So, this was both a good and disappointing stay. And I don’t say that lightly, as I’m cognisant that this is someone’s business and I don’t want to damage their reputation unnecessarily. But the number of many issues with the place made it feel like the owners actively don’t like their guests, so here goes.
First, the good stuff. The location is lovely and the house is nice and big. The upstairs bedroom has a comfy bed. The kitchen was well stocked with plates, pots, pans etc. The view is lovely. It was a joy to be away in such a beautiful location, and we had a great time.
Now, the bad. And I should preface this by saying that we paid absolute peak rates over Christmas. Perhaps if the price had been the standard rate advertised, I wouldn’t be so bothered by this stuff. But it wasn’t, so here we are. (I’m taking $4,500 for 7 nights, for context).
The house itself is nice but rundown, and in need of some TLC and maintenance. Some examples include:
- Random holes in the walls.
- Very stained carpets, with random burn marks.
- The window above the staircase has been shattered.
- Light bulbs out.
- The fans in the bathrooms don’t turn on and off with the switches - rather they have a mind of their own and go on and off by themselves.
- There were dead ants falling from one of the bathroom light fixtures. It seems there is an ant problem up there, and someone has just sprayed poison into it.
- The external deck area and furniture has suffered some pretty heavy bird damage. Big chunks of wood missing, dirty, dusty furniture etc.
- The decor generally is tired and in need of an update.
- For somewhere that’s advertised as kid friendly, it’s not great for young kids. No high chair, no cot, stairs without a handrail etc.
In terms of amenities, the following really let’s the place down:
- Speakers that come with an iPod dock. Yes, THOSE iPods with the fat chargers that have not been in existence for over 15 years. - Completely useless and unusable.
- The TV wasn’t working when we arrived. The instructions were completely out of date, and referred to a completely different brand of TV. (We ended up speaking to the management company and they very promptly sent the cable guy out that day to fix it - Xmas Eve - which was so lovely as it meant the kids could watch the carols by candlelight).
- The TV situation generally was stupid. 4 different remotes, all for basic free to air. All so old that they are held together with rubber bands. Just get wifi and set up a smart TV!
- No wifi. Now, I appreciate this is clear from the listing. But I wrongly assumed that there would be mobile reception, which I could tether to. Turns out - no mobile reception for Vodafone. So I did a dash to Apollo Bay and bought a Telstra dongle for about $150. I really don’t understand why wifi doesn’t come with the place, when the cost is so marginal, and when it would be well known that mobile reception out here is patchy.
- There is a tv downstairs. It does not have any reception. The instructions guide said something like “this tv has a DVD player connected so it’s great for the kids”. However….there are no dvds here. And nowhere in coo-ee that sells or rents DVD’s. So again, pretty useless.
Anyway. We still had a nice holiday, and the management company went out of their way to help us out, which was great. And with just some proper maintenance and investment by the owner, it would be an absolute stellar place to stay.