The good:
Check in was easy, however it is somewhat inconvenient to check in at the property manager office then go to beach house. Ebbtide beach house is comfortable and cozy, the kitchen is very well supplied with everything you need except the food. Full range of linen is supplied as well as TVs and internet. Private walkway right to the dunes is nice. Central location is great for things to see and do (i.e Aquarium, State Park, Southport Ferry, Battleship North Carolina). The staff and maintenance folks were fast in there response and friendly.
The not so good:
Unfortunately there has been dredging going on so crab and shell hunting was pretty much a non starter.
There were however, several issues that could stand to be addressed. The sliding door latch was broken and required use of a piece of wood to secure the door. All of the stools at the kitchen counter were ripped and taped. All outside chairs were damaged in some form. The screen on the porch was pushed out in places. The gate on the bottom of the back outside stairway had broken hinges. The shower under the house was very hot water only and the hose cold water was a piddle trickle at best.. The above items were all relatively small issues, but should be addressed, they result in a rundown appearance overall. Two of my bigger concerns with this house were the stepdown out of the sliding door onto the porch and the back door of the porch, it opens out immediately onto the steps which is inconvenient and coming from the beach up the stairs is somewhat dangerous, our seven year old nearly fell backwards down the stairs twice while opening the door.
Restaurants in the Kure Beach area were ok, we ate at Mackerel Jacks (flounder was mushy) and Havanas (mushy fish, slimy cole slaw and indifferent server), neither place I would eat at again,. Finally we went to Southport for a restaurant and the Provision Company was 5 star.
Parking in Kure Beach is a pain to put it mildly. Mostly pay to park and several places have vehicle length restrictions which do not accomodate a full size crew cab pickup.