We just completed our first year of owning our vacation home we call Pirates Cove Marco Island! Because of GREAT guests, we have achieved 100% TOP RATED reviews with perfect 10-stars on VRBO, and perfect 5-stars on Airbnb and Google.
A year of guests
We finished our first year of hosting at Pirates Cove Marco Island with a perfect record: 10/10 on Vrbo with Premier Host status, 5.0 on Airbnb, and 5 stars on Google. That is down to the guests who treated the house like their own.
Families made up most of the calendar. Two or three generations, a couple of dogs, a boat on the lift for the week. The house is set up for exactly that: three bedrooms, six beds, sleeps nine, and a garage full of gear so nobody has to rent anything.
What we learned
Guests use the pool more than anything else. It faces south, it is heated, and it is screened, so it works in February and in August. The dock is second — people fish off it before coffee.
The other lesson: answering messages fast matters. We reply within an hour in almost every case, because we manage the house ourselves.
Open dates and booking direct
We have dates left for fall 2026 and into 2027. All current availability and pricing is on this site.
Booking here instead of a platform removes the guest service fee, which usually runs about 14 to 16 percent of the total. The nightly rate is the same either way, so that fee is money you keep.
