The location of the house is perfect. It is well furnished with linens. There’s plenty of dishes for use if needed. The deck with the rocking chairs provide an amazing and relaxing environment. I rated 3 out of 5 simply due to cleanliness and things that were outdated. The vents in the ceiling had lots of dust all around them. The bathrooms could’ve been cleaned better as well. The furniture inside is getting old and could be replaced. Overall, I would stay here again, but I feel that the place could use a little TLC.

Shem Cottage is a true little gem while reading the blue sigh out book I read that she was built in 1950 after Hurricane Hazel! She is in need of some love and furniture is definitely out dated!! Did have some interesting encounters with several roaches both inside and out but maybe due to the age of the home cracks things like that and beaches are prone to them.

This cottage is perfectly located! The oceanfront allowed our kids to swim, hunt for seashells and shark teeth, star gaze, fish and crab hunt. The cottage had everything we needed. Our family adored our stay.

We enjoyed the deck, outdoor shower, being directly on the beach, it was a wonderful week on the beach. we would definitely return.

This cottage is ON (front row!) a fantastic stretch of beach with amazing views from the living room, and the deck (even though it's on the back of the house it has a great line of sight to the beach). There was plenty there by way of amenities to meet our needs for the week from the kitchen, to the outdoor gear, washer/dryer, etc. The exterior shower/cleaning stations weren't working but Vacasa was on it and had a solution sorted out within 24 hours. The town is close (groceries and restaurants within a 10 minute drive) and has enough to meet any daily need. Walmart and more restaurants are less than 20 minutes away. Two little things I would point out to avoid disappointment: 1 - the bathrooms are very tight spaces (no knee or elbow room if you know what I mean) and 2 - there is no covered exterior space (except right under the house) so when it rains or if your tired of the sun the only option is to head inside, but the views are great there so it's not so bad. For us 10 out of 10, would stay again.

Check in was a breeze, home was clean and we loved the views from the living room windows. The porch on the front of the home has rockers but no table. We loved the refrig style!! It adds to the classic beach vibe this house gives. We loved our stay and will plan on staying again!!!

This amazing property checked all the right boxes for a great romantic getaway. We will definitely book again in the future.

We absolutely loved our stay this past week. The location cannot be beat. We found beautiful shells and sharks teeth, and food lion/shops were very convenient.

House was clean. I would stay there again.

Shem Cottage was the perfect beachfront place for our group of 4 adults and 3 toddlers. We loved the ocean views from the living room and being so close. The house has everything you need. Beds are comfortable and kitchen is well stocked. We’ll definitely be back!

You are a 30 second walk to the water! The view from the windows, priceless. Sunrises and sunsets, memorable. Home was completely furnished so we were able to prepare our own meals, shower, sleep. Is it the Ritz...no : if you are looking for a multi-million dollar home that rents for $5000-6000 a week - no this is not the place for you. We did not find many other options in this price range for an 'oceanfront' option! It was clean upon arrival, all linens and towels were there, washer and dryer worked as expected. All the negative reviews I have read on this property previously seem to be resolved or maybe this just wasn't the property some expected? For myself, my husband and our 16yr old daughter, coming from the 19 degree midwest over Thanksgiving...the sunshine and 70 degree weather here was AMAZING - we had a wonderful vacation.

Fridge was filthy...house was loaded with roaches..waited over 2 Year's for this vacation...we left after 3days.. received less than a third of our money back.. office manager acted like she could care less... really hoping home office steps up...

This was an awful experience, the house was filthy full of roaches and mold, multiple calls to the management company for assistance and no one showed until the day we were getting ready to leave, there were no linens no towels no paper towels no toilet paper nothing in this house and the rental company could have cared less. They brought us towels on Friday the day before we left!!!

Home is rustic, showing it’s age, and was not very clean upon arrival however met our needs for the week. View and access was great!

It was on the beach

The beach is at your doorstep, literally! Loved having such amazing beach access. The enclosed outdoor shower was convenient and appreciated. The kitchen is well equipped. There are lots of books, games and beach equipment available for use also. The house is “rustic” but well maintained. The AC kept us nice and cool. It was enjoyable to sit on sun patio and gaze at the beach or the stars. The only draw backs: mattress in room that was oceanfront did not provide a restful night. The mattress was uneven and saggy. Washer was broken upon arrival. Company attempted to fix on Thursday with no luck. Despite those drawbacks we would recommend this “rustic” gem. Thank you to the homeowners for sharing their house.

I want to rate this higher, but can’t. Overall I had a good experience with this rental, but most of the good was because I’d never vacationed as an adult… and Holden Beach itself is amazing. My disappointment began before I even left home. I was called the day before I was scheduled to check in and informed that the washer that was included in my rental would not be available during my stay due to repairs needing a part on back order. No worries, I asked if there were any reconciliation to this issue, perhaps a slight adjustment to my rate… 12 days later and I have yet to receive an answer. The local office staff were very pleasant at check-in. The location of the house is a good as advertised. Right on the beach, with a private walkway over the dunes. The porch is in the front of the house, but still offers a good view of the ocean and beach. Inside the home was a bit of a letdown, but not too bad. There were a few odd odors we could not determine the source of, the couch was a little stinky as well, under the cushions is a substantial amount of animal hair, which is rather significant since this rental is supposed to be no pets. The woodwork is amazing and prevalent throughout the home. The bath and a half were accommodating, though the half is a little tight for larger folks. First night there, we encountered my biggest complaint scurrying across the floor. I contacted Vacasa immediately and while being very pleasant and empathetic, the lady on the other end of the line could offer no more than a promise to have local management contact me ASAP. I was never called, but an exterminator showed up promptly the next morning. After a brief consultation and showing him what we had, he informed us the the unwelcome guests were a fairly common pest known as water bugs. He sprayed the outside while there and had us contact him when we went out later that day so he could come in and spray inside. Can’t confirm if he actually did, but I can tell you whatever he put down didn’t work too well. We encountered 2-3 water bugs a night the duration of our stay. While chasing one down I looked under a bed in the room with the four beds. It appeared it hadn’t been cleaned under in ages, with significant dust accumulation and sand. A check under the bed in the smaller of the queen rooms revealed a similar situation, along with a couple of dead water bugs. The indoor shower was very easy to get into, good water pressure and a massaging shower head. The shower curtain was a bit of a shock as it has substantial mildew accumulation. The batteries to one of the television remotes were badly corroded, rendering the device useless. The kitchen is very well equipped, the appliances all worked well, and I really appreciated the full compliment of dishes and cookware. The views from within the house are wonderful, it was nice waking up and seeing the beach from bed. Linens were included in my rental and were very comfortable. The outdoor shower under the house was incredibly useful and convenient. The extra shower head at the end of the walkway is great, offering hot and cold water to rinse the sand off. Word of advice, red is cold, blue is hot. As the title states, this rental has all the things to make a 5 star review… if the few negatives can be eliminated.

The ocean front view here is the best we have ever had. The kids enjoyed the bunk room and the great books and games.

I enjoyed the week stay at this place. It only wasn’t rated better because the washing machine wasn’t working as advertised so it put my family in a bind without clothing for the full trip and we had to do a lot of hand washing and buying new clothing to get by. Also there were roaches. Otherwise the house seemed clean and had everything we needed. It was the house closest to the ocean, which was so neat being right on the water

This oceanfront house was perfect for our little family`s winter getaway. The beach access is ideal. We loved watching the sunrise and the sunset, right from the living room. The beds were comfortable and the kitchen has everything you need. We hope to return in the warmer months!This review was submitted while the home was managed by a different property management company.

This oceanfront house was perfect for our little family`s winter getaway. The beach access is ideal. We loved watching the sunrise and the sunset, right from the living room. The beds were comfortable and the kitchen has everything you need. We hope to return in the warmer months! This review was submitted while the home was managed by a different property management company.