Crystal Cove full

Beachfront accommodations at California’s state parks always sell out fast, but the renovated cottages at Crystal Cove State Park may have set a new record April 27 when four months of overnight stays sold out in about four hours on the first day the rentals were available.

Close to 900 cottage reservations were made between 8 a.m. and about noon that day, leaving some people complaining that they couldn’t get through by phone or online to get a spot.

Hundreds of people took a second shot Monday at renting one of the 13 refurbished beach cottages in November, jamming phone lines and booking the high-demand vacation homes in a matter of minutes.

“We had pretty much sold everything by 10 a.m.,” Richard Rozzelle, superintendent of the state parks department’s Orange Coast district said. Several residents who tried to book vacation units Monday morning said they were told the units had filled up just minutes after their 8 a.m. start time.

Reservations for the months of June to October filled up in a matter of hours April 27, and Monday was supposed to be a second chance to rent one of the 13 cottages, which became available for the month of November, Rozzelle said. Now vacationers will have to wait until June 1 for a chance to book the cottages for the month of December.

The high demand left many feeling frustrated that their second attempt at renting one of the cottages had come up short.

“I had tried last week with no luck at all,” Yorba Linda resident Jamie Loop said. “Then I tried three times this morning and all of the service reps were saying there were no available dates.”

Loop said she was hoping to book one of the cottages for a weekend getaway with her family and also secure another seven-day rental for her boss.

Vacationers have had their eyes on the cottages since 1979 when the state bought the property from the Irvine Co. The last resident left the 1920s-era cottages in 2001 and a $14-million renovation campaign got underway in March 2004 to convert the units into vacation property.

Park managers hope to eventually open 24 more cottages for overnight stays, but the completion dates on those units have not been announced. State parks officials estimate it will cost $15 million to restore the additional cottages for summer rentals. cpt.05-crystalcove-1-CPhotoInfo131QJPO520060505iycxuqncJAMIE FLANAGAN / COASTLINE PILOT(LA)Shelley Graves of Corona del Mar peeks inside a remodeled cottage at Crystal Cove on Wednesday. cpt.05-crystalcove-2-CPhotoInfo131QJPOP20060505ivzktzknKENT TREPTOW / COASTLINE PILOT(LA)The first phase of renovations at Crystal Cove, which cost about $14 million.