Vacation Rental Recommendation

[Principal Skinr]

I'm planning to take my kids to a rental cabin or house this summer, either the last week in June or the first week in July. I have a small beagle, so it has to be pet friendly.

I'd like either a lake house/cabin with a dock for my fishing boat. We like to fish and tube, so the lake must accomodate that (40hp motor). OR, we'd like to do a cabin/house near Gatlinburg. Ideally, I'd love one at Lake Douglas where we can do both the boating and Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge. But I'm not married to that area. Anyplace that fits either of the criteria or both is fine, from Wisconsin to AR/MO, Ohio to Tennessee.

Any recommendations would be appreciated. I've looked at AirBnB and VRBO, but wonder if there are some outfits with some hidden gems.

My budget is up to $2500 for a minimum of 5 days and a max of 7.

My wife left me for another guy after 30 years together, so this is important to me to give the kids a good time. They range from 12 to 19 years old.

 

[Mgderf]

When I first saw the title the only thing that came to mind was the movie Summer Rental with John Candy.
I sure hope you have better luck!

 

[wcd]

I'm planning to take my kids to a rental cabin or house this summer, either the last week in June or the first week in July. I have a small beagle, so it has to be pet friendly.

I'd like either a lake house/cabin with a dock for my fishing boat. We like to fish and tube, so the lake must accomodate that (40hp motor). OR, we'd like to do a cabin/house near Gatlinburg. Ideally, I'd love one at Lake Douglas where we can do both the boating and Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge. But I'm not married to that area. Anyplace that fits either of the criteria or both is fine, from Wisconsin to AR/MO, Ohio to Tennessee.

Any recommendations would be appreciated. I've looked at AirBnB and VRBO, but wonder if there are some outfits with some hidden gems.

My budget is up to $2500 for a minimum of 5 days and a max of 7.

My wife left me for another guy after 30 years together, so this is important to me to give the kids a good time. They range from 12 to 19 years old.

This may not be what you want to hear? Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge area traffic is going to be a major pia. Especially if you are towing a boat.

There are lots of fun things to do there ranging from Dollywood to hiking etc at the park. Main thing is to stay as close to your desired activities as possible. If you go with a cabin make sure you get one with a grill It will save you sometime waiting in line and possibly save you some money on the food budget.

Although there are still some remnants of the fire a few years ago it’s mostly come back.

 

[Trigger Time]

Sorry that happened to you

 

[radar8756]

... important to me to give the kids a good time. They range from 12 to 19 years old.

Might want to add WiFi to your list ...
Our Grandkids (8-13) spend alot of time on their Tablets / phones when visiting

 

[klausm]

when the travel restrictions hit due to Covid VRBO didn't do sh** and left us high and dry losing all the money for a rental, so yup, I hate them with a passion

 

[indyjohn]

But on the other hand...

We have travelled to locations in MO every year for the past decade successfully using VRBO (pronounced "verbo", I apparently said it wrong for years). Destinations such as Beaver & Table Rock Lakes, and Lake of the Ozarks. Meeting the OG's family from Oklahoma. All told adults and kids - 18 people give or take. Big lodges with multiple king size beds, a bunk room for the boys, a pool, plus easy access to lakefront for swimming, fishing, and boat rental.

I would hurry up, we set our reservation every year by the last of February for the first full week of June. Depending on number of beds you need, I think your budget is in line. I can't speak to pet friendly because we always board our pups when we vacation, heard too many stories about lost pets on vacation, never to be seen again.

The one time we used AirBnB, we spent a lot of money on a house that was represented as we would have run of the entire house and property for the week only to arrive and discover Carol Baskins was living in the basement while we were there (literally). Cigarette smoke would waft up through the AC vents day and night and she sent my MIL threatening text messages at all hours threatening to call the police if we didn't "stop stomping throughout the house". After we left, she filed a false complaint against us, claiming we had damaged the pool and demanded thousands of dollars for repairs. Fortunately we had pics of the pool damage from when we first arrived. One of my BILs is a personal injury attorney and the other is a Federal LEO, so we got our money back. We later saw that Carol relisted the property in the same was as before, so we filed another poor review and logged a complaint to AirBnB.

So, moral of the story is buyer beware! Look for newer built properties and positive reviews year over year.

Good luck!

 

[Mij]

May I suggest, given your budget try somthing local(Ind.) For instance Indiana Beach, for the budget you have you could have a great time, checks all your boxes. Some INGO members live near there and could probably give you some inside scoops. Hope you have a great time w your young folk.

 

[JCSR]

Stay in the great state of Indiana.

With 8,800 acres of gleaming fresh water to explore, Indiana’s Patoka Lake is a true gem for nature lovers and outdoor adventurers alike. As the second-largest reservoir in the state, there’s plenty of room for waterskiing, tubing, fishing, or just hanging out beachside with your toes in the sand.

Patoka Lake Vacation Rentals & Homes - Indiana, United States | Airbnb

Rent from people in Patoka Lake, IN from $20/night. Find unique places to stay with local hosts in 191 countries. Belong anywhere with Airbnb.

www.airbnb.com

 

[Mij]

Stay in the great state of Indiana.

With 8,800 acres of gleaming fresh water to explore, Indiana’s Patoka Lake is a true gem for nature lovers and outdoor adventurers alike. As the second-largest reservoir in the state, there’s plenty of room for waterskiing, tubing, fishing, or just hanging out beachside with your toes in the sand.

Patoka Lake Vacation Rentals & Homes - Indiana, United States | Airbnb

Rent from people in Patoka Lake, IN from $20/night. Find unique places to stay with local hosts in 191 countries. Belong anywhere with Airbnb.

www.airbnb.com

Patoka chalets, was always a good spot. That was a long time ago, don’t know if it’s still there. But great if it is.

 

[wcd]

Stay in the great state of Indiana.

With 8,800 acres of gleaming fresh water to explore, Indiana’s Patoka Lake is a true gem for nature lovers and outdoor adventurers alike. As the second-largest reservoir in the state, there’s plenty of room for waterskiing, tubing, fishing, or just hanging out beachside with your toes in the sand.

Patoka Lake Vacation Rentals & Homes - Indiana, United States | Airbnb

Rent from people in Patoka Lake, IN from $20/night. Find unique places to stay with local hosts in 191 countries. Belong anywhere with Airbnb.

www.airbnb.com

Would certainly save on fuel cost, cut down on having to know carry laws and support local economy. Sounds like a win win

 

[Mij]

Realfoot lake Tenn. is an 8 hr. drive, but dangerous underwater objects.

 

[wcd]

Realfoot lake Tenn. is an 8 hr. drive, but dangerous underwater objects.

Yeah like whole towns in some areas!

 

[Mij]

Yeah like whole towns in some areas!

Really, didn’t know that. Assuming you mean the recent flooding. I meant the underwater standing trees when the lake is at standard pool. Do you expect it to still be flooded like that in June/July the OP’s expected travel dates?

 

[Hoosierdood]

Southwest Missouri is a really nice area. The Springfield/Branson area has a lot to do for families. Bass Pro and Wonders of Wildlife museum. Silver Dollar City. Lots of lakes and cabins to stay in.

I grew up down there and a lot of my family still lives there. We actually plan on moving back there eventually. Beautiful area.

 

[wcd]

Really, didn’t know that. Assuming you mean the recent flooding. I meant the underwater standing trees when the lake is at standard pool. Do you expect it to still be flooded like that in June/July the OP’s expected travel dates?

No seriously not due to flooding. There are many areas where there are very old small towns under water. I believe the Caney river has some areas where you can cano over churches and homes.

While anything is possible, our rainy season is during the Winter months.

 

[Mij]

No seriously not due to flooding. There are many areas where there are very old small towns under water. I believe the Caney river has some areas where you can cano over churches and homes.

While anything is possible, our rainy season is during the Winter months.

OK, gotcha, ya I thought you meant recently. Where we put in the only time I went we looked at maps it didn’t show that where we were. But they (the maps) were only local to that fishing camp.

Ya I can imagine when the quake happened it definitely would have gotten a few towns/communities.

Great vacation spot, great crappie fishing.

 

[wcd]

OK, gotcha, ya I thought you meant recently. Where we put in the only time I went we looked at maps it didn’t show that where we were. But they (the maps) were only local to that fishing camp.

Ya I can imagine when the quake happened it definitely would have gotten a few towns/communities.

Great vacation spot, great crappie fishing.

All and all not a bad place to call home either.

 

[Mij]

All and all not a bad place to call home either.

Yep, Untill the next “big one”…

I shouldn’t laugh, the New Madrid is about due. Mite back up the Ohio or even the Wabash.

 

[Frosty]

We used cabinsusa.com the last two times we went to the Smokey’s, no problems at all, drive straight to the cabin, check in with a text and they send you the key code for the door. Check out was just as easy. We had a cabin that was just a couple minutes from the park the first year, traffic was a bit of a pain but we could be inside the park in just a few minutes.