COME ENJOY 'PURA VIDA' IN THE BAHAMAS

I’ll start by noting to anyone reading that I only ever write reviews if I have had a great experience or a horrible one- I like to tell others when I feel strongly, and feel that if it was a mediocre experience, a review is just not worth my time. In this particular case, we had a wonderful experience with Pura Vida. I have been to the Abacos 7 times but have always stayed on Elbow- a group of us decided that we would try Guana out this year. I found Pura Vida while looking online and decided we’d give the house a shot for a couple of reasons: it looked great, it was located in the middle of the island, and was inexpensive compared to other homes exactly like it. (Regarding the location I mentioned- Pura Vida was perfect for us because it was right in between Baker’s Bay where we liked to have breakfast and other bars like Nippers where we liked to go at night, which was nice because no trip for food or other items was a ‘trek’ from one end of the island to the other.) When we arrived, the house was in great shape and was perfect for a group like ours (or a family)- 4 nice bedrooms, an open common area and kitchen, a game room (poker for our group) upstairs with views of the ocean, and a downstairs room with 2 additional couches and another TV. Probably the most important amenities to our group were the two porches on both sides of the house with tables and seating, which came in handy when we wanted to grill out at night. One of the porches has a spectacular view of the sea facing towards Marsh Harbour that we liked to have drinks to when we got back from a day on the boat. Renting from Jeremy (the owner) was about as simple as renting anything gets. He was very responsive to any communication and he accepts major credit cards and did not charge me an additional fee for using one over using a check. (Again, I have been here a lot, there are more times than I can count that they either do not accept credit cards or have two prices, one for sending them a check and a higher one if you want to use a credit card.) Overall, the house was in pristine condition and was exactly what we wanted and needed. This is definitely a winner for the houses I have stayed in. On a quality to price ranking, it is also probably one of the top houses throughout the islands. I have gotten houses with a lot less space for the same price, and houses exactly like Pura Vida for a much higher price. You really do get your ‘bang for your buck’ with this house.