Woodsy Ballston Spa Home: 4 Mi to State Park!

Not clean to expected standard, owner met us there and showed us around which was strange. Dishwasher was full, stuff packed away everywhere, overrun with primary owners things. Not nice smell on first floor. Front door doesnt lock. King bed is a waterbed which was not advertised. Not rental property worthy. Filth all over computer desk. Bottom drawer of oven and pans filthy. Dishes didnt seem clean overall. Seemed like owner lives there in between rentals.

Sadly I cannot give this residence a positive review. We found the place to be cluttered and less than clean. We were not informed that the king bed was a waterbed or that this was the hosts private residence. Many of the kitchen utensils and dishes were dirty and we found bugs in the bowls in one cabinet. Cobwebs and pet smell throughout. We understood the house was pet friendly but didn’t expect the odor. The location was convenient and the host provided info on entertainment and where to shop. Check-in instructions indicated that the house would be open at 3 pm and we were not sure of our arrival time, which caused some concern. The host did meet us upon arrival, but I would recommend that the instructions be changed to calling the host upon arrival rather than leaving the residence open.

Though the location was great and in a very nice neighborhood, we were not comfortable staying in and would not recommend the Woodsy Ballston Spa Home. The listing did not mention that the Host lives there on a permanent basis nor that he would be leaving 3 of his 4 dogs in the outside pen when he left about an hour after check-in time / our arrival. That said, the Host was pleasant and did remove the dogs upon our request following a night with hours-long periods of continuous barking. The listing did not indicate that the King bed in the master suite was a water bed - which did not meet our needs and was left unused. The fireplace described as wood burning in the listing was gas, and we unknowingly flipped its unmarked switch resulting in a dangerous situation with a covered dog crate up against it that could have been a lot worse. The level of cleanliness was questionable - while some spaces seemed fine, there was a black ring at the water level in the toilet of the master bathroom, a few items worn or in disrepair, and cans of air fresheners and odor eliminators throughout. There was a great deal of clutter on the kitchen countertops and cabinets were full. The check out instructions from Evolve to lock all doors with keys inside did not agree with the Host’s text (received after our departure) to leave the doors unlocked. We were fortunate that the weather was good and we were able to spend a number of hours outside, on the nice patio, or walking the cul de sac.

The location was central for our plans. Although Saratoga Springs is beautiful, our plans were to venture out to Woodstock and Lake Placid. This location allowed us to save on cost versus the VRBO prices in the more touristy areas.

Comfortable, cheery house in fabulous location for exploring the area. The owner was super helpful. Great yard, for relaxing and playing w our dog.