Carolina Retreats Reviews 

House was clean and ready for us and was exactly what was advertised to be. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay. We have used Carolina Retreats 5 years in a row and have never been disappointed in their rentals. Thank you for wonderful service and properties.

The thing I disliked most was working with the realty company. We had requested early check in because of a handicap guest that was coming with us. We understood it was not guaranteed but early check in was available for $75 and I was willing to pay for it. I was told to call the morning we were getting to the island. Because of the storm we were told even if the house was ready, nobody could get in, I called twice and said the handicap guest has trouble with public bathrooms. We really need to get in as quickly as possible. Even if it’s only a 30 to 60 minute difference. We had left a little earlier because of the storm as we knew it would take longer to drive through . The guest ended up having to use a porta potty and it did not work out well. We hung out by a close public beach and could tell that the house was ready because no one showed up while we were waiting. We we’re still not allowed in because of the storm and the policy that they stated would not allow anyone in before 4 because of the storm and workers not being able to clean early enough. We were told the computers won’t allow it. No mention of this previously to the storm. The issue I had was the house was definitely done, and it felt like the preparation for times like this was inadequate, considering the storm was not as bad as it could have been. When we finally got into the house, it was not as clean as it could have been adding issue to us having to wait. I don’t mind cleaning something or if the house isn’t spotless. It’s a vacation and we aren’t that picky. There were noticeable food crumbs on the kitchen floor, the silverware tray was gross, roaches in the house especially the one bedroom. The wrap used for linens looked dirty and the towels were stained. I know storms can bring bugs and it can be hard to keep them away. There were quite a bit of roaches on the decks and one brave enough to crawl on people. The time needed to clean didn’t appear to be utilized appropriately. I don’t mind cleaning as we did but I do mind having to accommodate when no accommodations were even attempted for us. This may not seem like a big deal to everyone but for our handicapped relative that hadn’t been to the beach for years because of medical issues it was very uncomfortable. Love Topsail but do not plan to use this company again nor could I recommend them. Others may have great experience and I would not try to take away from that.
I thought the house itself was great. Beautiful home. Great location plenty of features. Wasn’t thrilled with the lack of opening windows in the main living area or notation of that. The thermostat also constantly reset overnight and shut off so everyone was hot every night. The beds were not comfortable.

The promptness of the company was great in resolving any issues. We loved the rental and we were informed by maintenance that the updates of the house were scheduled soon. (Basic maintenance)
Everyone was friendly and knowledgeable.

Everything was perfect at our vacation at Shore Feels Good! The house was clean and well stocked. Perfect location and walking distance to beach. Carolina Retreats was responsive to any of my questions. Can’t wait to go back.

Great customer service! Great communication. Answered my questions quickly. Very helpful. I would definitely rent a house from them again. Thank you Nicole for all your help.

Great house, clean, full kitchen- every utensil needed- best house we've rented in that respect.
Toilets are low style, like sitting on the floor- not so great. Very few steps to beach from deck. Neighbors had barking dogs, very disturbing. Would rent this house again. Management company NEVER bothered to return call for issues- not good. Leak on porch and had some bugs, house needs to be sprayed

The inside of the dishwasher was a foul smelling swamp of standing water, and German cockroaches were all over the kitchen at night.

The house we had last year from Carolina Retreats was quite nice, but this experience will make us think twice about coming back with CR.

(We’ve been coming to Topsail Island almost every year since 1991)

Carolina retreats were great to work with. The staff was friendly. They were very easy to communicate with. We had an issue with our condo and they sent someone out right away to fix the issue.

Everything was great. The air conditioner problem was an issue. I wish it could of been fixed before we got there We would definitely book again if you guys showed that you know that was an issue

When we arrived there were several issues that needed fixed. We sent pictures and no one ever came out to repair what needed fixed. We make over 3 calls and crickets. It was very dangerous trying to get to the beach with the big hole and drop off at the end of the small walk way....we tried to repair it ourselves so we could get to the beach. First time using this service and we were not happy with how our vacation went.

This place is amazing and in the perfect location!! The room had great modern touches, very clean, and the bed was so comfortable!! The pool area was great and very clean as well!! We arrived early and the staff was so friendly and beyond accommodating to let us check-in!!
We will be returning soon!! Book your stay at this little gem on Oak Island!! You will not be disappointed!!

Our rental house was situated right on N. Topsail Beach and the views were exceptional.

Terrible Management Company-
We are an owner of a property managed by Carolina Retreats and once Mike Harrington sold it the service/lack of service is terrible. Our vacationers are having terrible experience with poor cleaning, broken items, etc with no response. Their property maintenance claims to inspect after every rental and we hear from tenants about a ton of sand on the floors, broken items, etc. The maintenance company even glued a loose faucet to marble rather than get under the sink and tighten the nut. Real Shoemakers.

My wife emailed Danny Williams and still no response.

Stay away from these people.

Pros - The house overall was really good. Plenty room for 5 adults and two little ones. Location was fantastic.
Cons - if it rains at all while you are there, the entire driveway is flooded. Over your ankles!! It is disgusting! Trying to take to kids to the beach or packing/unpacking the car while hiking through a flood of mud, sand, water and who knows what…not worth the $! It was horrible. Out of the 7 days we were there, 5 of them, we walked daily through filth outside. With KIDS! Terrible. I would not stay here again for that reason. No way, does the owner or management agency does not know about this and there is nothing being done about it. It’s terrible.

Hi! Me and my family have been coming to sand pebbles for over 15 years and each time it has been an exceptional experience. Everything with the booking, the accommodations as well as the condo and all of its amenities were always great. Website for booking and the staff I worked with were incredible and made super easy. I do have to make mention about one very negative experience that we had on this last trip. There is a 41 year old tenant claiming she lives there at unit C11 that gave our family and 3 other families (that we do know of) a very hard time. She kept following our and other families trying to engage in adult behaviors whilst around small children. This got worse when she would be putting hands on and handling the individual kids in the pools without asking or acknowledging the parents. Though-out the trip, her and her 28 year old boyfriend of 2 weeks were making it a point to follow and “stalk” ours and other families and this was not acceptable for a place to come to relax on vacation with kids. When asked to stop she did but the experience was still an aggravation and this in my opinion can heavily deter families that have never stayed here from coming back. And this is a shame as I have stated for over 15 years I have not had this sort of experience but I love the stay as well as the beach location. I personally will return and would happily use Carolina retreats and sand pebbles units in the future but will hope to not run into this encounter again.

The staff is always so friendly and helpful. We had a couple of maintenance issues to report and they were addressed quickly with courteous service.

We rented 2 houses from Topsail Realty for last week of July 2023. One house was great but the other had a big problem. The house had 2 air conditioning units, one for each floor. The day after we arrived, there was no air conditioning on the first floor where all the bedrooms are. We called and texted Topsail realty and left messages. No one responded! The next day I drove to Topsail Realty in Surf City and spoke to the receptionist. She had no record of any of our calls and texts. She arranged for a hvac company to come the next day and said she would send 4 window units to hold us over. They only brought one window unit and said that was all they had. Hvac company came out and said all the Freon leaked out but they put more in because it was a “slow leak”. The unit stopped working again a few hours after they left. Contacted Topsail realty again, their response was they were contacting Hvac company for an update. That was the last time we heard from Topsail Realty. We left 3 days later because the rental was up. Do you know how hot and humid it is in Topsail in July! Would you like to sleep in an unairconditioned bedroom on your vacation? Well we had 3 hot bedrooms! I paid a lot of money for this house and didn’t deserve to be treated like this. I have always rented from Topsail Realty in the past but will definitely look for other options in the future. I also feel I should be compensated in some way to show good faith! Topsail Realty needs to improve their communication with their renters. To just ignore phone messages/texts is not acceptable. I should not have to spend my vacation doing someone else’s job! Very Disappointed!!

Very clean and modern beach stay. Walking distance to beach, coffee/breakfast shop, restaurants, pier, and mini grocery store. Not super busy with tourists and very calm and relaxed.

Very pleasant to work with and the home is beautiful.