There isn't a cleaning service for this house, tenants clean before they leave. We were pleased that the place was very clean when we arrived. You can see the beach from one of the upstairs decks and the other upstairs deck gives you a view of the backyard and sound. I would say the sound-side deck has the best view, and we appreciated the growth of the backyard. The beach-facing deck is concrete and not level so it collects water when it rains. It rained frequently while we were there and there was always water on the deck, so we didn't use it. I had lower back, hip, and leg pain throughout our entire stay because our mattress was too firm. It's best to watch the sunrise from the beach, because there are larger beach houses that impede the view from the deck. The kitchen was well stocked, there are plenty of seasonings, utensils, and pots and pans to cook with. The picnic table being in an enclosed porch was a nice touch. It was well stocked with kids' beach toys, boogie boards (although all the straps were broke), 2 bicycles, plenty of beach chairs, and umbrella. It was really nice being able to walk to the beach whenever we pleased and have warm water to rinse off with when we returned. The living room DVD player and CD player could use to be upgraded. There was no remote for the DVD player which was an inconvenience for us and the CD player didn't work. A handyman showed up unannounced on our second day to look at the fridge; a head's up would have been nice. There's a $300 refundable damage deposit, but they subtract $40 worth of transaction fees from it.
We enjoyed our vacation and such a close walk to the beach. We could see dolphins from the beach almost everyday that we were there, and this area of the beach is very clean. The house was roomy for our family of five and the neighborhood was quiet. The recommendations I would give would be a crow's nest deck for a better view of the beach, an upgrade to the concrete deck to allow water to drain off, softer mattresses, and upgrades to various equipment throughout the house. The Outer Banks is a great place to visit, and we do plan to return.
