When summer vacation nears, many families plan a vacation to stay at the beach in a beach cottage. A beach cottage is typically a small home that is directly on or near the beach in the town or city where you are planning on vacationing. If you are not familiar with the beach cottage rentals in the area where you are vacationing, there are certain characteristics you should look for in choosing the best beach cottage for your vacation.
First, do a lot of homework on the beach area where you will be vacationing. Typically, there are several different rental agencies that own various types and sizes of beach cottages available for vacation rental. Ask family, friends, co-workers and other people you know who have vacationed in the area about cottages they rented and their experiences in renting from that particular agency or a specific cottage.
Second, write out a list of the amenities that the beach cottage must have. Add to this list any amenities that would be nice for the beach cottage to have. After you have your list put together, look at the beach cottage rentals online or contact the rental agencies and find out which cottages fit all of your requirements.
If you are visiting a beach area that you have not been to before, never assume that the beach cottage possesses what you need. For example, in some northeast beach vacation areas, beach cottages do not have air conditioning. If the beach cottage does contain air conditioning, it tends to be window units. If this is the case, then you want to make sure that there are enough window units to cool each room in the cottage or if one unit is sufficient to cool the entire cottage.
If possible, talk directly to the owners of the cottage so you can ask questions and clarify any confusion you may have. You should also ask for testimonials from other guests that have stayed in that particular beach cottage. Some owners will even provide you with the name and contact information of previous guests. If this is the case, then use this information to your advantage.
Contact the previous guest. Confirm they stayed in the exact cottage you’re thinking of renting. Ask them to describe their overall experience and if they had any problems during their stay. You should also verify when they stayed since recent guests can attest to the condition of the cottage over those who haven’t stayed there in years.