Imagine waking up in the morning to a view like this. There’s barely a sound, except for the occasional call of a bird or hum of an insect. The air feels fresh and clean and as you step out on your deck with your cup of coffee, you take a deep breath in. You feel a sense of calm wash over you. Instead of grabbing a newspaper or your tablet and burying your nose in it while you sip your coffee, you just let your eyes and mind wander as you take in the beauty around you. After breakfast, instead of looking at your calendar, you ask yourself what you feel like doing most that morning – will it be fishing? Swimming? Maybe a walk on the beach? How about all three? Are you imagining it? Believe me, I am! From the first morning I woke up here, I said, “This is where I want to wake up every morning!”
So. you may have seen my recent posts about our weekend getaway to Melody Bay, a Parkbridge Resort. Parkbridge graciously invited us for a free weekend stay so we could see what it was like and write about it. You know, when I get invited to places like this, I always anticipate having a good time. I expect that I will have fun and that I will have good things to write about it. I had done some reading up on it ahead of time and seen pictures of it online so I was pretty confident.
Here’s the thing though. I didn’t expect to go there and be so completely happy about the experience that my family and I are now seriously looking into purchasing a cottage for ourselves. (Note: we would LOVE one at Melody Bay but it’s a bit far for us to go on a regular basis so we will be looking into other Parkbridge Resorts that are closer to us. We’re sold on the facilities, the concept, and the customer service.)
So, what’s so special about Parkbridge? First of all, I never thought I’d be able to afford a vacation property. What some of my friends have paid for their cottages is more than what I paid for my house! I can’t afford it, I can’t justify it, and I felt I was left with no options. But, “Parkbridge believes that everyone deserves affordable, comfortable and secure places to live, getaway and retire.” They have three different types of properties – residential family or retirement communities, cottage and RV resorts (such as Melody Bay, where I spent the weekend), and Marinas.
The Parkbridge Community model is based on the land lease concept. Think of it like owning a condo. You buy and own your home/cottage outright but you lease the land from Parkbridge, thus bringing your costs down.
There are other advantages to this concept. Not only are Parkbridge communities managed but they are done so by onsite managers, not third parties. When we first arrived on site, we were met by Doug, the friendly resort manager. Doug was there to oversee things and make sure everyone at Melody Bay was happy and safe. That’s a major bonus over owning a cottage AND land outright for us.
There was a lovely sense of community from everyone there. With a lounge, two pools (one for pool toys, the other not), a kids’ club and more, there was a lot to do and a lot of ways to be a part of the community. They had planned events that foster making social connections and an ease about the resort that made us feel very safe and secure. Each Parkbridge community is unique with its own set of resources and amenities but they all promote a strong sense of community with walkable neighbourhoods. Still want your own little piece of the earth? Each lot has its own private outdoor space for gardening, entertaining, and recreation.
Sounds great doesn’t it? My family and I are sold! Not only are we looking into buying a family cottage together at one of the resorts but I’m seriously investigating selling my house and purchasing a permanent residence with them as well. It’s a great lifestyle for someone like me who is very busy, likes to travel and doesn’t want all of her money tied up in property. It’s also perfect for me as an empty nester but I would have loved this concept when my daughter was younger too. It would have been a fantastic community concept for her to grow up in!
Want to find out more or find out about going and having a look at a Parkbridge Resort or other community? Check out their website here!
Check out my other posts about our weekend at Melody Bay, a Parkbridge Resort here:
Dorothy Boucher says
wow I want to live there loll For real wow talk about a beautiful and peacefull place to be at . I know me and my hubby would love to wake up there every day 🙂 thanks for share