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Review 2525: Estancia del Mar, Cottage

www.estanciadelmar.com

Not Recommended
Review by JHaran from MA

1bed/1bath cottage near Pescadero, California

When

November 2006, 3 nights

Location

This rental is a couple of hundred feet off coastal route 1 in Pescadero CA. It is a rural area. It was not a private location, as four other units were actually in the same building, and you could hear people through the walls.

Nearby Amenities

You can't conveniently walk to anything from this place. I did not look for grocery stores. Nearest small restaurant was a couple of miles away. No easy way to get to the beach without driving.

The House/Apartment

I chose this rental because the website represented it as "cottages" - I expected there to be distinct cottages, near the ocean. In fact all the units were in one building, lined up in a row, like a motel arrangement. The "room" (not a cottage) had dirty windows that could not be opened. We had to leave the door open at night for air. The room did not have a comfortable sitting area for reading or hanging out. The kitchen had no staples other than salt and pepper.

Garden

The grounds were dismal and depressing - lawn was pockmarked and ugly, with lots of filthy dog toys left laying around; lawn chairs unusable due to bird droppings. There were horses, cats and dogs on the property, and there was a list of instructions in the room that basically warned guests not to interact with the animals. The outside had no privacy at all. No pool.

Furnishings/Cleanliness/Living Areas

Furniture was OK but it was not comfortable. Place was clean but windows were not. Definitely not enough chairs. No ventilation other than leaving doors open!

Bedrooms/Bathrooms

Beds and bath were OK, if you could ignore the strange decor (bathroom was painted a shocking bright turquoise, and main room was decorated oddly with photos of naval installations, etc.).

Kitchen

Kitchen was functional and clean. Utensils were skimpy. No dishwasher. No staples for a place that had no obvious source of groceries (i.e., remote). I would have stocked it with spices, ketchup/mustard, eggs, coffee creamer in fridge, and a nice bottle of local wine.

Problems or Bonuses

We showed up a little before check in time and were greeted in a rather hostile manner, informed that we were too early and should come back. Sort of set the tone for the entire stay. Not a friendly place.

Agency and Representatives (and price)

The owner was only there the day we arrived. There were other people around who appeared to be ranch hands. The website did not accurately reflect the quality and reality of this place. If we had realized all the units were in one building we would never have chosen this place.

Note from SlowTrav: The website states our "six connected cottages." Whether it stated this at the time the reviewer booked, we do not know.

Do you recommend this vacation rental to others?

I would not stay here again nor would I recommend it to others. The only people who would be happy here are couples in the initial stages of romance who are so into each other than nothing else matters.

Things to do in this area

It is near Ano Nuevo State Park, which has sea lions, and Big Basin State Park. Nice restaurant nearby - Gazos Grill - simple, great food.

This review is the opinion of a Slow Travel member and not of slowtrav.com.

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