Loading...
Premium
#2616
Beautiful views in the redwoods
House • Los Gatos CA United States
Exchange types accepted
Hospitality Description: We have a small studio cottage attached to our garage that is occasionally available, but sometimes rented or we have family staying. This might be available for last minute stays though, so message us! It has a single queen-sized bed, a full bathroom, and a small kitchenette.
Statistics
Listed August 2019
Views 6822
General Overview
Our home in the mountains is a beautiful oasis. We are close to town but up above the valley with views of the Santa Cruz Mountains facing west. We have recently remodeled much of our adobe brick home with new bathrooms, floors and more. The wall to wall windows look west over the mountains and you walk out the patio doors to a wrap around veranda. Step down onto a patio area and eat all your meals outside. From the patio, you can walk down into the orchard (over 40 fruit trees!) and visit the chickens. The land is fairly steep in areas but fun to explore. We are on one acre and surrounded by friendly neighbors - private but not isolated. Do be aware that we live near the top of a windy mountain road. The road is perfectly fine for large and small vehicles but can take some getting used to for those who haven’t lived in the mountains.
Our two friendly mostly indoor cats would love for you to give them a little attention now and then and feed them maybe once a day (they also have a robot feeder). Our two outdoor cats are semi-feral and avoid people, but you will see them around. If you can put a little food out for them once a day, that's appreciated. Our 10 chickens live in a coop in the orchard and will provide you with plenty of fresh eggs!
The Space
The master bedroom and bathroom are at one end of the house with a king sized bed (two single trundles underneath for young children) and a large walk in glass shower. Patio doors lead out to the veranda, or you can walk through the open kitchen/living/dining area with huge windows facing the beautiful view of the mountains. We have new living room furniture that provide seating for at least 6 and will update photos soon. At the other end of the open living area are two kids bedrooms - one with a loft single bed and the other with two single beds (we will update photos soon!) The kitchen has not yet been remodeled and the appliances are somewhat old but very functional. Outside the back bedroom is a washer dryer and another door that leads to the front yard.
Outdoors, the property is 1 acre and fully fenced. It’s quite hilly and very fun to explore. We have many swings, climbing gym and a sandbox for kids. There is also an orchard with 40 fruit trees. A large chicken coop with 10 hens sits down in the orchard.
We rent our small guest cottage (attached to the garage) sometimes, but it might be available during your stay and can sleep 2 people in a queen size bed. It is a few steps from the main house.
Amenities:
- Full-size washer/dryer
- Iron and ironing board
- Dishwasher
- Microwave
- Oven/stove
- Hair dryer
- High-speed wifi
- TV through Apple TV with Netflix, Hulu, HBO, and other channels
- Electric kettle and Chemex or French press coffee maker or Keurig if you prefer
- Ice maker in fridge
- Towels and sheets
- Air conditioning in the living room and the cottage. In the summer, it gets very cool at night and we sleep with the glass doors open (screen doors closed).
Guest Access
Guests enter through the front door with two steps up or through the patio doors with no stairs.
Notes
- We have two friendly cats--Izzy and Momo. They need to be fed once per day (they also have a robot feeder) and have their litter box scooped every few days.
- We have a very calm, older dog who we will take with us when we travel or board so that she won't be here with you. Unless you want her to be!
- No smoking
- No parties or unapproved guests
Features
Washer
Dishwasher
Clothes dryer
Oven
Microwave
Coffee machine
Fridge
Iron
Hair dryer
Heating
Air conditioning
TV
WiFi
Bathtub
Smoke alarms
Fire extinguisher
Bed sheets
Towels
Workspace
Fireplace
Toys
BBQ
Garden / yard
Deck / patio / courtyard / terrace
Covered porch / verandah
EV Home Charger
Bikes
Camping gear
Travel Styles
Weekend
Adventure
Family
Sport and leisure
Relaxing
Village
Mountains
Beach
Hiking
Cycling
Last minute
Accessibility
House Rules
Suitable for infants under 2
Suitable for children ages 2-12
Pets welcome
No smoking
Allergens
Carpet free
Smoke free
Fragrance free
Dates of Availability
Click on availability periods to see exchange types and descriptions.
Neighbourhood
Our neighborhood is a mountain neighborhood - that means the people are friendly and help each other out, but still appreciate their privacy and are not nosy. Our home is near the top of a windy mountain road. It’s very safe but can take a little getting used to if you haven’t lived in the mountains.
Getting to my home
The closest airport is San Jose (30 minutes) and San Francisco (50 minutes). You will need a car as public transportation doesn’t come to our neighborhood. We are 15 minutes outside downtown Los Gatos with loads of restaurants and shops and 30 minutes from Santa Cruz and the beaches. Many state and national parks are close by for day trips or overnights.
Nearest airport
San Francisco International Airport (1 hour), San Jose International Airport (30 min)
Getting Around
You will want a car to get around so you can visit the 63,000 acres of open space preserves as well as the many thousands more acres of area state and national parks. It’s about a half hour drive to the beach. Monterey is about 1.5 hours and 2 hours to Big Sur. The coastline is breathtakingly beautiful and there are probably at least 50 beaches within an hour drive. Our home is also very close to many beautiful parks full of hiking in old growth Redwood forests, including Henry Cowell, Big Basin, Nisene Marks, and more. The Sierra Nevada Mountains, including Yosemite, are a 3-4 hour drive, so great for a weekend trip.
Map of Approximate Location
People Like Us Local Guide
Let us know if you'll be in the Bay Area! We'd love to meet up and are happy to show you around or give you any suggestions. We're about 20min outside San Jose, 30 min from Santa Cruz, and 1 hr from San Francisco,
Feedback
-
It was so wonderful to meet Leah and stay in her beautiful place! She was such a kind and gracious host and we slept incredibly well in the comfortable bed. We loved the fresh eggs from the chickens and waking up to the gorgeous mountain view. Thank you Leah for letting us stay! -
Gorgeous mountain house with all the amenities. Very family friendly. The animals, the views, the great communication with our gracious hosts - could not recommend it more! Fantastic base to explore California, but you'll be finding yourself wanting to spend time at this gorgeous home. -
We had a wonderful 2 week stay at Leah and Scott's home. Leah is super nice and responds to messages fast. Communication was really easy. I won't talk about the neighborhood as they are moving soon. The house is very comfortable and was professionally cleaned before we arrived. The kitchen is well equipped with top of the line cooking tools (we cook a lot). They had really fun toys for our young kids to play with. However, the highlight for our girls were their 2 sweet cats. Our girls were in heaven playing with kitties. Although, this was a non-reciprocal exchange, we would be happy to welcome the Sterns into our home should they ever visit our city. -
Staying at Leah's home was absolutely wonderful. Before we came for our non-reciprocal exchange, she had great communication about her place and taking care of her cats. We communicated via a video chat as well as by emailing and texting. She was very responsive and answered all my questions. She provided us with a very detailed document of everything we needed to know to stay there. Our family found her home to be perfect as it was clean, well-appointed, and had everything we needed for cooking, working, playing (good selection of kids toys and games) and relaxing. Her cats were such a joy to us and were fun to care for. We also enjoyed the area of her home and found it easy to get around the city of Chicago from her home. She provided us with wonderful suggestions of what to see and do around her home, so that was really helpful. Leah was very easy to work with and made us feel so comfortable and accepting into her home. She truly went above and beyond to welcome us to her home. We would definitely recommend exchanging with Leah and her family. We have nothing but wonderful things to say about Leah and her home.
Premium
Leah & Scott
We are Scott, Leah, Etta (12), and Oliver (7), and we love traveling to new places, getting to know people and cultures, exploring nature and trying new food. We're very easy-going and laid-back, excited to exchange with similar folks. Home exchange is such a great way to experience a different culture and make lasting relationships! If you stay in our home, our 2 very friendly cats will be in residence and would appreciate some pets now and then and our chickens are happy to provide fresh eggs!
Travelling group
My Desired Destinations
Open to any destination
Dates Flexible
"Interested in weekend trips, possibly up to 4 days."
Dates Flexible
"Interested in weekend trips, possibly up to 4 days."
Dates Flexible
"Interested in weekend trips, possibly up to 4 days."
Dates Flexible
Dates Flexible
Dates Flexible
Dates Flexible
Dates Flexible
Dates Flexible
Dates Flexible
People Like Us is the world's most trusted home exchange community. We believe in sharing, trust, generosity, respect, communication, equality, cooperation, honesty, hospitality, friendship, flexibility and adventure. We take pride in our homes and we care about the environment in which we live: our village, city, country and our planet. We care about the ethos of home exchange and we do it because we love the experience and the friendships that it generates.
Locations
Contact
People Like Us
Home Exchange Pty Ltd
Support help@peoplelikeus.world
Press press@peoplelikeus.world
© 2017 - 2025 People Like Us Home Exchange Pty Ltd