This property was perfect for three generations of my family to gather for Christmas this year. The kids (aged 3-13) loved the bunk room and we all loved the proximity to town and ocean front location.
Check in was easy (and contactless, for those concerned about COVID), the home was very clean upon arrival, and we were given a few rolls of toilet paper to hold us over before we went grocery shopping for our stay (check the cabinets before heading to the store--you might find a few kitchen staples).
The house itself was incredibly nice, though not perfect. The kitchen was well stocked with pots, pans, dishes and utensils. The main floor living space was open and had plenty of seating (not all super comfortable, but decent enough). We loved the number of bedrooms (one for each adult/set of parents). All bedrooms had Roku TVs (make sure you have some kind of streaming service--there is no live TV), three had a dedicated bathroom (two with tubs, one with a shower only). The deck had a ton of seating which allowed us to enjoy sunrises and sunsets (my favorite place for this was from the porch swing on the lower deck).
Things to note that might help your expectations:
- the bunk room is connected to the garage, and the door was easily unlocked by curious little hands. Our kids were very responsible, but I'd recommend to the property owner to add a deadbolt for security and piece of mind for parents.
- the gas ran out of the grill during our stay. Easy fix, but I'd recommend future vacationers to check before making plans to use
- there is no common bathroom or powder room on the main floor. We ended up managing just fine without, but it did mean some heavier foot traffic through bedrooms.
- the chandelier is beautiful, but too large for the table. We all kept bumping our heads getting up from the middle seats.
Other highlights from our stay:
Adventuring was easy from this location. The beach offered endless amount of fun on sunny days, and we used the garage on rainy days to give the kids room to run/scooter around. The ladies made a shopping trip to the cute Swansboro shops one afternoon (about 10-15min drive), and we also rented a boat to explore the sound one day with all the kids (highly recommend sharktooth and bear islands for seashell/conch and sharktooth finding).