Florida Keys trip

I am just back from the Florida Keys where we offer seventy seven vacation residences on a business & vacation trip Florida . More specifically, I stayed on Marathon in the middle Keys visiting property owners and inspecting the properties we represent in that region so of course I spent more than one day in Key West as we offer more properties there than elsewhere in the Keys.

While in Key West I parked the car and rented a scooter to zoom around the island like a local stopping frequently to see the different properties and take in the flora & fauna. Ready parking areas abound with these little jewels but do be sure to lock them up when you are away. That evening was spent watching a picturesque sunset at Mallory Square and enjoying the myriad’s of street vendors and entertainers. Just a note, the street vendors may change up on the prices for their products if they think you will let them get away with it so hold them to their original price and be willing to walk away. You already knew that though didn’t you?

Of course I also had to go parasailing while there. They only go as high as three hundred feet due to the airport but if your uncomfortable with heights that may be plenty. It provides a very nice view but to be honest I was busy eyeballing those dark shapes in the water and feverently hoping the rope wouldn’t break.
Key West is the southern Mecca for those in the Conch Republic who enjoy the city as well as the destination of choice for those who seek a varied nightlife and is very orientated to pedestrian traffic to
accommodate foot travel and bar hopping visitors. Many of our clients traveling to Key West prefer to be near Duval street due to it’s proximity to downtown as well. So if you anticipate traveling there, please be aware of the demand particularly during festivals and plan ahead and we should be quite able to accommodate you.

As an avid fisherman I was happy to be staying on Marathon as this is about as close as you can get to the Gulf Stream while still on dry land as it’s a mere two miles or so off of the east coast the island. When visiting Florida and navigating coastal waters I strongly encourage ownership of a handheld GPS. Even if you use it just once, it can save you the cost of a tow or repair from running into a reef or stripping the blades from your propeller, not to mention keep you from getting lost. A very worthwhile investment for the peace of mind it brings.

The villa I stayed in had all the amenities as well as a deepwater dock so I could hop right in the boat and be in blue water in short order. The only downside was the long trip at idle speed to get to open water but I guess if that’s all I have to grouse about, I’m doing all right. Right from the property, I watched lobsters congregate by the seawall and caught baitfish for the larger denizens to be had in deeper water as a giant bird circled me looking for his chance at an easy meal. Whether it was me or the baitfish he was considering, I wasn’t sure.

I was fortunate to have quite a few days of pleasant weather so of course I spent them offshore with my hook in the water when not working. From northern Marathon as you travel east away from the island there is a relatively shallow area near the island, gradually deepening until you reach the reef at the edge of the continental shelf to where the Gulf Stream travels north. Initially, I had a not so heavy weight rod and while fishing in around 80 feet of water at the edge of the shelf, a hungry fish got a hold of my line and promptly took half of my rod down to Davey Jones’s locker. I just had to laugh, obviously I would have loved to board that fish but just the same that was fun and not just a little bit funny!

When in the Gulf Stream I brought in grouper, yellow fin, barracuda, permit, an errant puffer fish as well as sea bass and a few mysterious fish whose genesis I cannot admit to knowing. I also fished for whatever might bite over the length of the seven mile bridge, for tarpon in Vaca cut (a channel through the middle of Marathon) and went shark fishing in the Gulf of Mexico about six miles west of marathon. I can honestly tell you that my blood chilled as I watched the sharks cruise around my 25-foot boat attracted by the chum and bait. The water was no deeper than six feet so that I could clearly see the toothy creatures in their quest for the source of the tasty menhaden chum slick (that would be me and a good-sized ladle). They would cruise lazily by, then with a twitch of the tail rapidly increase in velocity to catch up to what I assume was a hapless victim fish feeding on the slick as well.
Normally, sharks will go to the bottom and lurk there while attempting to dislodge the hook or find cover forcing you to cut the line through sheer frustration or boredom. In the shallows however, the sharks will strip the line from your reel in short order as there’s nowhere to go but in any direction away from you. So I drifted and let them fight the weight of the boat on the premise that they would wear themselves out rather than me by tugging my boat all over the Gulf of Mexico.

When fishing north of Marathon, I brought in a Moray eel who tenaciously gripped the hook until safely ensconced in the gunwale of the boat. As I considered this mavolent creature trying to decide if I really wanted to retrieve my hook, he contemptuously spat it out and began to explore the inside of the center console boat. If you have never experienced a moving creature in a center console boat, they generally will pursue you around the boat (kind of like a bowl) unless they get lodged behind a cooler or something.
I thought perhaps a little sun would calm the fanged beastie, after all don’t most aquatic creatures shrivel up in short order due to the sunny heat? Apparently not. This leathery fellow seemed to be enjoying his sojourn above the waves and was perhaps working on deepening his dark green tan as he leisurely pursued me around the boat. Eventually with the aid of a paddle and a gaff I encouraged my red-eyed friend overboard and continued fishing.

I really enjoy the Florida Keys as they provide a good deal of aquatic topographical variety between Key Largo and Key West as well as a pretty laid back pace. There won’t be the frenetic nightlife outside of Key West for the most part but if you want a pleasant vacation with reasonable cost, I certainly encourage you to consider a week in the Conch Republic.

Happy Traveling!

Villa introduction

Good day friends & neighbors,

I am pleased to be able to develop a blog to (let's be honest here) promote our business as well as chat it up and find out what interest the public at large in my industry and how I can improve upon it.

I work with Villas Majestic, LLC, http://www.villasmajestic.com as the resident marketing guru. We specialize in vacation villa rentals that are currently spread over twenty six destinations but we are of course, constantly adding properties and destinations so take this initial post with a grain of salt as invariably the numbers will change.

According to our friends at Wikipedia "A villa was originally a Roman country house built for the upper class". But for our purposes it is going to be your home while your on vacation or for whatever reason that causes you to be temporarily removed from your place of permanent residence.
The properties we offer range from condominiums in hard partying Key West, laid back Mexican haciendas, to opulent palaces on the waters edge in the Caribbean. So, much like others in our industry we are a bit liberal with the term but make no mistake, there are no fleabags to be had with us.

As a special note, I am very pleased to announce that we are the first and only company to introduce an innovation to the luxury villa rental industry of an integrated online booking engine into our website.

This really provides a very useful tool for clients as they can make arrangements for the peripheral services of their villa rental such as plane tickets and auto rental or utilize the hotel section to book a room at the hotel or resort of choice. But to be fair, if you have a good sized party the plane tickets can cost more than the property rental so I'm a little hesitant to call them "peripheral".

A very handy component of the hotel booking engine is the customer review section that allows for informal feedback prior to walking blindly into an undesirable setting. I suspect however that there is some competitive subterfuge going on there occasionally which is a shame. But taken all together it is a very useful tool.

That's all by way of introduction for now but I will be posting updates and feedback to responses so do check back regularly.