Christmas Cottages in Scotland

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Stewart - Verified booking

  Marketed well, but needs higher standards.

  While the accommodation suited our needs as a base where we could stay while on our walking holiday there are aspects of the cottage management that could be improved. There is no anti slip mat in the shower. It becomes very slippery when lathered and wet. A potential for an accident. The short step down from the bedrooms to the lounge is a potential trip hazard. It should be highlighted with high vis' tape. No-one wants an accident the first day of their vacation. A minor gripe was that the hand gel soaps provided were watered down and the pump action on the bottles didn't work. Owners should consider renewing them now and again. No hand towel for drying dishes was provided. With two medium sized dogs there is no garden available for them to exercise in or yoga stretch. The wall at the front is very low and easy for pets to jump the wall onto oncoming traffic if unattended. Even with our well trained dogs we still had to maintain a ceaseless vigilance on them. The log basket for the wood burner literally had four logs in the basket. Hardly enough to keep the wood burner alight for 2 hours. There is a notice that you can fill the basket for an additional charge of £10.- deemed cheaper than the village shop. We brought logs purchased in Dunoon for £7.- We suggest the photographs of the Loch views should be taken from the cottage gallery as there is no Loch views from the cottage. My wife works for a company that also rents out cottages therefore our comments are based on an acceptable industry standard and not petty gripes. Having stated the above we still enjoyed our stay in Argyll as it is a beautiful part of Scotland. The cottage after all was only a place to stay at night after being out all day.

  Read more less >

• Deborah - Verified booking

  This is a cosy, semi-detached cottage in a small village called Millport.

  It has two bedrooms, each with a double bed, and a compact living area. NB: this cottage has no central heating or piped hot water. Gunpowder cottage has a lot to recommend it if you plan ahead for these conditions. There’s an electric shower, a wood-fired stove in the living area, and space heaters in the bedrooms. The floors are slate and can be very cold underfoot in October when we visited. Plan ahead by bringing warm slippers, warm pyjamas, and extra blankets if you are visiting in colder parts of the year (September to May). We found the location very quiet and an excellent base for exploring the Cowal peninsula. The internet works great. The dishwasher is weirdly in the laundry area but we managed because there’s no hot water to wash dishes by hand. Once you get the wood stove going, it’s very warm in the living room. You’ll have to pay £7.50 for each bundle of wood. There’s books, games, and a nice smart tv. Think of it as an upscale bothie. The Morrisons in Dunoon has everything for cooking up a great meal and there’s loads of beautiful walks nearby. Puck’s Glen is unmissable and the nearby Kilbride Bay is stunning. It is a gorgeous area. There’s a lot of wildlife, especially birds. If I had any suggestions to the owners: please include some extra blankets, a hairdryer and maybe a plunger for the toilet.

  Read more less >

• Jesse - Verified booking

  Charming little period cottage owned and recently renovated by NTS (free entry to beautiful Threave Gardens).

  Great location for Rockcliffe, nicely set back from the popular beach, with its own private parking next to the cottage. Two small bedrooms upstairs are bright and cosy. Mattresses and pillows could use covers as another reviewer pointed out six months ago. Small bathroom downstairs (steep staircase) with good shower, separate bathtub, toilet, heated towel rail and one tiny sink. Sitting room downstairs is a bit pokey. Well-equipped kitchen has more light and brand new good quality appliances. Oil-fired central heating throughout on a timer. There's an open lawn in front with partial views of coast and a small front patio with a wooden picnic table, four wooden chairs and a large parasol for those Scottish al fresco meals. There's nothing in the way of shops or tearooms in Rockcliffe, just a Mr Whippy van during the day, but there's a Londis convenience shop in nearby Colvend. A delightful 30-minute walk through NTS woods takes you to the little seaside resort of Kippford with a tearoom, pub and yachting club. A beautiful path going the other direction hugs the coast and takes you to a stunning viewpoint in half a mile and continues for another four miles to the sandy beaches of Sandyhills (a bus connects the two villages).

  Read more less >

• Confirmed Guest - Verified booking

  A last minute holiday and we did enjoy our stay. However, this is the only rental cottage ( we have stayed in many ) where there was no tea, coffee and sugar. Not all places have milk but most do, and usually a welcome pack. Luckily we had brought our own and also food for our meals for the first few nights. Alistair had told us that the main supermarkets were in Dumfries - I had already researched this, so planned in advance. The cottage is quaint within a converted stable block being so old and it was very unusual not to have a stand up shower but we knew this on reading the description. The flies were a total nuisance when preparing food and there were lots of dead flies on the window ledges. Perhaps some sort of 'fly catcher' could have been installed. There was no bathroom cleaner - only one anti-bacterial cleaner in the kitchen, which I took upstairs to use. Also, it would be better if the refuse bins were not opposite the kitchen window. Talking to Wayne was a pleasure, hearing the progress made so far and future plans.

  Read more less >

• Antony - Verified booking

  The cottage, it's location and grounds are lovely and some of the facilities (kitchen/diner and bathroom; except for ridiculously small sink) are good, but it is badly let down by the contents - or rather the lack of them.

  No spare bedding or blankets (or cot); nothing between the sheet and the very cheap mattress through which you could feel the springs and is unhygienic; no hair-dryer; no ordnance survey/walking maps; no suitable drying area or muddy shoe/boot racks. Kitchen poorly supplied: we have never stayed in any self-catering accommodation that did not supply even a few basics - salt, pepper, cooking/olive oil, no hand-wash in the cottage and no welcome supplies. A dishwasher but no salt or rinse aid, even in the machine. The grounds should have been mown and cleared on change-over day between 10am and 5pm, not spoiling our peace on a lovely sunny Tuesday afternoon (and making my hayfever flare up!). Despite all this we enjoyed our week in Rockcliffe with its wonderful walking, but would recommend that anyone visiting should take as many provisions as they can fit in their car - assuming that you are not travelling from abroad!

  Read more less >