British Columbia 2018 :: Lodging

As I mentioned in my post Solace last month, I went on a vacation all by myself to get away from life for a little while. Life has just been...intense this past year. If I'm being honest, it has been intense for longer than that, but it just all seems to have caught up with me more recently, and this trip to Vancouver and the surrounding areas was just what I needed to get my thoughts back together and be refreshed.

I'll cover the more personal aspects of the trip in my other blog eventually, but here I tend to just stick to a recap of the places I went and what I did and ate, so I'll stick more surface level here :)

I opted, once again, for a vrbo rental, which overall, has always been a really great choice for me. I'm going to do a little bullet point list for the upside and downside sections, and then expand on them.

The Upsides...

• Impeccably manicured grounds.
• Incredible view of the bay.
• Owners were extremely helpful and friendly.
• Cottage was very well stocked and extremely clean.
• Incredible masseuse as a neighbor, just steps away.
• Owners allowed use of their private dock.
• Extremely comfortable bed.
• Sound system in the cabin was really nice.
• Hardly any bugs.

Bliss Cottage was a little slice of heaven. Seriously. It was absolutely incredible!

The owners were extremely helpful and kind, leading me out to their place in the dark when I got in later, and also recommending a good friend of theirs for the most incredible massage of my life the next afternoon. The grounds were impeccably manicured and the view absolutely stunning. They gave me some really great tips for traveling (such as visiting Whistler instead of Fort Landrey, or getting to Deep Cove earlier in the morning to make sure to get a parking spot), and left nothing left un-turned when it came to amenities. The cottage was incredible!

The little Adirondack chairs were the perfect spot for coffee in the morning while watching the boats go by out in the bay. The flowers were placed just far enough that I could see the bees pollinating without worry of being stung or bothered. This little oasis in the middle of nowhere was just delightful! The owner, Jodi, left no stone unturned!

The Downsides...

• A ridiculous amount of stairs...everywhere.
• A little creepy at night
• Poor lighting in parking area.
• I felt extremely vulnerable as a single woman.
• If you aren't a huge dog person, be prepared. I can 100% guarantee that the owners would have kept their pups closer to their home if I had expressed concern, but they have two large dogs. If you aren't a dog person, mention it to them upon booking so they can be prepared.

It is CRAZY to get out there, even if it wasn't very far from town (approximately 10 minutes). And quite frankly, getting there at nighttime was really intense and a little scary. I don't even want to gander at what some of those hairpin decline turn angles were, but I'm going to throw like...25-30% grade maybe? That's what it felt like to me, anyway. It wasn't quite so intimidating after maneuvering it a few times, but there were definitely times when I would turn and not be able to really see the road in front of me. Getting there in itself was a little scary. And then there wasn't really great lighting from the car down to the stairs to the cottage (which...there were a LOT of stairs), so it was pretty crazy the first and last nights trying to get my luggage unloaded and then re-loaded. And well...I felt extremely vulnerable in those moments. I mean...we're in the mountains, so aside from worrying about some creeper attacking me, there was also the threat of bears or mountain lions or something. Considering I went by myself as a single woman, I found myself more guarded and creeped out signif more easily than I would have been if I had been there with a friend or with my husband. For that reason, I'd have a very hard time recommending this place for a solo trip. I initially intended to return to this exact spot every year, but I just don't think that I will. I'd prefer to stay somewhere a little more...public. I found myself so paranoid the night before I left that I ended up booking a hotel and driving across town instead of staying there. I'm sure I wouldn't have had that same paranoia if I was there with a friend, but my gut instinct just told me to run, so I did.

Based on my last night experience alone, I'd have a hard time recommending the place, which makes me horribly sad, because beyond that last 20 minutes of my stay there, it was like something out of a Debbie Macomber book, and I really did want to return.