Monday, June 09, 2008

Sequim Vacation Rental

We visited Sequim for the first time in October 2005 for a Sequim vacation. We wanted to find out whether this peaceful small town between water and mountains would be the right place to move to from Hawaii and retire. As you can see from our Sequim Town blog raves about Sequim Town and Olympic Peninsula, it turned out to be the perfect place for us and many other Sequim residents from CA, CO, AZ, HI and more.

Sequim Lavender Capital
Recently, the Peninsula Daily News printed an article which fits right into this topic. The magazine 'Where to Retire' listed Sequim in their July/August magazine among eight West Coast destinations as a great place to retire. The magazine's editor said "Sequim, the lavender capital of North America, provides ample outdoor recreation, a comfortable climate and quick access to the Olympic Mountains". Other retirement places profiled by the magazine included the San Juan Islands and Whidbey Island. Interesting to know that about 700,000 Americans move to a new town every year.

So, if you play with the idea of moving to Sequim, why not do what we did! Come here for a Sequim vacation and check things out on your own. Go visit Sarc Sequim Aquatic Recreational Center, our most popular meeting place of seniors after the Senior Center. Do a walk along the Olympic Discovery Trail and through Carrie Blake Park. Check out our big shopping markets, Safeways and QFC, and of course Sunny Farms and downtown Costco. After that do a little exploring in Sequim and surrounding area: John Wayne Marina, Sequim Lighthouse, Hurricane Ridge, Crescent Lake, Olympic Discovery Trail (see photo below) and so much more.

Discovery Trail at Dungeness River
When we came here on vacation, we had done a search for Sequim Vacation Rentals. We looked for a comfortable 1Bd/1Ba Sequim rental with a kitchen + at an affordable nightly rate. We never thought that this was not that easy to find. Most Sequim vacation rentals were vacation homes for more than 2 people and started above $200/nt. Then they charged an additional cleaning fee, which we were not used to at all. We never added cleaning fees to our vacation rentals in Hawaii. What would a guest say, if he had to pay a cleaning fee at a hotel?! Well, we ended up at the Sequim West Inn, which was OK as our days were filled out with scouting Sequim and area and Sequim homes for sale.

However, we always thought how nice it would be to create a beautiful 1Bd/1Ba apartment as a Sequim Vacation Rental for all these couples who come on a Sequim Vacation and wanting to have a great time outdoors and indoors! A little Sequim 'sanctuary', with all modern comfort and quiet and peace. Some views would be nice. So we created Sequim 'Bell Hill View Vacation Rental', the perfect place to stay in Sequim for a month when pursuing moving and relocation plans. Great central location for looking for Sequim real estate!

Sequim Vacation Rental KitchenSequim Vacation Rental features among many others:

- fully equipped kitchen with everything you need for cooking,

- free high speed Internet access for your laptop,

- free long distance (USA + Canada) + local phone

- peaceful outdoor garden sitting area for hot summer days

-
NO cleaning fees!

- BEST Sequim Vacation rates from $1200/mo. (1 - 2 persons)!


So, if you are interested in our Sequim vacation rental, check out more rental features and photos. If you think this would be the right place for you to stay in Sequim, please, email us or call us at 360-504-1157. Have a wonderful Sequim Vacation!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

We have been seriously contemplating moving to Hawaii for some time (we are from Portland, OR) because we are very sick of the Northwest winters (my husband has Seasonal Affective Disorder).

Recently we heard about Sequim, and I have been scouring the internet for information. We really love the Northwest and would like the option to stay, but would like an honest opinion as to the amount of sunshine Sequim gets. Obviously Hawaii would be better as it has even hours of sunlight, but we are just looking at our options.

Does Sequim really have as much sunshine as everyone is touting?

Also, can the town support an architect and a small plane pilot?

In advance, thanks for any help/advice,

K from Portland

Anonymous said...

Hello K. from Portland,
Great that you've found our Sequim Town blog. Happy to share our experience with you, whether it's living in Hawaii (myself 15 yrs., Keoki over 30yrs.) or our life in Sequim experience (we will be here 3 yrs. in January 2009) - beyond our blog!

When you consider moving to Hawaii, you definitely have the sun all year around but also the heat and getting older, this became a big problem for me. You want to run AC at least during summer which does not come cheap.
Electric costs in Hawaii are the highest in the nation 34c/kwhr versus a litte over 6c/kwhr in Sequim. Sequim's energy is hydroelectric based.

House prices in Hawaii are, despite of the bursting real estate bubble in the nation and also in Hawaii, still at median price of $500k on the Hawaiin islands. If you are not on a fixed income, not a problem then.

When we bought our first house in Sequim, we were pleasantly surprised about the low price considering the square footage, beautiful location and tons of amenities. And we bought at the time of the Sequim housing boom.

House and lot prices have come down considerably in Sequim since then. If ocean view is not a must for your Sequim home - Sequim ocean view homes are generally $200K more for your house, there are lots of wonderful houses for sale at affordable prices in Sequim at the moment.

Best thing to do - in addition to reading and studying all the online Sequim resources - come visit Sequim for a vacation and see for yourself.

Sequim would be definitely a big improvement to Portland. Some Hawaii friends of ours had moved to Portland. We never envied them. Especially the stories of the ice rain were freaky. You definitely experience much more rain in Portland compared to dry Sequim with an average precipitation of 11inches per year.

Again, Portland is not out of the way. You can even drive from Portland to Sequim and make use of an extended weekend. Get to know the little Sequim town, the climate, the sights around this lovely town and the wonderful, friendly people.

Happy to sit down with you and share what we think! As you can see from our blog, we are happy here. In rainy November, we take a break from the Olympic Peninsula and go to Mexico. If you feel you want to talk to us, give us a call. Best wishes for your moving project. Sincerely, Heidi & Keoki