Elan Vacations

Best vacation in my life and I’m 56! I’ve been all over the USA, Mexico, Caribbean, Belize, Canada and Europe. Yes this was my best vacation. Steps from the most beautiful beach, sharing a home for a week with my adult children, sharing home cooked meals, listening to waves at night…
The home we rented was perfect for us. Quite large, each bedroom had its own bathroom and television — though we had too much fun for TV. Great solar heated pool. Well stocked kitchen. We will definitely be back!

This is the second run in I’ve had with them. I have not rented a house from them because of the bad customer service. in 2013 we had a conversation about a couple of houses they had for rent in the Corolla area. None of my questions were answered expect for the price for the week.
Just today I spoke with someone who wasn’t the most rude I’ve dealt with but you could tell she didn’t care that I was a potential customer. I told her that the $ 100 admin fee they charge was a little steep and that most places don’t charge that or at least they hide it in the weekly amount which is great. I want to know as I’m searching the price minus taxes. I don’t want to think I’m going to pay $ 1000 for the week just to find out it’s going to be $ 1200 after just fees. I’m looking for properties with a budget in mind. When I asked her what they did extra to make up for that $ 100 she informed me that they have to pay her to be there. Well, after researching I have found out that they do give a started basket of nice stuff (which apparently its different probably on how much you’re spending) and that’s something they she could have told me that they did special for their guests instead of the fact they have to pay her to be there. I really wanted to rent that home but I don’t want my entire vacation ruined because of horrible customer service. And if they are already this rude and unconcerned BEFORE I pay the money then I’m not expecting them to even be this kind after they have it. I’m always extra nice to people even when they are sometimes rude to me but when I’m paying a lot of money for something I expect to get better customer service than this.

Great experience. RxPad (our house) was clean and had everything we needed. We showed up and there was not a gas grill (as advertised), so they ran out and bought a new one and dropped it off.
Only gripe is internet. OBXWAN provided by Skyenet (Yes, Skyenet) was horrific. Took Yahoo’s homepage 10 minutes (no lie) to load.
Élan — get that internet issue fixed on your properties, especially if you are only going to provide basic cable!

Not impressed.
Here are some good things: It’s on the way out of town for anyone going North, so that was nice. They even have a drop mailbox on the other side of the highway so you can just pull over, drop off and go home. They did bring us a broom and some propane during our stay (after we asked) which was nice. But we should not have had to ask for those things – check the propane every week and tenants will not run out. And who does not have a broom in their house?
They provide a little welcome/​starter kit with some TP, soap, etc. That is nice.
We booked way in advance and in the days before our stay a hurricane blew through the Outer Banks. We got one email before the storm giving an update and then no communication. Their web site was not updated with anything and no more email communication.
I was pretty sure things were ok but not living near by I wanted an update before I drove 300 miles with a minivan full of stuff. A simple email or post on their web site would have worked.
When I called they seemed shocked that I would even ask.
Next, check in was fine but not very friendly. They set out food and some drinks as a welcome which is nice. But we were a few hours early and they had zero idea if our rental would be cleaned and ready early. It seemed like we were putting them out by trying to start our vacation an hour early.
And they had no idea what we should do in the meantime. When I asked if we could park in the driveway and go to the beach they said no – a shocking response.
Élan should have a plan for people who arrive early. Getting on and off the OBX on the weekend is notoriously bad and it stands to reason people will want to beat peak travel times. For heaven sakes think of us as customers and be ready for basic questions.
Once at the rental we discovered that the owners lock the garage. This left us with a car full of beach gear and bikes strewn across the driveway and in the entry of the house. This was not made clear on the Élan web site. When I called to ask about using the garage they were dismissive and said they would call the owners to ask and then get back to me. They never called me back.
The last few rentals we had offered keyless entry. Not here. This is an inconvenience with two families and lots of coming and going and just two keys. And they never did call to tell us that the house was ready and the maid was finished, as promised I just went at 2pm and there was no car in the driveway. We parked and moved on with life.
The linens they use are really crap. Motel 6 quality sheets and bed spreads.
The house we rented needs some help which is not their fault. But they could fix 90% of it and make their customers happier, and for very little money. Clearly they do not check theses properties. All of our issues were long standing maintenance kid of things except for the garage access. And they should be working with the homeowner to provide something for tenants to use instead if the owners just can’t let tenants in their precious garage.
Over all, not good customer service.

We just returned from one of many trips to the Outer Banks, but the first time we rented through Élan Vacations. The beachfront home was far worse that advertised. When we arrived, we noticed the house’s paint was coming off. When we entered the home we discovered basic kitchen items missing, such as a cutting board, wine opener, ice trays. Élan did replace these items when we called to complain. (We found out at the end of the trip the reason that explained all this — see below.)
However, overall it was clear that they don’t do much of anything to ensure that the homes they rent are cleaned or maintained.
The foldout bed that my daughter was to sleep on was covered in mouse droppings — disgusting. When we complained about it, they said sorry but that was sometimes an issue. The nice photos of a «game room» in the house turned out to be actually an un-​airconditioned garage that smelled of mildew. THere was an old pool table in the room but it was so crooked that when you’d try to shoot, the ball would roll back from where you started. The BBQ had not been cleaned since its last use. The deck gate got so rusted that it broke off. The deck walkway to the beach was so poorly maintained that we dodged bushes and branches overgrowing the path the whole way; three members of our group got ticks and I have my suspicion that this was the culprit.
And when I complained about this experience and paying more than $ 550/​night for it, the company took 1 ½ weeks to respond to me. They offered us a measly 5% discount for next year. Of course, there won’t be next year or ever again with this company. I hope this review will help others steer clear of this company. There are plenty of others out there that do a better job.
The kicker was we dropped off the keys, the company told us that the vacation home we rented was being demolished the next week. No wonder no one had bothered to care for it!
Overall, disappointed with this rental company. I’ve used Hatteras Realty and Sun Realty and found the houses they rent to be better; the staff more responsive.

Just checked in at a Élan Vacation property and it might be the worst experience we’ve ever had. The pool wasn’t even filled up half way. I pulled out about 5 spiders and crickets larger than quarters. I took a napkin and wiped it on the floor and it was nearly black! The door on the second floor was broken to go out on the deck. The grill still good stuck. Honestly I can’t begin to explain how disgusting and false their advertising has been. I would definitely suggest you to NOT use Élan Vacation!

As another reviewer noted, incredibly rude customer service!
I submitted an online request noting I was interested in finding properties to rent for a four night stay with girlfriends next Labor Day and received a response from a representative, Michelle, asking our average age and stating it was a three night minimum. I replied back with our average age (late 20’s) and simply reiterated I was hoping to look into properties for four nights, which should meet the minimum. Michelle proceeded to respond with they only rent to families, which I don’t believe to be true as I included in my initial inquiry it was a trip to the beach with girlfriends and that should have been her initial reponse if it were their policy. I understand not wanting to rent a property to high school or college aged individuals but to age discriminate and lie about the reason is uncalled for and bad business.

We just got back from a week in an élan property, «Ducked Out» and had a wonderful experience,
The house was extremely well taken care of and very clean. Everything we needed was there, including beach chairs, umbrellas and beach toys. We loved the golf cart, which made trips to and from the beach a breeze!
We enjoyed the pool and hot tub and we pleased to see it being cleaned not only at the beginning of our stay but also midweek. When we weren’t at the beach, we were in the backyard, playing in the pool, sitting under the gazebo or playing horseshoes.

A great vacation and we will be back!

We just returned from our fist ever Outer Banks vacation. We loved everything about the trip — except for the house. We stayed in ‘The Whalecome Inn,’ a 7 BR house with a pool in Corolla. When we arrived late afternoon Saturday, the carpets were all soaking wet and there was a damp/​musty smell all throughout the house. Within 5 minutes of walking in the door, my 3 year old fell down the stairs because they were so slippery. My brother-​in-​law also slipped down the stairs later that night. The trash was not taken out before we arrived Sat. like it should have been and there were 2 trash bins, plus 2 recycling bins all spilling over with trash. It already reeked and got worse every day until it was finally picked up on Wednesday. After that the smell lingered throughout the rest of our stay. When we arrived, we also noticed that a kitchen window was shattered, blinds were broken, 8 of the 10 plastic Adirondack chairs were broken and unusable, screens were pushed out of the screened-​in porch so we were bitten by mosquitos while trying to relax out there, and cigarette butts littered the driveway and front steps. When we tried to play pool in the game room, the room was too small and there was too much furniture in the way, that we had to rearrange the room constantly to finish the game. The swimming pool had tons of sand in it and it looked like the water was really low (it didn’t even reach the top step into the pool). When we called Élan to tell them about the condition of the house, they offered no explanation or apologies. But when we arrived home from the beach later that day they had dropped off new chairs, along with a new coffee pot (there were already 2 on the counter) and some new pots and pans, which we then had to wash and put away and were also unnecessary. It seemed like it was some kind of consolation for the condition of the house, but did nothing to solve the problem — although the new chairs were definitely welcome. When I called to ask what to do about the trash problem, the woman I spoke to put me on hold 3 times within my attempt at explaining our predicament and then offered a solution without even listening to what the problem was. I had to explain it all over again. Another reviewer mentioned a wonderful gift basket and all we got was a reusable bag with 2 things of dishwasher detergent, a roll of paper towels and a few rolls of toilet paper. I’m usually not one to give a negative review, but I was so disappointed in the house and Élan that I feel the need to warn people about what they may be getting themselves into. We will DEFINITELY be returning to the Outer Banks but will DEFINITELY NOT use Élan again.

We recently stayed at one of their homes «The Mari Time» in south Nags Head.
The Good: The house was nice, it was spacious, had LOTS of bathrooms. Found the elevator to be very useful during move in and move out and with the groceries (With a half dozen kids under 5, its not easy to go out to eat!). The house was well stocked with cups, plates, utensils etc.
The bad: the house was nice, but it needed a few more updates, and repairs on faulty items (toiler paper holders were broken in almost all of the rooms), The house leaked during a rain storm in multiple areas (Élan employees laughed and said i figured it would when we told him). The house wasn’t properly cleaned before our arrival. There was citronella candles filled with 20+ cigarette butts lying on the deck. Yuck.
The Ugly: Élan vacation employees range from incompetent to rude. Complete disaster. Our invoices were wrong, despite numerous attempts to correct. We felt there was bait an switch regarding total cost of rental. Overall rude tinge to their voices.
I will definitely rent another home in the OBX (destroys the jersey shore!), I will not be renting another house through Élan.

Very rude! bad experience. On phone the agent put me on hold 4 times in first 10 seconds of the conversation. And when she comes back the fifth time, she says «are you going to book it or not». without even completing the information that I requested. I do not understand how these rude people are in business who can not even talk to a potential customer politely. And when i asked her name so that I can reach back, her reply was «Oh we all can help you» Sucks big time. stay away!!!

We rented a beach house through Élan, and I must say that I was super impressed! The house was AWESOME, and had a jacuzzi, pool and a freakin’ ELEVATOR. (because stairs are such a burden ;-))
There was even a lovely gift basket complete with sunscreen, assorted seasonings, snacks, guides, cookbook and beach ball. Excellent response time to any minor concerns, and just an overall pleasant experience.