Mountain Air Cottage is away from all the worries of the world and invites you recharge and relax. There is no cell reception or internet access at the cabin, which helped my husband and me spend quality time together. One thing we'd change is that it would be nice to have a landline in case of emergencies.
The cabin is hidden in a wooded mountain area among dozens of Christmas tree farms. It's at the very end of a gravel road, but full-time resident neighbors are not too far away if you need anything. The owner does not live nearby, but he communicated thoroughly and professionally through HomeAway. A sweet couple named Paul and Betty take care of the rental cottage, and they came to check on us when we arrived. They had even left a bouquet of flowers for us.
The house is clean and cozy, but it is several decades old, so expect a musty smell and old timey decor. It reminds me very much of my great grandmother's house. The cottage is advertised to sleep 6, and we found the king bed and full bed to be very comfortable. The people who slept on the couch and futon were less comfortable and had trouble sleeping, so we would suggest updating the living room furniture.
We woke up on our second morning to find that a mouse had been nibbling at our food, but we found an old trap and caught the mouse within hours. We don't advise leaving food out on the counter.
The cottage is very pet friendly, and the owner generously waived 3 days of the pet fee for us to bring our dog for 5 nights. One important thing to note is that people who are afraid of large dogs may have trouble staying at this cabin. Two houses down the road, there are at least 3 boxer dogs who chase your car while barking and biting at the tires. One dog even took a bite out of our car's mud flap! The scary dogs never followed us all the way to the cottage, but it was very stressful driving past their yard each day. We almost accidentally hit them several times when they jumped in front of us. When my husband asked the caretaker about the dogs, Paul said the dog owner refuses to keep his dogs put away.
There are so many wonderful places to visit around this cottage, and we loved how close it was to Grayson Highlands State Park, which we visited 3 out of our 5 days! The Twin Pinnacles hiking trail is an easy 1.6 mile hike with an extremely gorgeous view!
Overall, we give this cottage 4 stars and encourage fellow adventurers to stay there.