Two blue Adirondack chairs and a small table at the end of the dock, with a swim ladder at the edge, a potted plant, and open water running to the far shore under a tall cloudy sky.

Burdett, New York · Seneca Lake

Closer To The Lake Than You Thought Possible.

Your Private Waterfront Cottage On Seneca Lake. The dock runs to the front door.

  • Sleeps 4
  • 1 Bedroom · 1 Bath
  • Private Dock
  • Dog Friendly
  • Sunset Over The Water

“This was our third 6 night stay at Smooth Sailing. It is now our go to place to relax and unwind. The cottage is right on the water and is so serene. The surrounding area has so much to see and do that you couldn’t ask for anything more. The cottage is very clean and Sarah has thought of everything to make your stay feel like home! We have never had any questions or concerns during our stay but felt confident Sarah would respond quickly if we did. She is a definite super host!!!! Our favorite places to eat are Elf in the Oak for breakfast sandwiches and Hector’s Hideaway for dinner! We are already looking forward to coming back next year!!!!”

Denise · Returning Guest · June 2026

Read All Reviews (10)

Looking straight down the length of the dock to the cottage, with the shale lake bottom clearly visible through the water on both sides and the green hillside above.

The Water

Wake Up At The Water’s Edge.

There is a particular sound Seneca makes at six in the morning, before the boats, when the only thing moving is water against the dock posts. From most houses on this lake you have to walk down to hear it. From here it comes through the window.

The cottage stands at the waterline — not above it, not near it. The dock begins at the porch and runs out over water clear enough to count the shale on the bottom. Two chairs at the far end, a ladder for anyone who wants it, and an arrangement that asks nothing of you except that you go outside.

See The Cottage

The living room with lake showing through every window along two walls, a grey sofa and white coffee table on a patterned rug over deep blue tile, and a pair of chairs in the far corner facing the water.

Every seat faces water.

The Cottage

Small, Simple, And Right On The Water.

657 square feet, and every one of them earns its keep. A bedroom with a queen. A kitchen with room to cook a proper dinner for four. Windows on three sides, and a picture window over the water that does all the decorating for you.

It sleeps two comfortably and four at a push. It was never meant to be grand. It was meant to be easy, and it is.

What Is Inside

The shore terrace with white Adirondack chairs around a fire ring on the shingle, the cottage and its porch to the right, and the dock reaching into the lake behind.

Dogs

Yes. Bring The Dog.

Bring them. The shoreline is theirs, the dock is theirs, and the water is theirs, which for most dogs is the whole reason for the trip.

Up to 2, with a word beforehand, and kept to the cottage side of the grounds. That is the whole rule. One guest told us their dog picked a favorite spot on the dock and barely moved from it all weekend, which sounds about right to us.

Dog Friendly Details

Booking Direct

The Price You See Is The Price You Pay.

Choose your nights and the whole figure appears — the rate, the cleaning, the taxes, the pet fee if a dog is coming. Nothing is added later and nothing is called a service. What you read is what you pay.

Payment is handled on our reservation system’s secure page. We never see your card details.

Two blue Adirondack chairs and a small table at the end of the dock, with a swim ladder at the edge, a potted plant, and open water running to the far shore under a tall cloudy sky.

The east shore means the sun sets over the water.

Finger Lakes

Wine Country Starts At The Top Of The Hill.

Route 414 runs the length of the eastern shore with the vineyards strung along the ridge above it, close enough together that the drive between two tastings is shorter than either tasting. Watkins Glen and its gorge sit a few minutes south, and the rest of the Finger Lakes opens out from there in every direction.

Guests arrive with a list. Most get through half of it. The dock tends to win, and honestly we are glad when it does.

What Is Nearby

A lit gas fire table on the shore with flames burning, the dock running out past it into calm water, and the far shore low on the horizon under a wide cloudy sky.

The Lake Goes Quiet Before It Goes Dark.

An hour from anywhere that matters, and a long way from all of it.

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