“I wasn’t going to leave a review as I don’t like giving negative feedback however after receiving a photo from the owners today via Sykes holiday admin to ask how to clean something off the sofa , I am Now compelled to write a very honest review .”
I have rated it as two stars as an overall experience. I accidentally booked the wrong dates at Christmas . I immediately realised and tried to change the date but it wouldn’t allow me and as it was a late reservation I wasn’t able to get a refund so the full amount was payable , therefore I asked to change dates a few minutes later , however the property owners responded in the morning refusing the request . It was my fault I didn’t check the date properly, annoying but my fault so sucked it up , thought it a tad mean of the property owners not allowing the date change since it was an immediate request after booking it , however since they wouldn’t agree we ended up just staying for a shorter time even though paid for longer . When we got there all was okay , it wasn’t as clean as I expected . As you do , you have a look about to see where things are , a kitchen draw rammed with maintenance stuff , and tins of paint and baubles in the bathroom cabinet, bit random . The heating, we read in the pack, was timed to go off after 1 hour so you had to keep putting it back on , prob hence why it felt so cold on arrival, there was damp in the kitchen which was making the paint peel, black mould behind the curtain in the kitchen, stains on the bedroom carpet , pans dirty , one for example looking like someone had boiled milk in it and scum around the pan , black mould in the shower , my socks were dirty from walking around in the property, and it felt cold which wasn’t what we wanted as we planned to walk all day and have cosy evenings . I think the heating going off after an hour is an attempt to stop people leaving the heating on . However for comfort it’s a bit annoying having to keep putting it back on or forgetting and then feeling cold so you go oh put the heating Back on . However once repeatedly turned on and thermostat turned up it did warm up nicely . It said logs were provided in the Pack but there was just a couple of logs left and none delivered . The pack didn’t say where we could get logs from so bought a lot from the co op shop in the village . When we were leaving we noticed there was a small store out the back which had some wood in it but not sure if that was for the holiday cottage , that wasn’t made clear and we didn’t take any from There . The kitchen felt like it needed more thorough cleaning so ended up washing things before using them . The tv is an old flat screen so not a smart tv so couldn’t access Netflix or prime etc . Looked like the green bathroom hand towel had a bleach mark on it and tired. Black scum around the bottom of the shower and a little bit inbetween the tiles in the shower. The log burner glass wasn’t clean so obscured seeing the flames when it was on . However the Bed was super comfy and the quilt and pillows super comfy too , Infact I would have to say the cosiest bed I’ve slept in . Had a great nights sleep which for me is the most important thing . The water was hot too which was good for having a shower . There is a sensory garden literally a couple of meters from the front door so a nice little place to go to since this property doesn’t have any outside space . Also it’s a few meters from Dove cottage where Wordsworth lived for a bit . Parking was good as there’s a pass left in the property to park for free which is about a 4 minute walk from the property . The kitchen had everything you needed in it equipment wise for a small break . Since the house didn’t feel “loved” we didn’t feel we needed to do a photo inventory . There were many unclean elements to it . Therefore when we receive a photo today of what looked like speckles of cream on the leather sofa and asked what it was so they could clean it was rather insulting . It makes you feel like you’re going to be held responsible or charged for something you weren’t responsible for which has really put me off . As the property was far from immaculate it’s insulting to be then made to feel you’re responsible for a cleaning item . Brain wave …. Having just thought .:::: we did have lemon cake from the co op with icing on the top , is it possible it’s a bit of the icing ?! Maybe . Who knows . I suggest the owners try cleaning it first before contacting people who have rented it from them. the rest of the property needed cleaning properly rather than a surface clean . finding something and then quiz what it is to the previous renter is rather insulting as there’s many cleaning items I could question . I dropped something which fell under the kitchen cupboards as the cupboards are sat on legs , I don’t fancy going under the units. The owners and Sykes have made me Feel uncomfortable now as this case is open and there’s a communication thread going on , they have given me a reference number which makes it feel formal . I would be livid if we get a request to pay some charge rather than the owners attempt to clean . Not what you want to be experiencing from staying somewhere for three nights and then a case opened on you for something which at its worst if it was us was a bit of icing off a cake . If I saw it I would have cleaned it off for a start ! I definitely have higher standards of cleaning than what was offered here .
- Philippa, December 2022
Thank you for your feedback. As owners we visit our cottage regularly and are constantly striving to provide accommodation of a good standard for our guests and to take on board any constructive feedback we receive.
With regards to the sofa; our cleaner was unable to remove the marks with any of the products she routinely has with her so they were not caused by cream or icing as you suggest. Sykes merely got in touch with you to ask what the marks were from so that an appropriate product could be used to remove them. I understand that this was explained to you by a member of the customer relations team at Sykes. As cleanliness is clearly as important to you as it is to us, I would hope that you would understand the reasoning behind them contacting you.
We were unable to meet your change of dates request from December 2022 to May 2023 as in May we only take 7 night bookings and not short breaks which was explained to you at the time.
We are pleased to read that you found the location of the cottage convenient, the beds comfortable and there was plenty of hot water. The TV is as advertised in our property listing; it is not advertised as being a smart TV. The heating is on a HIVE system and set for winter, however this can be changed to manual to allow guests to manage the heating as they wish. A basket of logs and kindling is left as a starter for each guest but further supplies are easily available at the Coop in the village.
I have spoken to my cleaner about the cleanliness issues you have raised.
Property Owner
