In January 2021, I decided we were going to take a long trip to Florida in Sep/Oct during off…read moreseason to visit family and friends. Sadly, this is not a good review. We spent THOUSANDS for a 3-week stay, and thankful we got our reservation early as many condo's in this area and Destin were raising rates like hotcakes, and not the sweet kind. The advertised pictures of this unit are exactly what you see. You can view the unit here:
https://www.vrbo.com/1006304?adultsCount=2&haExternalSourceId=43bbef2d-39f3-482c-a894-0a11daad571d%2052ed02ac-039a-48f2-9090-700862e9c1a8%20hasc%20email&unitId=1554252&utm_campaign=VRBO_TRV_RES_HASC_replied_PPB&utm_content=listing-img-321.1006304.1554252&utm_medium=email&utm_source=SYS&utm_term=20210923
After 2 days of traveling, the first thing u want to do is leave everything in the car, go to your unit and inspect it and take pics of the things that need addressed with rental agency. We walked in and immediately smelled mold. Took pics, and I contacted the rental agency with my issues along w pics and no response. Immediately, I went to Publix and got bleach spray, Lysol, etc to clean and try to get rid of the mold.
Three days after arriving, I started getting sick. By week 2, I was dizzy and naseous. Still could find the mold that smelled bad. Around 11pm one night a downstairs owner came asked us if we had a leak in our condo, and we told him no, but more than welcome to come in and look. Come to find out, it was the hvac system full of mold and a leak was coming from upstairs. I called the VACASA National number, txt'd them, and contacted them via Twitter. The very next day, we were moved to another building further away from the Emerald Isle. VACASA finally came through for us. It took 2 weeks to get over the mold illness. I did get 2 Covid tests and both were negative. Amazing at how sick u can get with mold.
Emerald Isle is an older condo building but looks great. The do not have onsite security, so if there any incidents, you have to call the local sheriff. You need a code to get into parking lot, code to get in the bldg, and code to go from the pool gate to the beach, and code to get back into the pool from the beach. The 2 elevators needed to be cleaned daily and had a stuffy gym smell. It took a day or so to know that no matter which day of the week or what time of day, those elevators were slow. Carts on weekends are almost non existent. Very few handicap parking for a condo this size. It has 16 floors with 4 units on each floor. Emerald Isle is within walking distance to the hub of Pensacola Beach (approx 1/2 mile).
After spending $12+ grand on a condo, I do not recommend Emerald Isle nor Unit 0903. Didn't come w beach chairs, and I knew that ahead of time. They did have a beach service that u could pay for. One good Thing about this unit: The kitchen had just about everything u would need or want. Too bad the mold ruined our trip. I only got to the beach twice and no tan to show for our yearly Florida trip.
Some advice when renting a vacation spot:
- Don't pay all of it up front. Pay the required down payment and pay a little each month till the required payment in full date.
- Many last minute cancellations in 2020 and 2021. Some owners were caught cancelling, then re-listing at much higher rate.
- In 2020, due to the pandemic, we had to cancel a month long trip through 5 states. One rental refused to give us a refund. Filed a complaint through the state, DA, city, and mayor. The mayor of Red RiverNM got us our money back.
- Before you unpack your luggage, please inspect the unit/home
thoroughly.
Take pictures of the things that do not meet your approval.
Inspect your HVAC system and air vents
Email or txt those pics to the rental agency, and ensure they respond to your satisfaction.
-Make sure you have a 24/7 number to call when there are problems w the rental