Vandalia House

"At the $480+/night price point you are receiving seclusion, sort of, clean mountain air, and a few on property trails just off of the doorstep of the Vandalia house. The Vandalia house is a three bedroom, two and a half bathroom house, there is a short height loft inside of the attic area of the smallest bedroom (accessible by a narrow ladder tight against the wall), and a second-floor landing open-air sitting with a sleeper futon. We had 12-people in the house for our five rental days. Proximity to town is a solid 30-minutes to a food store, gas station, and commercial services. BRING or pickup ALL food you may need before leaving the nearest town. Getting to the Vandalia house requires multiple single-lane roads and long gravel driveways. On to the actual home. If the cabin were older, the rental would be appropriately labeled as “rustic charm,” but since the house is ten to 15 years old, cosmetic repairs are needed throughout the well-loved home. Throughout the house, there are multiple settling cracks and separations in the drywall needing repair. Hardwood flooring is beautiful, but the Vandalia needs a good hardwood cleaning to remove wear and return the luster. Flat surfaces (top of the fridge, window sills, door moldings, some work, light fixture, bathroom exhaust fans, under the toilet lids, under furniture) need a good dusting and cleaning, they were dirty. PLEASE replace the garbage can, it was disgusting and DENTED. Outside, the TLC theme continues. We found the grille covered in burnt grit, grease, and other people’s leftovers. We spent about one hour thoroughly cleaning the grille for our use as we expected a fire to break out from using it. Having outdoor furniture is convenient but the metal chairs were rusted and a few were broken, the wooden chairs needed a good pressure washing and painting, and the tables showed surface rust but were functional. Rain gutters need to be cleaned so the run over water is eliminated. Living quarters are not exactly as the various rental websites describe. Sleeping eight people at the Vandalis house is doable and comfortable, anything more and there will be people who wake up with various stages of backache or kinked necks. On the first floor the main suite has a king bed, a large walk-in shower, and double sinks. There is also a half bathroom with a toilet and sink on the first floor common area. The second floor has everything else crammed into the smaller space. Again, the open-air sitting area has two sitting couches. You will find a shared full bathroom with a deep soaker tub, a single sink, and toilet. Additionally, the second floor has a separate queen bedroom with a single dresser and closet. Unfortunately, the smallest room has the most people potentially crammed in to the space. There are two single upper trundle beds with the additional two lower single slide-outs. Sadly, there is NOT enough floor space to utilize both trundle slide-outs. One slider blocks the second.upper bed from the person getting out, and the second lower trundle hits the ladder and requires part of the frame to remain under the upper bed frame. Speaking of the ladder, getting to the attic loft area in the small bedroom is best suited for children under five feet tall. There are two single mattresses on the loft floor and a fan to circulate air in the space, but NO HVAC outlet is present to cool the nook. If you have counted the number of people supposedly able to sleep in the smallest room, then six is the total, and we DO NOT recommend this option. Communication with the manager/owners was inconsistent to poor. Before arriving, we emailed the owners asking what kitchen items, toiletries, and smaller items were present, but sadly no reply. While at the property, the grille propane tank was less than 1/4, we asked for a new tank, and we received one, but the replacement was broken. Yes, we are grateful the Vandalia allowed us to sleep 12-people, but the images shown on the various rental websites are dated; they do not represent the house's current condition."

"Beautiful,clean, and cozy"

"Beautiful for place for spending an active vacation"

"Nice place to visit in fall season, perfect place for family outing."

"Really nice place in a great location. Hiking trails at your doorstep. The house was well kept and clean"