ABSOLUTELY DO NOT stay at ANY of the 6 vessels Justin VanBogart advertises on Airbnb!!!! In advertising, there is a big difference between pushing the truth and making false claims. The pictures advertised on Airbnb give the vessels much more ambiance than in person. The vessels are falsely advertised as “LUXURY” vessels nesting on a “PRIVATE MARINA”. In reality, upon arrival on Thursday 08/01/2019 at around 8:30 pm we found ourselves driving up to an entire parking lot flooded by a king tide in the middle of BFE. As my family and I were confused about where to park and how to access the vessel we reached out to the host, Justin VanBogart for advice. When he answered the phone he was the most unkind, disrespectful and rude creature who has ever stepped foot on this planet. He responded, “You should read the check-in text”. 

Oh just wait…The story gets even better. After finally finding somewhere safe to park our car and walking approximately 2 miles to the vessel (with luggage in hand) upon opening the door to the vessel at around 9:30 pm we were blasted with what smelled like a combination of diesel fumes and wasp spray. I mentioned to my mother that the vessel must have been just sprayed for bugs. My family and I immediately went to the store and bought air fresheners; however, the smell did not dissipate. Just from the short amount of time spent in the cabin we suffered from severe headaches. At around 10:20 pm we contacted Justin Vanbogart regarding the strong chemical odor and explained to him that we could not stay there. Of course, he did not bother to reach out to us regarding any accommodations; thus, we had no option but to pack up our belongings and head back home (a 4-hour drive). In fact, it was until the very next morning (Friday 08/02/19) at around 9:15 am that we received a text from Justin stating that he has NEVER had any complaints of this and has no idea what the odor could be. This is complete BS! After doing some investigation on my end I found that Justin has been notified on NUMEROUS occasions under the Airbnb reviews of this distinct smell. Yet, he claims he has no idea and the boat smells “FRESH AND CLEAN”. 

Just from the short amount of time spent on the vessel ALL of our clothes and bags had to be washed to get the smell out, I just wish we could have done the same for our lungs! We feel it is a safety & health issue that should have been addressed before allowing anyone to reserve. HIGHLY do NOT recommend anyone to book with Justin as he was UNWILLING to negotiate any reimbursement for our trip which was $900 total. We now have over $900 tied up in this trip even though we left the vessel and it was not occupied. Your satisfaction is clearly NOT Justin’s #1 goal! He is only looking out for himself and could absolutely care less about what his renter wellbeing or financial security.