Rental Advice Needed

[Patrick]

Hello –

My wife and I have been migrating to 30-A for the past 8 summers and are looking for some rental advice.

We have three kids, ages 5, 11, and 13 who love 30-A as much as we do. We really enjoy bike riding and spending time at the beach and pool. We have also enjoyed being gulf front in the past. It is hard to imagine not being gulf front.

In the past, we have stayed at places like Dunes of Seagrove, Monterey Condos and most recently, Rosemary Beach.

Although we loved the conveniences and “resort feel” of Rosemary Beach, we are looking to explore other areas.

So, with that said, we began our search for a 3-4 bedroom rental for the first 2 weeks in August.

Since we always end up spending several evenings in Seaside/Watercolor with the kids, we checked out rentals there through Seaside’s/Watercolor’s site and VRBO. Wow, both Watercolor and Seaside are very proud of their property South of 30-A! If we stayed at either property, we would need to move inland and would be giving up great gulf front views. Not an option for us.

So, we are asking for help. Any ideas of 3-4 bedroom condo/home/resort units that are gulf front near the action of Watercolor and Seaside that won’t break the bank?

Although not close to the Seaside/Watercolor action, what about Watersound? It looks wonderful and the prices are decent for gulf front. Would it be too quite for the kids – not enough activity?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!

Patrick

[josebby]

Hello and thanks for mentioning WaterSound in your post for gulf front rentals! The word seems to be getting out what a great place it is for vacations. While our condo, Bridge Lane, is not suited for children, many do cater to families.

It is a quiet area, meaning you won't find yourself tripping over other vacationers. The beach is past fabulous and there are several pools to use. The puttering park, playground and yacht pond, for sailing mini boats, are all great kid activities. There are lots of areas to explore by bike, too. The cafe is open now for breakfast and lunch and the Dunesider Grill at the Beaches pool will be open for summer lunches. It's a five minute drive to Seaside or Rosemary to be a part of all the action.

Check out the WaterSound rentals and good luck on your search!

[Beach Runner]

Realistically, if you want a nice Gulf-front rental, it will "break the bank." Owners want to make a profit on their investments (unless the just enjoy bankruptcy), and given that as a third-row beachfront house with no roads to cross for beach access our taxes and insurance went up $1700 a month, we have to recoup our costs from renters or get out of town if we don't have an infinite supply of money.

[Miss Kitty]

The views at Watersound are spectacular! We went and took a look our first week here at some open house condos. Couldn't tell you much about the finish out...I was too mesmerized by the beauty out the window!

[Tom M]

Patrick,

We have a 4-BR/3-BA home in Gulf Trace (@3-miles to Watercolor/Seaside) that is 1 row back from the beach with private pool.