About Oak Island Accommodations
Once upon a summer evening in 1987, the Marshall family arrived for their first Oak Island, NC vacation. Both of their girls brought a friend and the six of them, traveling from Virginia via the Outer Banks (that’s another story for another day), were car-tired and testy. Testy turned into total frustration when there was no record of their reservation. Total frustration vocalized into “One of these days, I’m coming back and getting them organized!” They had no idea that, four years later, they would be living those words! The first year was the most complex. As they took their first property management steps and the days were long. In 1992 their home was in Leland NC, a 30 minute commute. Since Dick was the “on call” contact, they rented a room behind the airport to better respond to any emergencies that occurred. The room was in a barn and on the other side of the wall was a horse stall, complete with horse. It became apparent that Oak Island, NC was the place to live, and a few years later they were making their permanent home on the island they had come to love!
In 1994 Dick commissioned local artist Rachael Royal to design our shell logo, which we still use today. Her art work and logo have been prominent in OIA brochures and other materials for over 16 years. It wasn’t very long before their daughters, Paige and Melaney, were cleaning houses on Saturdays during the summer. With no particular intention or design, both girls eventually joined the Oak Island Accommodations family. Melaney came on board in 1996 in the Reservations Department (now called Guest Services) and Paige in 2002 as the Office Manager of the Southport NC Real Estate Sales Office.
Each year they have pushed themselves to provide a great vacation experience for each and every vacationer. With more house amenities, pet friendly properties, event friendly homes and an in-house souvenir store: all to match the desires of today’s vacationer. They have been blessed with many talented and caring employees throughout the years; and the long term relationships they have developed with many of our owners are treasured. They sincerely believe that success in this business is the result of doing the right things for the right reasons which result in bringing our vacationing guests back year after year. To all of you who have shared our journey, Thank You! For those of you who are new to Oak Island Accommodations, Welcome Aboard!