Our stay at owner Tom Lowell’s property entitled, “Culebra Island Secluded Vacation Rental House/One Acre Zoni” has been a generally good experience.

The location was quiet. There were no barking dogs, no crowing chickens, no traffic. The steep, rough, dirt road leading from the paved road to the house is only two blocks long. This makes access better than for many other Culebra rental houses. But, we are glad that it did not rain.

Half of the house is of concrete construction and the other half is of wood construction. The half constructed of wood is made of 2x4s and painted plywood with painted wood siding on the exterior. There is no interior wall surface here, simply exposed 2x4s. There are lots of windows all around.

We found the beds to be clean and comfortable and the appliances to be in working condition. The refrigerator, clothes washer, and dryer are quite new. The water had good pressure and the shower was hot. Tom has a new toilet and vanity in the bathroom.

The red sectional sofa shown in Tom’s photos is in terrible condition. The vinyl is not only worn but is completely gone in some spots. It needs to be replaced or the photo of the sectional when it was new should be updated. And while he is at it, Tom should replace the fabric lawn furniture outside on the patio. The furniture is badly torn and presents a bad impression as guests drive up to the house.

The kitchen is as dated as the photo of the kitchen suggests. The counters are primitive, the cabinets worse. And we found the lower cabinets to be padlocked closed. But there was an assortment of pots and pans on an upper shelf available for our use. And we found salt, cooking oil, and filters for the coffee maker. There is also a toaster and microwave available. The kitchen table is a plastic folding table with the surface broken on one side.

Prospective guests will be interested that I was asked to (and did) sign a contract before renting the house. The contract is pretty general except for part 6. on page 1. I quote, “...Renter agrees not to publish...any disparaging reviews of the premises on the internet...(or) it is agreed Renter has violated this contract and shall be liable for liquidated damages in the amount of $500.00 to be charged to Renter’s credit card...” I can only hope that this has not had any effect on previous reviews. Tom, I request that you eliminate this part of your contract in the future.