Lovely house, but if you have a concern, don't count on getting in touch with the cleaning service or with the manager/co-owner, Ryan Block, who supposedly stated he would be in touch with me "soon" after his staff refused to give me any contact information so I could speak with him directly. For such high value rentals, you'd think they'd be more customer service oriented. After some of my valuables went missing, all the operator could tell me was that the cleaning service saw nothing, heard nothing, knew nothing, and refused to put me in touch directly with them or Ryan Block. I have now left the rental without my items and without any contact from Block. The houses are stunning but be prepared for the runaround if you rent. Very, very poor communication and management by Ryan Block and staff. DO YOUR RESEARCH. Update: immediately after posting this review I got the attached voicemail from Ryan Block. read more

Dream Vacation Rentals - Oh yes and a really nice voicemail from the co owner himself - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Sanibel, Florida

I was left an unwarranted one star review on Vrbo by Ryan Block. I attempted to message on Vrbo asking the reasoning behind the review and got no response. I paid over 250 dollars for a cleaning fee for a one bedroom condo for two nights, ($184 cleaning fee, $50 damage fee whatever that is, and $25 enhanced cleaning fee) so if the one star review was about taking out the trash or the minimal, normal cleaning that the condo needed after our departure that was more then covered. My family and friends come to Sanibel every year and will not be staying at any properties managed by Dream Vacation Rentals anymore. I do not appreciate the unwarranted review or the lack of communication which seems to be the theme of a lot of the reviews on here. If you are a property owner you might want to choose a management company that doesn't drive off customers for literally no reason. read more

We had reservations for the Sundial Resort, Nov. 7-10, 2022. Hurricane Ian completely devastated Sanibel Island. The causeway bridge is destroyed. Dream Vacation Rentals will not refund our $1,550.00. How is this fair? It's impossible to rebook. It could take years to repair the damage to the island and bridge. My father is 88 years old and on a fixed income. It breaks my heart that he won't get his money back. Please beware of this company. God bless everyone effected by Hurricane Ian read more

AVOID THIS COMPANY AT ALL COSTS!! Ryan is rude, classless and cannot follow concise, simple instructions. When he gets called out on his error, he resorts to threats, swearing and bame calling. There are MANY lovely rental companies to choose from. Please don't let this clown damper your precious vacation time. read more

Very horrible practices. We had to cancel gave 65 days. Was then told no refund unless it rents. We have been renting on sanibel and Captiva for over 25 years. Never ran into a company like this. It now got rented and was told there a $370 cancelation or reservation fee. Are you kidding me their out nothing. So many legit company's on these island avoid this one please. So many good rental companies out their that don't do poor practices like this. Very sad to rip people off in this day and age I will be posting and warning out of.my mind trust me. Sad I had to give 1 star to post I would have gave zero read more

Dream Vacation Rentals - Where there located - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Sanibel, Florida

Wish I had read these reviews before renting with this group of clowns. "No refunds under any circumstances" is what I was informed with a rental coming right after Ian. What if the building no longer exists? No refunds. "Call your travel insurance." Doesn't cover natural disasters, only flight delays or illness of traveler. South Seas is refunding every one. Bowman's Beach Condos where we are booked for next year is refunding everyone booked in '22 proactively. (Great people BTW.) Never again and I will tell everyone I meet to double check you aren't renting a property with this group. I learned my lesson. Never again with these people! Buyer beware!! Karma is going to be a bitch for them. Wish I could give no star! read more

Please read these reviews before you consider using this company. I booked the property through VRBO but then everything was transferred to DreamVacations. I have always used VRBO in the past and never experience any problems. DreamVacations charges a $50 damage fee no matter if there is damage or not. If you want to avoid this fee they require you to place a $1500 security deposit on file. Other owners require a deposit of $250/$300 that is fully refundable 7 to 10 days after check out if no damage. I spoke with Ryan prior to the end our trip and he said my $50 would be refunded in 7 to 10 days after check out if no damage. After waiting for the deposit to be returned I called and multiple emails they said no refund it was a miscommunication. Like the other reviews their business practices are not in the best interests of their custumers. If you want a worry free transaction I would recommend Royal Shell, King Fisher, and with an actual owner through VRBO. Love Captiva Island and Sanibel but will never use this company in the future. read more

We booked a home on Captiva for a family vacation, one we haven't been able to do in years. This home Casa Captiva cost us close to $12,000 for this family vacation. In the beginning of the week we could smell sewage and thought a house must be getting serviced. We were wrong, the smell kept coming and going, on Wednesday my 7 year old grandson told me water was coming up through the patio bricks on the side of the house. Upon looking you could see water bubbling out from between the bricks and flowing into the pool area. I called Kiana at Dream, we were told a technician would be out to see what is happening. Later that same day we received a text message telling us the technician would not be out Wednesday and would be out first thing Thursday. Imagine, you paid close to $12,000 for a family vacation and have raw sewage running from the patio into the pool area. The technician showed up at 7:00 Thursday morning, no one from Dream called or showed up to check on the situation. I in turn on my vacation had to assist the technician in running tests, flushing toilets, running the washing machine etc. The technician was unable to correct the issue, he stated a separate repair crew was needed, he then pumped the septic tank tank filling the house with that odor. The technician then removed bricks from the patio and dug two holes, I imagine in an effort to divert the sewage from the pool area to the neighboring yard. After several calls, emails and text messages to see how the owner was going to handle this, move us to another home, issue a partial refund, something after all we paid close to $12,000 and need to smell raw sewage if we used the pool or back yard. No one from Dream returned our calls, emails or text messages. We had to finish out our vacation with the holes dug and the smell of raw sewage. We as others I noticed have been visiting Captiva for some time, our family for 40 years. In the 40 years we have been visiting we have never been treated with such disrespect, the only reason we rented through Dream was they now have the management company for Casa Captiva. We have rented this same house 3 times prior and love the house. Casa Captiva when we rented in the past was offered by American Realty or Royal Shell and we never had an issue. As a matter of fact we have never in 40 years of renting ever had an issue when renting through American Realty or Royal Shell Vacations they are professional, responsive and a pleasure to deal with. Be very careful in choosing a company when looking at homes on Captiva, we learned the hard way. Leigh Turner read more

Dream Vacation Rentals - Sewage bubbling up through brick patio - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Sanibel, Florida

See all

NEVER, EVER BOOK WITH THIS COWBOY OUTFIT!!! They'll take your money regardless of the state of a property and claim they have to stick with their 'no refund' policy. They lurk in Vrbo so you think you've booked through a reputable organisation and then find these guys are in charge of the booking. I've taken up the issue of obtaining a refund with Vrbo and they don't even respond to Vrbo's calls or emails, what a joke!! Thankfully I think they'll be removed from Vrbo pretty soon... just please be aware who you're booking with. Such a shame as gives Sanibel/Captiva a bad name when they need all the help they can get welcoming tourists back. read more

Dream Vacation Rentals and AirBnB have been more than horrible to deal with. In February 2022 my family rented a condominium unit in Blind Pass Condominiums on Sanibel Island, Florida for three weeks for February 2023. At that time we paid a 50% deposit of over $4,000. Dream Vacations - Ryan and Nicole - are the hosts for this unit. Hurricane Ian destroyed the island and most of Blind Pass condominiums. We have requested a refund of our deposit, but all they are willing to give us is $30. We have spoken endlessly with both AirBnB and Dream Vacations. They will not refund the monies even though the unit is not accessible. We continue to fight both of these real estate organizations so that we can reclaim our large deposit. We have spent an inordinate amount of time and have not have a positive result. read more

"The Dream Team" as I've dubbed them, are great partners of ours. They've helped many of our clients at McCallion & McCallion Realty either rent their homes in their program or at least provide a proforma of potential rental income they could earn. Ryan and his crew at Dream Vacations are a pleasure to work with as a Realtor®, homeowner, or renter. read more

worst rental agency-host I have ever encountered. Booked and paid. 50% deposit to Airbnb for a condo on Sanibel Island, $4,183. for February 2023. Air bnb used on-island host rental agency Dream Vacations for this booking. Hurricane Ian destroyed the Island and the condo unit and building. Air Bob says they can not return our deposit because Dream has refused to do so. Dream Vacations has refused to return our deposit despite the unit being uninhabitable, not our fault or responsibility. Dream has been rude at times and unresponsive. We have heard from other renters the same story about Dream. We may wind up filing a claim or law suit against Dream. read more

Paid deposit for a rental in April 2023. When January came I was advised unit was not available but they would not refund my deposit. Told I should have bought travel insurance, which I do to cover my own health and family emergencies. I don't buy insurance on the manager's rental properties. Every reputable property management company on the island gave refunds, but this shyster refused and pocketed the $2k. Hopefully this will help get word out to others to avoid Ryan and Dream Vacay unless they want to be disappointed. read more

I booked a rental through this company on Airbnb (where they go by Ryan and Nicole so you don't realize it's a company and not an individual owner you are renting from) in April 2022 for November 2022. Hurricane Ian hit in September 2022 and all the first floor condo units in the complex where our rental was received 5-7 feet of storm surge followed by extensive mold damage, all the AC units in the complex were destroyed, and the pool and the beach access bridge were destroyed, etc. - not to mention that those who don't live on the island are still not allowed to enter the island by county emergency decree. A couple weeks after the hurricane, Ryan messaged us and said that while they would be rebuilding for a while, they would keep our money, no refunds would be given, and we could seek compensation from traveler's insurance if we had it. We contacted Airbnb to request that they refund us if the host would not, and when Airbnb contacted Ryan, he said that he had made a mistake and the unit was actually good to go and would be ready for us (at this point the condos had barely even been accessed by building staff, and no mold/water damage mitigation had been done yet). Airbnb said they had to go by what he said until the day of check in came, and then if we couldn't actually access the property they would help us. On the day of check in, we sent Airbnb information including an email and photos provided by the condo complex manager saying all units were uninhabitable, and links to the Lee county website saying that the island was only accessible to those with a Sanibel or Captiva driver's license. Airbnb contacted Ryan, who still lied and said that the unit was fine and usable! (We are told by the complex manager that the unit was actually pretty much down to bare studs). Thankfully, Airbnb provided us a refund due to the extenuating circumstance of us not being able to legally access the island due to the state of emergency declaration. Every other company and individual owner I know of on Sanibel has provided refunds for those with bookings through March 2023, while Dream Vacation Rentals company has been keeping people's money while providing them with nothing in return. (Note to those in this situation: If you booked through Airbnb or VRBO, send their customer service this link: https://www.leegov.com/hurricane/storm and tell them to click on the Sanibel/Captiva Access Update part to prove that you are not able to access your reserved unit. If you booked directly through Dream Vacation Rentals, you could initiate a chargeback with your credit card company.) The most shocking part of all of this is that if we were not a part of the island community through social media and friend and family connections, Dream Vacation Rentals would have allowed us and our 1 and 4 year old sons to travel cross country expecting to have place to stay that was, as Ryan said, "good to go", only to not even be allowed on the island and probably struggle to find any alternative accommodations as our reservation was for a holiday week. Their lack of regard for any of their customers, even small children, is appalling - as is their willingness to tell bold-faced lies in writing! read more

DVR lied. Plain and simple. We were scheduled to stay on Sanibel a month after Ian hit. We were in SW Florida at the time of our scheduled stay but were denied access to the island (understandably due to the causeway wash out and devastation.) DVR told us repeatedly that while they would not honor a refund, we would be rescheduled for same time next year. They refused to send a letter or email confirming this Ieven after multiple requests. I was good with rescheduling - want to be able to go back and support the local economy. When we tried to confirm and lock down a stay for this year, I got a huge runaround until I was finally told I would not be rebooked or refunded. They repeatedly lied and kept my money. DVR are liars and thieves, not a statement I make lightly. Please support the people and businesses of Sanibel and Captiva, but not these crooks! read more

Same story as for other recent reviewers. Ryan and Nicole refused to acknowledge that the property we rented was damaged and uninhabitable. They refused to acknowledge that in fact visitors could not even access the property two months after the hurricane. They refused to refund even through they had nowhere habitable to rent. They kept our money-- including a cleaning fee. Total: $4700. The convo association (Blind Pass) where the unit we rented is could not believe that anyone would refuse to refund given that the place is uninhabitable. Stay away! read more

So we booked in February 2024 for a place in Sanibel & were NEVER told it may NOT be ready when it was time for our vacation. We received an email that the balance was due NOW??? even though it was due in a week. They also were charging an additional fee if we used the same credit card used to pay the deposit, so upon calling to see how payment in full could be made I was told that the property was NOT ready & would NOT be ready for our vacation at the end of May & that there were NO alternative &/or comparable properties that they could get us. It's incredible that this company is doing business like this. We could have booked someplace else if they had just informed us that it MAY NOT BE READY, we could have decided on risking or going else where. They really didn't care at all the inconvenience they caused us, just gave a we're sorry which really didn't feel like they were sorry at all. Disgusting, I hope no one has to go thru this with them, terrible way to do business. read more

Worst rental company ever. We rented the penthouse suite at the beach house in bookelia . After day 2 they informed us we were checking out. They did not even ask to see our reservation paperwork and informed us someone else was checking in and we had to leave . I told the owner Ryan the only way we were leaving is if a sheffif told us. So an hour later a sheriff showed up ...to kick out myself my wife and my young daughter who was quite scared. After showing the police our paperwork they assured us we were lawfully allowed to be there and told us we could stay. Bout an hour later we started getting the nasty emails from Ryan. There was nothing hospitable about this company and they most certainly picked the wrong business to get into . I have notified the lee county board of realtors and the State of Florida board of regulation about Dream Vacations and hope the appropriate actions will be taken . Stay far as possible from this company ..and don't just take my word for it .Please look at other reviews on the internet . read more

To echo the comments of Amy N. We have reservations at Spanish Cay in November and politely asked DV for a refund as it will not be possible for them to supply the property due to the hurricane. They flatly refused to refund and now are not answering any e-mails. My question to them is where is my money? Surely it is fraud to keep money for a product that they are not able to supply. read more

Dream Vacation Rentals refuses to refund our deposit. A deposit is paid in order to reserve a property for a specific date. Dream vacation is unable to provide said unit upon agreed date that meets agreed upon expectations , therefore they are in breach of contract and should refund a deposit. Sanibel island and Pointe Santo condo was severely damaged by Hurricane Ian, currently closed and will be unsuitable for stay for a vacation. This is Dream Vacations expectation for a suitable family vacation and meeting contractual obligations, "Our team along with our owners are working as hard as possible to get each property up and running as quickly as possible. Despite these efforts the Island remain somewhat limited in terms of beach access, restaurants, shops, etc. Individual homes may have limited amenity use including pools, tennis courts and the exterior may be a bit sparse in terms of landscaping. With all of that in mind and should the property be ready for vacation rental guests, you may visit with the understanding of the limited amenities on the islands. There also may be a curfew from 9pm to 6am." Do they not realize Pointe Santo is closed and not allowing people to stay there until further notice? Dream vacation rentals business practices are unethical and criminal. Ryan and Nicole Block, owners of Dream Vacation are refusing to speak to anyone ,behavior congruent with unscrupulous business management . read more

Love my vacation with Dream vacations! Condo was beautiful and Ryan and Nicole made sure our vacation was awesome! Highly recommend!