Forested Pentwater Vacation Rental - Walk to Beach

Amazing!!!!!

3rd year in a row...says it all!! Hosts are friendly and responsive. The cottage is just as advertised. Beatiful scenic get away. Looking forward to next year already.

Part of me wants to keep this place a secret, so I can go every year. We had a magical vacation. Didn't wear shoes for 7 days, long beach walks, enjoyed swimming and fires at night in the house. Had a few minor issues which the hosts fixed. The only thing I would ask is to oay a bit more attention to cleaning the house and the decks. Otherwise everything was excellent.

This home has a lodge retreat type of feel. It is riddled with unique and eclectic artwork throughout that has been made by children, professionals, and every level between. Every time you pass an area in the house you will notice something new. It is evident the home has been well loved by the family that built it and I imagine they have many precious memories of their time spent together there. Things we loved: -There have been many cozy seating places set up all throughout the house and on the porches. I really appreciate all the energy that was put into laying out the furniture. -Pretty much anything you need is here: toys, baby gate, beach toys, books, cds, dvds, games, everything for cooking, a million spices, towels, sheets, laundry detergent, and so on. It is a well loved and lived in house so it is well stocked. -The guest contact, Tom, was very quick to respond, was kind, helpful, and very friendly. He texts as well which made life easier since t-mobile doesn't really have reception here. -You are directly across from Lake Michigan. You can walk and don't have to drive anywhere for beach access. -The beds were really comfortable and we all slept well. The bedrooms are really cozy and lovely. -Check-in was a breeze since it is a self check-in process. -The screened in porch was delightful. It was wonderful to have a place to enjoy that was comfortable, felt like outside, but kept us safe from bugs. -The home layout itself is nice. The loft bedroom has been set up with privacy and my little niece thought it was the best room in the house. -It has a good set up for a baby. My one year old son was able to get around and enjoy himself without getting into too many things. (Obviously watch the stairs and wood burning stove if you use it.) -It is a short drive from downtown Pentwater and not far at all from Ludington and Silverlake. We enjoyed the Ludington State Park and visiting Mac Woods dune buggy rides in Silverlake. Opportunities for Improvement: -There are 46 stairs to climb in order to go from the driveway to the house. We were shocked. We knew that stairs were required for entry but had no idea it was to this extent. All of the luggage, food, and trip essentials have to be lugged up the stairs. My mom has MS and has a hard time with stairs and I am coming off knee injuries so the unexpected stairs really hindered our ability for complete freedom to come and go. This should be made very clear in the listing. -Cleanliness was not up to my standard. The house was tidy and the most obvious stuff was clean. However, there is a lot of dust everywhere, especially on all of the windowsills and artwork. The decks and patio furniture had a lot of leaves on them and should have been swept prior to arrival. I can understand if leaves had just dropped because of a storm but the upper deck was full of fall leaves and spiderwebs - not exactly the cozy coffee corner I was expecting. The gas grill was absolutely disgusting and has definitely not been cleaned this season. It needs to have elements replaced and repaired. The ignition switch does not work and I nearly blew myself up and (literally) nearly set myself on fire. The oven light does not work (no big deal). We paid a hefty cleaning fee so we expect the cleaning crew to notice the details in cleaning. -You have to put the sheets on the bed yourself. Although this doesn't seem like a big deal, when you have a long day of travel, have to haul things up 46 stairs, make dinner, and unpack - putting sheets on 4 beds begins to feel like a big deal. -The listing boasts a pull out bed on the screened in porch. There is not a pull out bed there so that is straight up untrue. There is a sectional couch which could sleep 2 people but we all know a couch is not the same level of comfort as a bed. The couch has a bit of a mildewy smell from being semi outdoors in a humid environment. The bathroom exhaust fan blows directly into the couch. Combining these things, it is not a great place to sleep when you are paying prime rates. -There were a lot of big black ants. I imagine it is due to all of the wood as they seemed to be carpenter ants. Although I did not find this to be a big deal my husband hates bugs and it really put him on edge. By the end of the trip we found ants in the beds (a few here and there) which creeped grandma out pretty badly. -There are trees blocking the view. This house would have a million dollar view of Lake Michigan so it is baffling why the trees haven't been cut back so the view can be enjoyed. -The beach in front of the house has not been kept up and it severely needs to be raked to be enjoyed. (We did not find a rake.) -There is no air conditioning. This in itself wasn't a big deal for us because it wasn't too hot outside while we were there. There are big overhead fans in the great room that could help cool but those weren't working (hopefully that issue is fixed now as Tom immediately set up for an electrician to come out). -We were plagued by biting black flies. Swarms of them descended upon us when we were outside. They were immune to bug spray even with deet! Their bites hurt!! It got to where we couldn't sit outside, go to the beach in front of the house, and getting in the car was a nightmare because the swarms would come into the car! I wouldn't say this was the fault of the homeowner, but perhaps some spray or landscaping modification could help? (I really don't know but it definitely negatively affected our stay.) Overall, it feels like we are staying in a friend's family's lake house. This wouldn't be a big deal and would be nice if we hadn't paid an exorbitant amount of money to rent this home. For the amount we paid we are disappointed and we do not plan to return.