The Retreat on Matthew

We had a great stay at Batehaven. The retreat is much better than the photos. Really clean and well maintained. The kitchen felt fresh and stocked well. Such a good position to go for long beach walks, or walk for your morning coffee. The beds were comfy, lots of clothes storage and the sitting area upstairs super cute. Very handy with a great fenced back yard for the dogs and outdoor chairs for morning coffee. Lovely plant by the front door smells beautiful. Nice and quiet spot. Off street parking good.

A few small things would make this perfect eg there were no wipes or dish cleaning utensils in the kitchen, or no body wash in the shower. Most rentals have this on hand.

The house was well kitted out and had everything from books and games to pegs and washing up liquid. The hosts had frankly thoughts of everything. Communication was clear and helpful and we had a wonderful stay at the retreat. It was quiet, secure for the dog (garden and a dog door too!) Location was so near to the beach and we walked daily to the lookout and along the beach which was wonderful it was so close!

Not much!

The property was sensational, everything that we needed (except for towels and sheets) were there. The facilities were fantastic, close to all facilities and shops. If I could rate it more than 10/10 I would!

Pros: cute cabin - better inside than the photos! - with absolutely everything you could possibly need and fully stocked kitchen (including spice rack, paper towels, cooking oils, tomato sauce, etc). Walking distance to beach, shops, supermarket, bottle-o, playground. Walk to the Catalina Country Club. Fully enclosed backyard and very pet friendly. Neighbours were all fine and no noise.

Cons: both main bedrooms (upstairs) have only half walls so almost NO privacy for people sleeping in those rooms. They are open to each other and the rest of the house. Zero chance of adults/parents having any private time, or even a private conversation away from kids, as all sounds reverberate off the pine ceiling - everyone can hear every sound upstairs and down in all rooms very clearly. This wasn't disclosed in the listing and felt really disappointing as we booked for a week holiday and as parents we need a break, too. Also, no upstairs bathrooms or plumbing means a long trek to the loo in the middle of the night. Overall, this didn't work for our family and would be best suited to one couple, or parents of younger children who could utilise the bunk bed room downstairs.