House with Gourmet Kitchen, Small Pool, Walk or Drive to Hotels/Casino/Beaches

• The Magic House in Condado

  The Magic House in Condado

  • Guest Nelson & Myra
  • Date of stay 12/20/09
  • Review Submitted 01/13/11
  Since we made the first contact with Ms. Silvia, we felt the good service and welcoming treat!! The house is very comfortable and "magical" because you can feel love around it! The location is perfect because you have a market that you can go "in a walking distance", nice restaurants nearby, immediate access to the highway, maximum security, etc. We had a great time in Puerto Rico and this beautiful, spectacular house contributed to it!!

  Recommended for: Families with teenagers, romantic getaway, girls getaway, tourists without a car, adventure seekers.

  Owner response: I'm glad to read such a beautiful review... Thanks Nelson and Mayra for choosing my house for your 2010 two weeks' Christmas vacations. It is an inmense gratification to read your review, that such a lovely family received all my efforts when I was designing and remodeling the house. The intentions... to have that sense of SPA, LOVE, and RELAXATION... Certainly the word "Magical" is the best to describe the intentions and orchestration of the colors, fine details, art, the pool connecting the different terraces, the decoration, and design. Best of all to know that the whole group enjoyed everything... the plants, the orchids, the terraces connecting from the library and master bedroom. It is my best gift, to receive those words. Yes, definitely a Special house for Special people! The kind of people that have good feelings, the happiness of being alive, enjoy giving and receiving the best of love and energies. I wish you all to keep the Magic for the rest of the year, and a Happy New Year! I do believe when you said you will be back!

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 6/6

• A DREAM HOME AWAY FROM HOME

  A DREAM HOME AWAY FROM HOME

  • Guest Dania M.
  • Date of stay 01/10/12
  • Review Submitted 01/26/12
  Instead of a hotel, stay in this GORGEOUS HOUSE!Some family members and friends joined me in Condado, San Juan for a week celebration for my birthday. After revising a few properties we found this gorgeous house to be the best. Sylvia was very helpful from the first step to the last moment, by answering questions and thinking through what a group of people would need for a vacation and making sure that it was available. The house certainly is prepared for relaxation, like a SPA… it is beautiful, spacious, comfortable and super clean. The kitchen is super equipped with all appliances and gadgets we need to make our fancy cocktails and hor d’ ouvres. Things you can't even imagined, this house had it!! The comfortable beds, well thought lay out (for example, the bedrooms are very comfortable, wonderful air conditioners). The convenient location make the house a great pick for anyone visiting San Juan. The terraces, Internet, the beeper control garage made our parking space convenient when raining and safe. The supermarket is just a few steps away and open 24/7, all kind of restaurant, burgers, pizza… simply convenient!!! We used a car because we wanted to explore the Rain Forest, Luquillo beach, the Arecibo Observatory , etc the rest of the island. But we didn't use the car to explore the beaches and bars in the area because we were a short walk from the hotels and the various beaches of Condado. One day it poured, ruining our beach plans but no one seemed dismayed to just chill in the house and wait out the storm. I recommend this rental to anyone who wants to have a wonderful experience in San Juan, if I return I will make sure to arrange my trip around the availability! Go to Marriott Resort and Casino for drinks by the beach which is a few blocks away, you will even be able to walk or take taxi back to the house or to Old San Juan which is a few minutes (@10 minutes taxi drive). .. . Write a reply... . .. . . . .

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 1/1

• A Dream Home Vacation

  A Dream Home Vacation

  • Guest Dania M.
  • Date of stay 01/10/12
  • Review Submitted 01/26/12
  Instead of a hotel, we stayed in this GORGEOUS HOUSE! Some family members and friends joined me in Condado, San Juan for a week celebration for my birthday. After revising a few properties we found this gorgeous house to be the best!! Sylvia was very helpful from the first step to the last moment, by answering questions and thinking through what a group of people would need for a vacation and making sure that it was available. Anything you could think of, this house had it !! The house is certainly prepared for relaxation, like a SPA… It is beautiful, spacious, comfortable and super clean. The kitchen is super equipped with all appliances and gadgets we needed to make our fancy cocktails and hor d’ ouvres. The comfortable beds, well thought lay out (for example, the bedrooms are very comfortable, wonderful air conditioners.) The convenient location make the house a great pick for anyone visiting San Juan. The terraces, Internet, the beeper control garage made our parking space convenient when raining and safe. The supermarket is just a few steps away and open 24/7, all kind of restaurant, burgers, pizza… simply convenient!!! We used a car because we wanted to explore the Rain Forest, Luquillo beach, the Arecibo Observatory, etc. But we didn't used the car to explore the beaches and bars in the area because we were a short walk from the hotels and the various beaches of Condado. One day it poured, ruining our beach plans but no one seemed dismayed to just chill in the house and wait out the storm. I recommend this rental to anyone who wants to have a wonderful experience in San Juan, if I return I will make sure to arrange my trip around the availability! Go to Marriott Resort and Casino for drinks by the beach which is a few blocks away, you will even be able to walk or take a taxi back to the house or to Old San Juan which is a few minutes (@10 minutes taxi drive). .. . Write a reply... . .. . . . .

  Owner response: Thanks for taking time to write such a lovely review. I'm glad you and your friends had such a good time and found the house the way it was meant to be... comfortable and in excellent condition. I'm glad that when you first ask about the Gourmet kitchen, I told you it was super equipped, which you noticed it is! People that feel so great in the house I invite them to come back very soon! Please do! I will be more than glad to offer a complimentary day.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 1/1

• Speechless was the result!!!

  Speechless was the result!!!

  • Guest Octavio Quilichini
  • Date of stay 11/14/11
  • Review Submitted 01/24/12
  Speechless was the result! I went on a 1 week vacation to Puerto Rico with a few friends from Los Angeles, CA on November 14th, 2011. After doing a lot of research we found what seemed to be a "too good to be true" place in Condado. We really had no idea how amazing this place would be as nowadays we are a bit skeptical about what is posted online. Little did we know that we were going to be left speechless when we got to this beautiful property. We loved what we saw in the pictures but to see it in physically was a whole other story. Besides it being walking distance from pretty much everything (bars, nightclubs, restaurant, beaches, etc.), the place is so magical and comfortable that we literally had a hard time leaving every day to go discover the area of Condado and do the things we had planned. We literally did food and beverage shopping and wanted to stay in the entire time. I not only highly suggest this rental if you ever want to visit Puerto Rico, but it is pretty much the main reason I would like to come back on another vacation! This house will make you feel like a king, or queen!

  Owner response: Your review of the house makes me feel speechless! Thanks you so much for your lovely review... Even though you cook a lot... your Party left everything super cleaned and organized. Certainly the additional "Daily Maid Service Upon Request" helped your Party to feel like staying in a "Castle"... and help you in the organization. I'm so glad you liked the location of the house, it is as published in the HomeAway Ad and you can see in the map (steps to the 24/7 open supermarket, various beaches, hotels and casinos, etc). Please give my best regards to all your friends, tell them I love their excellent manners, and will wait the same group to come back soon!!

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 2/2

• A Home away from home!

  A Home away from home!

  • Guest Carmen Otero
  • Date of stay 11/20/11
  • Review Submitted 01/16/12
  This was really a Home away from home!! Recently I had the greatest experience renting this wonderful property in the beautiful island of Puerto Rico where I spent a whole week with my family. The house was magnificent and beautiful with fine furniture, art, fully equipped and exquisitely decorated. Really one of a kind! We had everything we needed in a familiar and cozy atmosphere. We wanted to explore the island so we rented a passenger’s van and since the house is conveniently located at “El Condado”, one of the best touristic areas, it was very easy to reach the many places Puerto Rico has to offer; great beaches, a rain forest, historic Old San Juan, a Luminescent Bay, exciting night life with excellent restaurants, music, concerts, casinos, etc.. We came home every day to this beautiful house where we all felt comfortable and at ease. The patio pool with its relaxing water cascade was incredible! We spent the most amazing vacation of our lives; a dreamed home in this beautiful island! I most certainly would recommend this destination and this splendid house to any of my friends and clients. Mrs. C. Rodriguez

  Owner response: You took care of my House, as if it was your Home!! THANKS! You certainly took care of the house as if you were the Owner. Thanks you so much for the time to write such a beautiful review. Thanks for your lovely comments... specially for the opportunity to have you and your family in my house. It was a real pleasure having you and the way you left the house... simply impeccable... organized and clean! The way you left my house shows your values, high standards and great education. It is my intention when I rent the house, that my guests feel like if they are staying at Home. Thanks you so much, and please come back soon!!!! I love when people with such a good taste stay at my fine property! I'm so glad you had such a great time. THANKS!!!!!

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 2/2

• The Positives and Negatives

  The Positives and Negatives

  • Guest Carri B.
  • Date of stay 12/21/11
  • Review Submitted 01/06/12
  The house is quite large and spacious with many nice bathrooms and places to sleep. The kitchen is equipped with everything you need to cook. It is an older house that was refurbished quite nicely. However with older houses there are problems, because on Christmas Eve the hot water became cool and by Christmas morning there was no hot water at all. It was fixed on Dec 26 by the middle of the afternoon after I told the landlord she must come right away. She first tried to tell me that it was because the dishwasher and washing machine shouldn't be used until the night time after everyone took their showers. However this was not the case at all. The Washing Machine does not work well. It does not ring the clothes out and hence to dry things you must ring them out prior to putting them in the dryer and you must dry them for about an hour and a half at least. All the mattresses with the exception of two have a sealed plastic wrap on them and our guests complained that they were not comfortable to sleep on. The house is situated on a quiet street and very close to a supermarket. We wanted something close to the beach which I was told was very convenient. However, the beach that is convenient is a 10 minute walk and is not nice. To get to the nice beach you must walk about 15 minutes and either way you have to walk on busy streets. We had anticipated a much closer beach. There are no beach chairs to bring to the beach and you are not allowed to bring the towels to the beach. Also the pool is tiny and not one used for swimming. It is the size of a hot tub. The gate to the front of the house is temperamental and the control for the gate and garage door did not always work. The landlord gave us a new control which worked better, though the gate still did not close quickly.

  Owner response: Surely everything is POSITIVE! Thanks for taking time to write a review of our luxury house in Condado. As you mentioned the house is more than a century old, completely remodeled from A to Z (plumbing, electricity, windows, floors, bathrooms, etc). As you noticed, and it's well known, the Condado area is full of buildings and due to its expensive land cost, it is a delicacy in such an expensive tourist area. All the appliances, including the washer machine and the stainless steel solar water heater are new. As my handyman said, overloading the equipments makes them to work improperly. We care and give constant maintenance to our millionaire property, and we solve the problems as soon as our guests notifies them, as I did solve the water heater problem, in less than (3) three hours. The house is conveniently located a few blocks away from various beaches and hotels (see location in Homeaway.com map). When a Weather Warning Alert makes the beaches not suitable for swimmers, we must notify our guests, as I did notified your during your stay... sorry... even the British Island were under this warning. The small pool with a relaxing water cascade is for fun, and not a lap pool, and certainly it is not advertise as such. As a real estate specialist, a house in such a "mint condition" is very hard to find... a privilege for just a few to ENJOY!

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 0/1

• Potential death trap

  Potential death trap

  • Guest S. C.
  • Date of stay 10/21/11
  • Review Submitted 10/30/11
  We rented this home to accommodate our family of 7 adults. The home is nice with travertine floors throughout, a lovely gas range and well equipped kitchen, a laundry and beautiful mahogany doors and the beds were comfortable. [1] POTENTIALLY LIFE THREATENING ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS - When we arrived the owner told us that the light in the fan in the kitchen was not working and her electrician was going to have to get a part in order to repair it. I received 2 electric shocks at the switches in the kitchen and when I reported it she informed us that her electrician was off the island. She did not seek another electrician because he was the one that “knew the house” and she feared other electricians would be “fly by night.” Then my adult daughter was also shocked and I reported that. The owner’s advice was wear “rubber shoes.” I shudder to think what would have happened if any of us had used the pool or hot tub and attempted to turn on a light in the kitchen – someone would have likely been killed. She only secured an electrician when the downstairs power went completely out locking our car in the garage the morning we needed to take our younger daughter to the airport. The owner took child and her boyfriend to the airport. Magically, she was then able to locate an electrician. I had smelled something burning twice. The electrician purportedly told her in Spanish [that we did not understand] there had been a FIRE or melting of the wires in the wall where the service came into the house for the first floor. The owner informed us that that same electrician had purportedly “fixed” the problem in the kitchen; whereupon my daughter was shocked again when she attempted to turn on the lights at the kitchen multiple switch switch plate. There are NO smoke detectors in the house; after the 97 people who died in the Dupont Plaza fire in San Juan in the 1980s you would think a smoke detector would be required by law; if they are there are none in this house.

  Owner response: Simple normal tear and wear! Our guests’ security is extremely important to me, as is our property, with its' precious art, furniture, original paintings, etc... If it took a couple of days to be fixed, was due to a total clearance of the references of the new electrician. After reading your strong review, I asked for a detailed inspection of my recently fully remodeled house... The licensed electrician authorized by the laws of Puerto Rico said that the switch was damaged, and BY NO MEANS represented a threat to the security of human beings or my valuable worthy property. Due to the proximity to the beach the property needs constant maintenance. The smoke detectors were ordered and installed, in addition (already at the property) to the fire extinguishers located (1) next to the kitchen door and (2) in the second floor. Please understand that the fine and expensive property is ONLY worked by the best professionals’ specialists of the Island, and sometimes they are busy working in some other customer facility. As you noticed, and wrote about... I'm a good property owner always looking for the best comfort of my guests, not only in the lovely fully equipped kitchen, best beds offering the best relaxation... BUT TOTAL SECURITY!

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 2/3

• puerto rican vaca

  puerto rican vaca

  • Guest Michelle G.
  • Date of stay 06/28/11
  • Review Submitted 07/13/11
  gorgeous house close to everything. in walking distance of beach, grocery store, and restaurants on ashford. i wouldn't plan on walking around the area at night though. house was well maintained with modern decor. owner provided walk through of house to acclimate renters, which was very helpful. we had 7 people in our party and were very comfortable in the space. for visitors we recommend the restaurant at the acacia hotel on taft. meals are about $30, but food is fantastic. old town is a great place to visit for authentic food, as well as museums and forts. if you don't want to navigate traffic, a taxi from the house averages about $20. i would recommend this house to family and friends, and would gladly stay there again.

  Recommended for: Sightseeing.

  Owner response: Thanks for your lovely comments during your stay, and in your review. Congratulations! It is a pleasure having you for such an important event... your son's wedding! As you noticed, the house is in excellent/impeccable condition. The recently renovated details of the house were done thinking in everything: SECURITY, COMFORT, and RELAXATION! All details were covered by experts... Please come back, we have space for your grandsons (I know it it take some time)!!! I repeat... a pleasure having such a fine family!

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 2/2

• Stay as far away as possible!

  Stay as far away as possible!

  • Guest Ocean Lover
  • Date of stay 02/13/11
  • Review Submitted 03/27/11
  This was by far the worst rental experience I have ever had. The place was nice (as seen in the pictures), but we were completely misled by the owner about its location and available services. We were told the place was within easy walking distance of the new convention center, it most definitely was not. It was about an hour if you were willing to risk your life crossing a series of highways. Wireless internet access was promised but was not available and despite repeated complaints we never had hot water in all of the showers. The owner herself hovered over us during the stay even spending a whole day at the house “supervising” the cleaning service. We had to make plans to be elsewhere on that day. Like the title says, I recommend you “STAY AWAY”.

  Owner response: Come closer, closer, closer... YES... to the most beautiful, luxurious and gorgeous property in San Juan, next to the beach (two blocks away)... in Condado... one of the most expensive touristic area of the Island. The recently remodeled house is full of fine furniture, art, full of delicate details, everything works, and decorated with exquisite taste. I explain the future guests exaclty what to expect, the name of the street, the exact location, and always take my time to give as many details of the location (THE BEST). With HomeAway, there is NO way to say a different thing... the exact location can be immediately seen in the MAP, please, it just take a few moments... you will be staying at that same address. It is part of your analysis of where to stay... an essential part of the posssibility when renting the house. The Convention Center is in Miramar, San Juan... even thou it is a 5 minutes taxi drive, walking is not recommended due to heavy traffic in the area. The Internet service is via Cable TV, working fast and the way it should be via Ethernet cable, never promise something else. I always give the extra service, the house is super clean and you will always receive that extra service... It is a pity that you can not make everybody happy... every time! Certainly, you will feel you are in a SPA... IN A SPECIAL PLACE!!!!! You will feel the magic!

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 4/5

Payment is usually accepted in the quoted currency ($) unless the currency and the amount is specifically agreed in advance with the owner / advertiser.

Additional information about rental rates:

Fees and Taxes:

• Tax Rate 7%
• Cleaning $200