Christmas Cottages in Devon

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Dawn - Verified booking

  What a perfect holiday!

  From looking and booking, to arrival and departure all instructions were easy to follow and communications were excellent. Even a local road closure and re-route for easy travel were sent to us prior to arrival. There are covid - care measures in place and the cottage and grounds are immaculately kept. There was a lovely afternoon tea welcome pack with homemade Devon scones and clotted cream and milk in the fridge. Angela and Stuart are wonderful hosts, nothing is too much trouble for them and they have thought of everything and more to ensure a relaxing and stress-less stay. The cottage is really well equipped with high quality furnishings & home wares - basically everything you'll need. Even surprised and relieved to find some scales as being diabetic, I have to weigh out my food and I'd forgotten to take some. Eco-friendly cleaning materials are provided as are Fairy liquid and Fairy non-bio washing pods to use as the properties utilise non mains water and waste treatment. There is also recycling facilities and waste bags supplied. There's a smart TV which you can use Netflix etc from your own account and good wifi signals. Also have laundry / ironing facilities etc. Honestly they've thought of everything. Everything is scrupulously clean, the beds are really comfortable and everything looks new. The cottage is in really pretty grounds, beautiful hanging baskets and flowers and own private patio and small garden, but you are welcome to use the field at the rear for sport (we played petanque & badminton - but it was too hot to do much more during our wonderful heat-wave week!) The electrically heated pool is well maintained, cleaned and serviced daily and is a great size for families. There is a covid- care rota system in place currently for the cottages to ensure safe and equally use of the pool. If you are going out for the day - ask the neighbouring cottage to swap or change times with you. We did and lazed around for a few days - so basically had the pool area to ourselves - heaven ! The cottages are also dog friendly and there's a big dog walking field just to the rear of the cottages as well as good walks nearby and although dog friendly, there's not one hair or doggy smell to be found anywhere. It's really, really clean. Its in a beautiful spot within easy access of Ottery-St-Mary, Exeter and beautiful beaches of Sidmouth, Exmouth, Sandy Bay and a little further the gorgeous Jurassic Coast. We're already planning to return...... if you're in any doubt about booking here - don't be - its gorgeous and you wont be disappointed. Thank you Angela and Stuart and Helpful Holidays - can't wait to visit again !

  Read more less >

• Paul - Verified booking

  House is very nice with fabulous views over the river dart.

  The overall cleanliness was very good particularly things like towels and bedding although there was a stain on my duvet which I didn’t know until I stripped the bed before we left. Some kitchen utensils were unusable because they were caked with burnt on grease And we didn’t use the cooker because the filter in the hood was filthy. It was rather chilly in the evenings and there was central heating. I couldn’t find any advice or instructions on how to operate it. Fortunately, I have Hive at home so I managed to get the heating system up and running However, there is one radiator valve in the front bedroom that I could not Work out how to operate. Parking is an issue although we were able to park outside for unloading and loading on the final day it was an inconvenience having to park in the main town car park. The property details mention it being a short walk of 10 minutes or so down into the town and whilst this might be true coming back up from the town is a different matter. basically you have to choose between a very long flight of steps or a short Hill that must be about 45° at least !!. I ended up needing to use my car to drive my wife and elderly dog back up to the house and then return to the car park and then walk back up myself. On one occasion, I did have to stop and gather my breath. I would mention that we are both in our 70s and although reasonably mobile this was really too much. I don’t think the house is at all suitable. 70s and although reasonably mobile this was really too much. I don’t think the house is at suitable for anyone with mobility issues unless driven up there in a vehicle. For this reason I don’t think we would ever return there and I’m glad that we were only there for a few days. Thank goodness the weather was good and we were out and about every day.

  Read more less >

• Renae - Verified booking

  The house was lovely, very well equipped with great showers.

  The lounge was not the most comfortable with the TV and chair positioning (you'd have to twist your neck), but we hardly spent any time in there apart from late in the evening so it didn't bother us. The showers were a highlight as the water pressure was fantastic. There is a crack in the main bathroom door however which needs to be sealed as you can catch a glimpse of whomever is in the loo! It would have also been nice to have more than 1 toilet roll provided per couple for 7 nights to give more of a sense of being well accommodated as that felt a little bit of an oversight, especially given the price we'd paid - it would've been nice to have loo roll supplied for the week! Another tricky issue was the carpark. We had no issue finding a park when we arrived on Friday but we drove to Salcombe on Monday and when we returned the carpark was full. We had to circle it for a while and wait for someone to leave which was a bit stressful as there was nowhere else identified for us to park. Perhaps a backup option of another carpark, such as the park and ride, that could be used with the permit would help as we were put off driving anywhere else out of fear we'd not be able to park when we returned. Overall however it was a gorgeous property with the most picturesque view and we'd definitely recommend it. I think it's highly likely we would return for another holiday given we had such a wonderful stay.

  Read more less >

• Neil - Verified booking

  The extractor hood above the hob had a cm of fluff across all of it which we presume was from the liner that was disintergating, and there were droplets of fat hanging down.

  Went to the Coast & Country office to complain they day after we arrived, they promised to send a cleaner the following day, we waited in but they didn't come, heard nothing, was there for two weeks and it was not picked up on the weekly clean. Spent more that wanted on takeaway meals as we did not want to use the hob. A bedside table was covered in dog hairs and a cig butt was on the bedroom floor when we arrived, again would have mentioned to cleaner had they come, both still there after the mid holiday clean. There was mould on the walls and ceiling in the bathroom probably because extractor fans in bathrooms did not come on and the velux window was difficult to open. Also mould on the wall in the front bedroom and on the wall behind the sofa downstairs. Radiator in front bedroom did not work. Trim and grouting on shower screen was black, easily cleaned with bleach or a piece of trim for less than £10. We have stayed in this property before but we will not return.

  Read more less >

• Susan - Verified booking

  Slight confusion upon arrival (unfortunately, in the dark) as the second signpost up to the cottages had been dislodged in the recent bad weather but one phone call put us right!

  Lovely friendly welcome from Angela who very kindly popped straight out to welcome us, get the key from the safe, open the front door and turn on the lights. Once inside the cotttage was warm, cosy, comfortable and extremely clean. Everything we could possibly have needed, and more, was there for us. The online photos and previous reviews were spot on! Our little dog was with us and all the facilities for him were absolutely fine too and we must agree with other reviewers that there was no sign of any previous canine visitors! Note to other dog owners: We had some dreadful weather during our weekend away and would like to advise about nearby Cranbrook Park. It's less than 10 minutes drive away, easy parking in the local streets, loads of open grassy space, meandering gravel paths and doggy bins. Perfect!

  Read more less >