Barefoot Princess~5BR Exclusive Gulf Front Luxury Home~Coastal Living

• Thanksgiving 2012

  Thanksgiving 2012

  • Guest Rebekah Straka
  • Date of stay 11/17/12
  • Review Submitted 04/15/13
  My family stayed at this home for the Thanksgiving holiday 2012. The home is as it says in the information, very well decorated and comfortable for a large group (we had 11 in our group). However, when we got to the property the ice maker would not work and the refrigerator was not turned on (we had to turn it on and wait for it to cool down). The property manager did contact a repair man and he did come the next day to fix it (we had to sit around and wait for him to come). The four bikes that they advertised were not in working order. Only one of the 4 bikes worked When we first got to the property all of the bike tires were flat again the property manager brought us a pump but two of the bike tires were shot and immediately lost air. The third bike's chain kept popping off. The child bike that is mentioned is more of a toddler bike that has training wheels. We were very unhappy with the bike situation...if we would have known this then we could have brought our own bikes! On Tuesday night my husband noticed a huge puddle on the kitchen floor and realized the "Viking" refrigerator/freezer was not working and all of our food including our fresh turkey and all of our Thanksgiving meal was ruined. We tried our best to salvage our food by putting it in the coolers we brought but had to throw away hundreds of dollars worth of food. We were also unable to keep leftovers. Again, we contacted the management company and they told us someone would contact us. The associates at the management company went out of town for the holiday and was very difficult to reach. My husband sat around for an entire day waiting for someone to come repair the refrigerator but no one ever came. Finally, on Friday someone did come to assess the refrigerator. He told us that it would require a couple of men to pull the refrigerator out and they did not have the man power to fix it. We had to spend more money eating out because most of our food was ruined. Finally, the golf cart that is advertised is old and needs serious repair. It was not safe to drive at all. The breaks did not work and we couldn't drive at night because the headlights did not work. We have stayed in many different places over the years during the Thanksgiving holiday but this was by far the worst experience. We calculated our lost food and eating out to be over $900.After all was said and done the management company told us that our contract did not cover such inconveniences. They did reimburse us $400.

  Owner response: The guests arrived on a Saturday evening following the owners departure. No items of concern were experienced or reported by the owner prior to their departure. On Sunday morning, the guest reported that 2 of the 4 bikes needed air in the tires. A pump was delivered to the home on the same day and the bikes were aired up during our service call. On Monday the guest requested that we provide replacement bikes during their stay. They were given the name of a bicycle company to order replacement bikes at our cost. Reimbursement nor receipts were provided or requested. At that time, the guest reported 2 additional concerns. The ice maker was not working and the golf cart brakes were not working. Service calls were performed the next day, Monday, on both items. The ice maker had been turned off by the owners and had to be turned back on. The golf cart was inspected by a certified mechanic and the brakes were found to be functional although they did need adjusting. There were no lights on the golf cart for night time operation. Both repairs were made that day, one day after being reported. At 10:35 Wednesday evening, the night before Thanksgiving, we received an email reporting that the Viking Refrigerator was not working properly. At no time was the refrigerator turned off. This email was read on Friday morning due to the holiday. Two separate technicians were sent to the home on that same day to inspect and both reported that the compressor was inoperable and needed to be replaced. The part could not be ordered until Monday following their departure due to the nature of the part and the brand of the appliance. The guests were asked to provide receipts for the replacement of the food items lost. These items totaled approximately $400. An additional $350 in restaurant receipts were provided. The original request for reimbursement was $750. The amount refunded was equal to the amount of the lost grocery items, since it was the greater of the two. Both grocery and restaurant expenses could not be refunded. We are very sorry about the problems experienced. All concerns were addressed in a timely matter and compensation was provided on the problems that could not be corrected immediately. There are currently two operational golf carts at the home. All appliances are operating properly and the home continues to be enjoyed by many guests.

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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 11.5%
• Cleaning $200