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It seemed like a really good idea. We would rent a beach cottage with my sister and brother-in-law for a week when we flew home for a family visit. What could go wrong?

What a silly question! We all know things don't always go as planned. Take, for example, our Canadian friends who rented a condo in Florida for a month. They discovered the place was crawling with ants. Ants everywhere! The little critters even hitched a ride back home in their luggage. "We literally had ants in our pants," Marg told me. "Some souvenir!"

Or the friends who checked in to their rental only to discover the plumbing didn't work. Fortunately, the husband never goes anywhere without his tools. His motto is "Have toolbox, will travel." So there he was under the kitchen sink. And my friend was mopping up the floor. Instead of soaking up the rays on the beach. Some vacation!

And how could I forget my bad experience? I was bitten by a scorpion in our rental house in Nevada. I was lucky that the little bugger was not the truly venomous variety or, as the emergency room doctor exclaimed, "You'd be dead right now!"

The sting was excrutiating and I screamed bloody murder. My thumb was numb for a month. But, hey, at least I was still alive.

This time, however, I thought I found the perfect place on the vacation rental website.

• Two bedrooms

• Two bathrooms

• Tastefully furnished

• Close to downtown

• Steps away from a beach

• Ocean views from the porch

"What do you think?" I asked my sister. "Don't the pictures look great? And the price is fantastic!"

My sister and her husband decided to drive to the shore to check out the house before we finalized the agreement.

Turns out the house was not where it was supposed to be according to the site's map.

It was not near downtown, it was not near a beach.

It was situated at the tip of a busy cove thriving with lobster boats and lobster traps.

Flies all over the place.

Not exactly the peaceful scenic view we were expecting.

"Where's the ocean view?" I asked the owner. "There's another house in front blocking the view."

"Well, not if you look off to the left side of that house," she explained. "Then you can catch a glimpse."

I knew the price was too good to be true!

Undaunted, I searched the website again and discovered a real gem:

"Newly renovated, three bedroom, two bath, walk to the beach."

I couldn't contain my excitement. Once again I asked my sister to check it out. She contacted the owner and was able to go inside the house.

Looking around, she thought she had inadvertently walked onto the set of one of those home improvement TV shows.

The "newly renovated" house was actually a work in progress. And this was Week One.

"How can you guarantee that this rehab will be completed in time for us to rent?" my brother-in-law asked.

Guess what? Even the Property Brothers couldn't give us that guarantee.

Not to worry. We have finally found a cottage that seems ideal.

• Close to the beach

• Walking distance to shops and restaurants

• Two bedrooms

• Two couples

• ONE BATHROOM

I'm just hoping the plumbing works. My husband doesn't have a toolbox.

- Natalie Cinelli

Natalie Cinelli is a freelance writer who has had articles published in the Boston Globe, the Boston Herald and American Baby magazine. She wrote a humor column, "In a Nutshell," for the Suburban News in Reading, Massachusetts. She also worked as a lifestyle editor and columnist for the Lawrence Eagle Tribune in Lawrence, Massachusetts.