Spacious detached villa near beach with private pool, nice view and cool breeze

Dear Eric and Marjolein,

Just wanted to let you know how much we enjoyed staying at your rental house during our holiday. It was so nice to open up the place in the morning and experience the warm breeze and fresh air, two things we miss most during our long, cold winters here in Pennsylvania. The amenities were just as you advertised and the place quite spacious and comfortable for a family of five.

You were so kind to pick us up in the middle of the night after our delayed travel after just arriving in Curacao yourselves. We overheard other travelers at the airport talking about their frustration with getting in late and having to make alternate ground transportation arrangements. You made it easy for us. Though driving around the island was challenging, since most roads were not marked on our map, we were able to find our way fairly well after some trial and error. Most of our time was spent at beaches in the Westpundt area where we had some fantastic snorkeling experiences; however, we did go into the city one evening. My thought was that the cruise ship visitors miss out on what the island is really like by staying so close to port.

Unfortunately our holiday had to end too soon; however, our trip home was more as planned. The only setback was that our eldest child got very sick while in Miami so his trip home was less than pleasant. This was our first experience using the VRBO website and it turned out to be a positive one for us. We would highly recommend your place to other potential renters.

It was a pleasure to meet you both as well as Inke, who was very helpful. Best wishes for the upcoming birth of your first child. They bring such joy, and frustration at times, but change your life forever.

Kind regards,

Tom and Linda and family

The house is exactly as pictured, and is lovely. It was difficult to find, even with detailed directions (which probably should be rewritten since street signs are almost nonexistent). The neighborhood consists of new houses, houses being constructed, and empty lots, so visually it is mixed. There are dogs EVERYWHERE, stray and domestic, and they bark constantly. Owners of these dogs do not seem concerned. A rental car is a must since nothing is in walking distance. It takes about 20-30 minutes to reach downtown Punda, longer during rush hour.

Positive aspects of the house include the spaciousness, open floor plan, front and back deck areas, private pool, security and automatic gated driveway. We found the front deck next to the pool to be particularly nice. The bedrooms were spacious and a/c worked well. The kitchen had most necessary appliances and utensils so cooking was easy (a missing blender was soon replaced by the helpful caretaker).

For negative aspects, we noticed the floor was dirty upon arrival, because after using the pool (with slightly damp feet) the living room quickly turned muddy. We mopped the floor ourselves and resolved the issue. Also, we were surprised at how many flies came in the villa, and since there is no a/c in the main living space, you need to open all doors and windows to stay cool. This also brought in flies. At one point, we woke to more than 50 flies on our towels and kitchen counters. I'm not sure how this could be resolved, and it might simply be idiosyncratic to Curacao living, but be prepared. The pool was quite chilly so swims were brief and usually only when the sun was out. The couch had stains and was uncomfortable to sit on.

The last negative about our experience was the electric usage. You are given an allotment for your stay, based on number of days and number of bedrooms. We were told by the caretaker at check-in that if you only use a/c at night, and only do a couple loads of laundry, you won't exceed the allotment. Well, we did just that, and exceeded the allotment by 35 USD. This was all the more surprising since one person in one bedroom left early, so we used even less a/c as a result. The allotment of electricity seemed insufficient if you plan to sleep in comfort, plus you are also paying for the automatic pool and landscape lights, appliances, etc. We weren't energy hogs by any means, and would rather not obsess about electric usage when vacationing, yet we felt we had to do so here.

Upon arrival we were struck by the sheer size and beauty of this property and although there were only two of us, this home can easily accomodate 6 people.
Customer service was excellent, from dealing with the owner via email to the great service provided by the manager.
Guest should realize that a car is a necessity here, as downtown Willemstad is a little ways away. When we arrived our rental was waiting for us and served us beautifully during our 14 days stay.
There are numerous good restauranats around, espescially in the Jan Thiel neighbourhood, which is only 5 min. away. We also liked Il Forno pizzeria, just 2 min. up the road. (take-out available).
The small, unheated pool, attached to the front of the house, was too cool for my liking, but that could have been a result from the rather "cool" and wet weather that had plagued the island before we arrived.
In general we loved the weather on Curacao; the days and nights are almost equaly warm and therefore the very silent air conditioning in the bedrooms was a relief.