Debra R.
Jul 18, 2022 04:00:12 PM
Summary:
Location of the property was great. We loved the ocean view and bay view. Being adjacent to the small grassy airstrip wasn’t a problem. We enjoyed the occasional planes landing and plane takeoffs. The kitchen is well stocked with necessary items. Appliances are updated and great with the exception of the toaster oven, which doesn’t work. Beds are comfortable. There is a sufficient amount of linens. The bunk room, original front porch entrance turned bunk room, is miserably hot. Our people couldn’t sleep in it, therefore, had to sleep on the living room sofas. The master bedroom needs a privacy door due to the fact that there are only 2 bathrooms for a house that sleeps 14 people. One of the bathrooms/toilet area has no locks on the doors. Again, this is a problem with a lot of people and only 2 bathrooms. The room next to the bunk room, turned into a bedroom, has no privacy. The makeshift door doesn’t lock and has no wall above the door therefore all noise is heard. Has no overhead lighting which makes it very hard to see at night. The room has a beautiful view though.
The charcoal grill needs to be replaced. It’s not usable. There are a few newer beach chairs but most are broken and not usable. Not nearly enough chairs for large groups. There are only 2 useable beach umbrellas. Others need to be trashed. Many of the pool/beach toys need to be tossed, as well. It was great to have 2 golf carts that carried 10 people, however, they’re also in need of repair.
It’s obvious that the owner has tried to update the home, but it has lots of repairs that yet need to be addressed. Some of the railing and siding are loose, rotten and unsafe. We felt the house moving almost constantly. I’m not sure if this is normal for a house on stilts or not though.
We enjoyed our stay at North Captiva Island! The owner, Maria, and Tortuga Properties were very responsive and helpful.
Jul 4, 2022 06:34:32 AM
Summary:
Location of the property was great. We loved the ocean view and bay view. Being adjacent to the small grassy airstrip wasn’t a problem. We enjoyed the occasional planes landing and plane takeoffs. The kitchen is well stocked with necessary items. Appliances are updated and great with the exception of the toaster oven, which doesn’t work. Beds are comfortable. There is a sufficient amount of linens. The bunk room, original front porch entrance turned bunk room, is miserably hot. Our people couldn’t sleep in it, therefore, had to sleep on the living room sofas. The master bedroom needs a privacy door due to the fact that there are only 2 bathrooms for a house that sleeps 14 people. One of the bathrooms/toilet area has no locks on the doors. Again, this is a problem with a lot of people and only 2 bathrooms. The room next to the bunk room, turned into a bedroom, has no privacy. The makeshift door doesn’t lock and has no wall above the door therefore all noise is heard. Has no overhead lighting which makes it very hard to see at night. The room has a beautiful view though.
The charcoal grill needs to be replaced. It’s not usable. There are a few newer beach chairs but most are broken and not usable. Not nearly enough chairs for large groups. There are only 2 useable beach umbrellas. Others need to be trashed. Many of the pool/beach toys need to be tossed, as well. It was great to have 2 golf carts that carried 10 people, however, they’re also in need of repair.
It’s obvious that the owner has tried to update the home, but it has lots of repairs that yet need to be addressed. Some of the railing and siding are loose, rotten and unsafe. We felt the house moving almost constantly. I’m not sure if this is normal for a house on stilts or not though.
We enjoyed our stay at North Captiva Island! The owner, Maria, and Tortuga Properties were very responsive and helpful.
Megan B.
Jun 18, 2022 09:29:59 PM
Summary:
This property was amazing! It had everything we needed for our family, who was on the island for my sisters wedding. The pool was a hit with both children and adults and the kitchen and open floor plan made spending time together so easy. I highly recommend going to the deck at the top of the house to watch a sunset…it’s absolutely stunning.
The only complaint I have is the communication with the property management company. One of the air conditioners went out and I sent a text to let them know in the evening, knowing it most likely wouldn’t be addressed that day. I got no response. I texted them again the following morning and received a response saying they would be by to look at it that morning. No one ever came nor did anyone reach out. Later that night while at my sisters wedding, I sent a text upset (it was over 80 degrees in the house) and got a response that someone had been by two hours ago but had looked at the working AC unit and assumed everything was working fine. I had to explain it was the other AC unit. They went to look at it and was unable to fix it and sent technicians the next morning. They were able to fix it but It took over 24 hours with little communication to get it addressed. This was my only complaint. I would definitely stay here again, I just hope for better communication from the management team.
Lisa S.
Mar 28, 2022 08:40:02 AM
Summary:
White Shell offers a great location, well stocked kitchen, 2 golf carts which run well and are great for larger group, lots of communal space, and lovely pool. Tortuga property management checked with me regularly to make sure all was going well. Loved the communication. They sent someone over right away when the pool needed cleaning and they were promptly there to pick us up and drop us off. Love the ability to text them if they are needed. The house itself has 5 sleeping areas and 2 bathrooms. The layout makes privacy a bit challenging as only one bedroom has a door that totally closes it off from use by others. To access one bathroom you must go into the area of the master bedroom which you can then see into. Another bedroom has a door but above it is an open space so all the noise from the living room area can be heard. The crows nest has no door so again, noise travels to it. If you are a group of family/friends it's ok, but more privacy might be desired by some. Overall being on Captiva makes it all well worth while! Thank you for making your home available to us!
ELLEN W.
Mar 17, 2022 12:21:19 AM
Summary:
I had recently lost my husband a few months before this trip and decided to take it anyway with my family and friends. Maria made us feel so very welcome and was genuinely caring and concerned about our stay. I can't thank her enough for how eager she was in making us feel welcomed! She checked in from time to time and was very easy to work with. Highly recommend 🙂
Victoria C.
Mar 2, 2022 04:49:43 AM
Summary:
We had the most lovely stay. The house is immaculate, and beautiful. We had ages ranging from 1 - 50 that all loved it. The owner and the management company was amazing and quick to respond. We were unfamiliar with the island, so the owner and management were great at providing info and suggestions. I should have ordered a grocery refill from Tortuga Management a few days in advance, but that was entirely on me. There was beach toys, strollers, games, books, pool toys, beach chairs, towels, all the kitchen essentials and more. Beds were so comfy, and the views were EPIC. So close to the beach, and our group LOVED the on-property pool. The nearby airstrip was not at all disruptive, and we sincerely enjoyed seeing the few planes come in and out. They had everything we needed for young families; from pack n play to highchair. The gated deck and interior stairs and fenced pool gave us peace of mind for wandering tots. We are so thankful for our stay and we will absolutey be back again!
Lise S.
Oct 30, 2021 11:00:17 AM
Summary:
We had a great week on the island, as North Captiva is a slice of Heaven. White Shell has great family space on the decks and with the open floor plan. Our group of 12 never felt crowded . The kitchen has nice appliances, an ice maker that kept up with our demands, double oven, one refrigerator but a second one is available outside in the golf cart parking area. The house advertises lots of bedrooms, but one with two sets of trundle beds is on what I would more accurately call a sleeping porch . The shades around it are broken, as are those in several rooms. Our experience was very mixed. Most times we had no service at all from Tortuga property management because they were totally unresponsive to our texts for many hours. This became quite problematic around the issue of golf carts and the pool. On our arrival the pool water was light green and by the next day it was celebrating St Patrick’s Day in grand style. We rented this home specifically because of the pool. After several days of visits from the pool service the chemicals seemed to work and when we departed the pool was very clean. For 2 1/2 days of six it was quite green as - we weren’t sure if it was clean enough for swimming. We had reserved a third golf cart in addition to two that came with the home. The third one was unavailable due to maintenance issues the entire week, (we were not charged) . One of the carts belonging to the house was also inoperable, and Tortuga gave us a loaner replacement. The second cart belonging to the house was on site and while older and used hard for years, it was functional all week. The loaner cart from Tortuga was a problem all week. It wouldn’t hold a charge, and almost left us sitting on the far side of the island multiple times. We were very close to having to push it three different times, including this morning before we left.. (the gift that kept on giving..). We finally gave up on the loaner cart and rented one from a resident on the island . With small children on the vacation Cart transportation was critical.. Our biggest complaint was that we were told at first we weren’t plugging it in properly, then we were using the wrong charger, then perhaps the water in the battery is low, then the house does not have enough power for the chargers and the GFI is tripping. Mostly we got the run around from everyone- Tortuga especially. The owner seemedTo be buying everything Tortuga told them about the carts, all excuses.
Marissa M.
Sep 17, 2021 11:00:45 AM
Summary:
We had a wonderful time at Jose Hideaway. Thank you for the stay!
Tim C.
Aug 23, 2021 11:00:30 AM
Summary:
We have recently returned from our week on North Cap.
The views from this home are amazing. We had some rainy days during our trips but the wraparound decks still provided us with amazing views and photo opportunities of the Gulf and Dolphin Bay. The views from the Crow's Nest are amazing as well.
The house is large and spacious. We had a group of 11 and even on the rainy days, everybody had plenty of room and nobody felt crowded. I highly recommend this property for large groups. The house is very well kept, very well maintained.
The pool area was the favorite feature for our kids. It is large enough for a bigger family to enjoy a poolside night together. There is multiple lounge chairs, tables, ect and plenty of room for everybody to enjoy together.
The home was furnished with wagons, beach chairs, umbrellas, toys, ect. Honestly, our kids did not need to bring anything as all was provided with the house. However, we spoke with the family that stayed prior to us. They bought something new to leave behind for future visitors and we done the same. If you are reading this review, we encourage you to do the same, even if it is a very small contribution. This is a great way to build an amazing property for us to all share for years to come.
And the main point I want to hit on with this review is the communication with the owner, Maria. Upon arriving, there was a minor hiccup with the home and it created an issue that needed addressed. Please understand this was nothing MAJOR and could have very easily been worked around. Maria stayed in contact with us and she went ABOVE AND BEYOND to help us find a solution and honestly, my wife and I feel that she went completely out of her way to make our stay as enjoyable as possible. In the World we unfortunately live in today, Customer Service is a lost art and the level of dedication that Maria puts in to making sure her guests enjoy their stay is unheard of in this day and time.
There are bigger homes on the island. There are homes with better views on the island. There are newer homes on the island. But I can say with confidence there are no homeowners on the island as friendly and helpful as Maria at White Shell Hideaway. We were complete strangers in her home and for the past six months, we felt like we were extended family she invited to her beach house for the week. For that reason, this home is our forever Vacation home on North Cap. I truly cannot say enough about the hospitality we recieved.
Fernando B.
Aug 14, 2021 12:00:09 PM
Summary:
This was our 4th time renting this house, last 3 stays awesome! Now the house is under new management Tortuga Properties. Since day one the experience wasn't good at all! When we got to the island, they took a long time to figure out which house we were going to, when they "took us to the house" the manager just kept driving without saying anything, we knew which house it was because we've stayed there before but we kept following her cause she never stopped at the house, we thought that she didn't know which house we had rented. Then she stops at another house and we told her we had already went past our house, and she said " i know, why are you following me? The house is open" like i said we knew which house it was cause we had stayed there before, but what if we had never stayed there before?? How were we supposed to get there? When we got to the house there was no water which we reported immediately and they said they would send someone to fix it. The house is set to house 14 people, which was how many we were staying there, on the website and from our previous stays, the were supposed to have a 4 person and a 6 person cart to use, which the house only had the 4 person cart, we reported that immediately as well, which the manager said that we were supposed to check in at 4pm and we had checked in at 11am so they would bring the other cart at 4pm that same day, IT NEVER HAPPENED!!! We rented the house for 7 days and we only had a 4 person cart for 14 people!!! We texted the manager every single day and we only got the run around every day! Our water didn't get fixed until 7 pm! When they were fixing the water, the power went out, we reported that and never got a reply. We spent 8 hours with no water and 2 hours without electricity. On our first morning we realized that our fridge was not cooling, again we reported it immediately, 2 days later they replied saying "I'll send a technician to check it" the technician showed up on the 4th day, by that time we had already fixed it ourselves, my father in law and a friend of ours that was in the island as well figured out what was wrong with it. On the 5th day our cart didn't start, we reported that as well and we didn't get it back until late that evening.
We love this island and we've been going there for 5 years, we will continue to go every year, but i don't think we would stay on any house managed by tortuga. Again the house it's great! Really comfortable and really nice, but management sucks.