Fish Fantasy – Sunrise & Sunset Decks, Fully Fenced Side Yard, Walk to Beach

Welcome to Fish Fantasy — it's always a great day to be at the beach!

Fish Fantasy is the little one everybody remembers — 600 square feet sitting high on a quiet dead-end street in Gilchrist, Texas, at the eastern end of the Bolivar Peninsula, with water in both directions: the Gulf off the covered sunrise deck in the morning, and the bay and Intracoastal Waterway off the sunset deck in the evening.

Be clear on this before you book: Fish Fantasy has one bedroom and sleeps four. Guests three and four sleep in the open living space.

Inside is one bright open room — kitchen, dining and living all together, windows on three sides, and green marsh running out to the horizon. The king bedroom has its own glass door onto the sunset deck, so you can carry your coffee out and watch the sun go down without leaving the room. A daybed with a trundle in the main room sleeps two more, and there are room-darkening shades throughout.

The kitchen has granite counters, a full-size electric range, an over-range microwave, a refrigerator, a dishwasher, a blender, a toaster, and both a drip coffee maker and a single-cup pod coffee maker. There is a full bathroom and an apartment-size stackable washer and dryer, plus an iron and a vacuum. For health reasons we do not provide food, condiments or spices, but we do furnish a starter pack of coffee to get you going.

The covered sunrise deck is the reason people come back: a table and four chairs, two loungers, shade all day, and the Gulf out in front of you. It has no stairs off it at all — the only way on or off is through the house door, so a dog or a small child cannot get away from you out there. It was built that way on purpose. The sunset deck off the bedroom looks over the bay, the Intracoastal Waterway and the barge traffic.

Under the house the whole ground level is yours: covered parking for three vehicles, or a vehicle plus a trailer plus another vehicle, a table with four chairs, a charcoal grill, and an outdoor shower with hot and cold water for rinsing the sand off. The side yard is fully fenced on all sides with a latching gate, so you can let the dogs out the door and they cannot get away from you, and there is a swing for the kids.

Adult pets are welcome with prior approval — no pets under a year, house-broken only, up to four. Crabby Cove, our sister house, is right next door on the same street.

— The Walz Family, Bolivar Peninsula Rentals
Fish Fantasy is a small house on a quiet dead-end street, and these rules keep it that way for you and for the neighbors.

WHO STAYS: The guest who books must be 25 or older and must stay for the entire reservation. Only registered guests may stay overnight. If extra family will be in the house within the maximum, just tell us so we can supply towels.

HOW MANY: Fish Fantasy sleeps 4 - a king bedroom, plus a daybed and trundle in the open living room. The number on your reservation governs sleeping and towels.

EVENTS: Any gathering must be approved in advance. With approval, the event maximum at Fish Fantasy is 10 people. The event count and the sleeping count are separate. No prom, graduation, bachelor or bachelorette parties. Noise that disturbs the neighbors ends the stay.

QUIET: Please keep it down after 10 PM and be mindful that the houses out here are close together.

PETS: Adult pets are welcome with prior approval - no pets under a year, and pets must be house-broken. Dogs of any size are welcome. Maximum 4 adult pets. The pet fee is $100 per stay for up to 2 pets, plus $50 per pet for up to 2 more. The side yard is fenced on all sides with a latching gate, so your dog can go out the door and into the yard. Pets stay off all furniture and beds - please bring your own sheets or blankets to cover anything your pet will be on. Clean up after your pets inside and out, and keep them supervised. Undisclosed pets will result in additional fees, and a $150 fee applies if the pet rules are not followed. Trained service animals as defined by the ADA are exempt from the pet fee; emotional support, comfort, and therapy animals are treated the same as pets.

SMOKING: No smoking or vaping inside the house. If you smoke outside, stay well away from doors and windows and put butts in the outdoor trash. Evidence of smoking or vaping inside results in a $300 fee.

GRILLING: No grills on any deck. All grilling is done at ground level in the designated area, where the charcoal grill is.

RVs AND EV CHARGING: No RV may hook up to the house, and no EV may be charged at the house. Either one means additional charges will apply.

CHILDREN AND DECKS: Please supervise children on the stairs and at ground level. The covered sunrise deck has no stairs off it, so nothing can get down from there except back through the house door.

LOCKING UP: The entry door you come in through at check-in is the one with the deadbolt. Please lock it and the windows whenever you leave.

IF SOMETHING BREAKS: Tell us right away through the messaging system on the platform you booked through, so we can get it fixed while you are still here. In any emergency, call 911 first.

BEFORE CHECKOUT: Start a load of towels, run the dishwasher if dishes were used, empty the refrigerator, bag the trash and take it to the outdoor cans, and gather your things. Leave the AC and ceiling fan running, turn off the lights, lock up, and return the key to the top lockbox and re-scramble the code. No other cleaning is required.

We leave out 2 scoops of laundry soap, 2 dryer sheets and 3 dishwasher pods. For a longer stay, plan on bringing more.

Questions? Message us through the platform — we're happy to help.

Remember, it's always a great day to be at the beach!