Dan's place is beautiful! As with many Airbnb's, there are pros and cons. We rented the place for my wedding which had about 30 guests, and 8 people actually stayed in the house. Here is what we learned from our experience:
The good-
- the place really is heavenly. The view is unbeatable, and every inch of the property is well cared for. You could really tell that dan and his wife take pride in their home.
- there are many fruit trees and chickens on the property, and dan's wife brought us fresh eggs from the chickens and fresh fruit from the trees. We ate every bit of it and it was delicious.
- (though this might not apply to everyone) the place was the perfect wedding venue for us. It was probably better suited for about 20 people, but it worked well for us actually. We had the ceremony in the zen garden, and the reception in the carport area (which is also ridiculously beautiful.)
The bad-
- there are LOTS of rules, many of which we didn't know about when we booked the place. The most significant one for us was that guests who are not staying at the house were not allowed in the pool or the pool AREA, which is the most obvious place on the property to hang out. I understand why this is a rule, I just wish it would have been made clear before we booked the property. There were also less inconvenient rules (but rules none the less) such as which towels to use for the beach, the pool, or the bathroom. There were 3 PAGES of rules upon check in.
- the house is split in half, with dan and his wife living in half and the other half is rented out. His patio also leads to the pool area, as do his windows. So, with all the rules (and being scolded a few times), we really felt like we were walking on egg shells during our stay.
- there was a rodent of sorts living between the walls while we were there. This didn't necessarily bother me, but something to note.
- unlike most Airbnb's I've stayed in, this kitchen was not equipped with standard cooking foods, i.e salt and pepper or cooking oil. It was more like a hotel but with lots of rules.
Other things to note-
- though I was the one to book the property, I spoke to dan only twice. He worked with my dad instead of me.
- dan did give my parents some good advice on where to eat, local attractions, etc.