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. read more

Do not use this rental company. I did not read any reviews on this company prior to booking so it's my fault. We have gone to the outer banks for 7 years and rent through Twiddy. Decided to try Nags head this year and I found a house that was really cute and super close to the beach. We have to very young children and a short walk for them to get back and forth was really important. We stayed at the Crab Shack. Great location! Perfect size! Dirty, Dirty and more dirty. Had to go out and buy cleaning products to clean the house before I would even unpack. Dirty razors left in shower, hair on sheets, toothpaste left in sinks. The list goes on. The owner of this house really needs to get someone besides Elan to clean the house and rent privately. read more

I rented the Whalehead Summit located at address 988 Corolla Drive, Corolla, NC 27927 from Elan Vacations for a week. My family stayed at this home from 06/25/2016 to 07/02/2016. Upon arrival at this home, the house was a mess. It was barely cleaned, dirt all over the floors, counters not cleaned properly, and one member of my family even found candy wrappers in a bed! When going outside, we noticed the pool wasn't cleaned and in fact had sand all over it. We started cleaning the house ourselves since we didn't want to stay in such filth, I called them and left a message, but the phone call was never returned. We shortly after that realized the hot tub was not functioning, I called and actually got someone on the phone who sent someone out to repair the hot tub. They had no comment about the call I made earlier about how dirty the home was when we arrived, but they did send someone out to clean the pool. On 6/28/2016, family sleeping on the bottom floor of the house woke up to a leak coming from the ceiling. We noticed at this time the second floor of the home was extremely warm. I called Elan Vacations and they sent someone out who looked at it, and said he couldn't fix it and we would need to wait for an Air Conditioning company. We waited for someone to come out, who worked on the unit for most of the day. He said there was no way to fix the leak coming from the ceiling, and that we would just have to deal with the leak or leave the A/C off. He recharged the system and left, but not before he cut a hole in the wall looking for the leak. I couldn't have family sleeping in a room that had leaking water, so unfortunately everyone had to move to the top floor of the home. We had to stay on this top floor for three days, ever hearing from Elan Vacations about what was happening or what we should be doing. I followed up and never received a call back from a manager even though I asked. So basically I paid to rent the top floor of a house, the vacation was essentially ruined, and now Elan Vacations will do nothing other than offer me 10% off a future home rental. The Whalehead Summit located at address 988 Corolla Drive, Corolla, NC 27927 had broken deck chairs that people fell through, multiple bee's nest on the deck which resulted in two people being stung, was extremely dirty, had broken appliances such as the upstairs microwave, and overall was not a home I would be happy spending any money on. It was overall a terrible experience. I spoke to Dawn Tillet when we returned the keys to the home and told her all of the issues I had with the home. She assured me that they would make things right. Since then I have had to email her multiple times to try and sort things out, they haven't done anything other than offer me 10% off a future reservation. read more

Wish I would have read reviews before doing business with these individuals. Scam from start to finish, not surprised other reviewers mention filth upon arrival, being ripped off etc. par for the course. These people throw their wealth around to threaten people and keep from holding them accountable. read more

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. read more

I want to start this with I am very disappointed in how this was handled, before you read the story. I am not sure why a repeat low maintenance customer would experience this without a call from management. We have always stayed at the Beach Nut when in Nags Head and always bragged on Elan Vacation Rentals to our friends, just yesterday on the beach I was telling them that we only use Elan Vacation Rental because they have great customer relations. So we arrive at our rental house Saturday and see that the previous people left a ton of garbage outside with the garbage can full and several bags of garbage next to it. They are suppose to carry all garbage to the dumpster by the road, which is what we do every year. No big deal, I put the bags on the back of my truck and egg yolk starts leaking out all over the back of the truck. Again no big deal, that is not Elan's fault and I call them to let them know that the trash can is overflowing and that there was garbage bags next to it that I carried to the dumpster already. They say the the cleaning people said the bags were to heavy for them to lift and that they would have maintenance come by and pick it up. I thank them and told them I had already carried the bags down and that they just needed to empty the can before it attracts too many flies and starts to smell. That was Saturday and now it is Monday and still no pick up, again no big deal, see I am trying to change my attitude and be more understanding and forgiving of others, so a couple of days is not big deal. Now, yes there is a now. I call this morning after I make a dumpster run for our trash and let them know that no one has picked up the garbage yet and it is attracting a lot of flies, the girl tells me that it is my problem and that I needed to carry it to the dumpster and that it says so on the front of the envelop. Which we re read and it says our trash not the previous tenants trash. Anyway I am staying nice because I like Elan and I have already put a deposit down for next year and I have no reason to get upset yet. So I explain that it is not my trash and that not only do I take my trash to the dumpster but I took the bags of the last persons trash to the dumpster Saturday when we arrived. She says thanks and that it was my job to begin with, WHAT???? I am like are you being serious, I mean are you really trying to tell me that I should take care of the previous tenants trash. I said I wish I had took a picture of what it looked like when I arrived so it would have a better impact on FB when I post it and that I would be posting it. She says well if you are going to threaten me when I am trying to help then this conversation is over. I told her that telling me to clean it up is not helping and she said that they would try to get someone to come by and get it. TRY? I told her that I was posting it on FB and she said to let it sit she didn't care and I also said send me back my deposit for next years rental because I was done with them. I told her that we clean that house every year and take our trash to the dumpster every year and that we leave it better then we find it. I told her I knew they would have no problem renting it, but it would not be to us next year because I was taking a day to look for something new that was not through Elan. She was like fine I will let accounting know to refund your deposit. I said I'm through with you and she hung up. I never raised my voice in this conversation. Now, while I am writing this, the phone rings and it is the girl that I was talking to and she apologizes and says that we got off on the wrong foot and that there was some miscommunication and that she called the previous renter and they said it was trash from the people before them, lie because if it was then the egg yolk would of dried up and not ran all over my truck. Also it would of been stinking to high heaven because it was garbage not trash and lots of beer bottles. Anyway she wanted to smooth it over, but with just a sorry, which is fine, I am not going to let it set the tone for the day. Only I can mess the day up, not the girl at Elan or anyone else. I think it would of been better if a manager had called to express their concern for how the young lady handled my call, but that is their problem not mine. I will seriously be rethinking where I stay next year, I don't think Elan is anywhere near as good as they use to be and I think they are happy with the amount of business they have and feel like if they lose one or two then someone will take their spot. Sun Reality use to work that way and I don't see much of Sun Reality anymore. People want customer service in todays world and when we pay for it we should get it. read more

Just checked in at a Elan 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 Elan Vacation! read more

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 (Elan 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: Elan 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 Elan. read more

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! read more

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. Elan - get that internet issue fixed on your properties, especially if you are only going to provide basic cable! read more

Do not rent a vacation home through Elon Vacations under any circumstance! Instead, I would encourage you to work directly with Twiddy to find a suitable home. We rented a home in Corolla, NC through Elon Vacations from June 17th - 24th, 2018. We arrived at the home to find the stove broken and Elon providing us with a 20 year old Black & Decker two burner device (pictures below) as an appropriate solution to cook for 17 people! In addition to the device not getting hot enough to even boil water, it only had three legs, so a number of pans slid off of it while trying to prepare breakfast which burned my arm. We contacted Elon numerous times throughout the week and nothing was done to fix our issue, forcing my wife and I to boil water on an outdoor grill in 90 degree weather. We were not looking for a major refund by any means, but Beth or Dawn (Elon employees) contacted us today to say that neither Elon, nor the home owner of Bella Vista (469 Island Lead Rd.), would provide any remuneration. In addition to now pursuing legal remedy as a result of the issue with the stove and the bodily injury that occurred as a result of the gross negligence on the part of Elon and the Bella Vista home owner, I felt that it was my duty to make our experience known to ensure no other family is forced to experience what occurred to us in working with Elon or staying at Bella Vista. Jason Noto jasonmnoto@yahoo.com read more

We have rented from Élan for 2 years now, and have had excellent service from all of the ladies there. I have contacted them numerous times and have always had wonderful, friendly responses. We love that you are able to go across the bridge and simply wait for a call before checking into our beach house. It beats having to sit on the porch of some of the other agencies we have worked with before! Our stay was in June of this year, so I apologize for procrastinating with this review. We loved the Élan team and are hoping to find a house to rent for next July through Élan once again. I can't help but wonder if some of these folks take it out on Élan because they have had a long trip, are tired to the point of exhaustion and want to get into their home away from home early. I think it is unfair that this is taken out on Élan by giving a poor rating! Shame on them. Our group of 16 loved Élan!! We stayed at "Not A Fluke" and had no complaints. Remember you are on vacation; Enjoy! read more

We love our beach house, and can fit our whole family here. The pool is a little bit small, but is usually warm. But, on the inside, it is freezing!! In the 3rd floor, above the tv, there is a beach sign. The b and the a in beach fell off of the wall. Overall, it was very clean and tidy. Nice job! read more

Elan Vacations - The grocery bag - Vacation Rental Agents Near Me - Powells Point, North Carolina

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! read more

Rented a home from Elan in Corolla in late summer, 2017. From the questions, booking, and key pickup to the rental week and key return, everything went smoothly. The house was clean and even better than the pictures portrayed. Will rent again from Elan. read more

Elan has always made it possible to pick up a key for the rental house early in the morning, drive to the beach, AVOID TRAFFIC, and wait on the beach till the house is ready around 4p.m. This year my family and I left early as usual and got to Elan around 7 am only to find that they now give out house keys no earlier than 9 am. They also claim they have never given out keys early which is a lie. As we discussed further what our options could be, an employee was being completely rude to us saying,"we won't have a problem finding another guest". Horrible customer service, and giving out keys as late as 9 am is too late to cross the bridge. Elan doesn't care anymore if their guests have to wait for hours in traffic. There are plenty of beautiful houses at OBX rented through other companies. Will not be renting from here again, spread the word. read more

We went on a family vacation a month ago and rented through Elan. When we arrived, it was clear the cleaners had not cleaned the floors as our feet were black from walking around the house. We called Elan, they sent out cleaners for the following day. Within hours of the cleaners leaving, we realized $180.00 was missing from a wallet. After searching the entire house, we let Elan know, who choose not to do anything. We then made a police report. Within that week, Elan refused to communicate with us (while we had just paid them $4,000.00 to stay in one of their rentals). They stated they were not allowed to talk to us due to the fact we had made a police report and the officer had stated for them to not talk to us (However, officer has since said he never once said that). The best part is: Elan fired the 2 cleaners following this!! Yet refuse to give us the $180.00. They fired the cleaners...they know the cleaners did wrong...yet they refuse to give us the money! Absolutely ridiculous and would recommend anyone to use any other rental agency before using them! read more

Aqua Palooza Rental- Less than impressed Lack of maintenance and cleanliness. Highly disappointed in the cleanliness and up keep of the Aqua Palooza home rented through Elan Realty in which we stayed the week of July 4, 2018. Once we arrived we toured the house, kitchen first where we were greeted by the smell of rotten fish near the sink as well as half a dozen flies. Opened the cupboards to see what utensils where available and found crumbs of old food. The over the stove microwave was not in working condition upon arrival either. The following day when geting plates out for dinner we found multiple dirty plates in the cupboard. The intake vent also located on the top floor is chaulked full of built up dust which appears as though its growing fur. Underneath the couch had plenty of sand and old food from previous renters. Moving down to the 2nd floor the bedroom in which my husband and I stayed had a hand full of issues starting in the bathroom. The plastic shower curtain had mold growing throughout the bottom. The fabric shower curtain also had mold growing on the front and the back. The drain had black slime growing on it. Underneath the slime the drain is corroded. Above the plastic surround of the shower there was mold growing accross the wall. Outside of the bathroom issues the ceiling fan was missing the pull string and was stuck on the lowest speed setting which would not have been an issue except the 2nd floor thermometer cannot go below 72 degrees fahrenheit. One of the other bedrooms garbage cans had not been emptied. In the theater room the kids found peanuts underneath the chairs also from previous renters. In the basement the bathroom also had mold around the vent. After moving outside the pool was so green upon arrival that we couldn't see the bottom. The hot tub was set at 103 and the display stated it was too hot to turn the jets on in our attempts to cool it down. There were pieces of what looked like the cover floating throughout. On both the front and back staircases are multiple loose boards which need to be re-tacked down. Throughout the house all the sliding doors are very hard to open and close. The door on the 3rd floor by the desk area doesnt lock. Throughout the house there are multiple areas in which there is drywall showing due to lack of repairs. On Sunday: *We called the office and complained about the pool. They sent someone out almost immediately and by Wednesday the pool was finally clear. *We called the office and complained about the shower curtain both fabric and plastic as well as the drain and the mold. The only items addressed were the plastic shower curtain which Elan replaced with a new one and they did clean the drain. However they left the moldy fabric shower curtain still on the rungs as well as the mold above the shower surround. Tuesday: *Stopped in the office around 2 o'clock and brought up the mold in the bathrooms again and the fan chain issue. Also brought up was the sand under the couch. *The maintenance guy came Thursday morning sprayed mold x on the mold in the bathrooms and wiped it with a rag. He left the mess in bottom of tub. He had brought a chain with him but he needed a switch also in order to fix it and said he would be back later that day. The fan was not fixed until Friday. Wednesday: *Random maintenance guy appeared at the house to fix the microwave which we had not yet complained about to the office. read more

We just returned from our Elan Rental of Pier 1 Retreat in Nags Head...Everything went smoothly from beginning to end. They were pleasant to deal with, even going out to manually measure the dune dock to be sure I could put up a canopy to shade my MIL so she could watch the kids play. They called to follow up while we there to be sure everything was good...and it was. There were a few minor things that could use attn at the house, but everything we needed was right there oceanfront and we had a wonderful week! read more

WARNING WORST RENTAL COMPANY EVER!! ELAN HAD A CRIMINAL EMPLOYEE WITH WARRANT FOR ARREST THAT STOLE FROM MY WALLET WHEN CLEANING. My family and I rented a house on whalehead drive for 1 week in early June. When we first arrived we walked into a dirty house that looked liked it was not cleaned from previous renters. Floors in bedrooms were so dirty they turned bottoms of bare feet black from dirt, kitchen had ketchup splatters, old food was found in and under couches, dust around stairway railings, outdoor bathroom near pool area looked like one of those public bathrooms that gets cleaned once a year. Just some of the examples of how dirt the house was. We contacted the realty company immediately and they sent out an elderly couple within the hour that confirmed all of this and said they couldn't get cleaners out until the following morning, which was already an inconvenience but our family agreed that was fine since it was something that needed to be done. This is the good part. Two middle aged male cleaners arrived at 9am. We did our best to stay outside near pool area and on first floor so that they could clean without people (12 family members) walking around getting in there way. That was our first mistake! They were able to clean the house in 1.5 hours, which was weird because the previous day the other employees said it would take 3-4 hours to clean. A couple hours after they left I went to go to the store and upon opening my wallet saw that $180 was missing. I immediately contacted Elan to let them know I had money stolen from my wallet which was in a dresser drawer and was told "well this is something that we won't resolve today." This was upsetting because I work hard for my money and for them to brush it off like it was no big deal really ticked me off. I then called the non-emergency line for Corolla police department and filed a police report. To make a long story short, the police officer said that the one man had a warrant out for his arrest and to make it even better the two men did not show up to work after this incident. I tried calling Elan and spoke with management that said they weren't going to do anything until investigation was over. It's been 2 months and since it is still an ongoing investigation (but honestly I don't think they would do anything even if the caught the crooks) Elan has not done anything to make the situation right and this is why I'm posting this review so hopefully no one else gets ripped off by this rental company that doesn't work with their customers. read more

+1 star: Ocean Front -1 star: Active Rodent Infestation -1 star: Elan knew of active rodent infestation -1 star: Their exterminator has been coming to the house for a long time I think you get the picture. Will never rent from Elan ever again. Complete review below. I suggest taking a few minutes to file a three complaints if your experience was similar to mind. I have conveniently provided you the links after my review. We rented at Atlantic Pier View at 3407 S Virginia Dare Trail, Nags Head NC 8/13-8/20 for $3600+/week. Elan Vacations and their CEO Norman B. rented and continues to rent Atlantic Pier View knowing it has an recurring and active rodent infestation. Atlantic Pier View is not safe nor inhabitable due to the rodent infestation, structurally unsound deck and stairs with loose or missing railings loose or damaged deckboards and exposed nails. The hot tub has exposed sides with exposed nails and wiring. There is an active roach infestation on the rear deck. The basement toilet which was not attached to the floor and leaking water was not fixed for four (4) days after written notification. A working vacuum cleaner was not provided as listed on their website and in the rental agreement to all properties. The front and rear yards were littered with trash from the day we checked in to the day we left. The house was dirty and unclean upon checkin. The house has holes in exterior walls, missing shingles are code violations. Elan realtor and property manager Dawn T. confirmed that our rented property and other Elan properties have active rodent infestations. She also confirmed that Atlantic Pier View needs maintenance and repair and already knew about the safety issues with the front and rear decks and stairs. The exterminator that only came once on Sunday 14 August confirmed that she had been trying to catch the rodents in the house for a while. There is a large black rat station behind the washer in the house. Renters woke up every morning to rodent droppings throughout the house. Our two young children (1 and 3yr olds) became ill and we suspected it was rodent-related Hantavirus. You can only access your rental agreement contract on Elan's online Guest Account. Elan Vacations cut off my access to their online Guest account on Wed 17 Aug. Elan stated they mailed me a hard copy on Wednesday 17 August 2016. It is now Wednesday 24 August 2016 and I still have not received a copy of the rental agreement at any time between March-August 2016. The Elan reservationist said she is not allowed to email me a .pdf by Elan management and confirmed my account was cut off. Our 3yr old son fell down the unsafe rear beach access stairs. While this was bad enough, he may not have fallen if the railings were actually attached to the stairs. instead, he fell down the stairs and got bad cuts to his chest and scrapes on his legs and feet. We also have daily photographic evidence of every little detail. Father in law is also a house appraiser/inspector so he took even more detailed photos of the house just in case. Elan's solution was 1) vacate immediately (on Wed) to get a full refund and find another rental. This is impossible. I know because I called 12 different realtors and no one had availability. Or we could take their "only" free property that was not oceanfront, over 10miles away, too small to fit our family and extended family, and considerably cheaper than the rental we had paid for. We countered that we were willing to move to this undesirable house if we were given a full refund of our current rental. Dawn T. agreed but wanted me to email the discussed terms to the CEO Norman. After I emailed all parties, the terms were deemed "absurd" and they cut off all communications. Lastly, be careful because Elan does not put anything in writing. I counted no less than sixteen (16) emails we sent to Elan in 4.5 days. Elan's CEO Norman sent us their lone email aka "absurd" email. Elan Vacations: you shouldn't have rented it to us in the first place! You knew of all of these problems already! Elan possibly violated the NC Vacation Safety Act. Elan Vacations could also be possibly violating NC General Statues 75-1.1 and 14-117. Elan continues to put the lives of families in danger by renting rodent infested properties that are not properly maintained and/or repaired to ensure families are safe. -------------------- You can use the same forum post as your complaint. They have between 10-25MB limit on documents/photos. Work around this by putting 9-12 photos on .ppt slides and then compressing them into email format. A 25MB file becomes 2MB file. NC has a Vacation Rental Act that mandates realtors provide a safe and habitable rental property for vacation. http://www.ncdoj.gov/Consumer/Travel/Vacation-Rentals.aspx North Carolina Realtor Commission. https://www.ncrec.gov/ http://www.bbb.org/norfolk/business-reviews/property-management/elan-vacations-in-powells-point-nc-90008392/file-a-complaint read more

See all

We just returned from one of many trips to the Outer Banks, but the first time we rented through Elan 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. Elan 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 1/2 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. read more

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. read more

Elan was great in answering all my questions and providing suggestions. We were a group of 5 families recently stayed at Corolla Sun and cannot say anything bad about the property. The house was equipped to accommodate all 18 people. The kids loved coming back to the pool from spending a day at the beach. The walk to the beach was pleasant and quick. Loved the house and the families are asking when are we going back. read more

First time to Outer Banks area. Elan Vacations was easy to do business with. Good online website to make reservations, etc. We rented Sea Senor in Nags Head. Nice home, looks just like the pictures. Charmingly furnished. Kitchen is fully stocked with pots, pans, dishes, etc. Oceanfront property. read more

WORST rental company I've experienced in my 15 years vacationing on the OBX. We arrived at our rental home to find it (and all the deck furniture) completely covered in dead bugs. The kitchen was covered in grease, kitchen sink filthy, the carpets were stained, showers mildewy, drains ran slow, dishwasher leaked, mirrors were dirty, doors and locks didn't work well... These are all maintenance and housekeeping issues for which the rental company is responsible and completely failed on. None of this occurred suddenly; it is all the result of ongoing neglect of the property. I called several times and spoke with Dawn to report problems as I discovered them. I was given excuses as to why the house was covered in bugs. The reason doesn't matter. If there's an issue, fix it! They did send out a team that day to power wash the house and a cleaner to clean the grease in the kitchen. After my second call, I received a return phone call from Brenda, who gave me a bit of attitude, saying she was confused as to why I was reporting additional cleaning issues when they had already sent a cleaner over. I had to explain that I had discovered several more items that needed to be addressed after the initial call. While Elan did send a cleaner, a plumber, a maintenance man, a pool cleaner and the power washers, it shouldn't have required ME calling them with these problems after check in to get it all done. No renter should have to check into a house in this condition. Even worse than all this, though, was the complete lack of caring on their part. When I arrived at the rental office to check out and hand in my keys, three women were at the front desk and one asked if I was checking out. I stated that I was and one woman held out her hand for the keys. Not one of them inquired as to how my stay had been. I then told them that this was the worst experience I've ever had with a home and rental company and recounted all the above to them. One woman said that they'd look into it, at which point Dawn, who was at a desk behind the counter, informed them that she knew about it. I never received so much as a word of apology for the awful experience I had. In the past I had minor issues with two other rental companies, but they not only resolved the problems, they were very apologetic and also offered me a refund of the reservation fee and a discount on my next stay. Not that such an offer from Elan would have made my stay any better...nor will I ever use them again...but it illustrates that they do not care. STAY AWAY from Elan. There are far better companies to use who will appreciate your business. read more

We stayed at Anderson condo. We had to pick up our keys and welcome basket at Elan, but it was on the way so not really a big deal. We were given the address of the condo complex in the welcome basket however none of the paperwork mentioned the condo number and none of the condos had the name posted. I had to search for it online, but we figured it out. The welcome basket was pretty good as it included things that you may need, but didn't bring. It also included some magazines that had ideas for things to do in the Outerbanks. The condo was pretty clean and it had a lot of amenities. The owner called us our second morning and he was really helpful. I guess we lucked out that we didn't have any problems! read more

We loved our house and the staff at Elan was very helpful. The only problem we had was a dvd player not working. We called and it was fixed within hours! We have already booked the same house for next year! read more

My family and I stayed at Dolphin's Run during this past July. We noticed some noises at night (while trying to sleep) that sounded like something walking around coming from between the floors early on in our stay, but couldn't quite figure out what was going on. About mid-week we realized that there might be an animal that had gotten into the house somehow. My mother in law called Elan's office to inform them of what was going on and Dawn told her that the owner of the property was aware of the animal in the house, but thought the situation was resolved since they hadn't heard from us. I am extremely upset and unhappy that the owner and Elan were both aware of this situation and did not ensure that it was taken care of prior to our occupancy for the week. This situation could have been dangerous for us if the animal (we think it was a raccoon) had gotten loose within the house? It is the responsibility of the owner and the rental company to ensure that the property is fit for rental prior to having people stay there. At the very least, we should have been informed of the situation prior to our occupancy and been given the opportunity to make a decision about staying there before we received the keys. After calling and following up with them, Elan and the owners denied us a partial refund on our stay. The housekeeping at this property was really awful as well. It was evident that the housekeeping was done very quickly as there was sand and hair in the beds, which made it pretty apparent that the sheets were not freshly washed. There was a dirty wash cloth in the master bathroom and the toilet in the basement/entry level had hair all over it. I ran the vacuum on the carpet on the top level as we had small children with us and from what the vacuum picked up, it appeared that it hadn't been vacuumed very well or at all prior to our arrival. The couch and the love seat in the living room are very badly stained as are the pillows on the couches. It appears these can be removed and washed in the washing machine, but it doesn't look like an effort has ever been made to do so. I will not be using Elan Vacations again for our future OBX summer trips and would not recommend them to anyone. read more

My family has been going to the Outer Banks for years; this was my first experience with Elan. We were very happy with the house we chose, the website makes it easy to find what you are looking for. Their check-in and check process was a breeze capped off by the complimentary welcome BBQ they offer. The house was clean and exactly as advertised. They seemed attentive and committed to making our vacation rental a pleasant experience. We have rented from other companies over the years, some good and some bad, but I would have no hesitation to rent from Elan again. read more

Absolutely horrible customer service! I had an Elan customer service representative YELL at me over the phone. The same Elan customer service representative THREATENED me over the phone and through text message. Scenario: I rented a home from Elan, in Corolla Light resort North Carolina, from Saturday-Saturday, beginning September 8. On Monday September 10, 2018, Currituck County issued a mandatory evacuation, due to hurricane Florence, starting Tuesday September 11. Originally, the evacuation order was issued for vacationers to leave at 7 AM, later the evacuation order was changed to 12 noon. I traveled from Hawaii to the Outer Banks and needed to find a place to stay out of the storm's path. I was on a tight budget, I had already spent $2,000 on the house and I didn't want to reserve a place only to lose money on that place if the storm tracked to the location I was evacuating to. My issue: A Elan customer service representative called me on Monday, September 10. She notified me that there was an evacuation order for the next day. I said that I heard about the order and I was researching my options of places to go. She told me I needed to be out of the house by 7 AM. I responded I needed a little more time to explore my options on where to go, the storm was still 1500 miles out in the ocean and there was no way to know where the storm would track on Monday when the storm wasn't expected to hit until Friday. She said, no sir you will leave at 7 AM. I responded, I was hoping to leave later in the afternoon, I never got to explain why I wanted more time. She began to yell at me saying you will leave at 7 AM. I asked her to stop yelling so we could have a discussion. She yelled again and said you will be out by 7 AM. I responded that if she would pay for my next place to stay or refund me a part of the $2,000, I would gladly leave right away. She said I didn't purchase trip insurance and I would get nothing from them. She then threatened me, by yelling if I didn't leave by 7 AM she would have the police evict me. I hung up. Tuesday, September 11. I received a text message in the morning claiming I was putting Elan's workers and families at risk by not evacuating. Later, I received a voice-mail with the same lady yelling that I was putting Elan's workers and families at risk and that she would be calling the police to evict me. The thing is, the mandatory evacuation had been changed to 12 noon and she was threatening me in the morning. They even sent a worker by to tell us personally. I did vacate the premises early afternoon, but I had to scramble to find a place while trying to figure out the path of the storm on Tuesday when the storm wouldn't hit until Friday. I left some items behind. Come to find out, Elan not only didn't care about me, they got there money already and they didn't offer to return the items I left behind, they don't care about their workers. I found out that while they were rushing me to leave with threats, they were sending a cleaning crew to clean the house, even though I had it booked until Saturday and it was only Tuesday. That's right, they claimed I was putting their workers and families at risk, but they did not have a problem sending those same workers out to clean the house. If Elan really cared, they would not have yelled and threatened me and they would not have sent their workers out to clean the house if they truly feared for their workers lives. DO NOT RENT FROM ELAN. If you are an owner, you should change real estate agencies. Elan is not even located on the Outer Banks, you have to pick up house keys before you cross over the bridge to the Outer Banks. Absolutely the worst customer service I have ever experienced. read more

It turned out that the owner of our house lied to us when they said we had use of a golf cart. it turned out that the association would not allow us to use it and became quite agitated when they saw us with it. Not a great start to the vacation. We were then promised a four person bike, which did not show up at all. We chose this house for proximity to town, given that we knew we would be able to get to the beach with the transportation, but alas, we had to endure long walks every day. read more

Take pictures before you leave! Elan charged us $275 for "extra cleaning" essentially claiming we had a "frat party" in our house - which is laughable, as we are all middle age with several kids each. They also charged my card without authorization. We ended up having to report them to BBB. We'd used them in the past with no issues, however this blew my expectations out of the water. Go with a more reputable company such as Twiddy or others in OBX. read more

Only reason i gave 1 star is because I couldn't give 0. This is the worst rental company that I have ever had the experience renting with. We rented the house on the hill in corolla and was completely unsatisfied with the them. We got to the house and it was a mess - dead bugs on the wall and cob webs. A day later after I slept in my bedroom, I noticed that there was dry blood on my sheet THAT WAS NOT MINE. Elan asked me if i wanted new sheets and I said i would call them back when we got back from the beach and when i did call they said there was nothing that they could do until Brenda the housing supervisor came back. There was a problem with the door in my bedroom and that it "swelled" when it rained and would not open - the owner had informed me that he knew about the problem two weeks ago and never addressed the door but assured me that it would open after the rain. I tried the door 4 days after it rained and it still wouldn't open, denying me access to a complete side of the balcony. THEN, there were rusty staples and nails and metal all over the yard when I have three toddlers with me running around but when I addressed the situation to Elan, they told me that it is not their job to clean the outside and it was the owners but they do not clean it after every visit. Last but not least, we had left a wallet that was asked to be overnighted to us that we paid for it to happen and when we received it back, there was $220 MISSING. PLEASE DO NOT RENT FROM THIS COMPANY - IF YOU HAVE ISSUES THEY WILL NOT ADDRESS THEM!!!! read more

I am absolutely kicking myself for not checking Yelp reviews prior to booking with Elan. We rented a house in Pine Island (Corolla) the week before our wedding. Now granted we arrived two weeks after hurricane Matthew, so I expected some water/wind/sand damage, but what we arrived to was discouraging. We arrived to a full fledged flea infestation. They were bouncing off of the carpets which were soaked with ocean water. There were SO many issues with things not working in the house, the grill was FULL of sand and the beach access was gone. So understanding there was a hurricane, we did not complain. However, when I let Elan know that when my husband and I arrived to our wedding, we both looked like we had the chicken pox from the amount of flea bites, they let me know that they actually knew about the infestation and sent someone to address the issue two days before our arrival. I can assure you, whoever they "hired" to take care of the issue, did not take care of the issue. To be getting my nails done and watch fleas walking down my legs was absolutely appalling. I exchanged a few emails with the staff who assured me the owner would address all of the issues and I should re-book for next year. No apology, no money back, no nothing. Well, I can assure you, I will never be renting from Elan again as I have heard Twiddy properties are better managed and I would rather test my luck with VRBO than to be treated like a second class citizen by this company. read more

We have been vacationing over Spring Break with our entire family for over 6 years. Elan has provided great homes at great prices! We are looking forward to 2018! read more

We had a very good experience with Elan. Would use the rental agency again. The refreshments and bbq at check-in are a nice touch after driving. The fact that they will allow you into your house early if it is finished being cleaned is great too! A rep called me a few days into our stay to see how everything was going. I mentioned that the kitchen faucet was loose and a maintenance person was out that afternoon to check it out (parts needed to be ordered, so it wasn't fixed during our stay). If there is any complaint, it's having to pick up and drop off physical keys to the property....keyless entry would be nice! read more

Elan Vacations is one of the best management companies in the Outer Banks. They are very responsive and care very much about each rental family. During the devastating storms in late 2016, their response was nothing less than spectacular. Almost everyone in the office was out assessing damage and immediately working on resolutions. I find Elan Vacations to have superb customer service, excellent property management expertise, loyal, honest and very willing to assist rentals and owners. read more

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!!! read more

Thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Calypso house for a week. Home was clean and furnished adequately. Staff at Elan were friendly and accommodating. Had one issue with one of the toilets and they came out same day. Pool and spa was maintained by Elan staff during the week. Adequate towels and supply bag was added bonus. read more