Great home!

We thoroughly enjoyed staying in this home! It was exactly like the pictures, very clean and comfortable. We were traveling with two children, and were happy to have some space to spread out. Much better than a hotel room! Working with Joie was a pleasure.

This was the first time my husband and I rented a vacation home, and we would do it again. We were here for five months on sabbatical leave from my college, and this house became our home. I spent most of my time here writing and otherwise working from home. There were two things about the house that were especially useful in this regard: internet access is speedy and very reliable, and the view of the sky and mountains out the back was never anything short of magnificent - very inspiring.

The description of the house was accurate in terms of location, layout, amenities, and so on - except that it's hard to convey how breathtaking the main living space is! When we first saw it, we couldn't believe how lucky we were to find this house!

The owners were simply great. Over 5 months we interacted numerous times, and they were exceptionally considerate, timely in their responses, and good both at managing details and keeping track of big-picture matters.

I would recommend this property to a friend - especially if we could come stay with them!

What activities, attractions, and restaurants did we like? Where to start? I guess the best place to start is to mention that this house is about 20 minutes' drive to anywhere in Albuquerque.

If you're going to the grocery store (our favorite was the Albertson's at the corner of Montano and Coors), it's 15 minutes.

If you're going to trailheads on the west or south sides of the Sandias, it's about 20 minutes. If it's not rush hour you can get to the lower Tram on the west side of the Sandias or Tree Spring Trail head near Sandia Crest on the east side in about 25 minutes. Otherwise it's about 35 minutes.

The world's best Starbucks is 20 minutes from the house, just west of Carlisle on Central. It has fantastic views of the mountains, and the people watching in the Nob Hill district is great. UNM is 3/4 mile west of that on Central; it has beautiful architecture, lots of trees, and very accessible libraries.

For restaurants, Gardunios never fails to please. The food is New Mexican (lots of addictive green chile), but you can get Mexican standards too, like fajitas - which aren't spicy. Get a margarita and table-side guacamole and you're set.

And don't miss hiking in Riconanda Canyon - 10 minutes away on Unser. It's a 2.5 mile, fairly flat hike through part of Petroglyphs National Monument. Go when it's not hot.

Fabulous house, fabulous owners, great city!! Rent here.

What a wonderful home! Great layout, beautiful view of the city lights and the Sandias, and easy access to the freeway to quickly go to anywhere in Albuquerque! In addition to a nice vacation, we used the space as a sabbatical home. I worked on-site at the Air Force Research Lab, and had several working meetings at Sandia National Lab. The freeway provided an easy and pleasant drive to the base. Additionally, aminities such as free internet, cable tv, stereo, etc made this a wonderful place to relax. Finally, being located near the west mesa, there are beautiful walks right out the front door. Just put on your shoes and enjoy the southwest!!

We wanted to let you know we all LOVED your house. For me the most perfect thing was the location! My family was not familiar with the west side of town, but when they arrived from Ruidoso - it was perfect. My daughter was staying downtown (with the bowlers) and it was only a 10 minute ride to visit them or pick them up then 15 minutes to the Zoo, Jackalope, Old Town, Aquariam & the Botanical Garden. I can go on and on, but you already know you have a great location. Also we loved being able to get to & from the airport in less than 1/2 hour, and up to Santa Fe (and the Flea Market) in an hour.
We loved watching the balloon ascensions in the mornings and looking over the city lights at night !!
Thank you for opening your home to us. You were also VERY easy to work with - great response time and very informative.
Thanks again."

We came to Albuquerque home in June 2008 for the nationals bowling tournament. We wanted a place our team of six could stay. The location was perfect...close to everything we needed. It was very comfortable, afforable, spacious, and immaculately clean. Would recommend to anyone coming to Albuquerque. Received quick responses from owner on inquires. These inquires were for information only no problems at all with house, except had to leave.

Wow, what a nice place!

The art work on the walls (some by Joie-owner) and cleanliness create an immediate sense of comfort and ease

It is furnished tastefully and located in a very quiet and friendly neighborhood
there are lots of places to run and bike or just walk your dog

it is located near major roads and freeways but you would never know it (quiet), great view of Albuquerque from up high on the west mesa

highly recommend, Joie(owner) and local guy (Brian) are wonderful to work with, priced well. no complaints

thanks for the nice stay

Chuck and Mary (June 2008)

Thank you very much for helping us have a wonderful spring break trip to New Mexico. Your house made a wonderful base for our trips around the area. All of the phamplets made finding things to do much easier. Your house was a great place to relax after a wild day of touring/walking/driving/experiencing, etc.
The pictures in your Homeaway.com page do not do justice to your lovely home. It is much larger and roomier than the pictures would suggest. Had we known how large your house was, we would not have looked at any other places in Albuquerque. Also, the location seemed at first to be a bit out of the way, but it was actually quite strategically located for touring the area.
Also, I forgot to mention that we really liked the colors you chose for the house. When we visit Albuquerque again, we will look to rent your place again.

My husband, I and our 4 children (under the age of 6) just spent a week in this home. It was clean, looked just like the pictures showed, and comfortable (even for our big family!) The view is breathtaking! I would suggest this home for anyone, especially for a family vacation with little ones!