Resort-Style Harbor Springs Home w/ Deck!

Reviews

• Winter break getaway

  5/5

  Thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Lookout Lodge for a ski weekend getaway with our family! Plenty of room for the kids and adults to have their separate spaces when necessary and for others to come Après-ski to hang! Clean, spacious, nicely decorated and so close to Nubs! Liked the indoor pool perk too! Great place and would definitely book again! Thank you!

  *This review was originally posted on Vrbo

• Top of the Hill!!!

  5/5

  We traveled to Harbor Springs for an extended ski-weekend. This is a premium property located minutes from Nubs Nob and Boyne Highlands. The view from the home of Pleasantview Valley and the Highlands is spectacular. As part of the Trout Creek Association, we enjoyed the gym and pool at the clubhouse. This would be great place to stay during the summer, too. They have tennis and pickle ball courts, and extensive hiking trails. Harbor Springs is a 10 minute drive and Petoskey is 20 minutes away. If you go in the summer, take the time to go dinner at the Dam Site in Pelston, which is only a 20 minute drive.

  The owner was responsive and made our stay perfect. Teddy Griffin's Road House is just around the corner and has every fare imaginable with good service. If you are going to Harbor Springs and looking for a gorgeous house, this is the place.

• Nice hidden away escape!

  4/5

  We've stayed at a handful of nice rentals before, and the home lived up to the comforts we were looking for! After navigating the scenic drive to the house my daughter’s reaction was "This is a real home" it was so cute and funny -so a win for our hotel loving kids.

  Great location is great for all the ski resorts in the area and had everything you could need while in the home.

  If we had older kids or another family with us the lower-level living room would have been amazing to spreadout into. Such a nice cozy space downstairs too!

  Just a few things I'd look into for future guests but overall, I would suggest the unit to others looking for a house not a condo!

  -I found the lower-level (queen room) mattress very uncomfortable. Adding a memory foam topper would be a minimal must do fix IMO If we had stayed another night, I would have moved into the kid’s room since we gave my in-laws the primary suite upstairs.

  -More than a couple light bulbs were out.

  Thanks for opening your home to guests like our family! We created some nice memories here :)

• Fantastic Home Base

  5/5

  We stayed here with another family so we had two couples and four kids. The house was a fantastic setup with its two living rooms and bedrooms on both floors. The fireplace and stocked wood was also a great touch. Extremely easy to get to both Nubs and Boyne for skiing.Property managers and owner were totally professional and provided everything we needed for a smooth check-in and stay.

  *This review was originally posted on Vrbo

• Great place, poorly managed

  3/5

  This is a great house, comfortable, nice fireplace for gathering, great views.

  However, after our deposit, but prior to our stay, I asked Evolve some questions about access. I was told in an email they could not put me in touch with the manager or owner until I paid the entire fee, $3,600. Follow-up emails went unanswered.

  I took a chance and paid the whole fee.

  We would rate our stay more positively if:

  1) Questions were answered and emails responded to prior to paying the whole fee.

  2) The access to the pool was accurate. We were given an access code in the checkin info. A different code was listed in the guest book in the house. Turns out, no access code was required. The association where the house is located switched to key fob access two months prior, and would not give me a key fob unless authorized by the owner. I called the manager. She called the owner. The owner called the front office. We finally got a key fob.

  3) The driveway had been plowed when we arrived. It had snowed two days prior. I called the manager. She said she would make a call, but she could make no promises.

  We - two people in their 70's - had to shovel our way in. The next day someone came to shovel the front walk, which helped not at all. Other drives were plowed, why not this one?

  4) The guest notebook was up to date, and complete on information about ski shuttles, pool key fobs, where to find a broom or vacuum cleaner to pick up spilled dry cereal (we found them behind a broken closet door).

  5) The icemaker in the refrig worked. The icemaker on the counter simply used up space.

  6) The association where the house was located did a better job of plowing and sanding the steep hill where the house is located. One night we left one car at the bottom of the hill because two other cars were stranded part way up.

  I am a long time VRBO user and we have rented multiple places in Trout Creek. All in all, it is a nice house, but it is managed poorly and poorly represented by Evolve. I will not use Evolve again, and we will look to other rentals in the area.

  Manager's Response:

  Hi Vaughn, thank you for providing this feedback. After going over your feedback with the homeowner, we wanted to share the following:
  - From us here at Evolve, we sincerely apologize our communication and response times impacted your stay. Our goal is to make vacation rental easy for everyone, and we're very sorry that we missed the mark. We've addressed your feedback with the necessary teams so we can continue to do better for our guests.
  - Your stay was toward the end of an extreme blizzard, and police were asking people to drive only for emergencies. The local Guest Contact reached out to you and recommended against trying to travel. Additionally, the listing states that 4-wheel drive or all-wheel drive is required in the winter months to access the property; however, you arrived in a non-AWD vehicle.
  - The change in access to the pool had not been communicated to the owner by the HOA. The owner remedied the issue quickly, but we apologize for any inconvenience.
  - The counter ice maker is an additional amenity appreciated by most guests; however, guests are welcome to move it if they are not using it.
  - The owner has changed their snow plow service to better accommodate their guest's needs.
  The owner works hard to provide an ideal stay for all guests, and we look forward to this home hosting many happy travelers!