Gospel Island Lake House – Inverness Florida – Airbnb Review
Always looking for the waterfront Airbnb destination, for a cycling trail ride on the Withlacoochee Trail, I found Gospel Island Lake House in Inverness that offered terazzo floors, a waterfront swing, a dock, and amenities galore.
Truly, I think I have hit upon the perfect system for finding and booking the perfect Airbnb wherever we go. I look for a place on the water, priced slightly below hotels in the area, entire house to myself, and something special – either vintage furnishings, luxurious bathroom, special location, or some feature that sets it apart from a hotel stay.
The Gospel Island Lake House features a lakeside location, a dock, lakeside swing, screened-in lakeside porch, and plenty of room in three bedrooms and two baths, as well as four living room-type areas. Our host says, with enough notice, she can even change the decor in the smaller bedrooms to suit if you have girls or boys visiting!
Upon arrival, we were greeted with a gift basket full of snacks and sweet and savory goodies. The day’s newspaper was provided, and plenty of brochures about local attractions. What a thoughtful gesture. We promptly parked ourselves; lounging in the lanai, munching on pistachios, reading, and watching the resident birds come and go on the lake.
Looking further, we found supplies for two day’s worth of breakfasts, plus full coffee and tea service!
That evening, we used the grill to grill some steaks out on the patio, tiki torches lit and adding ambiance. You can choose to eat in the dining room, at the inside bar, at the outside bar, in the lanai or outdoors under an umbrella. The best part of the Gospel Island Lake House was the lake, of course!
We opted for under the umbrella outside so we could watch the sand hill cranes come and go. The local fishermen were quite friendly, passing by a couple times each evening, offering observations about their fishing and our cooking.
When staying at an Airbnb, it’s fun to imagine what the hosts have done to ready their property for guests. We were fortunate and got to meet Alan and Jane, and hear the story about his mother’s successful Airbnb that inspired them to invest in this property specifically for the rental opportunity. What a perfect location they chose; the neighborhood is quiet. We did see some neighbors out walking in the morning and evening, but other than that, the whole area was very quiet and peaceful. The house had a definite “1969” vibe with the terrazzo floors, so stylish now, and funky angled cabinets. The kitchen was small, but fully stocked. We had fun imagining the 1960’s housewife preparing meals in there – no room for assistants, but plenty of room for conversation from the adjacent breakfast bar.
Upgrading as they go, Jane and Alan also speculated on which parts of the house got the most use originally, since there are actually two living rooms and the lanai. If you had a large family staying here, there’s plenty of room for everyone to spread out.
We discovered that the lanai was a great place to lounge and watch the wildlife. Plus, it was SO 60’s/70’s kitschy with the brick wall to the covered parking.
As for the Withlacoochee Bike Ride; the morning dawned COLD! Although we wore shorts when we arrived, we had to wear jackets over our jerseys for the bike ride, which turned out to be and absolutely beautiful ride, with plenty of stops for snacks and drinks along the way. I’ll feature that in another post!
Day one – shorts and short-sleeved shirt. Day three – jacket! Arm warmers! Leg warmers! Vanderkitten kit and accessories!
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