Whale's Tail Beach Cottage
House in Rio Del Mar, CA
6 guests · 3 bedrooms · 1 bath
Reasons to book
Guests love it hereGuests give this property a top rating
Free cancellationFull refund if you change your mind
High-end valuePrice for this property is higher than average in the area
About this house rental
updated beach cottage on a sunny lot just steps to the beach. Charm & modern touches throughout. Open kitchen, living, dining area has pre-finished hardwood floors, crown molding & access through a French door to a fenced outside patio. Living room has a gas insert fireplace w/ brick hearth. Kitchen features granite counters, custom subway tile backsplash, Bosch glass top range, maple cabinets, & French-door refrigerator. There is a washer/dryer. Upgraded bathroom with new fixtures & tiled bathtub/shower. Bedrooms are carpeted, with plenty of natural light. Sunny patio offers opportunities for lounging, or extra entertaining space accessible from the kitchen & Living room. The homes location in Rio Del Mar is easily accessible from Hwy 1 & just a short walk to the stunning coastline & beach, with plenty of restaurants, coffee shops, & other amenities nearby.
Amenities
Kitchen or Kitchenette
Internet / Wifi
Fireplace
Parking
Laundry
Balcony or Patio
TV
Garden
Family friendly
Map of Rio Del Mar, CA
$$$$
Ratings and reviews
10.0 / 10.0
Great place for our young family to take a vacation. Would recommend! 5 Stars!
10.0 / 10.0
What a perfect little home away from home! We loved our stay! The beach is so close by!
10.0 / 10.0
Very comfortable cottage for small family and easy walk to the beach. We appreciated the beach toys!
8.0 / 10.0
The location is awesome, only 3 easy walking blocks away from the beach. House is spacious enough for 3-5 people max.
The house does not have a coffee maker or dishwasher. The bathtub in the only bathroom fills up very quickly and does not drain well while showering so we had to constantly turn the water off, let it drain then continue our baths. Needless to say we took very fast showers because of this. The rug does slip and slide in the living room so be cautious when moving around in there.
The owners were able to fix a few issues while we were there so that was appreciated. We had a quick trip and location worked for us.
10.0 / 10.0
Great cottage a few blocks from the beach. Fireplace was great and house, kitchen well stocked with everything you need
10.0 / 10.0
Myself and my family truly enjoyed our stay. House was very clean, everything worked and was very comfortable. We loved the location. Neighborhood was walkable and had good food options. A definite place to come back to.
10.0 / 10.0
Thank you for sharing your wonderful home. We had a fantastic stay. Your home is very well appointed and the beds are very comfy!
We loved that it's only a few blocks to the beach and thank you for recommending Pixie Deli and New Leaf grocery. Both were terrific.
10.0 / 10.0
We were celebrating our granddaughter's birthday at the beach and meeting up with family at nearby Seacliff Beach and the location here was perfect. We were lucky to have beautiful weather during our stay and the place feels just like home. Our granddaughter was super excited to find books and gamed and loved every minute of staying here and so did we. Although it is a smaller home, there is plenty of space and it is very comfortable.
10.0 / 10.0
This was the perfect first family vacation. Wife and I brought our 2 year old and we had a blast. House was kid friendly including children books, family games and even a few toys. Beach is only a few blocks away and easy to access. This is definitely on the list for return visit.
10.0 / 10.0
This home was comfortable, clean, and delightful. The beautifully painted whale mural on the outside immediately welcomes you into relaxing home away from home. The owners have made this home feel like a cozy beach sanctuary and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay here.
10.0 / 10.0
Had a great stay at your place. Location is superb. For us it was walking distance to our relatives which was so convenient .Coffee shop and beach just a 5 minute walk. Would definitely stay here again.
10.0 / 10.0
The little cottage was perfect for us. Close to beach and my son’s in Soquel. Comfortably furnished. The bathroom could us some updating especially grab bar in tub/shower. Felt a little uneasy showering in slippery tub.
10.0 / 10.0
Very clean. Luv fireplace! Time to talk n enjoy family time. 💜
10.0 / 10.0
Great home in a great location
10.0 / 10.0
I give this property an A+. Even though I didn't get to meet Wesley in person, I can say he is so accommodating and wonderful to work with. We discussed my fear of covid since we were renting the house back to back with another renter. He asked them to mask up to clean!!! The home was perfectly spotless and even smelled so clean! My hat is off to you Wesley!!!! We had also asked if we could check in a bit early. He emailed me to let me know when the cleaners finished so we we could go in early! Who does that??? The kitchen was well appointed. I cook a lot and it had everything I needed. The king bed was very comfortable as well as the bathroom being big enough to move around! We walked the beach everyday, went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium and walked W. Cliff Drive in Santa Cruz to Natural Bridges State Beach. It was a 6 mile walk (round trip) from the Wharf. There is plenty of parking along the way if you would rather drive. The highlight for us though was at the Wharf with seeing all the sea lions in their natural habitat. We even got to see them fighting with eachother!! Aptos was a nice central place to stay while visiting the area and The Whales Tail was the cat's meow!!!!
10.0 / 10.0
The cottage is tastefully appointed , especially the master bedroom. Everything was in good working order, the property is well maintained throughout. The cottage would be most ideal for 4 adults, but we were very comfortable w 5 adults who like each other a lot. The 1/2 bedroom off the living room has a 1.5 ish futon that was perfectly comfortable for the single in our group. It has a door for privacy, as well as a door to the patio for cool ocean breezes. I liked my tiny half bedroom, wasn’t sure how comfortable I would be in the half bedroom from the property description. Parking is tight, as it is throughout this neighborhood; we squeezed 2 rental cars into the parking spot, and had no trouble finding street parking for the 3rd car. Very nice cottage, I appreciate the attention to detail, good value, short walk to the beach, perfect choice for our family time. Thank you!
10.0 / 10.0
Great R & R
My husband, teen daughter, her friend and our 5yr old stayed for 2 awesome nights. The house was very inviting and cozy. The walk to the beach was easy and we were very happy we didn't have to deal with the parking lot. The house was equipped with everything we needed. The neighborhood was nice and quiet. Wesley was a dream to deal with. We will be back!!!
10.0 / 10.0
Lovely getaway
My family of 4 enjoyed our stay in this cozy cottage… so close to the local beach and a short drive to others nearby (ie Capitola, Pájaro Dunes, Santa Cruz) too! Loved the whale mural—we always knew which house was ours!! 🐳
10.0 / 10.0
Awesome location!
We loved the cute details and warm homey feel here, plus walking distance to the beach each day for our two little kids was wonderful! We'd love to stay here again sometime.
10.0 / 10.0
Beautiful clean home by the beach
The home was as advertised. Nice clean home fully equipped to have a great vacation. My family and I really enjoyed our stay and our communication with Manager was great. I have definitely listed this a favorite place to visit. It is also walking distance to the beach.
10.0 / 10.0
Fair price, great location
5 min walk to a beautiful, kid friendly beach. Easy check in process. Everything was clean, and the kitchen is well stocked with necessary appliances and dishes. Comfy beds with lots of closet space. Kid and baby friendly! The rooms could use some curtains to block the morning sun so the babies don’t wake up at the crack of dawn, but other than that, we loved our stay and would definitely come back again. It was easy to communicate with Wesley, via VRBO chat.
10.0 / 10.0
Quiet neighborhood, walk to beach
Enjoyed walking the beach each morning. Nice quiet neighborhood. Well equiped comfortable home. We felt right at home right away.
10.0 / 10.0
A wonderful house near the beach
This house is in lovely Aptos, a beach town. The house is just a few minutes walk from the beach (which allows dogs). There are a couple of nice beach cafes which are perfect for a casual meal by the water.
This is a house that we would love to rent again.
10.0 / 10.0
A nice place to stay
It was ideal for the two of us. The full kitchen is a really nice feature and saved us from going out into the crowds.
10.0 / 10.0
Christmas at the Beach
Adorable cozy cottage with everything one would need.
Perfect location for sunset beach walks! Comfy beds with beautiful linens. Very tastefully decorated! We all thoroughly enjoyed our stay!
10.0 / 10.0
Thanksgiving at the Beach
Excellent stay, hosts allowed us to invite others to our family TG there. We appreciated it and had a great time there. Thanks!
10.0 / 10.0
Quality decor, close to beach
This is a great place for a small family gathering! Kitchen was well equipped, linens and beds were beautiful, shower pressure was great. There is no outside area to hang out but that was okay because it is an easy 3 blocks to the beach! Will come again.
10.0 / 10.0
Great weekend getaway
Adorable, clean, little house with all you need. And fabulous location for walking to the beach. Close to neighbors but that's typical for beach properties. Loved the extra room with futon - just enough space to do yoga each day and would be a great room for kids.
10.0 / 10.0
Return trip
Our second trip to Whales Tale and another lovely time. The location is perfect and has everything a family would need. Owners are incredibly kind and responsive. We can’t wait to go back!
10.0 / 10.0
Relaxing & Comfy Cottage
Relaxing, clean, quiet, comfortable and convenient location to the beach and the Santa Cruz area. Suggestions; microwave and dishwasher would be a huge plus. Whale's Tail Cottage will not disappoint. Will return again.
10.0 / 10.0
Darling 2 bedroom Cottage ~ Easy walking distance to beach
The cottage was a delight and tastefully decorated, comfortable furnishings, kitchen was well stocked~pots, plates, glassware etc and plenty of staples which was nice. Linens and towels were very nice. Nice BarBQue and 2 chairs on patio (perhaps 2 reg height folding chairs might be a nice addition)
There was no microwave, tough with leftovers from restaurants or rewarming coffee or popping popcorn we brought. The patio was small, fine for us but not sure where kids would play. Also, we have a very large truck and parking was a challenge in the spot provided on the property.
We totally enjoyed being able to walk to the beach and restaurants and would highly recommend staying here on your vacation. Sandy
10.0 / 10.0
A comfy little house by the beach
Our group of four friends had an excellent time on a long weekend staying at this relaxing and comfortable house in Aptos. Nice hikes and bike rides nearby, and Santa Cruz is very close (traffic allowing). The beach and waterfront path are only a couple of short blocks away, without any stairs or steep pathways to negotiate. We had a glitch the first night with some missing sheets for the extra foldout bed, but the hosts responded promptly and had a set dropped by. The kitchen is well supplied with dishes, pots and pans, etc., but note there is no microwave or dishwasher. Overall a great stay!
8.0 / 10.0
Cute Cottage
Not far from the beach - this is a a cute cottage.
10.0 / 10.0
Great Place
Great communication from owner on check-in process and home and area amenities. House was clean and was thoughtfully stocked with necessary items. We had a great time exploring Monterey and Big Sur and it was good to have a nice place to come home to at night.
5.0 / 10.0
This is a gem. My husband and I stayed with our two kids (4 and 7) and it was perfect for us. The location is a short walk to the beach, and my kids especially liked the “tiny room” with the futon Thanks, Wesley and David!
10.0 / 10.0
Delightful Cottage in a Wonderful Location
This is a gem. My husband and I stayed with our two kids (4 and 7) and it was perfect for us. The location is a short walk to the beach, and my kids especially liked the “tiny room” with the futon 🤣 Thanks, Wesley and David!
10.0 / 10.0
Lovely cottage by the sea
Property is located close to beach access. Cute cottage,clean and welcoming. Main bedroom bed was very comfortable. Pleased overall.
10.0 / 10.0
Lovely house, great location
Comfortable, CLEAN, and well-stocked house in Aptos! Three minute walk to the beach. Beautifully well-stocked kitchen- make sure you check the fridge before you grocery shop for your stay! Plenty of condiments and odds and ends provided. We loved our comfortable stay at Whales' Tail.
10.0 / 10.0
Clean, beautiful home
Beautiful, well-stocked, comfortable home in a great location.
10.0 / 10.0
Great location, cute property
Perfect stay for 3 of us, very short walk to the beach, which has a deli, corner store, and pizza place. Sweet! Other places in aptos we looked at had longer walks descending cliffs - this was quick and easy. Owners very helpful and courteous. Would definitely stay again!
FAQs
How much does this house cost compared to others in Rio Del Mar?
The average price for a rental in Rio Del Mar is $684 per night. This rental is $122 less expensive than the average.
Is parking included with this house?
Yes, parking is listed as an amenity at Whale's Tail Beach Cottage. For more information, we encourage you to contact the property about where to park.
Is there a pool at this house?
We didn’t find pool listed as an amenity for this house. It may be worth double checking if a pool is important for your stay.
Is Whale's Tail Beach Cottage pet friendly?
Unfortunately, this house is not pet-friendly. Try searching again and filter for "Pets Allowed"
What amenities are available at Whale's Tail Beach Cottage?
We found 9 amenities for this rental. This includes kitchen or kitchenette, internet / wifi, fireplace, parking, and laundry.
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