Our Five Focuses as We Reinvented The Woodbury Cottage

When we set out to reinvent The Woodbury Cottage we had a very specific vision for what we wanted to accomplish.  We focused on five points to make sure that we had a quality rental that was worth the price point and that guests could have an amazing vacation at and would want to come back to year after year.

Clean and Uncluttered Space

As we researched and looked at other rentals on Great Diamond and other islands in Casco Bay there were lots of rentals that were junked up with lots of clutter and knick-knacks. The Woodbury isn’t the biggest cottage out there, so having a bunch of junk around would only emphasize that fact. We also want guests to feel like they are on vacation in a cool house, not on vacation in someone else’s home.

Information and Resources

Island living is it’s own unique experience--one that takes a lot more work and planning than it looks. There are lots of ins and outs and tips and tricks that make it much easier.  We wanted to make sure we shared as much information that we had so that every guest knew what to expect so that surprises didn’t pop up to cause any stress on vacation.

White Linens and Towels

People seek out short-term rentals because they don’t want to stay in hotels. Being aware of that, we still wanted to pull out certain characteristics of a hotel stay into the experience of The Woodbury. We wanted to have white sheets and towels so that guests could tell they were super clean.

Fully Stocked Pantry and Well-Equipped Kitchen

Two things make cooking on vacation tough. First, when you have to pack all the things you need to make meals just how you like them, like spices for example.  The other thing that makes it tough is when you don’t have the tools you need. So we made sure the pantry was well stocked with all of the basics you’d need to cook most meals so you didn’t need to pack then. Then we made sure that the kitchen had all the utensils and appliances

Games, Puzzles, and Books

We truly wanted The Woodbury to be an escape. A chance to go off the grid and completely disconnect. We wanted it to be a callback to the time before smartphones and tablets. Back to when board games, puzzles and books were how people entertained themselves in downtime.