Chincoteague/Assateague Island, Virginia

On Saturday August 8, 2009, I brought my 3 teenage daughters to Chincoteague for a week long vacation. I made reservations at the Inlet View Campground. Their website and brochure show it to be a good, clean place. We rented Cabin #3 and arrived late Saturday evening. After an exhausting trip, I checked in, paid the balance and went to our cabin. The next morning we looked around the cabin and noticed several things that needed to be fixed (mainly electrical and the ceiling that was falling down).
I went to the campground office and told them that this cabin was unacceptable to stay in and that I would like a refund. Instead, they offered to let us stay in someone’s permanent trailer down the road. I went to look at it first and it seemed to look ok. The office would not charge me the extra fees if I would clean the place because their cleaning help doesn’t work on Sunday. We agreed to that, packed up all our stuff and moved to this trailer.
We bought some extra cleaning supplies and cleaned up the trailer. The campground office promised us that a vacuum cleaner would arrive later that day. It did not. The next day, I stopped at the office again to inquire about the vacuum cleaner and they said they’d bring one over that afternoon. They did not. So there we were, stuck in the trailer that badly needed to be vacuumed. We also noticed a bad smell in the trailer and it was strongest in the kitchen. After calling my husband in PA, we determined that it was a gas leak from the stove. I checked and the pilot light was out. I also found that one of the bathroom toilets didn’t work and my husband told me to check the shut off valve. It was turned off. If I turned on the valve so the toilet would work, it would constantly run.
On Tuesday morning (our 3rd day in Chincoteague), I went back to the campground office to request a refund, so we could go into town and rent a nice motel for the remainder of our stay. The owner refused. He said he does not give out refunds. I had told him of the gas leak and reminded him that we could not stay in a place with a gas leak and that it was making us all sick. He remarked, and I quote “You weren’t satisfied with the cabin or the trailer—you should have just gone to the Hamptons”.
I would not have complained if either place was clean and in working condition. I don’t think we were being unreasonable!
Needless to say, I stood my ground and kept requesting a refund. The campground owner wouldn’t look at me and he just walked out, got into his truck and drove away. Being a woman alone with 3 teenagers and not knowing what to do, I called the police only to find out that they had already been dispatched to the campground. The campground owner wanted the police to get me off his property!
I spoke to the officer and he told me there were problems like this before and that there was little he could do. I went back to the trailer, we packed up and went to the Chincoteague Inn on Maddox Blvd. I had to pay for a 3-night stay in addition to the campground fees that I lost, which was over $500.00
I proceeded to call the town office, and made an appointment for the inspector to meet me at the trailer. He verified that the stove did not work, and there was a gas leak. He could smell the fumes as soon as he entered the trailer. I discussed with him about my options in trying to get my money back from the campground. He said that this has happened before and suggested that I could take the campground owner to court and/or report him to the Better Business Bureau.
I would like to say that the staff at Chincoteague Inn were very friendly and helpful. One staff member even helped us bring all our stuff up the stairs to our room. The room we paid for was clean and newly updated. The rest of our stay was very nice. We enjoyed your nice town and the Assateague ponies and beautiful beaches. If we ever come to vacation again, we will certainly stay at the Chincoteague Inn.