We will never book another VRBO trip without having more thorough details of a property and a lot more correspondence from the property owner. If we hadn’t checked in with the owner about how to gain access to the property, we would have shown up without bed linens and towels, which appeared to be optional on the VRBO description but were actually not included at all.
There were a lot of things that were broken or just barely “intact.” Most notably, the shower only technically works. The water pressure is very low, and the control/handle is either broken or installed incorrectly, making it impossible to control the temperature. Window shades were just barely anchored to the walls, curtain rod hangers were broken, and light bulbs were burned out, missing, or uncovered. In general, what décor and fixtures there are in the house are in need of some attention.
Our trip was in mid-October, and the house was very cold when we arrived. This was in part because the electric baseboard heaters were completely off, and in part because the air conditioning unit in the window was still in place and there were ¼-inch-wide open gaps on either side of the unit. It took several hours for the house to heat up, but only in those rooms where there are heaters. We had to use duct tape to seal the edges of the window.
Please be aware that you will get the bare minimum of amenities if you stay at this property: on the VRBO description “cable/satellite” really means “10 local channels,” and that is all. Also, there are no media players (VCR/DVD). I know vacations aren’t supposed to hinge on watching television, but if you plan to buy a bottle of local wine and watch a movie after dinner, or if you like to watch CNN or FoxNews before you head out for the day, you won’t be able to.
One last observation: If you (as a renter) are 6-feet tall or taller, you will have to make some adjustments when you sleep in the double bed or use the shower. I think this property would be a bit challenging for parties of 4 or more.
As I’ve already mentioned, we should have asked a lot more questions before we booked this property: we’re somewhat accustomed to property owners leaving instructions about the workings of the house or even who to call in case of emergencies/questions. This property had none of that. This, combined with a very minimally appointed property with upkeep deficiencies made this a less pleasant trip than it could have been.