>UPDATED: A canned response on a review is NOT how to handle legitimate guest issues. Still no calls or refunds for issues & unused stay. ----------- As a heavy traveler who has been to numerous hotels, motels, boutique and VRBO’s all across North America, Sunset Cove of Anna Maria Vacations takes the prize for the most stressful and worst place we have ever stayed. We could look past the peeling paint, scuffed walls, broken and missing window coverings, stained sheets, furnishings from the 80’s, tired furniture, chipped plates and moldy fridge because at least we thought the place was clean (until we saw the sheets) and had a beach view. What we couldn’t overlook is the long list of safety issues, lack of regular maintenance and how the black mold covering the air vents made us physically sick. These are just some of the major issues with 3302 Gulf Drive unit 202: 1. Elevator was not working for the first 48 hours, even though we had a person navigating the stairs with crutches. 2. No lighting at night on the stairs or hallways, making it pitch black to try to find your way. 3. Missing (because it was removed), smoke alarms. 4. Two sets of sliding doors to the back deck that did not lock (easily accessible to get in). 5. Large amounts of Black mold at multiple vents throughout the family room, kitchen and bedrooms. 6. Broken shelving in the kitchen (that fell on us) as well as stained carpets and other random broken items. We immediately contacted Anna Maria Vacations by their portal, phone number and email. Anna Maria Vacations did address some of the smaller issues relatively quickly, such as the doors that didn’t lock. Anyone could have walked up and right into the condo at anytime from the beach or street. The two safety issues we could not get past, and forced us to leave the unit after two days: 1. Broken safety lights. The lack of any safety lighting on the back stairs and enclosed hallway at night were inexcusable and dangerous. Without a flashlight it was impossible to see where to walk on the steps or find the door to the unit. Trying to navigate with a flashlight and crutches is impossible. 2. Black mold covered almost every air vent in the condo, made worse, by the constant dripping water on the floors, counters and furniture. After slipping on the kitchen floor, we had to leave a towel on the tile floor in that spot, so we didn’t slip again in the puddles. After staying one night we started to feel sick. At first it seemed like allergies-irritated eyes, coughing. But then it progressed to intestinal issues. In turn, this meant we cancelled meals out and missed spending time with family that were staying at a gorgeous property on 69th street. The 72 hours we stayed in unit 202- felt like work days, not a vacation. Our days were spent conversing with the management company and dealing with maintenance issues. Nights were sleepless from the coughing and major temperature drop in the bedrooms. There was at least a 10-15 degree difference in the bedrooms compared to the family room. Window coverings would have been helpful to not only help block the sun in the evenings but also the light from the entire glassed back of the unit that spilling onto the beach during turtle nesting season. The final insult was learning that we paid a huge price -total about $5k for this unit that the management company knew was barely rentable. How? During our stay we noticed the website had been updated to say it was imminently going under major renovations. Terri, the Manager at Anna Maria Vacations said her hands were tied to address most of the issues. We hold them responsible, since it is their job to make sure properties are suitable to rent. It is painfully obvious the unit owners have been MIA for years. As for the Sunset Cove HOA that controls the (lack of) lighting. They are 100% liable for any and all issues related to the basic safety at the property. Please look closely at the reviews for Anna Maria Vacations, rent with them at your own risk.

733 Holly Rd., Anna Maria Island, Florida Please do not rent this house. You’ll regret it! Never before has our family been so disappointed in a vacation, and Anna Maria Vacations should be ashamed of hosting this property, for so many reasons. Mainly, there has been no basic general maintenance at this property and it should not be rented as a vacation home, period. Our family has rented stunning homes on Anna Maria over the years but never from this company. Obviously we will never use or recommend this company in the future. It took me some time to do a review, because we were disappointed, and frankly embarrassed that we were taken advantage of by advertising and photos that were probably from a remodel that happened some time ago. We’ve been visiting Anna Maria Island for many years. Following Covid, our family vacation was much anticipated, and the family including 6 grandchildren were very excited to return to the island and enjoy a beautiful beach home with a pool, and the beach close by. First impression- We were greeted by piles of dead leaves all over the drive and porch, and a rusty bike laying in the trees. The welcome mats were dirty and covered in leaves, one was even dog chewed. Upon entry, the house on the lower level was inundated with the smell of mildew and mold. There is no dehumidifier and the dampness was apparent. The air vents in the kitchen were dripping condensation. The bottom floor which houses 3 bedrooms and two baths, plus the furnace room in the kids bunk room smelled so bad, two people were wheezing and coughing. One was a child and had to go to the doctor because she was coughing continuously. Upon inspection of the air conditioning filters we found two that were completely coated with dander and hair…we pulled them out and placed them outside. We replaced one filter that we found in a close on our own, and had to call to get the other one replaced. We also purchased buckets of Damp Rid which filled up in hours. The washing machine, located in the upstairs kids room, had a moldy seal and barrel. Maintenance did inspect and ordered a new seal, who knows if they ever received or installed it. The filth was everywhere in this home, inside and out. Grime, dog hair, dirt on the walls, doors, even grease stains on the ceiling above the stove. The exterior and screened porch was just as bad, and needs a good power wash and paint. The outdoor cushions on the screened in porch and pool (which is extremely small) were stained and filthy too. We had to remove the cushions on the lounge chairs, they were also ripped with exposed foam, so we tossed them in the yard. The table umbrella was broken and thrown in the the utility room. I could go on, and I have an entire digital album of photos that “showcase” our claims. Unfortunately, we knew there was no availability to move a group of twelve to on the island so we were stuck, and stuck it out. I do hope this review reaches the owner of the property, and that he has the integrity to take action and clean it up for future renters. It’s the most expensive place we’ve rented but was the least enjoyable due to the conditions. After multiple attempts of emailing management (on the weekend) I requested they call us…they did not. Regrettably Richard and Paula Daedelow Received a form letter response, no reimbursement for our bad decision to rent from this company. They had the audacity to ask for our business in the future, they should be ashamed. No integrity what so ever.

Please do not rent from this company. They always have the same rhetoric to blame the owner and have no clear answers to remedy problems. Please take your money elsewhere and rent with a professional company such as AMI Locals. We went with this company because a friend booked the property. The experience was terrible. We have been waiting for three long days with an excess of 85-degree interior temperatures before replacing an HVAC system. When the HVAC failed, the maintenance department not only wanted to perform a lackluster job of trying to mitigate the temperatures but also grew angry when they were asked to install the portable ac units ( which were no help at all). However, if you enjoy staying inside and waiting on maintenance to be performed on someone else's home, then this is the company for you. I can wait to pay someone else to babysit their known problems. I could have stayed home and performed home repairs if I wanted to be present for contractors throughout my vacation. Stay elsewhere and enjoy a restful vacation rather than wasting your money and holiday.

We stayed in unit #3 at Shell Cove. Beautiful condo, and VERY clean. It is right on the beach with a GREAT ocean view from the living room and master bedroom. All amenities, including washer and dryer. Beach chairs and beach towels also included. We will be staying here again!

Just returned from our stay at Island Lagoon. The location was amazing and house quite large with a great pool. Disappointed with AMI Vacations though. 1. Upon arrival the garbage was overflowing with items piled outside the receptacle not even in bags. Since AMI Vacations never responded to us we had to bag up all of it ourselves. Disgusting! 2. Two TVs weren’t working 3. Mold on one of the AC vents 4. Hot Tub was filthy, it smelled terrible and definitely couldn’t be used 5. Only two beach chairs for a house the sleeps 12 6. It was not clean. One set of sheets had blood on them. Hair in the bathtub. Something red and sticky spilled on one of the porches. We understand rentals are prone to wear and tear but this house was filthy. 7. When the pool company came on Monday they advised there was no chlorine left in the pool. Ironically three of the youngest children in our group came down with a stomach bug two days later. 8. The house is not well equipped at all. No salt and pepper, Tupperware, cleaning supplies or spare sheets ( these would have been particularly helpful given how dirty the place was on arrival and with the sick kids). We expected so much more for the money spent on this “luxury” rental.

We have been going to Anna Maria for 15 years and this was by far the worst experience we have ever had. We understand that rental houses can have issues but this experience bordered on nightmarish. The house, Turtle Watch, had many issues, all of which we were prepared to ignore due to its exceptional location and reasonable price. The one issue we could not overlook was the roach infestation in the kitchen. They were everywhere. In the dishwasher, refrigerator, cabinets, and of course came out at night everywhere. We immediately called, and 3 days later a pest control guy showed up. He was lovely and said it was one of the worst infestations he had ever seen and would take weeks of treatment to fix. Of course after spraying the roaches went crazy and left the kitchen and began crawling all over the house, not to mention the dead ones that were everywhere. The kitchen that we paid for was completely unusable the entire time we were there. We called the rental company about the worsening issue and got no response. We actually called twice and got no response. We ended up leaving early. I would never recommend this company or this property to anyone. Sadly, we cannot leave an honest review on their website as they don't allow it and scrub all the reviews they do allow.

I rented a four bedroom property on Anna Maria Island from this rental company. The property was run down and filthy. The floors were coated in thick sticky dirt, sheets were stained yellow and brown, and the pillows were ripped. Large chunks of paint lay peeling down moldy walls. The shower, laden with broken tile and caked on grime, had hair in the drain. I had my children wear flip flops in the shower. Upon repeated complaints they sent the cleaning people over. The cleaning people told us "people are always complaining about this place. Management refuses to pay for a deep clean or repairs!" Day 3 of our week-long vacation we were forced to evacuate our disgusting rental because of hurricane Idalia. AM Vacation Rentals offered us nothing in compensation for anything. I paid thousands of dollars for a run down, filthy rental which my family stayed in for three days. This rental company only cares about profits. Beware they are crooks. Don't ruin your vacation, rent elsewhere.

We have been visiting Anna Maria for over 40 year's and love the Island. However, this short weekend away was wonderful. This properties location, accessibility and accommodations were exceptional. For a short stay I was actually able to relax, which is rare. Strongly recommend this property

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at View of the Gulf! The house had everything we needed for our family vacation. The pool area is amazing. Short walk to the ocean is also a plus. The rental agency personnel were friendly and quick to respond to questions and a couple of minor maintenance issues. I highly recommend if you’re looking to vacation on Anna Maria Island!

BEWARE. Poor maintenance. Poor customer service. Our family recently stayed in one of their properties for Labor Day week. It was beautiful property and the location was excellent. However, our experience was less than ideal. Three hour prior to check-in, we were informed that the driveway was under construction and would not be available for our use. Alternative parking was provided. Not the most convenient, but we made it work. But our biggest issue was the the beautiful pool that is shown in their pictures of the house was filthy dirty and not functioning. While we informed them of the situation upon our check-in, and the next day, the pool was not cleaned and fixed until the last day of our stay. It took six days to resolve. Our family was not able to enjoy the pool for nearly the entire week. The response from Anna Maria Vacations was to offer us $157 for our inconvenience. For a nearly $5K weekly rental, their offer is ridiculous.

We stayed at the White Shell property, a lovely and roomy 3 bedroom house with every amenity our 6 person family needed! We loved the fun basement to play in as well as the screened-in porch. Our family spent many hours in the beautiful private pool. With small children the exterior door alarms were a fabulous perk! The property manager was easy to reach and always responded promptly. We can't wait to book again!

We stayed at Southern Breeze 2 on the island for a week in July, and really enjoyed the property! Everything was located very close to where we stayed, and we were able to walk to and from Bean Point, daily! The beach isn’t packed nearly as much as other Florida beaches, which is perfect for families with children! The property was in excellent condition, clean, and quiet! The pool was nice to cool off in during the day, or late in the evenings. The living area furniture is very comfortable as are the 2 king sized beds with nice crisp, clean linens. The kitchen was stocked with everything we needed as far as cookware, utensils, plates, cups and bowls. The home did have a dishwasher although we didn’t use it ourselves, it was a nice thing to have. The water was always hot for showering, and having the laundry room next to us and was very convenient! We’re a family of 5 (2 adults, 3 small children) and we had the best time, with plenty of living space for us all! We will definitely be back! I highly recommend this property for families!

This was our first stay here at Villa Sandpiper but we vacation in Anna Maria every year. This house was perfect! We brought our boat so the dock was a dream to have. The manatees in the canal made it even better. The pool was a little warm each day but still refreshing after a day out on the boat or beach. Kitchen stocked, plenty of space and I plan to book it again!

Would give 0 stars if I could. We rented Tarpon Point and could not have been more disappointed in the deferred maintenance and response by management. They sent people over to look at our concerns that could not even speak English. The pool was a mess on arrival, hot tub hets would not work, big grease stain on the deck from a grill above it. Inside the toilet leaked for 4 days before anyone fixed it. Internet never did work. Sliding doors didn’t work properly, kitchen table filthy, and sand and hair in the sheets. Stay far away from this rental agency and Tarpon Point.

This property is lovely, convenient, quiet after the noise ordinance of 10 pm. It has a beautiful view of the ocean from the balcony right on the beach. All amenities are available locally and in the condo. We fit three teenagers and an adult comfortably. Parking is extremely convenient. The rental company was very thorough and available. We can’t wait to come back.

We enjoyed a recent winter getaway at the Castaway Cottage. The kitchen is well stocked with great appliances and cooking equipment.The house is in a quiet location that is a short walk from the beach as well as near fun restaurants and shops. The lower level has a great playroom with a ping pong table, large TV and an extra refrigerator. There is a spacious screened in porch with a large table for dining. The pool area is quiet and secluded. The garage area is equipped with chairs, a large wagon, coolers, toys, etc. necessary for a day at the beach. We found the rental company helpful and responsive to our needs. We look forward to an AMI return visit next winter!

We just returned from a one week stay at Capri Condo A. Very nice! One half block from Bridge Street and the most beautiful beach right out our back door! Absolutely fabulous location. We were quite pleased!

We had THE best experience booking & staying with Anna Maria Vacations. The website was easy to use, a representative called me a few days prior to our stay to go over some helpful details about the property, and they were in contact via text throughout our stay. There were 2 times I needed to text their concierge line and they responded super fast, and for the heating related question they had someone out in about an hour. Fantastic customer service and very very friendly! The property itself (The Blue Crab) was a dream. A literal heaven. Just as pictured. Super luxurious but also has a lived-in feel which I mean in the best possible way (like little stains here, scuffs there on things) so I didn’t feel like we were staying in a museum and had to be on my highest level of alert with my 3yo and 10 month old 24/7 (which isn’t how you want to feel on vacation!). The layout was perfect for us and the backyard was so soooo cool, never seen anything like it. Felt very private. Loved looking over all the palm trees in the hot tub and for sunrises over the 2nd floor patio. If you book this property you WILL NOT regret it!! Thanks for all the precious memories xx we hope to be back!

Just returning from a fantastic week at “Breakaway” on AMI. This home is everything you could ask for and more! With the welcoming ocean in front and beautiful pool behind, walk to town, and biking anywhere sunrise with coffee and sunsets were all amazing. Dolphins came to visit and lots of fisherman pass by. Home very comfortably slept all 7 of us with space to spare! Anna Maria vacation rental company were very accommodating to any of our request and reassured us as we prepared for hurricane Nicole. So looking forward to returning again to this exact spot🏖

We stayed at Island Paradise 1 in September. We were very disappointed in the condition of the rental. Even though every thing looks beautiful in pictures, it's not in the best shape close up. Many of the lights don't work. There were switches that didn't do anything. The furniture was very old, worn and threadbare. The glass coffee table was broken. There was only 1 chair on the balcony and it was very rickity and dirty. The beds were all very fragile and I want sure they weren't going to collapse. The pool was only cleaned one time while were there. There were other little things that were annoying, but not worth mentioning. The positive is it was right on the beach and had a fantastic view. When I asked to have a light and vent that came out of the ceiling fixed there were there the next day and he was very friendly. I just feel that it is very overpriced for how run down it is. It's almost as if someone bought it as is and has done no improvements. We will not be back there and don't recommend for that kind of money.

I had the best time on our recent trip, I kind of didn't want to review just to keep the secret close to the chest lol The property we chose was absolutely perfect wake up with coffee every morning to the bay and the dolphins. We had a couple issues with the jacuzzi and the ac and I texted at 1am and the technicians were there the next day at 8am to resolve the issues. One of the maintenance guys was so cool we invited him to stay for awhile, he was professional and had to go but everyone on the property management side was so pleasant. My mom stayed with another property company down the street and she was envious of our property. Vacation is over but I'm already looking at options for next year with this company! Thanks Anna Maria vacations!

The Mango Breeze house was amazing. Clean, light and airy. All the dishes, towels, beach wagon, beach umbrellas, coolers, beach bikes and much more we needed to make it home for the week. Loved the pool and tiki bar. Also, just a short walk down the street to the beach. So many fun stores, bars n restaurants! I'll be back again next year for visit #4.

I rented a very pricey place (service charges were ridiculously--$300 to clean a place? and NO supplies like kitchen basics like salt and pepper) on a beautiful spot on Anna Maria Island. The small heated pool and view of the beach were great. However, the place itself was in ill-repair with windows and blinds barely working and water damage spots. When I called to complain about windows, Anna Maria Vacations was very responsive and sent a maintenance person out who reported the windows could all open (which wasn't true). Anna Maria staff then told me windows were just "cosmetic" and didn't need to work even tho they ultimately spoke to owner e about it. Overall, nice to be on Anna Maria Island but I expected more from a $5000 house .

Avoid dealing with this company at all costs. We rented a home called Ocean Sunrise at 2201 Avenue A in Brandenton Beach for $5200 (a week) and there were lots of issues. None of these things appeared in the photos advertising the home and 3 emails to them were completely ignored. I'm in the process of filing a Better Business Bureau complaint. Here's what we found (SEE PHOTOS BELOW): 1) An outdoor gas grill that had not been cleaned in years. There was 1/2" of grease coating the inside of the grill, the drip pan had 2" of sludge, and the patio below it had a puddle of grease. It took me an hour to scrape it off to prevent it from being a fire hazard. 2) The patio brick pavers need to be power washed, there were dirty black areas outside the sliding doors. 3) The pool had dark, dirty areas throughout and needs to be painted. 4) There was a rotted wooden deck just south of the pool with splinters, sagging boards, and a hook that my brother-in-law stubbed his toe on. 5) The pool toy storage box was filthy, full of wet toys with mold. 6) The swim ladder to the bay was unattached and coated with barnacles. It was just laying on the putting green. 7) The kitchen cabinets paint was peeling due to a cheap paint job over the original darker, oak cabinets and lots of abuse by renters. 8) There were no trash bags. 9) The patio furniture was chipped. 10) The outdoor shower has rusted metal pieces strewn about. 11) The microwave and fan did not work. Can openers in the kitchen were inoperable. 12) 4 out of 5 of the pool cues for the pool table were broken. 13) The bathroom shower tiles had mold (downstairs bedroom shower) and the bathtub in this bathroom does not have a non-slip surface and my wife slipped and fell. 14) The fan in the downstairs bedroom was too noisy to use, it needs to be replaced. 15) The master bathroom upstairs has a wobbly toilet. 16) 3 of the 5 beach chairs are broken. This property has been badly ignored and should not be rented and Anna Maria Vacations is a sleazy company that just does not care.