Dog Friendly Bed And Breakfasts In Dorchester

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Rosie - Verified booking

  We arrived at the old schoolhouse full of anticipation - disappointed beyond belief as the week went on.

  The cottage is in the grounds of the owners home, the cottage is a block that has their garage on one end and their workshop the other which they were in a lot of the time, there is no privacy you are in a goldfish bowl, the picture is very deceiving the area you see in front of the cottage is the shared parking area. The cottage smells of damp, it is not clean, cobwebs and dust on all picture frames and on the bedside tables, lampshade stained with watermarks, TV screen has not been cleaned for a while, dust on the wooden floor behind the TV - the cottage needs a deep clean. Main bathroom is off the kitchen and the smell of damp hits you as you open the door and the shower is COLD - I raised with the owner who boosted and then came in and checked and the water was warmer but when I showered on the Tuesday evening the water was cold again. Main bedroom area is dangerous, there are very sloping ceilings and when you access a small toilet and basin area when you come back out watch your head, my partner and I both hit our head the first evening and me again really badly on the Saturday morning the tears did not stop for most of the day. We were woken early a couple of mornings - once by a JCB and workmen fixing a tree that overhung their property and another morning by them turning on their car with the radio on loud whilst they loaded up. Heating was on a timer and came on in the morning and evening but we tried to get it to come on when we got back one afternoon no joy. I don't know how this property has a 4 tick rating from Sykes they need to visit and reassess the property. We left early and will not be using Sykes cottages again.

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• Anne - Verified booking

  An interesting conversion, situated perfectly for exploring Dorset, especially Hardy's 'EgdonHeath'.

  The cottage had all the features described on-line but we found it difficult to live in. Upstairs, the sloping ceilings allowed so little full head height that getting out of the double bed presented real problems (we ended up using a bedroom each). The 'reading space' was a wasted corner that could have been put to better use, eg with a hanging rail, as there was no proper hanging space anywhere. On the plus side were the rechargeable torches provided which were a very good idea. Downstairs, one blind in the living room wouldn't stay down. The seating was arranged so that it was impossible to sit by the huge woodburner and also watch TV; so we moved the furniture. Side tables to put our drinks on would have been helpful - we ended up using dining chairs as tables! There was little by way of information on local attractions. In the kitchen we found no bread bin, no obvious place to store food (we had to find space in the corner cupboard containing cooking pans) and a selection of unmatched cutlery (but no serving spoons) that should be unacceptable in a Sykes property. On arrival, as the nearest shop is some distance away, we would definitely have appreciated a 'welcome tray' with the makings of a cup of tea. Some of this can be easily corrected but sleeping arrangements as they are would not be suitable for two couples as there is such a lack of privacy. All in all, we had an enjoyable week exploring the area and might return to it - but not to this property as we were disappointed that it was not up to the standard we expected from stays in cottages elsewhere (Sykes and others).

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• Richard - Verified booking

  Bell cottage is a lovely small quirky cottage that unfortunately sits in a not too brilliant position.

  Location isn’t great as it’s hemmed in by other big buildings and a big conversion is being carried out currently on the property opposite into an 11 flat house of multiple occupancy. Work began at 7 am and continued all day with the accompanying noise and comings and going’s. Obviously this is only temporary but it impacted my stay. The cottage smelt faintly doggy when I arrived and every time I returned..I’m not a dog person ,and this may not bother those who are. Despite that the cleanliness was absolutely fine. Good kitchen facilities..everything was perfect....slight issue with fire starter pack not being available that was quickly sorted with discussion with the owner..I hadn’t read the small print that this isn’t provided after the end of March...but the weather still being very cold at night I managed to buy some fuel from the nearby coal merchant Roger, who was most helpful. TV.....a major issue.....some expensive kit but no normal TV channels without going through a long winded laborious process using various app’s BBC’s I player, you tube etc....all a bit too complicated to even bother with. All in all..a nice cottage but spoiled for me mainly by the location...a tiny yard at the rear and nowhere outside at the front to sit..but I can’t blame anyone for that..it’s just the nature of this particular property. Thanks anyway...enjoyed the few days overall.

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• Mandy - Verified booking

  Arrived and greeted by owner.

  All good on that aspect. Gates were still broken so no secure garden for children or pets. No plans to get the gates repaired till the end of the year. Any children or pets could easily get on to the main road. While not a large footfall of traffic it is still a main road. The garden is looked after but the garden furniture was covered in bird muck. The front door of the cottage could do with painting and the windows cleaning. Moving onto the inside of the cottage it is comfortable but dust on walls especially in the bathroom, the floor at the back of tv cabinet needs cleaning, cobwebs on light fixtures and switches in kitchen grubby. Some of the pictures on sykes website are of the owners property and garden to show it was an old school. For the price we paid for a weeks stay I was disappointed. So glad that we had plenty of places nearby to visit including Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove. Anybody staying here in high season with children or pets needs to be aware it is not a secure garden so won’t be able to relax.

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• Helen - Verified booking

  Nice cottage ,kitchen had everything need and was clean and tidy .

  Bed was comfortable with nice linen. The bathroom was clean and shower worked OK but spoilt by the paint peeling of the bath and toilet . The biggest disappointment was the little courtyard. On arrival the garden table and chairs were covered in bird poo ! The whole area was dirty and generally a mess. I did relent and I cleaned the table and chairs as we really wanted to sit outside for coffee and in the evening . After I had cleaned the table and chairs no further bird mess appeared so although sea gulls may be a problem the furniture stayed clean . This is such a lovely little area for sitting out and it could be so much better with a little attention . Didn't really want to start washing garden furniture on my holiday . All that said apart from the courtyard we did enjoy our holiday at the cottage .

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