large villa with pool and spa, wide canal, southern exposure

Our first night, an alarm kept souning behind the television, and continued for our one week stay. We contacted the property manager, and he told us to unplug everything behind the built in tv. One of us had to lift up the tv, while the other reached in. There were 100 wires, and we could not reach all of them, plus there dead cockroaches back there. Needless to say, we did not get a good night's rest, nor did our 18 month old.

We rented this place because it had a heated pool, and our family of three could enjoy swim lessons and hanging out by the pool. Unfortunately, the pool heater was broken, and the owner did not bother fixing it until our fourth day(the owner knew it was broken before we arrived). It took the remaining three days of our vacation to warm up, and we only spent a total of 25 minutes in it.

We also could not spend time at the pool, because the owner PAINTED THE POOL DECK WITH OIL BASED PAINT!!! My daughter slipped and fell a dozen times in the first two days, so we called it quits for hanging out at the pool. If you are a senior, or have small children, do not rent this place. Or rent it, and sue them when you fall and break a hip.

My husband and I had ZERO PRIVACY, because the owner lied to us about having a crib. I specifically asked before we rented the house if it was a crib, or a pack n play. He said it was a crib, but it was a pack n play. Our daughter is too tall for a pack n play, so we had to keep her in our bedroom....

The only highlight was the hot tub, which was empty upon our arrival, so we could not use it the first day. The property manager told us to fill it up, turn on the breaker, and let it heat up...like I want to do chores on vacation.

This is not a child friendly home. All we did the entire time was try to stop our child from knocking down the hideous artwork, and tacky display cases of junk.

The owner did not respond half the times I reached out. They have zero interest in renting out the boat, which I asked how much, and can we. However, the owner would show up, and park his Hummer, or motorcycle in the drive (unannounced) and take out the boat. This place is a joke, and the owner could care less.

And the TV situation...only one of the rooms had the cable. The other rooms had one or two channels. THE MAIN TV HAD TWO CHANELS! We had to rent movies from Redbox the entire time.

STAY SOMEWHERE ELSE!

We have rented vacation houses in Costa Rica, Mexico, Portugal and various places in Florida. This rental was our worst experience ever.

We chose this house because it is close to restaurants and shopping. Unfortunately, the neighbourhood seems to be in decline. There is a neglected bank-owned house next door and other nearby properties are untidy and unoccupied. The gardens of this house need attention too. The driveway is painted glossy white and is very slippery when wet.

The interior of the house is oddly decorated, but taste is a personal thing. The kitchen is well equipped. The lanai area is pleasant. The waterfront is dominated by the owner's two large boats.

The house is advertised as 3 bed-3 bath but one suite was out of order during our stay. Apparently a previous renter had broken the toilet bowl, which flooded the bedroom carpet making that suite mouldy and uninhabitable.

The telephone did not work anytime during our stay. The ancient TV in the living room worked sometimes. The TV in one bedroom received only 2 Spanish-language channels. The TV in the master bedroom worked ok but who wants to have to go to bed to watch TV? The hot water tap in the kitchen gave only a dribble of water, making washing up a very long chore.

The house manager was apologetic about these problems but said he could not fix them until the owner arrived from Germany the day after we left.

The manager checked the house as we left and said the owner would send us a cheque for our damage deposit, less electricity charges. That arrangement seemed unusual since we had given him cash for the damage deposit and cleaning fee when we arrived but we agreed. We should have insisted on a cash refund.

Yes, you guessed it. On arrival the owner discovered damages the manager had not. He charged us to replace towels he said we soiled and to repaint the white driveway, claiming my boat trailer had left rust stains during the 3 days of rain we had. (Who paints a driveway white!?)

I asked him to reconsider these charges in view of the house problems we tolerated. He refused, saying those problems were unimportant. He boasted about how wealthy he is, with several houses, yachts, a Hummer, a Rolls-Royce, a Mercedes and a Porsche. His final email declared he was "to expensiv" to discuss things further with me.

I recommend you do not rent from this unreasonable owner.

Wir haben den Aufenthalt genossen. Sehr gut eingerichtet mit einer Kombination aus Moderne und einigen Antikdingen. Schöne Atmosphäre und deutsches TV.

Wir haben unseren Urlaub in dieser wunderschönen großen Villa sehr genossen. Sie liegt in einer ruhigen Sackgasse, trotzdem ist es nicht weit zu netten Lokalen (Tipp "Ford's Garage"). Der schöne Pool wird von einem prächtigen Garten (Palmen mit Kokosnüssen) umrahmt und der Steg mit dem eigenen Boot (wir hatten die "Four Wins") liegt an einem breiten Kanal von dem es sehr schnell in den River geht. Mit etwas Glück kann man sogar die Delphine vom eigenen Steg beobachten. Der Eigentümer kommuniziert prompt, ist sehr freundlich und kulant. Die Betreuung durch Larisa und Enrico war sehr herzlich und hilfreich. Vielen Dank nochmal!