House of the Moon

This home is beautiful and well-stocked, but our stay was unfortunately very disappointing due to issues not disclosed in the listing. The house is completely off-grid, running only on solar, batteries, and a generator. In 100+° summer heat, the AC could not keep up — the bedrooms stayed in the 80s at night, and the power even shut off around 11 p.m. before the loud generator kicked on. Instead of the peaceful desert quiet we hoped for, mornings and evenings were filled with the sound of the generator. We also booked this property for the EV charger, but learned too late that it only works during the middle of the day when the batteries have enough charge. When we tried to plug in after our arrival, it didn’t work at all. That, combined with limits on using the stove/oven, made the house feel more like a campsite than a comfortable rental. When we asked Vacasa how long the generator would last, they told us the home didn’t even have one — further proof the listing details are very inaccurate. On top of the power problems, the house had dozens of moths and other critters inside, many windows lacked blinds (so sunrise floods the rooms before 6 a.m.), and we even had to fix a chirping smoke detector ourselves. We stayed less than 12 hours before leaving — the first time we’ve ever had such a terrible experience that we felt we couldn’t continue our stay. Joshua Tree is incredible, and this home has potential with its design and amenities, but guests need to know what they’re signing up for. The listing should be clear about the off-grid setup, power restrictions, and the reality of staying here in summer. Unfortunately, we would not return.

House design a work of art; roads together get there a challenge. Perfect place to view a lunar eclipse.

Pros - The architecture of the house is terrific, like a living work of art. The appliances are nice and new. We didn't cook but the kitchen all the basics you'd expect to be able to cook a meal unlike some other Vacasas we have stayed at. The internet was stable and reliable, remarkably so considering we had no cell service. We had no issues working remote, doing video calls, etc. As you're in the middle of the desert the wildlife watching is quite nice: coyotes walked right through the backyard and there were many birds and rabbits and such to watch from the floor to ceiling windows. The hammock under the shade of the porch with the desert wind blowing over it was a great place to relax in the afternoons. The location is great for star-gazing and you can see the Milky Way and many starts we can't see at home. To top it off we saw a shooting star just before we packed it up for the night. Cons - The thermostat seemed to reset itself to 78 every 4 hours. I was surprised to see other people had reviewed the house as it felt like they were 95% done building it and we were the first people to ever stay in it. It had many cobwebs and a dead bat on the floor in one of the bedrooms along with many moths. Not all of the artwork had been hung on the walls, the bathtub was dirty, the master shower stall seemed to be installed backwards, not all of the windows had window treatments, etc. It felt like they built it and then the contractor never did the final punchlist. Several windows, including 2 in the master bed, have no window treatments at all. The windows that do have treatments have sheers but no shades or curtains. This means that at sunrise, even with all the sheers fully lowered, the room lights up like the noonday sun. Fortunately we needed to wake up early as we were working remote for jobs based in the Central Timezone but in summer sunrise is like 6a and I assume most other people would be upset by this. Also, all of the beds are queen size or smaller (as correctly described in the listing) with heavy bedding that didn't mix well with the thermostat continually going up. Items of Note - The house is located on a very rough dirt road. When we rented our car in LAX I was sad there were no convertibles available but very happy to have a large SUV when we saw the road to the house. This is true of many other vacation rentals in the area so I wouldn't list it as a con as this is the same reason you get stunningly dark skies at night for star-gazing: you're in the middle of the desert. Overall I would not want to return to this house as-is but if they finished putting the final touches on it I definitely would.

Great attention to detail. Very comfortable L/R chairs and island. Kitchen is very well equipped. Even the curious coyote as we BBQ’d was a bonus! The view from the house is magical and the design of the house is A+++++ Who was the architect?? Very accessible to the West entrance to the park. I can’t say enough good things about the house except that this was one of our best stays anywhere and we travel a LOT!! Thank you 💜💜💜

Besides a few important maintenance issues it is a very nice place, great location and wonderful views. The heating takes time to work so extra blankets are neccesary on colder days. There were some matinance issues that needed attending too however. It was very cozy and comfortable and the bed alonf with the bed sheets were very comfortable based on what they had while I was staying.