It was a true pleasure staying at the Monte Sano Bungalow!
LOCATION - The top of Monte Sano is an amazing community, about a mile from the beautiful Monte Sano State Park and several awesome hiking trails. It's a great location for those who want to be near town (about a 8-10 minute drive) but still get some seclusion and open space.
COMMUNICATION - The owners live nearby and were a real joy: great communication, super friendly, and, knowing that we were traveling with our son, they even gave us some great recommendations on fun things to do with kids.
OUTSIDE - The house sits back from the road on a beautiful lot with plenty of trees to provide shade on those hot Alabama days. There's also a very large back porch that's big enough to host 6-8 for an outdoor dinner. Or, it's a great place to sit and watch the fireflies over a drink in the evening (what we spent most of our night doing). There's both a huge backyard and a large front yard, both of which were big enough to play catch in the afternoons.
INSIDE - This is where the house really shined. It's like a living history museum of Huntsville's rocket program history. It was absolutely dripping with character, which was probably the highlight of our stay. Though we were just a family of three, the layout could easily have accommodated a large group without anyone feeling crowded. The property comes with all of the basics one would expect from a vacation rental, including some nice extras like a full laundry room. Also, it may seem like a small thing, but having good, reliable internet was a plus, and something we're found lacking in a few recent rentals. The one potential downside for some that I would note is that this is not one of those properties that's been highly staged and, in essence, made into a large hotel room. This is a house that feels very loved and lived in, full of a family's character, decor, and personality. You feel like you're staying at a good friend's house. For us, that was a plus. My only other critique is that the cleaning crew could have done a better job. Not a huge deal to me, but if that's a major concern for you, worth noting.
Overall, this was a terrific stay, one of the ones that can absolutely make a good trip great. We would stay there again in a heartbeat.