Villa Mandevilla

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• Anonymous

  19 February 2018

  My family and I stayed at Villa Mandevilla in Dec 2017 and it was the best vacation we have been on in 15 years. We used the kayaks and went out to spear fish and lobster and provided our own meals from the ocean right in front of the house. There is a small grocery about 10 minutes away that has all the essentials. We went on several excursions with German (diving, fishing) and he was an excellent tour guide. I thought the restaurants in town were fairly expensive so I was happy to have German's wife cook for us and the food was excellent. The house is huge and there is lots of space for everyone. Multiple balconies and bathroom for each room. WiFi worked great and we used the "wifi calling" on phones to make all the calls we needed with no charge. I never had a problem with the Roemers and they were extremely helpful before, during and after our vacation. Will never stay anywhere else while on Ambergris Caye!!!

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• Anonymous

  26 June 2017

  Had a wonderful time back in May. Our group rented the house for a week. German and Edgar were awesome. Owner Patrick happened to stop by one day and chat with us. Seems like a good guy. Why 2 stars? Because it is now 1 month since our trip and the $1,000 security deposit has yet to be returned even after several attempts to contact them.

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• Anonymous

  04 August 2016

  The house it self is awesome with plenty of room for 13 of us. It is a long way from town to get to a grocery store , about 45 minutes round trip. Unfortunately the beach was not really usable as it looks nice but when you enter the water you will sink a few inches into a mucky bottom that smells. We had golf carts that you can't do without and went north a couple of miles to use the beach. The pool is very small for the size of the house, good for soaking only. The caretaker "German" was awesome and did his best to make everything good for us. We used Germans services to take us on 3 boat excursions and they were great. Everyone snorkeled for hours including a 3 and 4 year old. German's boat saved the trip for us, but at a cost of a couple thousand extra. The mosquitoes got bad late in the day and at night you didn't want to go out. The area around the house is swampy. We also used German's wife to cook for us 2 nights, the food was very good but FYI make sure you get a price before you order as it was way more than we expected. That is the way it is in Belize, if you don't ask you will pay more. Could have gone to a restaurant and not had dishes to do.
  I am still waiting for a return on my $1,000 deposit and it has been over 4 weeks now. I was told it would be processed twice now, not sure why it is taking so long. I read other reviews that had a issue getting their deposit back as well. I will contact Home Away to see if they can help me with this. I waited 4 weeks to do this review in hope that the deposit would be returned so I could leave this part out but others need to know.
  The internet only worked for 3 days of our stay, one of those the power was out ( not their fault ). If you need to stay in touch with the outside world this might not be for you. The TV was also hit and miss as much miss as hit with a screen that displayed service would end until the bill was paid. I took a picture of that and sent it to the owner. I know TV shouldn't be an issue on vacation but with 6 kids and nothing outside for them to do it would be nice if it worked.
  Oh and the return of my deposit, I have been told that it has been mailed to my sons zip code with no city in the address. It is supposed to be processed through the credit card. I would like to think that was a accident. Home Away is working with me to help with the refund.
  All in all I would not recommend this property if it's beach you are looking for there are better choices.

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• Anonymous

  22 March 2015

  My family (extended) of 12 just returned from a wonderful 5-day stay at Villa Mandevilla, a big house perfect for a big group. Everyone was happy with their beautiful rooms, bathrooms (showers etc), the kitchen (although not stocked due to humidity and insect issues I was informed) , and especially the large couch and dining table offording us the ability to shmooze and dine all together - very special. The other outstanding asset was the pool with deck and beautiful water front property surrounded by mangroves. Breath taking.
  German, the caretaker, is the best. He was always available and extremely helpful. His snorkeling and fishing tours he provided us were far superior to the ones we had later had with a different tour company. His wife prepared us a few delicious Belizian dinner meals which was so nice!
  The other quality that stood out and impressed us was that the mangroves around the property are intact. We didn't realize how special that is until visiting and realizing that the majority of owners are chopping them down- and thus jeapordizing the health of the ecosystem both of the land and sea. There is so much destruction that it is highly likely that the reef system that Belize is famous for will no longer exist unless more people realize and take action in saving the remaining groves. They are beautiful and provide birding and animal viewing (besides quiet and greenery); we were so happy to have them to enjoy.
  We hope to return!

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