Great condo in a great location

Guest: Rick K. (San Diego, California)
Date of Stay: 01/16/12 Review Submitted: 02/07/12

This is a great condo in very nice condition. The view of the lake and the mountains behind it is pretty astounding. The condo is very easy to get to and close to town in Truckee for shopping and dining. We very much enjoyed our stay and would consider using this condo again when we go back to Tahoe. My only complaints with the unit are: there is not much heat in the place and you have to use in-room portable units in the bedrooms, which heat fine but are hard to get to maintain an even temperature and you are forever adjusting them up and down. There was a lack of paper towel and dish soap provided in the unit so cooking and cleaning was a problem for us, luckily we did not eat in too much so it worked out okay. Condo is a bit of a walk up stairs from where you park, but that is only any issue when you are moving your luggage in or out, it is fine the rest of your trip.

Recommended for:

Gorgeous views in a quiet and peacefull setting

Guest: I want to live in the mountains (Salt Lake Ctiy, UT)
Date of Stay: 09/09/11 Review Submitted: 10/14/11

We ejoyed an amazing week in September at this townhome. The property itself was well layed out for my family of four and the grand parents. We found the accomidations to be well appointed, clean, and nicely kept. The location was perfect with a short walk to the private beach, and easy couple min drive to great hiking trails or downtown truckee. We had a great trip and are looking forward to returning this winter for a couple ski weekends

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

Great spot in all four seasons

Guest: Truckee Traveler (San Mateo, CA)
Date of Stay: 09/29/11 Review Submitted: 10/13/11

This is our third visit to the property; once last winter, once in July and now we just got back from a trip in the fall. The unit is clean and well appointed. The location is perfect regardless of the season, with ski resorts, the lake, and town all being very close. The owner has been a pleasure to deal with, and his cleaning and maintenance crew do a good job keeping the property in good condition. The only potential downside I could see is if a renter had a disability that did not allow them to climb stairs as there are about 8-10 to get into the unit and there are two levels inside the unit. It is a wonderful unit with a great floor plan and amazing views of Donner Lake and the mountains.

Owner response:These travelers were a pleasure to deal with and we hope to have more clients like them in the future.

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

Great Location / Many Small Problems / Lots of Stairs from Car to Unit

Guest: sg2010 (San Francisco, CA)
Date of Stay: 07/29/11 Review Submitted: 08/22/11

Loved this location and the private beach (a small walk down the lake, not directly across). Bring your own toilet paper, dish washer soap, laundry soap, soap for showers, etc. as we had to go out and buy. It is a very long walk up from the car to the unit - the unit is the second row from the street. Two long staircases. Many small problems - including the BBQ did not work and looked like it has not worked in a long time; someone there before us used coals on it. Could not even remove tank to try to refill propane (as owner suggested). Part of stair step up to the unit is missing. Bring your own fan for summer, as upstairs gets hot and the fan provided had some issues (on/off switch had to be operated with a knife). Kitchen is very small and only suitable for one person to work in and is not "new". 80% remodeled is a stretch - clearly the place is from the 70s. Window coverings only partly cover the windows (so you cannot keep out the morning light). Also, it took, very long to get our deposit back (3 weeks after we were there), yet was forced to pay the deposit immediatley upon booking (many months in advance). But, location is great and they let us bring our dog (for an extra fee); and had plenty of room for our 3 cars. My husband also loved the fishing at Donner Lake (but would have loved to BBQ his catch).

Owner response:This traveler had the misfortune of staying just before we fired our cleaning company and hired a new one to be sure the property was adequately kept up and supplies provided. With our new company we have had no issues and the property is kept current, it is actually over 80% remodeled with the kitchen cabinets and counter tops the only things remaining to be done. All the appliances, flooring, windows, bathroom cabinets, wood work, doors, paint, fixtures, etc... are new. The fan and BBQ were both replaced this past spring. Security deposits are auto refunded 15 days after the date of departure with our system and this one was not delayed.

Recommended for:Pet owners, adventure seekers.

Winter rental

Guest: Cindy (San Francisco)
Date of Stay: 04/07/11 Review Submitted: 04/12/11

Pros: Close to Sugarbowl and Northstar. Great views of the lake. New electric stove and dishwasher. Rooms are decent sized. The gas fireplace upstairs was very nice and warm. Note: The bunkbeds were not as pictured (it's only 1 bed - twin on top, full size bed on bottom with a pull out trundle). Cons: Unit is much older than the pictures look: with exposed wiring for ceiling lighting, a small galley style kitchen (not part of the 80% remodel obviously). Central heating didn't work for downstairs - signs all over the unit indicating we should not use the wall heating unit. The bathrooms downstairs were extremely cold! The owner did provide 4 freestanding heaters but one didn't work and they're not so safe to use with small children. The unit is set back about 75-100 feet away from the garage so if you have a lot of bags or gear it's not very convenient, and the steps/path to the townhome was very icy and not maintained by the townhome association so my kids slipped on the stairs a couple of times.

Owner response:Not sure about this review as our bunk beds are exactly as pictured a twin over double with a pull out trundle. Actually a much better set up than two separate bunks. The heating from the central furnace behind the fireplace works fine the renters simply did not read the instructions on how to turn on the blower to heat the downstairs. The free standing heater did stop working and we did replace it after this stay. There is parking available above the garage so that you avoid over 1/2 the stairs for loading and unloading. Our HOA does a very good job at maintaining the snow removal and we have never had a complaint in the past

Recommended for:

Great place for our family stay in Donner!

Guest: Susan (San Francisco, CA)
Date of Stay: 02/11/11 Review Submitted: 02/18/11

We had a wonderful stay at this property! Great proximity from the highway, super close to Truckee and Sugarbowl! The accommodations were super, comfortable, and very clean! Would highly recommend this place!

Recommended for:Families with young children.

Location! Location! Location! Convenience, Charm & Comfort.

Guest: Heather (Fremont, CA)
Date of Stay: 01/28/11 Review Submitted: 02/15/11

I’m hesitant to write a review for purely selfish reasons – this is a hidden gem that I’d like to save all for myself. However, I do benefit from reviews on this site, so it’s only fair that I contribute… This property is the perfect combination of convenience, charm and comfort. Whether you have a large family with kids, are planning a group outing, or just looking for a romantic getaway, the atmosphere of this house is fun, romantic, and functional. We enjoyed spending time with our child, playing board games at the dining room table. In the evening, following a day of skiing, we returned to a cozy house, and lounged by the fireplace, while admiring the breathtaking, unobstructed views of the lake. It was the perfect getaway; we are definitely planning on staying here again.

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

Bad Business

Guest: love2ride (Bay Area, CA)
Date of Stay: 09/17/09 Review Submitted: 10/10/09

The rental unit itself was fine, although not quite as represented. We arrived to a large broken bathroom mirror on the front landing, and over the course of our stay learned the phone and internet did not work and the dryer was broken (discovered only after doing a load of laundry). Otherwise the place was fine, and normally these things would not be an issue for us. However, the owner breached his own contract by holding onto our security deposit beyond the time specified in his contract. When I tried to reach him via email and phone, he was unresponsive (although very responsive when it came to taking my payment initially) so I notified HomeAway. Only then did he refund the deposit in full, with no explanation or apology for the delay. I’ve rented other places through this site and always had a positive experience with owners who were responsive and quick to refund the security deposit. As a result of our experience, I can’t recommend doing business with this property owner.

Owner response:First of all our unit is exactly as represented. Secondly, I have no idea who the person is who wrote this review. Who ever this made no attempt to contact me in regards to the internet or any issues they had. The dryer did have a malfunction in September, however as simple phone call to tell me of the problem and I could have had it fixed and usable imediately. It appears they switched some cables around to the modem so that the "input" singnal was going into a "output" jack in the modem. Since the phone is VOIP this did not work either. The only time I have ever had an issue with a security deposit is when a credit card had been canceled someones email address changes. Regardless I ALWAYS return security deposits .

Recommended for:

Guest: Mike153 (Chicago/il)
Date of Stay: 10/09/09 Review Submitted: 10/09/09

Nice townhouse in a very convenient location. Beautiful views of the lake especially in the morning when lake looks like glass. Enjoyed my stay there with family and kids over the weekend. Will be back for longer stay next time. If you got a boat this is a place to be in a summer with a boat launch right across from building and private beach next to it.

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