The Round House ie the Very Best place to stay

Guest: nisswavic (Brainerd and St Paul, MN and Denver, CO)
Date of Stay: 12/23/11 Review Submitted: 01/15/12

My family stayed in the Round House for 12 days over the Christmas/New Years Holidays (2011/2012). The owner, Sue, is very responsive and genuinely cares that you have a good vacation. She will help make arrangements and provide suggestions. Her caretaker, Angel, is invisible but always around when you need him. He too is willing to help or provide suggestions. The house is fantastic. There is something about it that allows you to truely feel comfortable in it, as your own, during your rental period. The beds are comfortable and the towels are soft. You are provided all of the amenities you could need. Because the kitchen was well stocked we found ourselves cooking some meals instead of just heating leftovers from our restaurant meals. The diving/snorkeling out front is fantastic. The health of the reef here is like we saw in Bonnaire. We snorkeled and dove to 100'. We saw: moray eels, stingrays, queen angel fish, french angel fish, barracuda, parrot fish, indigo hamlet, grouper, squirrelfish, basslets, butterfly fish, filefish, blue chromus, tangs, sergant majors, drum fish, french grunts, trumpet fish etc. Sue recommended that we use Coral View Dive shop for tank rental. They were very accomodating and we were very pleased with their services. Sitting on the deck, diving our front, eating some great meals in, visits from Salsa-meant that we actually saved a lot of money. We didn't seem to need oustside entertainment. Contentment... This is the best VRBO we have ever rented. You can't go wrong! Vicki. Ed, Eric and Andy

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

We just keep coming back

Guest: Squid & Grunt (Pittsburgh, PA USA)
Date of Stay: 02/26/11 Review Submitted: 06/19/11

My husband and I along with another couple have been visiting Utila for several years now and staying at Miss Sue's Round House so I was dismayed when taking a look at the calendar for our next visit to see the recently posted unfavorable review regarding water and electricity. In all the times we have stayed at The Round House the four of us NEVER, EVER ran out of water or electricity, however we recognize the limited resources of the island and take quick, short showers and only turn on the fans or sometimes the air conditioners in the evening. It was also disheartening to see Miss Sue's and Angel's character questioned. They are the most direct, honest and helpful people you could ever desire and have gone the extra mile for us on many occasions. The Round House has the best location on the entire island with an outstanding reef right in front of the property and a really easy get in with a nice bar and sun dock just 100 yds away. The porch is a great feature and we spend the majority of our out of water time in the hammocks and swing swilling beer, reading and relaxing with a great view of the ocean and mountains off in the distance. A good and sometimes downright brisk breeze keeps all cool and refreshing. The bathrooms are large and clean, the house is clean and well stocked and Miss Sue always has complimentary beer and soda waiting for us. Angel and his wife are wonderful and have always taken great pains to accommodate our every wish. He arranges for our bikes, has taken his own time to show us the caves, attended to any problems quickly and with no complaints and hauls us back and forth to and from the airport. Utila is not for the faint of heart, you MUST have some of the adventurer in you to fully appreciate the vibe and culture of the island. This is not a luxury destination!!!!!, but you will never find better diving, a more eclectic people scene, and just generally warm hearted, laid back environment for a forget-about-it-all vacation. I highly recommend staying at the Round House we were there for two weeks in February 2011 and we are already planning our next visit. Squid & Grunt

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

The Round House -- excellent location, great owners, super staff, Unbeatable views, reef, comforts!

Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 05/02/11 Review Submitted: 06/18/11

I have both rented the Round House, and been a neighbor in Blue Bayou for over 15 years. I was shocked at "Dee"'s review. When I have stayed at the Round House, there has never been a water problem, and power is used only as quickly as we used air conditioners and hot water, watch TV, do laundry, etc. Angel is a really great guy who tries very hard to keep guests happy and Sue is one of the best and longest time "landlords" on the island. Angel mets the guests and takes them to the Round House, I'm sureh e shows everyone around the same way, showing them meters, etc. He has done this for years. I now live just down from the Round House in Blue Bayou. "Dee" and her husband asked to rent our kayaks for 2 days and keep them at the Round House. As a favor to Sue, because we trust her, we said "ok". Then "Dee" changed her mind and decided just to take one double kayak because it was cheaper (L150 / day for single; L225 / day for the double -- a total saving of about $8 US for a favor to keep the kayaks for a couple of days and nights, and have Angel deliver them to the Round House). Again, as a favor to Sue, we said "ok". Just before arriving, "Dee" rather rudely cancelled the kayaks as they were sure they could find a better deal. They didn't. I was here in my Blue Bayou house the week "Dee" and husband were in the Round House. There were lots of power problems with the town power and it was HOT and STILL. No one was too happy, but the local power company was trimming the trees over the power lines for safety, so the power was off and on during a couple of daysl. With pressurized water systems (so for example The Round House's eco on-demand hot water heater works), when the power goes out, so does the water. Angel has worked at the Round House about 15 years, he is very knowledgeable and honest. Sue has been on the island longer than that and a volunteer teacher, sits on local boards, etc. To hear her described as dishonest is ridiculous. Sometimes renters are so awestruck by the beauty in Blue Bayou and the view from the Round House that, although they have all instructions written, they don't absorb all --power is .45 cents US per KWH and the air conditioners just sucks down the power -- that eco measure should be taken. Utila is not for everyone, It's a Caribbean Island with all the good and bad -- located on the lovliest reef system around, The Round House is comfortable, and the owner and staff honest and lovely

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

Renters Beware- dishonest owner

Guest: Dee (USA)
Date of Stay: 05/21/11 Review Submitted: 06/13/11

My husband and I travelled to Utila May 21-28 for a diving trip. The only problem we encountered was with our rental home, "The Round House" near Blue Bayou, which we had pre-booked with the home's American owner, who also owns Oyster Lagoon Beach House. She was pleasant via email and all seemed to be in order. We paid half of the weekly rate via paypal before leaving, and the second half and additional security deposit upon arrival to her housekeeper (who spoke English). The evening of our 2nd night on the island at appx. 11pm, all electricity went off. We assumed it was off on the island, but the next morning I discovered we also had no running water. We called the housekeeper to investigate, who told us we had apparently "used all of our electricity" that was prepaid for by the owner, and we had used "all of the water" that was stored in the >1300gallon tanks. We told him this was impossible, but he offered no solution. I then called the owner, who told me she had certainly put "enough" on the meter and that we must have exceeded our allowance and that there was nothing she could do. She also said that her housekeeper told her the water tanks were full the pevious day, so we must have "used all the water up". We told her that this could not possibly be true as we had been diving the whole time and had only actually been in the house for about 6 hrs each night. She offered no solution, and accused us of choosing to ignore all the signs posted around the house about conserving water and electricity. I told her that we needed water, and to do whatever she had to do to get it and electricity back running, A few hourse later, the housekeeper arrived and put 59 kilowatts on the electric meter. He then proceeded to siphon water from the tanks of a neighboring home unto our water tanks in the utility room in the basement. After he left, we confirmed that 59 kilowatts of power were now on the meter.This lasted us the next 3 days with 5 kilowatts to spare. If the owner was honest, there should have been at least 200 kW on the meter, and certainly enough to last the week. We returned to the US to find that 25% of our security deposit was being kept for "extra electricity" and "water refill", which, as I mentioned, had been siphoned from a neighboring home. The owner sent us an email accusing us of being careless with the island's "natural resources" and said that we were verbally abusive. Renters should stay clear!

Owner response:I invite potential guests to read other Round House reviews and reviews from my other properties (listing 125837) to see the positive comments about the owner and Angel, caretaker. Utila is a small island which adds to its charm and attraction. Small islands have limited (and therefore expensive) resources. Most visitors respect this and practice simple conservation techniques. Uitila utilizes prepaid keypads for purchasing electricity and most houses have large cisterns or water tanks. Consequently, all vacation rentals limit the amount of electricity paid for by the owner. To my knowledge no guest has every used 1300 gallons of water in 2 days, so no property owners have had to consider charging for additional water. In the afternoon 3 days following the arrival of these guests, my caretaker informed me they were out of electricity. At this point he did not think they were out of water because he assumed their was no running water because electricity is needed to run the water pump. I gave him money to buy more electricity and told him to inform the guests that this and additional electric would be deducted from their damage deposit in order to not impact their cash on hand during their vacation and per the rental rules they had received. When contacted by phone by my guests I informed them that Angel was on his way to put more power on their meter and Angel also showed the guests the receipt for the power that had been placed on the meter just prior to their arrival to assure them that they were provided with what they were due. Concerning the water usage, I told my guests that they had used 1300 gallons in 2 days and we would have to pump water from a private well. In the interim Angel siphoned water from another property to get them some water asap. He also checked for possible leaks that may have caused them to run out of water and found none. After receiving $27 (500 lempiras) of additional electricity and the same amount for additional water, and knowing they were being charged for it and any more, they were easily able to reduce their usage to a reasonable rate. They did not need any more for the rest of the week. Please email me if I can answer any questions or clarify any points in this response.

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Wowzah.....another trip to paradise

Guest: Joe (Victoria, Texas )
Date of Stay: 10/16/10 Review Submitted: 11/01/10

We spent a week in mid october at the Round House and it sucked.....That's why I've already made reservations for two weeks at the Round House next year. Ok it was only the weather that sucked, the House was excellent, the location was primo, and we really really liked Utila. The house is among the nicest we've stayed in for the price. A perfect porch for lounging while looking over the water. Maybe 100 meters from a very good dive shop. About the same to a good restaurant and bar. But still far enough out of town to be absolutely quiet. I was kidding with my whine about the weather...it did rain just about every day, but we knew that October is the rainy season. For a first trip to Utila, we wanted to learn what was there and learn our way around and it was perfect with no crowds during the rainy season. Now we know our way around and we're going back in the sunny season. We'd not look at any place different than the Round House to stay. The owners are very responsive to any inquiries and were always available while were were on island. I simply can't say enough good things about the Round House, it's location, amenities, and condition. To sum up our experience......WE'RE GOING BACK TO THE ROUND HOUSE.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, adventure seekers, age 55+, girls getaway, sightseeing.

Guest: Roger Vandal (Wallingford CT)
Date of Stay: 09/04/07 Review Submitted: 09/04/07

We stayed at the round house for sixteen nights and found the home to be just what it descibed on the site. We were just so blessed to get the chance to stay there and just relax every night on the deck overlooking the water. The house is located at a perfect spot and it is very close to the best dive shop on the island, Coral View Resort. We would highly recommend this house to anyone and would love to share pictures that we took of the house and the great island of Utila.

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Guest: Anonymous
Date of Stay: 02/12/07 Review Submitted: 02/12/07

Wonderful house. Very comfortable, and well furnished. View is great. Owner is very pleasant, and easy to work with. Angel, the care taker, is a very nice young man,extremely helpful, and a real asset to the rental property. Would highly recomend this property, and would be glad to answer questions. Weather was 85 degrees F. and sunny. What a way to relax. Thanks!

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