Beautiful Retreat

We had a wonderful time at Aloan By The Sea. The beach home was beautifully decorated. I was impressed with how well it was equipped, too. The grandchildren loved the bunk room.
The weather wasn't the best because of a tropical disturbance, but we so enjoyed sitting on the porch and watching the wind and rain.
We've been going to the Panhandle for more than 20 yrs. and Aloan By The Sea is one of the better places we've stayed.

Alone by the Sea was way beyond expectations. It was paradise! The home was beautifully decorated, and lent itself to being warm and inviting. Kitchen was well equipped with everything a cook could want. The screened in dining area was great for meals or for a card game. My favorite was the wrap around porch with the rocking chairs and ceiling fans. It doesn't get much better than sitting on the porch seeing the Gulf, feeling the ocean breezes, and reading a book. The pool was wonderful. For the grandgirls who are 2 and 4, the steps to the pool were perfect for sitting and playing. The property is very well maintained. Definitely would recommend this to other families, in fact, it would be hard for us to go anywhere else! This owner has a darling 2 bedroom, 2 bath cottage also on St. George Island, we are considering renting. Restaurants in Apalachicola such as Veranda's and Seafood Grill were great. The Blue Parrot on St. George served imitation butter for the crablegs. Ruined it! The waitress had a nasty attitude when brought to her attention. BJ's Pizza was very good, as was Harry A's. Overall experience was awesome! Thank you, Lynn and David, we hope to see you in the next year.

Our family of six stayed in the Alone by the Sea house in March 2008 for a week. The house was beautiful and spacious. The kitchen was open with easy access to all appliances and dishes. The living area was fantastic and open, and the screened in porch was perfect for meals or family board game events. Bedrooms were large with good quality mattresses. Our children spent many hours by the pool, and we used the outdoor sinks to wash all of the shells after our beachcombing adventures across the street. The front porch with the rocking chairs allowed for a quiet read, or supervision of the pool. The beach was sandy, and late afternoon pictures captured the light and vacation memories perfectly.

Bike rentals were easy, and the access paths made it safe for a trip down the road for ice cream. We highly recommend kayaking with Journeys of St. George's Island, as well as their fishing/dolphin tour. The staff were wonderful with the children, and made the experience educational as well as incredibly fun. Our dolphin spotting pictures have been used in many school animal reports over the year!!!

The grocery stores were conveniently located, and there were several restaurants in the area that served high quality food for reasonable prices. We drove into Apalachicola and visited the quaint little stores and took a longer drive to the outlets in Sandestin.

We definitely plan to return to the house in the near future. There are not many places left in this part of the world that offer such a quiet retreat, while maintaining the securities of a nearby hospital and pharmacy. Our children had a fantastic time, and frequently talk about our stay in St. George's Island. They remember the house fondly, and my husband and I remember the conversations we had with our children explaining why 'we couldn't live in this house.....that we had our own house in Canada!!!'

It is apparent from the time you enter the house, that the owners have spent many hours choosing furniture and amenities to enhance your vacation experience. Their thoughtfulness was and always will be greatly appreciated. As mentioned previously, an outstanding home in the perfect location. It doesn't get better than this......

What a wonderful property! We absolutely enjoyed our week on St. George Island and at A Loan by the Sea. From our arrival, with the no hassle keyless entry, this rental was easy. The short walk to the beach, which is very important to us with a 2 1/2 and a 5 year old, made it easy enough to get back and forth if we forgot something, or for potty breaks, or to grab lunch...the street was not busy so it was easy to cross. The pool was perfect! Beautifully landscaped, it was a relaxing alternate to the beach. (It was also great having the outdoor shower, made our lives much easier with the kids.) The pool was also very clean, as was the entire property. We were impressed with the state of the entire property when we arrived. Everything was in order, and ready for us to start our vacation right away. The master bedroom was the beautiful haven you hope to find on vacation. The kids had a blast in the bunk room (although I have to admit I wished there were blackout curtains in there so my early risers might have let us sleep in just a bit on vacation), and my sister enjoyed having her pick of the remaining beautiful rooms. The kitchen was very well equipped...we cooked every meal but one lunch at the house, and were never wanting for any equipment we needed. We also loved that there was a screened in porch that we enjoyed some of our meals on. For a few days when the winds were from a certain direction, and there were some biting flies in the evening...but we were still able to enjoy eating outside. My husband spent a lot of time on the porch facing the ocean with his coffee/glass of wine and a book, he said this is the most relaxing vacation he's had in a long time. We enjoyed a couple of trips into Appalachicola, what a neat town to stroll around and enjoy a nice lunch. Since it was less than 20 minutes away, it was quite convenient as well. I really appreciated that this property is pet friendly. Unfortunately, we lost our dog between planning and going on vacation, but we will still look at coming back. Thank you so much for sharing your lovely home, it helped us have an incredible family vacation...we still can't believe it went by so fast. :-)

Just came back from "the island" once again and must say this was the finest house we have stayed in all our years of visiting. Attention to detail in all respects and absolutely the cleanest house we have stayed in.

A big 'thank you' to the owners for making sure all the small things that make a family vacation were in place. We loved the pool, riding the bicycles, and the large patio veranda area....where the breeze always made you feel cool.

Thanks again! We've already booked our two weeks again for next year, and can't wait to get back.