| Date | Rating | Comment
[Guest Comments: 25 positive, 0 negative]
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| 10/25/09 |
Positive
|
Hello Ben and Cathy,
We had a wonderful week at Dolphin Lookout. You are right-Dolphin Lookout is a place to get away from it all. We enjoyed the fantastic view of the ocean and across Scotland Bay from Dolphin Lookout's front deck. The best place to see the sunset was from your dock and also in a hammock at "Grabbers" with a cold beer. We loved kayaking to Scotland Bay and snorkeling in front of the Orchid Bay pavilion. Also the rides with the golf cart was amazing fun every day. Dolphin Lookout is a wonderful little house, with a lovely design inside and out, and very well equipped. We felt at home away from home. Finally your caretakers, Pat and Sidney, are great people. They were very helpful. By all means Dolphin Lookout will be a place where we will return someday.
Thank you and best wishes from Weimar,
Sandra & Enrico |
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Sandra Burgold & Enrico Herda, Weimar, Germany
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| 06/19/09 |
Positive
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Hi Ben and Cathy,
Where to begin? We had an absolutely fabulous time at your lovely cottage-what a perfect location.
It's hard to believe that there are still places like this where you can get away from absolutely everything-crowds, noise, light pollution, blaring car horns etc.
Our entire week was spent soaking up the scenery (and one or two frozen beverages at Nippers!), getting up late, making coffee, deciding what to do or not do for the rest of the day!Cruisers Net at 8:15am was a lot of fun, and not to be missed!Thank you for your advice..."leave your computer at home." We felt naked, but boldly accepted your recommendation. Sage advice, thank you.
The golf cart was great - the bumpy trails were no match for it and the perfect way to get around. We found Caysera Beach and quickly made it our favorite-we think we saw about 8 or 9 people the entire week we were there. Truly a picture-post card beach. We are still struck with awe that we should have such beauty and serenity unto ourselves.
Pat and Sidney were absolutely great and helped us get oriented-please pass on our sincere thanks to them, since we really didn't have time to thank them fully before we left.
Everything went like clockwork - the cottage itself was gorgeous, we couldn't have asked for anything more.The animal life is
truly unique - the lizard we saw perched on top of a large rock on Caysera beach was priceless, the people were fabulous - friendly and very helpful and make up a unique community.
Alburys Ferry, the flight in on American Eagle from Miami, and then the flight to Nassau on Abaco Air were fine - no problems at all.
We have been recommending Dolphin Lookout like crazy!!
In short, this was a vacation to be remembered for a lifetime - enjoyable, relaxing and just plain fun. We hope to be back soon!
A note from Nanette-Our lives and jobs hold us apart for now, but the time we spent at the Lookout served as a clear reminder that life can be far more simple-you just need to embrace it. Would liked to have stayed forever!!
...thank you again,
Steve and Nanette |
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Steve Howie and Nanette Longo, Guelph, Ontario, Canada |
|
| 03/05/09 |
Positive
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We had an absolutely wonderful time! Dolphin Lookout is a special place and we wanted for nothing. We so enjoyed all of the thoughtfulness that went into making Dolphin Lookout a special place.....the well stocked kitchen, the comfortable bed, the spectacular porch and views, the chairs and benches by the water, the ipod connection, the books, the VHF radio and Pat and Sidney's help. We spent many hours walking the beach and finding sea glass. We came home with a great collection of shells and glass. We ate all of our meals at the cottage....fresh fish everyday, toast with Irish butter and jam, avocados the size of grapefruits, pinapples and wonderful tomatoes. We saw pilot whales, spotted eagle rays, black tip reef sharks, and your resident barracuda and many fish at the dock. Other than that we honestly did nothing but relax and read good books. We had some great conversations and came to the realization that we missed taking the time to just talk. We did a lot of laughing too. Dolphin Lookout has the spirit and peacefulness we needed. We would like to return and explore more. We want to thank you for sharing your little piece of paradise with us! Thanks again, Ben and Cathy.
Sincerely,
Kathy and Paul Anderson |
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Kathy & Paul Anderson |
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| 08/29/08 |
Positive
|
Ben and Cathy,
We had such an incredible experience at Dolphin Lookout. What a wonderful piece of property that you have!Your caretakers, Sydney and Pat were awesome. There are so many highlights. The wedding of course was number one, but the marine life definately a close second. We saw dolphin cruising by the house, a shark, lots of colorful fish, starfish, baracuda and the list goes on. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to share your experience. We have already begun to recommend Dolphin Lookout to all of our friends(hope that's ok)!
Thanks again,
Nora and Trent |
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Nora Bryan-Doherty, Black Mountain, North Carolina
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|
| 08/11/08 |
Positive
|
Dear Ben & Cathy -
Words cannot describe and pictures cannot do justice to your Dolphin Lookout. This has to be the best property on the island. No matter how many times we came up the steps and turned to see the wonderful view, we were still awestruck.
You have done a wonderful job of creating the feel of being on a private ship with all of the careful details of the house. When you have an almost-360 view of the ocean(s) out of the windows, that's certainly how it feels. And to top all of that off, there's nothing lacking in the amenities that make a place feel homey.
Each morning was an adventure bumping up the trails and back from the settlement to see what fresh fish and produce we would be having for dinner.
In the afternoon, we would throw our snorkel gear in the cart and pick a new path to the water. We were always amazed with where we ended up and with the incredible reefs that abounded.
The local people are all so warm and hospitable. Not something you find just anywhere. From Johnny at Nippers (he went above and beyond his call of duty to help us out), to Milo at the produce stand, to Jerry and Dean at Seaside Villas, and then to Troy, Maria and Alan at Dive Guana, the Sylvans at the grocery store and the wait staffs at Grabbers and Docksiders, everyone was someone to remember. Pat and Sidney were most wonderful with their fountain of local knowledge. They are sincerely good people.
One of the most surreal experiences was on our last day when a storm came up in the west and was traveling down the Sea of Abaco while another storm was developing which took the Atlantic path. We sat on the porch and watched both with their black clouds and lightening shows go to either side of us and meet on the other side of Scotland Cay leaving the sun shining on us.
Thank you for allowing us the pleasure of Dolphin Lookout. It's truly a place we will never forget and to which we will certainly have to return.
Best wishes,
Joe & Jamie Garofalo
Cumming, GA USA |
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Joe & Jamie Garofalo, Cumming, GA |
|
| 08/07/08 |
Positive
|
Ben and Cathy,
Nelly and I had a wonderful time at Dolphin Lookout. Your caretakers, Pat and Sidney were great!! They were on time at the dock to greet us and were extremely nice and helpful. Both Nelly and I are hoping to return soon for another wonderful time at Dolphin Lookout.
Thanks again your place is beautiful!!!
Regards,
Rick and Nelly |
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Rick Castro, Doral, Florida
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| 07/29/08 |
Positive
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Hi Ben and Cathy,
As you know we recently returned from your FANTASTIC hideaway. First let me tell you how much we thoroughly enjoyed Dolphin Lookout.The house is amazing. It truly let us escape the insanity that we have been living the last few months. Dolphin Lookout served as a much needed retreat that fit the bill like nothing else could have. I don't need to tell you about the beauty, because you know all about that, but I truly felt like we had stepped right into one of those, "there's-not-really-a-place-like-that," Corona commericials. Pat and Sidney, your caretakers were great. We left our laptop at home so we used Nipper's phone and it worked out very well for us. The beaches are to die for. Thank you so much for sharing your place with us. We plan to be back as soon as possible. Jenifer and Nate. |
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Jenifer and Nate Bice, Bentonville, AR 72712
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| 07/29/08 |
Positive
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Dear Ben and Cathy,
We had an amazing time at your impressive hideaway. We loved kayaking-particularly in the evening. We saw some great marine life right where the 1st channel lets out from Scotland Bay into the Sea of Abaco. We saw a very big stingray-5.5 foot across, plus some large baracuda and predator fish. We also snorkeled inside of Scotland Bay near the 3rd farthest channel from Dolphin Lookout. I spotted a stingray who was camouflaged at the bottom hiding in the sand along with some lovely fish. We loved secret beach-went there 10 out of the 14 days and hardly ever had to share the beach with another human. We did have some marine visitors. After a storm we saw a 6 foot shark very close to the shore-about 1.5 feet off of the shoreline. We followed him up and down the shore as he patrolled looking for fish. Very exciting. The neighbors said they had seen a 6 foot nurse shark the day before. Also saw some great sea turtles.All and all I just can't tell you how this trip has stayed with us even weeks after returning. I think of the waves often, see my tan fade back into the city white, and remember lounging on the porch reading. I was very impressed with Victor Frankl's book, Man's Search for Meaning. I left a couple books from C.J. Sansom-fictional mysteries based on historical fact set in tudor England 1539.Thank you for opening up your way of life to those of us who are still searching.....We look forward to visiting again. Sincerely, William and Catherine |
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William and Catherine Doll, New York, NY 10021
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|
| 07/14/08 |
Positive
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Ben and Cathy,
We had a fantastic vacation at Dolphin Lookout. It
was a great week. As for the highlights of the
week, the kayaks were definitely a big hit. We also
enjoyed snorkeling and fishing off of the dock --
that is, when the barracuda that we kept seeing
under the dock would allow Chuck to actually catch
the fish! It took 2 fish from Chuck as he was
reeling them in, and grabbed a 3rd as Chuck was
releasing it back into the water. We had dinner at
Docksiders one night, and we were extremely
impressed with the food. It exceeded our
expectations -- although we had read it was
upscale, we weren’t expecting it to be that good
since the island is soooo laid back. We also enjoyed
a day trip to Hopetown and Man-O-War Cay for
some shopping and sightseeing, escorted by Troy
from Dive Guana. He was really nice and an
entertaining character. We sat on the dock just
about every night and watched the sunsets, and
one night, right as we were getting ready to head
back to the cottage, we saw a shark just slowly
swimming under the pier, between the kayak
launch and the dock. He disappeared under the
dock apparently heading back out to sea. We saw a
ray and an even bigger shark on our last night
there. I guess that our biggest thrill from the
whole trip was seeing the sharks and rays from the
dock, and from the kayaks in Scotland Bay -- we
are huge shark fans as you can probably tell!
Thanks for making the cottage so homey. We
appreciated the nice touches, like the i-pod
hookup, and the first aid items stored in the
bathroom. We feel you have shown trust and
understanding of guests' possible needs, and that
you really want your guests to be comfortable.
We experienced adventures every day, and saw
something new every day. We loved Dolphin
Lookout and definitely would love to come back. We
will recommend it to our friends that like
"adventure travel."
Thanks again for everything!
Alison and Chuck G. |
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Anonymous, Alabama |
|
| 06/09/08 |
Positive
|
Hi Ben and Cathy,
We had the absolute best time at Dolphin Lookout...it was exactly what we were looking for. Again, thanks for sharing your home with us...if it had sails we would have tried to sail it away :-)!!!
Best regards,
Luke and Emily Smith |
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Luke Smith, Golden, CO
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| 05/20/08 |
Positive
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Ben and Cathy,
We had a wonderful honeymoon at Dolphin Lookout! You have done a fabulous job with the house. Due to the prevailing winds we were unable to use the kayaks but other than that everything was perfect. The beaches on the Eastern side of the island we basically had all to ourselves and our snorkeling adventures in front of the house were also generally wind protected. We had a great time with Dive Guana on a dive/snorkel trip where we saw several reef sharks and some rays. We also visited Man-o-War Cay and Hope Town. The entire area is very charming and we hope to return someday in the future.
Again thank you for opening your house and sharing your hidden secret with us!
Aaron and Leah
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Anonymous, Portland, Oregon |
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| 04/16/08 |
Positive
|
Dear Ben and Cathy,
I can only repeat all of the fantastic things Wendy Porch stated below. After a long journey from London, and finally arriving at and seeing Dolphin Lookout, we knew we were in for a special treat. We experienced two weeks of great swimming, snorkeling off of beautiful reefs, and enjoying the star filled skies. All of these experiences were incredible. However, the highlights for me will always be the absolutely amazing sunrises from BED and sunsets from Dolphin Lookout dock on the bay side. As a side note, the golf cart rides to and from the settlement were always a great source of amusement. We are certain to be back for more adventures.
Best regards,
Alex |
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Alex Liszka, London
44(0)207 794 1559 |
|
| 04/11/08 |
Positive
|
Hi Ben and Cathy,
Wow!Dolphin Lookout is paradise. "A ship on land" is a perfer=ct description for Dolphin Lookout. There are so many things that we found make this such a very special place. We felt right at home the minute we walked through the front door. A nautical atmosphere surrounds you. The custom wood workmanship is superb. Additionally we loved the cottage's
furnishings with lots of brass fittings
including brass anchor and clipper lamps, and the rattan furniture with it's beautiful tropical fabric pattern. In Dolphin Lookout we found all things that open a "captain's heart." And how about that view-As you know we are from Germany and are experienced and professional sailors. We have experienced many beautiful views and paradises throughout the world. Without hesitation, we feel the view that surrounds Dolphin Lookout is one of the best if not the best we have seen anywhere. We love the spectacular view across the perfectly sheltered bay between Scotland Cay and Guana Cay. Scotland Cay's picture perfect white sand beach lined with cocunut palms, and the gorgeous turquoise/turquoise blue water, make an unbeatable combination. Additionally, we hardly saw anybody on the beach. This view from Dolphin Lookout reminded us of our sailing experiences in the South Seas-French Polynesia, including Tahiti, Bora Bora, Moorea etc. We have new name for Scotland Cay's beach. We call it Polynesian Beach. We so much enjoyed the peacefulness, clear air, bright blue skies, the sound of the wind, the waves, and the birds, and viewing the magnificent sunsets and sunrises, and the umbrella of stars at night. With the changing of the tides, we never got tired of looking at the amazing inner reefs and coral gardens which begin just in front of Dolphin Lookout and extend across the bay to Scotland Cay. Just about every morning, I (Fritz)enjoyed my kayaking experiences. It all started with the wonderful private Dolphin Lookout cove/dock area. From there I either paddled across to Scotland Cay Beach or up the Guana coastline to the settlement. You cannot be any nearer to nature than on a kayak, and it is one of the best ways to appreciate the crytal clear water. We have truly been inspired by our visit to Dolphin Lookout. If it gets any better than this, we would like to know where. Thanks for everything. We will be back next April. Please keep in touch.
Fritz and Ingrid |
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Fritz and Ingrid Romann, Germany
0171 4917147 |
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| 04/11/08 |
Positive
|
Good morning Ben and Cathy,
Dolphin Lookout is a wonderful place to stay. There is no better place to relax than at Dolphin Lookout. The views are breathtaking, the location is secluded and the journey down the golf cart path is quite an off road adventure.
We had a great time boating, eating, touring. Also, the Barefoot concert was a great show. We met many new friends, and including your neighbor at the Ocean Club. He was actually on the plane with us from Florida. He is a very nice man. We look forward to our next trip. Thanks for opening up your house to us for the week and your hospitality.
Laura and Matt |
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Laura Richards, New Jersey
973-568-2260 |
|
| 04/04/08 |
Positive
|
Dear Ben and Cathy,
I can only repeat all of the fantastic things that Wendy Porch stated below. After a long journey from London, and finally arriving at and seeing Dolphin Lookout, we knew we were in for a special treat. We experienced two weeks of great swimming, snorkeling off of beautiful reefs, and enjoying the star filled skies. All of these experiences were incredible. As a side note, the golf cart rides to and from the settlement were always a great source of amusement. However, the highlights for me will always be the absolutely amazing sunrises from bed and sunsets from Dolphin Lookout dock on the bay side. We are certain to be back for more adventures.
Best regards,
Alex |
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Alex Lisza, London
44(0)207 794 1559 |
|
| 03/24/08 |
Positive
|
Hi Ben and Cathy,
We had a wonderful experience at Dolphin Lookout and just loved it. Our flight down was delayed because of a storm so we ended up driving from Buffalo to Charlotte, NC to catch a flight. After being delayed a day, we eventually made it to Dolphin Lookout, and when we did, it was everything we hoped for.
You have a fabulous place, and we completely enjoyed ourselves and hope to return again one day soon. The weather started a bit rough and windy but ended up just beautiful by mid-week. We snorkled and fished every day, and we enjoyed lovely meals at Docksiders. The boat rental from Dive Guana turned out perfectly. Troy and Maria did a fantastic job. We got use to traveling back and forth in our golf cart to Dive Guana to pick up the boat. Next time we will get the "big wheel" golf cart. We didn't have a chance to use the kayaks as we ran out of time. We met your neighbors with the private harbor. They are very nice people.
We admired the craftmanship on Dolphin Lookout. Dolphin Lookout is comfortable, relaxing, and we want to thank you for opening up your house to us.
Have a great day and we hope to speak to you again, soon.
Kathie and Dave
P.S.Pat and Sidney were great too and very helpful. |
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Kathie and Dave Cronier, Ontario, Canada
289-897-9098 |
|
| 03/06/08 |
Positive
|
Dear Ben and Cathy,
We absolutely loved Dolphin Lookout!
The house if beautiful, the view spectacular and the people of Guana Cay are lovely!Pat and Sidney were great. We went snorkeling with Dive Guana and had a fantastic time. We also met a number of Canadians who were there on their boats so it was fun to spend some time with the 'boaties'. We also went to Man-O-War Cay for the school fund-raising flea market which was lots of fun (great food). The lunar eclipse was a real highlight! We sat out under the blanket of stars watching the moon turn red-and we noticed Venus hovering in the sky too! We think we'd love to return to Guana and Dolphin Lookout. We loved the little poetry booklet you left for us. Thank you for sharing your absolutely beautiful home with us! It was the best holiday we've had together!
All the Best,
Wendy |
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Wendy Porch, London, UK
44(0)207 794 1559 |
|
| 03/06/08 |
Positive
|
| What a great time we had in Guana. We managed to swim over to the beach at Scotland Cay and back. One of the best days. We had a wonderful time and are lamenting not still being there. Thank you for opening your home to us. It was a truly memorable vacation and we hope to be back for a visit in the future. |
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Sophie Campagne, Washington DC |
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| 03/05/08 |
Positive
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| We had a wonderful time staying back in December. Weather was ideal and lots of snorkelling. Saw some Dolphins and learnt to appreciate frozen cocktails. Docksiders was the best food, but Nippers has the best view! Dolphin Lookout is a superb place to get away from it all and we still very fondly refer to moments there |
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Anonymous |
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| 01/26/08 |
Positive
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| "Dolphin Lookout" With its beauty, calmness and tranquility your place in the Bahamas changes ones definition of "The Perfect Escape" forever! |
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Roger |
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| 01/10/08 |
Positive
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We had a wonderful experience. That is an awesome week to be on Guana. The Cay was busy but Dolphin Lookout is remote enough to give you privacy. We enjoyed the Golf cart Christmas parade and got to meet a lot of the locals and second homer's. New Years eve at Nippers was also a great experience. We had dinner(linens and fancy service) and enjoyed the festivities. Our golf cart from Donna's was very reliable and used only a quarter of a tank of gas all week. We should drive these in the states. The boat rental from Troy and Maria, Dive Guana, also was problem free. They would not let us keep the boat at the dock overnight.However, we did use the dock during the day and enjoyed the walk from the cottage to the dock. We explored a lot of the local reefs. They all seem to be very healthy. The beach by Orchid Bay pavilion is spectacular and rarely used. Beware of the Nipper's and Grapper's as they can really sneak up on you. Many good times were had at both places. Your cottage is well thought out and functions well. We liked all of the details that you have done to make things easier. It was nice to be able to darken the bedroom area to allow us to sleep in the morning while the sun came up. You have a little piece of PARADISE there, LOVED THE VIEW. WE HOPE TO BE ABLE TO STAY THERE AGAIN IN THE FUTURE.
STEVE |
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Steve Meckstroth, Bonita Springs, Florida
239-287-9481 |
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| 12/08/07 |
Positive
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Ben and Kath, we had a wonderful time at Dolphin Lookout, just wish it was for a longer time.What a location and view, and what a great cottage. The finish work on the interior is outstanding and custom wood working exceptional. Had my mother and father been able to experience Dolphin Lookout they would have felt they had "died and gone to heaven." Your caretakers, Pat and Sidney, are terrific. Use us as references, what you promised was exactly what we got,
Cheers, Iain and Wendy |
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Iain and Wendy Johnstone, Vancouver, B.C.,Canada
604-929-9593 |
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| 08/29/07 |
Positive
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Hi Ben and Cathy. KAI AND I HAD A WONDERFUL TIME!I was "shouting" above to communicate how great our week was. Except for the fact we didn't actually catch either of the two lobsters we stalked on the reefs in front of Dolphin Lookout, but we had a blast trying to get them. We found the lobsters and dove for them repeatedly, but they were successful in hiding in the reef from us. We ended up buying some from Milo. Kai knew how to cook them to perfection. Wow was that special.
Although we didn't catch the lobsters, we were successful in everything else we did. The diving was great! Troy Albury runs as good a dive shop as I've seen and I've had experience with a lot of dive shops.
Kai and I did swim and snorkel all over the bay between Dolphin Lookout and Scotland Cay. Spectacular!
We went bone fishing with Jody Albury and caught six fish and had a great time. My only regret was that Kai caught four of the six. It's humbling when the kids out perform us.
The restaurants were really good and fun to go to.
We loved the fact Dolphin Lookout is at the end of the island and pretty remote. Made use feel like we were somehow special.
The week was most memorable. Thanks again for making your home our home for the week.
Warmest regards,
Jim |
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Jim Deuser, McAllen, Texas
956-631-4835 |
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| 08/26/07 |
Positive
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| Ben and Cathy, we'd just like to thank you for a WONDERFUL honeymoon! Things could not have gone more smoothly or more ideally. Pat & Sidney(caretakers) were incredibly friendly as well as helpful and informative. The house was beautiful!The view was stunning and the location utopic. We cherished the privacy and had everything we could need. Each time we rode into town in our big wheel golf cart it was like a mini adventure. Every morning we awoke with the glorious sunrise, relaxed and had some breakfast, then snorkled across the bay to Scotland Cay and spent some time on the beautiful beaches before snorkeling back for lunch. Overall, it was an incredible escape and great way to begin our marriage. We saw so much wild life, enjoyed good food and drinks at the restaurants, including the crazy pig roast at Nippers. We also experienced scuba diving for the first time with Troy. Most importantly, we had ample time and space to truly relax and enjoy just being together. Again, thank you!Sincerely, Ashleigh and Dan |
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Ashleigh & Dan Murray, Seattle, Washington
541-274-1006 |
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| 07/27/07 |
Positive
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| My husbnd and I came to Dolphin Lookout for our honeymoon. It was truly the most amazing adventure and breathtaking experience. There were no pictures posted of the inside of the cottage so we were a little unsure, but the views looked so spectacular we really didnt care what was on the inside; however we were very pleasantly surprised at how perfectly clean and well put together the interior was. When it's said that you're likely to only see your own footprints in the sand at some of the beaches, its true! Beautiful white sand! The settlement was a lot of fun. We highly recommend going to Milos fruit stand and taking a minute to listen to his thoughts on life--a very interesting guy! As far as the dining, you have to try the blackened grouper sandwich at Orchid Bay. Service in Abaco is a bit laughable from what we're used to in the U.S. They are definitely on their own time frames, just relax and enjoy. If you're looking for a resort, this is not it. It is an exhilarating adventure on a golfcart through semi-rough terrain and jungle. There are crabs of different sizes and shapes; some bold who stand up with their pinchers braced, ready to combat your golfcart, then there are some that hide under shells and moss that it looks like the very earth is moving to find a little morsel of dinner. I don't think I could express just how wonderful this place is. It's my opinion that this cottage is the best place on the whole island for a couple to come and breathe, and it's the best place in the world I've ever been. Can I go back now? |
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Jamie Hall, Incline Village, NV, Lake Tahoe
(530) 412-3440 |
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