Welcome to Pure Michigan! Enjoy your cottage oasis and escape from it all. Nestled among a group of 4 cottages all with private hot tubs. Come see why Saugatuck has been named one of Americas best small towns year over year and home to some of the finest beaches in the great lakes. This cottage has a great open floor plan – the kitchen/dining area, and living room all flow from one to the next with floor to ceiling windows looking out to the rear private patio/hot tub. The cottage also features a natural gas fireplace that sits at the head of the living room, and offers a 49" Smart TV with Netflix (no cable) above the mantle. Here is an overview of the sleeping spaces and bathrooms: - Bedroom 1 - Queen - Bedroom 2 - Queen - Bathroom – Tub/Shower Combo, Toilet & Sink In the bathroom, you will find plenty of amenities including hand soap pumps, shower pumps dispensing shampoo, conditioner and body wash. We do provide a small supply of some everyday products such as garbage bags, cleaning products, laundry detergent and two rolls of toilet paper. If you need more during your stay it is your responsibility to go to the store. Please do not message us asking to bring you more. The kitchen is stocked with all the utensils, serving dishes and small appliances you’ll need to make and serve a full meal. Our most common questions regarding the kitchen are about coffee makers and toasters. The coffee maker uses coffee grounds and has a wire mesh reusable filter. As for appliances- everything is stainless steel and includes a double basin sink, dishwasher, electric range, over the range built-in microwave, and of course a refrigerator with an automatic ice maker. This home also offers both a private front deck, and private rear deck. Both are great, but we think of the front as one to keep an eye on the action (or the kids), and the back more private for relaxing in or out of your private hot tub (open year-round). On the common grounds there is a shared fire pit (fire wood not included), and shared propane grills (propane provided). Please note that the cottage is attached to another cottage. So there is one shared wall with the other cottage. Please be considerate about noise levels. We do not allow pets in this cottage. . No exceptions! There are two other cottages on the property which we allow dogs. Please do not send us inquiries asking for early check-in, late checkout, exceptions to minimum night stay, or a discount. We do not offer any of them. Now that we know this is an amazing property, let’s talk about the location... Our most common question is about the home’s proximity to the beach and downtown. Douglas Beach is along Lakeshore Drive, and while it has limited parking, this free cliff-style beach accessible by stairs is only 3.2 miles from the home. Once there, on the upper level you can also enjoy a nice walk along the coastline of beautiful Lakeshore Drive – amazing views of Lake Michigan and its beautiful sunsets will be on one side, and some really amazing homes on the other. But if you’re coming here for the beach, you probably want to check out award winning Oval Beach. If Oval is your destination, it really doesn’t matter where you stay in town, as long as you pick a property between the two main exits for Saugatuck/Douglas (exits 36 & 41). With the town being so small, the driving time to Oval Beach will be roughly the same for every vacation rental in town, give or take a few minutes. I say this because there is a long stretch of winding/wooded country drive approaching Oval Beach that is really not designed for pedestrians, and with this area being so small, no property really has a big “Oval Beach” advantage since you really need to arrive there on some wheels. It’s a gorgeous beach, but plan to drive or take the “Interurban Oval Beach Shuttle” from town if you are going. As for exact distances… - Douglas Beach is 3.2 miles from this home - Oval Beach is 4.2 miles from this home - Oval Beach is 3.2 miles from downtown Saugatuck - Downtown Saugatuck is 1.0 miles from this home - Exit 36 off of Highway 196 is 2.9 miles from this home - Exit 41 off of Highway 196 is 1.8 miles from this home Guests will enjoy this entire home featuring 2 bedrooms and 1 bath on a gorgeous lot shared with 3 other cottages. The home is equipped with a 49" LG Smart TV and includes a Netflix subscription, but does not have cable/satellite/antenna programming. There are two physical structures on the property, essentially two duplexes - each structure offers two cottages, with one shared wall between each pair. Unfortunately, we cannot make any exceptions to our cancellation policy, including the changing of dates- we are not a big corporation and rely on the income from bookings to pay the mortgage. If you anticipate potential health issues, weather concerns or other reasons you might not be able honor your reservation, consider purchasing travel insurance. Travel insurance is very affordable and should cover you should something come up last minute that puts your stay at risk. Frequently Asked Questions: Is the Hot Tub open year-round? Yes- each of the 4 cottages on the property has its own private hot tub open year-round. Do I have to bring my own firewood? Yes... for the shared outdoor firepit. The indoor fireplace is natural gas and has ceramic logs. What type of filter does the coffee maker use? It is a wire mesh basket and uses regular ground coffee Since the unit has keyless entry allowing for easy self-check-in/check-out, we likely won't have the pleasure of meeting in person. Of course, if you need anything during your stay, we're just a text away, and live just a few minutes down the road should a problem arise. We've also provided lots of information in our online and in-room guidebooks, but don't hesitate to ask if we can help with any additional needs/suggestions. Shortly after booking, the first message you receive in the Airbnb Message center will contain a unique 4-digit passcode. This passcode will be used to access the unit throughout your stay and will enable you to check-in as late as you'd like. You will have neighbors nearby that I'm sure you'll be respectful of throughout your stay- especially if you will be arriving late at night. As such, we do not restrict how late you can arrive, and exterior lights in the front are on a timer to be sure you can find your way in after dark. Please note that we tend to keep the property pretty full/busy, so we normally can not accommodate early check-ins or late checkouts, but are happy to send you a message via the Airbnb Message Center when the unit is ready upon request. Maple Street runs along the east side of downtown, parallel to Blue Star Highway, and is a great location to make home base for your stay! In the warmer months you might choose to walk into downtown- it maps at exactly a mile to the Saugatuck Center For The Arts, but in inclement or extreme hot/cold weather, it might be better to stick to the car (or make dad drop you off so you don’t have to fight for parking)! Unsure if you’re looking at the right properties for your visit to Saugatuck/Douglas? Let us help…. so, if you’re looking to visit Saugatuck/Douglas, zoom in near Saugatuck using the map program of your choice, and you'll see highway 196, exit 36 (Douglas exit just south of Saugatuck Brewing Company). Near exit 36, if you look along the Michigan coastline, you’ll see a street called Lakeshore Drive. Notice as you follow it south, it dead ends… cuts off… for us, that’s the “end of the world”. Ideally you want to be north of this cutoff when you make your vacation rental selection if you’re visiting Saugatuck/Douglas. No matter what city your map program thinks you’re in, if you’re north of this break in Lakeshore Drive, you’re in Saugatuck or Douglas. This is right near the border of Fennville, and with many of these being private drives, the map programs don’t have all of these addresses correct. On the North side, you can follow 196 on the map up to the next exit (exit 41 – Saugatuck exit near Burger King and the new Guardian Brewery), and feel comfortable selecting properties anywhere along the way between exits 36 & 41. On the east side, I’d probably try to stay West of 63rd St, and definitely west of 58th St. This is a really small area, so one good thing about staying closer to far edges of this area I described is that you likely will get a more secluded and relaxing experience in your vacation rental, while still being super-close to downtown/restaurants/beaches/etc.. of course staying near town has its perks too- you can ditch the car and walk to food/bars/shopping/etc. This particular property is just east of downtown Saugatuck, right in the center of everything, so you'll enjoy easy access to both downtown Saugatuck and Douglas, Douglas & Oval Beaches, Dunes State Park, and everything else you would want to explore and enjoy in town..... but..... you're far enough outside of downtown, that heavy pedestrian and car traffic, and parking won't be a problem! The property features a gravel parking lot with two spaces specifically designated for your use. Any additional vehicles you bring with you would need to be parked in the MDOT commuter lot down the street (location in our online guidebook) - this lot is free, and spaces are available first come, first served and cannot be reserved. We do have 2 additional parking spots adjacent the property that are available to rent.. If you would like to purchase a permit for one of these reserved parking spaces for your exclusive use during your stay, please let me know. As far as getting around while you are here.... you can now use Lyft and Uber in town, but drivers are limited and wait times may be long. Consider using scheduled reservations with transportation providers if you need to be somewhere at a specific time (e.g. airport). There are wine and food tours that offer transportation, and if you're headed to Oval Beach and want to avoid the parking lot there, consider taking Interurban's shuttle service. Interurban also offers a free shuttle between downtown Saugatuck and downtown Douglas, and their primary offering is on-demand door-to-door transit- their web site has all of the details (also in our online guidebook). This amazing property will offer you the best of everything Saugatuck/Douglas has to offer, that requires the cooperation/understanding of everyone on a few items. Please note that weapons of any type are not permitted inside or outside. While we try very hard to keep all creatures outside, being on a wooded lot in a lake community this can be challenging! We try to strike a balance of not over-treating any of our properties to where you are exposed to harsh chemicals, and generally we believe if creatures are outside where they belong, we will let nature find the right balance. Non-poisonous spiders OUTSIDE on a damp wooded lot can actually help control mosquitos and the spread of harmful disease, so we try to give them some space to do their job. As for animals, year round you will see lots of deer, squirrels/chipmunks, birds, fox, turkeys and many others. In season we get our fair share of mosquitos, and with deer around, we also have ticks… so bring a non-toxic mosquito and tick repellant so you can fully enjoy the beautiful fresh air outdoors. We have a shared fire pit and shared gas grills in the shared yard. We don't provide firewood, but you should find propane for the grills. Don't worry, if you want to pick up some firewood locally, check out "Bob's Archery Tag" in our guidebook (24-hour cash self-service firewood). Guests have the ability to fully control their own temperature by touching the thermostat screen and simply pressing + or - to adjust it to their desired temperature. The system performs very well at reaching temperatures most guests find very comfortable. While the temperature is not restricted, the digital thermostat menu is restricted requiring a PIN to access set-up screens, schedules, etc. which in no way inhibits your ability to fully control the temperature. While each cottage has the ability to control its own temperature, be aware that these cottages have a shared forced air HVAC system, and shared HVAC return ducts, which means air circulates between multiple cottages. As such, we aren't able to make exceptions to our no animals policy for this property- your furry friends or family members aren't able to stay at this location, or even just stop by for a visit since those in adjacent cottages with allergies expecting animal-free accommodations can be severely impacted. That said, we have reserved the Brown and Red cottages to accommodate guests traveling with animals, and both offer the same amenities and are located on this same piece of land, but have different interior finishes. There are no cameras or noise monitoring devices in use inside this property, but it does have standard security sensors such as motion and contact sensors that should not be tampered with at any time.