Not the best place for small children
Review Submitted: July 13, 2009
Date of Stay: June 2009
My husband and I rented this condo for 2 weeks in June 2009. My daughter and her 11 month old son were with us.
Despite the fact that the owners bring their grandchildren here the balcony railings are not safe for small children. Yes, you have to watch small chidren at all times but a small child could easily slip between the outside railings. You cannot let go of your child on the balcony. Some of the tiles on the balcony were torn up and stacked by the door during our stay. The TV stand in the living room is not stable. The stroller was broken and the porta crib smelled of urine; the owners allowed us to buy a new stroller and porta crib and reimbursed us. There are no screen doors on the living room sliding doors. The owners suggested moving one of the screens from upstairs to downstairs.
The condo is clean and large with comfortable furniture and very comfortable beds. The decor is dated with faded pictures and fake flowers. I didn't find any books on fish, animals, plants or history of the keys at the condo. The TV is old and the sound is not very good on it. I think there was one James Taylor CD. The pool is large--no shade.
I would not recommend this property for families with small children.
We were surprised that the water is murky in the Keys. Starfish snorkel trip was okay except the lady running it smoked and threw her cigarette butts in the ocean. We liked the Cracked conch cafe, No Name Pub and Mangrove Mamas. The Mexican food place was not that good.
Our picks for best beach was Fort Taylor in Key West. Our best pier was Robbies in Islamorada. Best dessert, chocolate covered key lime pie on a stick. Best snorkel trip was off Bahia Honda. Biggest baraccudas ever; under Sombrero lighthouse; and a bull shark that followed me. They don't tell you about the bull sharks.
Owner's Response: To paraphrase a wise individual, you can please most of the people most of the time, but not all of the people all of the time. Diamond necklace's name says something about her expectations! She needs a 5 star resort with concierge service so that she can have fresh flowers in her room daily. Without someone living there 52 weeks a year, silk and artificial flowers are the best we can provide for a dash of color.
The portacrib and stroller were in good condition when we were last there in May. Sorry if they were abused after that. What more could we do than say go buy new ones and we will reimburse you, which we did!
We have about 30 novels in the unit and Chapman's definitive book on seamanship. The local library, has plenty of books on the fish, animals & plants of the Keys. There were a couple dozen CDs including one by James Taylor. There's also a Welcome Book with lots of info on the Keys.
Most folks go to the pool for the sun. When diamond necklace bought the new stroller that we paid for, it should have had a cover to protect their child from the sun at the pool.
In the last few years, the complex spent almost half million dollars on exterior renovations. There is still some tile replacement work to be done, which should be finished during the summer of 09. The living room TV was new in 2002, but with the tile floors and vertical blinds, the room has a bit of an echo.
Our 6 grandchildren, ages 6 and under, have all been at the condo and safe, from as young as 3 months. Kids and parents all had a great time. Yes, you have to watch them. The railings were code when installed, but you can't let small children play there or anywhere else in the world unattended.
We usually live with the A/C on when in the Keys, so have seen no need for screens. Diamond necklace is the only guest to find this a problem in the 7 years we have been renting. (We will add one.) But then, she did find the water in the Keys murky too! Yes, after a storm, it takes a few days for things to settle, but we have also had water visibility over 80 ft.depending on the weather (and unfortunately, we can't control that!)
We don't promise perfect but most of our guests have had very favorable comments. See the other reviews. We have had numerous repeat visitors and several who sent their friends.
Give us a try! Our place is an excellent value at the price. If you require super deluxe be prepared to pay $3000 or more per week and select another spot!!
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Helpful votes: 3/4
