Vacation Rentals by Owner

Beachfront Home,Private Pool & Spa, Awesome for Weddings! [#5189] | View Property

Private Homes
House, 5 Bedrooms, 3 Baths (Sleeps 10-14)
From $250/nt - $1500/wk
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Traveler Reviews (14)

• Wedding Celebration

  Wedding Celebration

  • Guest Lisa B.
  • Date of stay 04/21/13
  • Review Submitted 05/08/13
  The convenient location to the beach, scenery and size of this house / yard was ideal for our wedding festivities. The house was perfect for 3 couples to find privacy and beautiful views in the upstairs bedrooms with overflow for others in the two additional bedrooms. The caretakers, Bob & Rita were extremely friendly and welcomed us with open arms. We enjoyed relaxing by the pool and hot tub, watching the moon rise from the gazebo and most of all loved the easy access to the beach. We had 65 guests in attendance at our wedding, 30'x30' tent, live band, porta potties, buffet, hammocks and soft green grass to dance in. This was the most ideal setting for our wedding reception. Our guests were impressed by the ambiance of our wedding reception and everyone fell in love with St. Augustine in general. Jessica was fabulous to work with and was extremely responsive to our needs. We had such a wonderful time in St. Augustine Beach and are so thankful for the Finch House and the experience that it created for our friends and family!

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

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

• Wonderful wedding week!

  Wonderful wedding week!

  • Guest Amy & Mike
  • Date of stay 04/14/13
  • Review Submitted 04/30/13
  This house and location was perfect for our wedding week. The house was well maintained and stocked and the caretakers were very helpful and extremely friendly. We brought our beach cruisers and rode the beach at sunrise almost every morning. We also enjoyed the local restaurants that we frequented often during our stay (Cafe 11, Taco Shop, Stir It Up). The house allowed us to really enjoy the week and take the stress out of wedding preparations. Some of our favorite activities included pool basketball, corn hole/bean bag toss on the big beautiful lawn, naps in the gazebo, walking the beach and star watching from the hot tub at night. As for the wedding, we had a small, private ceremony in the morning, followed by a bigger party at the house that same evening. For the ceremony, we walked right out in the beach -- it was beautiful. For the party, the lawn easily accommodated our 90 guests. We had a tent, 8 large round tables, 6 high tops, and plenty of room for 2 sets of corn hole, horseshoes and a large blow up screen for a slideshow. The band set up in the gazebo over looking the lawn. We had lights in the trees and on the uppet balcony. It was simply wonderful. We would definitely recommend this house. We look forward to booking this house for an enjoyable week with friends in the future!

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

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

• travelers

  travelers

  • Guest mary
  • Date of stay 02/10/13
  • Review Submitted 02/21/13
  Our family of 10 ( 5 adults, 5 kids) stayed for a week. We loved it! The beach, the pool the hot tub were all perfect for us. Bob and Rita were great and took good care of us. We liked Salt Water Cowboys for dinner.(go at 5PM to avoid the rush) Old Town St Augustine was interesting, the old forts were beautiful. Jessica is great to work with and a good communicator, No issues with our business transactions. We would recomment this house for families.

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

  Owner response: Thank you, Mary for the kind review! I am glad you enjoyed your stay. Please consider us again for a future vacation.

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

• Amazing House for a Wedding

  Amazing House for a Wedding

  • Guest Shelle Bell
  • Date of stay 12/11/12
  • Review Submitted 01/07/13
  We really enjoyed the Finch House for our Wedding Venue! Jessica and Kevin were very accomodating as we were able to get in early to set up (arrival was the day before our noon wedding) and they even allowed us to pay extra to have our dog stay with us in the rental (He was our ring bearer)! Bob and Rita, the caretakers, are AMAZING! They are so helpful and delightful to be around. THe day of the wedding it was nice to find them directing traffic and helping with the event. The wedding party stayed in the house the whole week and we really enjoyed the hot tub. THe pool can be heated although maybe call a couple days prior to make sure the caretakers turn on the heater :) Perfect place for a simple, yet elegant wedding

  Recommended for: Adventure seekers, families with teenagers, girls getaway, tourists without a car, romantic getaway.

  Owner response: I am so glad your wedding went well! Consider us again for your anniversary!

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

• Family Vacation (Summer 2012)

  Family Vacation (Summer 2012)

  • Guest Jody
  • Date of stay 06/03/12
  • Review Submitted 06/13/12
  This was our third trip to St. Augustine and first time renting this home. Our group consisted of five adults and four children. To begin, our interactions (over the phone and via e-mail) with the owner (Jessica) when booking the home and the months leading up to the vacation were great. She was professional and her responses were informative and timely. The home's caretakers (Rita and Bob) are wonderful people. They were there to greet us upon our arrival and took the time to show us around, let us know how everything worked, and answered any questions we still had. They live next door, which is handy if you need something or have additional questions during the week, but despite their proximity they kept to themselves and honored your privacy, thus letting us enjoy our vacation. The house was clean and well kept. The living room is roomy and comfortable; the kitchen is well stocked with most anything you could need; and we were pleasantly surprised to find the home equip with a 10 person table, which easily accommodated our group. There are four bedrooms upstairs, three of which access the balcony that looks out onto the ocean. All the rooms were well furnished and laid out. Our only complaint was that the blinds in two of the rooms overlooking the balcony need to be repaired or replaced. There is also a bedroom downstairs, but it kind of small and appears to be a room designed for something else that was converted to a make-shift bedroom. Outside the home, the pool is larger than most and clean. The deck surrounding is also large and leads to the gazebo on one end and a bar and gas grill on the other end. There were plenty of deck chairs too. We liked this area a lot and spent a lot of time there during the vacation. The deck does need some work though since the wood looks weathered and is prone to giving off splinters. The yards is a nice bonus and gave our kids a place to run around when were weren't at the beach or swimming in the pool. As for the proximity of the home to the beach, the pictures are accurate. It's a short walk (under a minute) to the beach. The only thing different from the pictures is that there is a sand berm between the beach and the home, which simply means you have a small hill to walk over and can't see the beach from the yard. Overall, we liked this home and would recommend to anyone who is looking for a location close to the beach which will accommodate a larger group. Thank you for a great vacation!!!

  Recommended for: Adventure seekers, families with teenagers, tourists without a car, romantic getaway.

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

• Michelle

  Michelle

  • Guest Michelle
  • Date of stay 04/15/12
  • Review Submitted 04/30/12
  8 girls had our girls vacation at this house, we had a blast and will be back soon, thanks Rita & Bob you both were awsome ;-)

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

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

• Wonderful spot!

  Wonderful spot!

  • Guest Melissa
  • Date of stay 04/08/12
  • Review Submitted 04/16/12
  We just returned from this vacation. We all want to go back! It was just perfect. The house is well equipped and attractive. The location could not be any better. The beach is magnificent! Bob and Rita are really wonderful people. We highly recommend this rental.

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

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

• Amazing House for Family and Extended Family - Thanksgiving Week

  Amazing House for Family and Extended Family - Thanksgiving Week

  • Guest Judy
  • Date of stay 11/21/11
  • Review Submitted 11/29/11
  The House was only surpassed by the gorgeous weather that we had for Thanksgiving Week. Can't say enough about the Hospitality of caretakers - Rita and Bob - somehow the pool cover was put on the pool at night so that it was warm for those early morning swims. Family friendly house and the sound of the surf - walks to the Beachcomber at "Avenue A" for breakfast and the Pier at low tide - just can't be beat. Cafe Eleven for Sunday Brunch and St. Augustine for train ride through historic area wearing 3D glasses. Many special memories and a Thanksgiving to remember....

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

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

• This house is AWESOME!

  This house is AWESOME!

  • Guest Kathryn F.
  • Date of stay 06/04/11
  • Review Submitted 02/15/12
  We had 16 people stay in this house and it still wasn't crowded. Perfect for big families. Nice back yard and pool for little kids to play and swim. Beautiful views of the ocean from three upstairs bedrooms with floor to ceiling windows! Loved checking out the photo albums and stories from past families that stayed. Words really can't do it justice. Best vacation I ever had.

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

• This house is AWESOME!

  This house is AWESOME!

  • Guest Kathryn F.
  • Date of stay 06/04/11
  • Review Submitted 02/15/12
  We had 16 people stay in this house and it still wasn't crowded. Perfect for big families. Nice back yard and pool for little kids to play and swim. Beautiful views of the ocean from three upstairs bedrooms with floor to ceiling windows! Loved checking out the photo albums and stories from past families that stayed. Words really can't do it justice. Best vacation I ever had.

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

• AWESOME location!

  AWESOME location!

  • Guest Di
  • Date of stay 03/27/11
  • Review Submitted 04/05/11
  Rented the Finch house during Spring Break. My family of 4, 2 brothers in law, a sister in law, and father in law stayed at the house. More than enough room for all of us - didn't feel cramped a bit. The house is wonderful, and you can't find a better location on the beach. Used the pool, hot tub and fire pit. Had such a wonderful time, will rebook again!

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

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

• Buyer Beware!!!

  Buyer Beware!!!

  • Guest NZ
  • Date of stay 12/19/10
  • Review Submitted 01/18/11
  This was the second year of staying at this beach house and the property has not been well maintained. On our trip during the winter, the pool heater was broken and consequently our children were unable to utilize the pool. I recognize that issues pop up and no house can be perfect but when I requested some form of fair compensation for not having a pool for our entire Christmas vacation my request was completely disregarded by the owner Buyer Beware!!!!

  Owner response: This guest originally requested an eight night rental. However, because I had a tentative booking that would overlap, I informed him that I could only rent for 7 nights. I also indicated that I had not received the deposit for the tentative booking and that if it should fall through I would happily rent him the other night. I provided a price quote for both 7 and 8 nights. I included a large discount because the rental was on short notice. Pool heating is an option that some renters, including this one, choose. However, the week before this renter was to arrive we discovered that the pool heater wasn't working properly and kept shutting off. I discussed this with the renter but told him that a repairman should be out on Friday (he was scheduled to arrive on Sunday). At this point, we also discussed the fact that the other booking had fallen through and that he could indeed come in on Saturday. The repairman did come in on Friday but discovered that he needed a part in order to make the repair. The part was order, but either the wrong part was sent or the wrong part was ordered but nevertheless the part that came in was not the right part. The part was reordered. To make a long story short, the pool heater was not fixed during this guest's stay. I certainly felt bad about this, as did our caretakers, who supplied him with free firewood and baked his children cookies. I though that refunding him the money he had paid to heat the pool (obviously) and not charging him for his first night would be fair compensation. However, when we spoke he asked for a large discount off the weekly rate. I, in turn, asked him about the extra day, and he replied that he had paid a fair price whether it was for 7 or 8 nights and in addition to the discount he was asking for I should also comp the extra night. As far as the house not being maintained, the above comment is the first time I have heard any complaint about maintenance issues other than the pool. In all of our correspondence and conversations, the only complaint this guest had was about the pool heater. Things do break, things do quit working. We try to repair everything in a timely manner and the pool heater was no exception. To say I disregarded his request for compensation is completely untrue. I did refund the money he had paid to heat the pool and I did comp him the extra night. I feel that I compensated them fairly and provided them nice oceanfront accommodations over the winter holidays at a fair rate.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 14/14

• Amazing Rental

  Amazing Rental

  • Guest miriamw
  • Date of stay 10/01/10
  • Review Submitted 01/12/11
  We went with a group of friends for a small wedding celebration. The caretakers next door are super friendly, nice, and helpful! The beach access is pretty sweet because it's connected to the backyard. We stayed in one of the larger bedrooms upstairs with a beautiful beach view from the balcony...where there also is a spa! I definitely plan on going back to this house very soon and hope to make it a tradition because this house, the location, and just everything about it is wonderful!

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

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 9/10

• Great family vacation getaway

  Great family vacation getaway

  • Guest Children welcome
  • Date of stay 08/24/08
  • Review Submitted 09/09/08
  This was a wonderful annual summer family vacation at this beach house, everything we wanted and more. Bob and Rita couldn't have been more pleasant and helpful, with the house and amenties as great. Weather cooperated and the overall experience was one we will repeat in the future. Thank you again Jessica and Kevin for the use of your house.

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

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 30/31