I fell in love with The Blue Haven! It has an amazing covered deck, central A/C, and nice appliances. They're not kidding about the luxury-quality beds, bedding, and towels, either. So nice! The deck has a view of marshlands to the left, and a peekaboo view of the gulf to the right. Sea breezes feel great outside, and you can hear the surf. What a wonderful home away from home!
Another plus: the property manager (979 Vacation Rentals) is excellent. Really great communication from start to finish! Easy arrival/entry - no waiting around for any reason.
The house is a short, easy walk to the beach. It's also close to the main road, so there is some traffic noise. On Sunday (the day I arrived), the beach was packed with cars, people, competing sound systems, and mild chaos. If that's your jam, you'll love it. The beach wasn't the cleanest, and it's not as spacious as the beaches in Galveston. I ended up spending my days hanging out on the deck instead of the beach, and I was perfectly happy there!
FYI, the tap water in Surfside is brown and smells like sour salt. It was an unexpected (and offputting) contrast to how fabulous The Blue Haven is. I took plenty of distilled water for drinking and cooking, but even showering felt a bit icky.
Also, as a solo female traveler, I felt unsafe at times in the general area. Surfside is a very small town and kinda rough around the edges. I'm not a timid traveler, but there were several moments when I was walking alone that I felt vulnerable. Just a heads-up for all the single ladies...
If stuff like that isn't an issue for you and your family/friends, then I recommend renting this house in a heartbeat! While Surfside has its quirks, The Blue Haven is its own special paradise!