very reasonable cost and we caught alot of fish, which we brought home and cooked on our grill for dinner. How fun is that??? Thank you Lisa! Do you want to have a sweet time? Then spend a week or a month at Mar Azul and tell Lisa that Nick and Angie sent you!

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

WOW, what a great place to stay, realx, and enjoy the Keys

Guest: Bruce (Germantown, TN)
Date of Stay: 01/29/11 Review Submitted: 05/12/11

We really enjoyed our stay here for the month of February. We were with my wife's parents and can not say enough about how much we loved this home. The pool area is very private and quiet plus the pool was perfect for my wife's elderly parents to safely enjoy!!!! And there was plenty of sun and/or shade, your choice!!! We loved starting our day having breakfast at the table on the deck outside the kitchen enjoying the water view. Plus the view from the master bedroom was simply amazing and we often would just go upstairs to look out and sit outside on the upper deck. The beautiful water view changed hourly!!!!! This is a very clean and well maintained property that exceeded our expectations. Lisa was very, very friendly, helpfull, and she certainly had our complete satisifaction in mind!!! Eveything was perfect!!!! There are plenty of great restaurants close by or we often stayed in and cooked diiner on the grill and then ate outside on the deck!!! Thanks Lisa..........for being so easy to work with, we will certainly return again for another month.

Owner response:Thank you SO much!! It's great to hear from you and we certainly look forward to your next stay - Enjoy summertime up there! All the best, Lisa

Recommended for:Age 55+, families with teenagers, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Mar Azul stay

Guest: Sher (Lakewood, WA)
Date of Stay: 10/27/10 Review Submitted: 11/12/10

Just a short note to thank you for the wonderful stay at Mar Azul. It was so lovely and relaxing, I had a fabulously lazy and restful time! The house is so clean and tastefully decorated I felt comfortable right away. And the neighborhood is quiet and peaceful. You were amazing! Helpful and kind. I can't tell you how much I appreciate that. A person like you can make all the difference. :) I look forward to staying at Mar Azul again next time I am in The Keys. Thank you so much again, Lisa. All the best to you and yours.

Owner response:Thank you, Sher! It was our pleasure - we look forward to having you back! All the best - Lisa

Recommended for:Girls getaway, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Best Vacation Ever!

Guest: Pamela R. (San Antonio, Texas)
Date of Stay: 07/03/10 Review Submitted: 07/14/10

We enjoyed every aspect of our stay at Mar Azul! We encountered great fishing right off the dock, and some great bonding with a resident iguana who likes to sun on the dock. The house is laid out perfectly for a family or couples with lots of privacy and room to move. We enjoyed a dip in the pool after day trips to the beach and snorkeling and found EVERYTHING to be in pristine condition. You will not find a more accommodating person than Lisa, who handled all the details of our booking and you will not enjoy any hotel or home as much as mar azul.

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

Guest: Thomas H Berry (Malvern, PA)
Date of Stay: 02/23/10 Review Submitted: 02/23/10

Mar Azul is fantastic in all respects! A backyard/pool area like a Garden of Eden surrounded by palm trees. Quiet neighborhood. Fabulous house and BBQ grill. Perfect location in middle keys with shopping quite close by. And, the Property Manager, Lisa, is absolutely wonderful. Responsive, caring, accesible and totally efficient. She is a pleasure to deal with. be sure to look for Sarge the turtle near the pool. Great ocean views. We loved it!

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Guest: Janine10 (Miami Lakes, FL)
Date of Stay: 01/12/10 Review Submitted: 01/12/10

We just loved the home. It was well appointed and just perfect for me, my husband and my two teenagers. You can fish right from the dock! They have a beautiful barbeque grill and lovely decks. We live in Miami which isn't that far away, but I can tell you for us it felt like we were a million miles away! Cannot wait to go back!

Owner response:Thank YOU!!! It's our pleasure - we look forward to having you back!!-Lisa

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Guest: Carole Schlenker
Date of Stay: 09/19/09 Review Submitted: 09/18/09

*****Perfect Private Paradise!! SO MUCH BETTER THAN A RESORT!! We spent our 25th Anniversary celebration here and had the time of our lives! We truly enjoyed the beautiful home, secluded back yard & pool, wonderful lush tropical landscaping, and the gourmet outdoor grill. You can pick up some steaks at Pulbix grocery store or fresh seafood at the nearby Keys Fishery to make a superb dinner! Mar Azul's middle-of-the-Keys location makes day trips to Key West, John Pennekamp State Park (great snorkel trip), and Bahia Honda State Park (great beach) just a short drive away. Thanks so much for a superb vacation! We look forward to returning! Carole Schlenker, Holland, New York

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Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 07/29/09 Review Submitted: 07/29/09

Just wanted to drop a note and tell all who are interested in renting this property...you can't go wrong. It was very clean and comfortable. It has all the ammenities you would want in a rental, and more.... The entire family truely enjoyed our vacation, we can't wait to come back! Thanks for a great time!

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Guest: Sirena & James Lewis (Inverness, Florida)
Date of Stay: 07/29/09 Review Submitted: 07/29/09

This vacation home was just amazing. We truly loved the home the pool and the docking for our boat. We will return again in the future.

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Guest: Dan and Connie Sizemore
Date of Stay: 05/20/09 Review Submitted: 05/19/09

Wonderful, very relaxing, peaceful secluded setting. The pool and patio areas were very nice and the ocean dock perfect for morning coffee and some fishing. The home was very clean and quite comfortable great for family and friends. We truly enjoyed our stay here and definately will recommend this home to friends looking to stay in the Keys. Only 45 minutes to Key West, what a fun time!!! Dan and Connie Sizemore

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Guest: Pam Ewing
Date of Stay: 04/21/08 Review Submitted: 04/20/08

This is a wonderful home and was perfect for our family of three who love the warm weather and boating. We didn't want to leave!

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