amazing location. super attentive staff at Surf or Sound. Even a small concern was immediately…read moreaddressed! Stay with local businesses for the best customer service!!!!

10/10 experience. Patty was exceptionally helpful, kind, and informative…read more We will be back again and only staying with a property managed by surf or sound

Dolphin Realty runs the Hatteras Cabanas, a group of 40 privately owned one-room cabanas only steps…read moreaway from the beach. Everything from the process of selecting a cabana and checking on availability to arriving, staying, and checking out was smooth, simple as pie, and budget-friendly. We had our vacation dates picked out first and checked the website to see what would be available during the September 17-24 (Saturday to Saturday) week. There were plenty of options when we booked in July, but by September there were no vacancies listed on the website (though there was a sign at the cabanas themselves that said "Vacancy," so something might have opened up). The first half of the fee was due immediately, and the second half was due a month before arrival. The rates vary widely depending on the season. Ours came to about $570 for a week's stay after tax, fees, and trip insurance were all figured in, but "off season" begins in early September, thanks to potential hurricane threats. Prime season is listed in the brochure as $820.37 per week and may be more after fees. The cabanas are a mix of uniform and highly individualized. They're single-room affairs (plus a bathroom with a door, of course) on stilts -- you park underneath. They have no fewer than three decks: both front and back decks on the living floor and a third one at roof level. They all have air conditioning, a TV, and kitchen areas including a fridge and oven. They're all built of the gray, salt-blown wood that is popular all over the island. The best way to visualize the size is to think of a medium-sized dorm room with a kitchen. Beyond these details, they all have their separate personalities. The one we stayed in, Ocean's Door East (#27), had a rare two-bed setup, one of them loft-style. Most others appear to have one bed, some of them full-size and some of them queen. It was decorated with a beautiful array of beach-inspired wall knickknacks, many of which said "Welcome" on them -- and welcome we felt! The kitchen had lots of dishes and pots (but not all of the cabanas necessarily will, so come prepared!), and we were pleased to find beach chairs we could borrow. There were also a lot of children's beach toys, but again, that will vary from cabana to cabana, so don't count on it. This one allows pets, both dogs and cats, but not all of them do. We chose our cabana based on its proximity to the beach -- it was the closest one available when we booked. There is a wooden walkway that takes you over the dune, and there you are! There was always a smattering -- but not a crowd -- of people lounging, reading, fishing, beachcombing, or throwing balls for their dog. The waves were medium-height while we were there, but of course that can be variable. A convenient hose is located at the cabana end of the walkway for cleaning off sandy feet. About halfway through the week, we realized there was a hose under our cabana, too. Additional tips: Be aware that weather in this area is volatile. We had the pleasure of partly cloudy 88-degree days and rainy nights during our week, but it could just as easily storm, or a hurricane might blow through. Hatteras Island gets completely evacuated at such times, so get trip insurance. Also note that you will need to bring your own sheets, towels, and paper goods. This isn't a hotel, it's someone's beach home, so there will be imperfections in the accommodations, and you're cleaning up after yourself, ESPECIALLY right before you leave. Also, bring bug spray. Even though the cabana has an owner, it's through Dolphin Realty that you'll be paying your fee and signing your lease agreement. I did this all by email with them. They responded within a business day or so of any inquiry I made. It was all so easy and reasonably priced that we'll consider coming back to Hatteras Cabanas for future trips here!

Unit 27 - Ocean's Door East. Fall 2020. Maggots in the refrigerator that migrated into…read moredining/living/sleeping area. Dangerous wiring and extension cords hanging off of TV. Stale, rotting food and exposed wiring under stove burners that didn't work. Filthy, thread-bare curtains that partially covered non-functioning windows and sliding door. Urine and miscellaneous stains on sofa upholstery and bedding. Doors hanging off of rusty hinges. Broken and leaking hose outside for rinsing off after the beach. ZERO Covid-19 protocol or cleaning. Disrespectful and rude Dolphin Realty employee named Suzanne. Protect the health and safety - not to mention your "relaxing" vacation and search for accommodations elsewhere.

We were guests in Flight of Fansea this month. Our leaseholder were my parents. We, ourselves,…read moreusually rent up in Corolla every year and we spent one week there before joining my parents in Frisco. I have to say, never renting a property through Midgett before, I was pleasantly surprised. The house was VERY clean and so well stocked with anything we could possibly need. The pool was definitely a HUGE plus of this house as well. We spent hot mornings at the beach and came back and spent a lot of time at the pool. We loved our stay at Flight of Fansea and I know my parents have already booked again for 2022!

I have been vacationing in the Outer Banks for over 30 years, and never once have I experienced the…read morekind of treatment I just received from Midgett Realty. When Dare County issued a mandatory evacuation due to Hurricane Erin, I was forced to leave my rental halfway through my stay. Despite paying nearly $5,000 for the second week, Midgett Realty refused to refund a single dollar. They hid behind a "forced field" checkbox about insurance buried in the booking process -- yet I never signed a lease, and their system still allowed me to book, pay in full, and check in. What makes this worse is the constant stream of promotional emails I received from Midgett about discounts on kayaks and beach gear, while they did little to clearly warn or emphasize protecting my stay through travel insurance. Clearly, sales come first -- customer protection comes last. After decades of loyalty to the Outer Banks, I will never book through Midgett Realty again. I've already filed a complaint with the North Carolina Department of Justice, and I will be sharing my experience with friends, family, and locals in the community so others can see how renters are treated when disaster strikes. If you're considering booking through Midgett Realty, be warned: when you need them most, they will not stand by you.

Renting "breakers" We were told to expect a 5pm check in due to "enhanced cleaning". Well that's…read morehysterical that they consider this enhanced cleaning. Have called multiple times about the crappy cleaning job in the rental and they've done nothing. Dead bugs, human hair, rings from glasses on Unwiped granite. Absolutely disgusting and I had to clean it. There were also dozens of flies in the house, flying around in the kitchen and bedrooms. Also our door code was wrong. We had to call and get bounced around "after hours" (it was 5:45) to get in the house. They have no information about the advertised pool that's "a few streets away" but actually a mile away. No hours or opening times. I called about this and the woman gave me the address to the pool. Unhelpful. And the photos on the website are photoshopped. They make the queen bed look like a king so they can make that bedrooms larger bath look like the master. The actual master bathroom is tiny. Huge rips in the screen doors so we can't have the patio door open.

We rented a house (Sky Box) through Outer Beaches Realty last summer - August 2020 - in Rodanthe,…read moreNC. It was by far the absolute worst vacation experience that I and my family have ever had. I have contemplated writing this review for awhile now, and receiving promotional emails from OBR has prompted me to follow through in the hope that it might save someone else from making the same mistake we did by renting from this company We were a group of 5 - my husband, my elderly parents, my 5 year old and myself. We live in western NC, and the trip to get to Rodanthe is about 9-10 hour drive. We decided to break long drive up by leaving on Friday and spending the night halfway at a hotel, since we were concerned about my elderly father (84 years old and with Parkinson's and cancer) sitting too long in the car. While we were already on the road, we received a call from OBR (a day before check-in) that the AC in our rental house was not working - but parts had been ordered and the AC would be repaired early in our stay. They said they had placed window units in the house. When we arrived at our check-in time, we found that the house was indeed without AC and window units were running. However, these units did almost nothing to change the temperature in the house. There were a total of 3 units - one in the living room, one in two of the four bedrooms in the house. The temperature in the house stayed between 79-85 degrees the entire length of our stay! My son had to sleep with my husband and I because the kids bedroom with the bunk beds was unusable due to the heat. He was extremely disappointed (as were we!) as he'd been looking forward to using the bunk beds. The other bedroom that was unusable was one that my sister was planning to use - as she was going to join us a few days into our trip. She cancelled her plans due to the lack of AC. The temperatures outside in late August were in the 90's. So we paid for a 4 bedroom house where only half the bedrooms were usable. We had many conversations with people at OBR over the course of our stay. They sent a repair person out to check on the status of the repair, and he informed us that no parts had been ordered for the AC units and in fact they had not been working for several months!!! He said other people had stayed at this house before us in the weeks prior and had complained also. So, it became clear to us that OBR had totally LIED to us about the house. We had purchased travel insurance and could have cancelled our trip if they had let us know before we started driving there. They knew far in advance about the status of the AC. They only offered us a 20 percent refund. The entire trip was totally miserable because we could not relax at all in the house or sleep well while we were constantly sweating. My dad has mobility issues which is why we chose a house right on the water, so he could see the ocean without having to walk anywhere. The best times during the trip were when we got in the car to go somewhere else like a restaurant with AC. At the house we were constantly having to empty the water out of the AC units, and the drain on the electrical caused the breakers in the house to trip about every 15 minutes.... so we had to constantly turn the power back on and we could not watch tv because of this. The washer and drier was also not functional, so we could not wash out sweaty clothes. This is not what a vacation is supposed to be about!! One should not spend over 4,000.00 to be extremely stressed out!! We will NEVER rent a vacation property from Outer Beaches Realty again, and I encourage anyone reading this review not to either.

Overall, this was a great vacation and a good house. It does need some basic maintenance and…read moreupgrades, which is understandable since these houses are constantly rented. With that said, it had everything we needed and the view of the sound is spectacular. We did have to put in some service requests, but the individuals who managed this property were friendly and easy to contact. I was impressed with the amount of contact and service we had while visiting. Having two people with contact numbers that handle any property issues is a very nice amenity and not something I have experienced with other property management companies. I do wish that rates would go down to a more reasonable price point, but, in the post 'Rona world we are in, I'm afraid reasonable rates are a thing of the past. Rates are comparable to other rentals on the island. As a NC native, I just hope they decades of family vacation tradition can continue and we not get priced out of the area.

The house was clean and inviting. Very spacious. I would suggest handrails in at least one of the…read moremaster bathrooms in tub area. We really enjoyed our stay.

Booking for 2025 and now 2026 - Corolla, NC. Their team was excellent, professional, house was…read morespectacular! Clean, linen package. Great house value. #grandfather 11 of us for our May 2025 trip for 3 nights. Booked 2026 for an entire week of Bike Week.

Rented in June and all house great!!! Would rent this awesome home!…read moreCheck in, check out, no problem

My experience is this. Promises were made in the beginning that UNSAFE conditions were to be fixed…read moreIN THE SPRING (Be careful of clause 32 in the lease...it states that if something is promised, but you did not get it written down in this lease...then you are screwed, LOL A lawyer pointed this out to me when I asked about promises made by Ms. Head). This did not happen and we complained numerous times. Our rent was on time always and many times early. Every inspection was EXCELLENT. We had no stereo and zero visitors. We were ignored the first two times we asked about repairs and then were given a snide, smartass response designed to make us feel bad for asking the third time we asked. A week after asking the 4th time, the 20 year old living below us called the police saying he smelled marijuana (a Friday evening). On Monday morning, Colony Realty terminated our lease for this minor misdemeanor. THE JUDGE IN THE CASE THOUGHT I DESERVED A $25 FINE. THE COURT OF COLONY REALTY, ie. JULIA HEAD, THOUGHT WE SHOULD LOSE OUR DREAM RETIREMENT HOME, SPEND HUNDREDs ON MOTEL ROOMS and moving expenses as we were afraid to go home because of this young man below us and were given 15 days to vacate the property. That is our experience with this Head woman. WE FEEL WE WERE TERMINATED IN RETALIATION FOR COMPLAINING THAT WE COULD NOT USE THIS PROPERTY AS ADVERTISED BECAUSE OF UNSAFE CONDITIONS. WE EVEN COULD SAFELY USE WHAT WAS SUPOSED TO BE OUR FRONT DOOR.

From the owner: The best selection of long-term rental homes on Hatteras Island!read more