Dog Friendly Villas In Buxton

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Tim - Verified booking

  We have just returned from a week at Hall End Barn, Earl Sterndale which has been extremely disappointing due to a combination of false description and poor presentation.

  Firstly the major problem was the main bedroom which you describe as 'king-sized'. This frankly is a gross misrepresentation and had we realised the bed is only a standard double (4ft6" x 6ft3") we would never have booked this cottage. Apart from the size of mattress, it was extremely uncomfortable plus due to the bed frame having been broken and held together with black adhesive tape, any movement resulted in loud creaking. We have attached photos showing the measurements and taped 'repair". Having endured one sleepless night we had to resort to using the remaining single beds in the cottage. The second major problem was what can only be described as the stench from the downstairs toilet. This had been mentioned by others in the visitor's book and was obviously well known due to the attempt to mask the smell by air fresheners. On arrival and first opening the door the smell was nauseous to the extent of not using the facility and whilst regular flushing and leaving the extractor fan on 24 hours a day prevented the smell permeating the rest of the cottage it felt most unhealthy. It appeared that either there is no soil venting or it is blocked making the use of the toilet and washing machine most undesirable. Whilst we have detailed these two problems, further factors also detracted from our stay: 1. On arrival at 3 pm, the cottage was bitterly cold due to the heating being timed to be off until later in the day. It did however warm up quickly once the heating was put on. 2. Light bulbs in the lounge, hall, landing and third bedroom (see photos) were not working, and whilst spares were supplied, we only replaced what was absolutely necessary as it is not our idea of a holiday to carry out basic maintenance that should surely have been checked before our arrival. 3. On our second morning we were disturbed by the arrival of three vans containing decorators and bathroom fitters for the cottage next door. The photos attached show a totally different picture of the parking/outside table area to that in your details. The noise of sawing, drilling and hammering continued throughout the week and was not what one expects when choosing a quiet secluded spot for a holiday in the middle of winter. 4. General cleanliness .... not something we would mention had everything else been good as we know that wooden beams do attract cobwebs, and splashes on walls can be missed as can dust and hair under sideboards. As previously mentioned in the visitors book, cleaning is obviously not a priority. We feel that what should have been a quiet, relaxing week in a beautiful cottage in an astounding part of the country was completely ruined by firstly inaccurate marketing (by the way, the nearest shop is over 2 miles away not under one, and the local pub doesn't allow dogs) and secondly poor presentation and maintenance. We regularly rent holiday cottages in different parts of the country (4 times a year on average) and believe we know what is reasonable to expect. This cottage and its owners are being let down if what we have experienced continues.

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• Neil - Verified booking

  It was a pleasure to stay at Ivy cottage for a lovely (if rainy) week.

  The cottage is thoughtfully appointed with lovely personal touches throughout - the owners have carefully left many notes with helpful instructions to guide the guests. Three points of note; a) I might recommend that prospective guests be alerted as to the very 'full' nature of the gardens, which do impede access to the front of the cottage with large suitcases. From the roadway to the conservatory entrance, the foliage does over grow the walkway, which made navigation of our luggage a challenge. Since we are from abroad, and travelling for a month, we did have many larger suitcases - perhaps Sykes might consider some form of check-box on their application form to alert the owners to the fact that renters are coming with luggage as such - ? b) We were a little disappointed to have renovation workers begin construction work on an adjoining cottage at 0615 on our final Saturday morning, using the adjoining walkway to gain access around back of the property. The early morning hammering and cartage was a little alarming so early in the day. A gentle chat with the neighbours might avoid this for the next guests. c) a note on the booking form for Ivy Cottage noting that the Pub is 'closed' for the foreseeable future would have been helpful. One filter I rely upon when booking a cottage from Canada, is the close-location of a Pub. Since the 'Quiet Woman' is not open, that might have been good to know. The Royal Oak is nearby, but not really within walking distance. The Pub in Crowdecote was also closed when we walked over High Wheeldon....a similar disappointment. Otherwise, it was a happy and restful week at a lovely cottage in a wonderful region of the UK.

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• Stjohn - Verified booking

  This is a very good property, and the space is great.

  It was well-positioned in the centre of Buxton, easy to park two cars, and extremely comfortable except for one bedroom (hence losing one mark). The house is very well equipped. It was easy to park, and Morrisons is only a walk away. You could have a good holiday here without a car, as everything is so close. Of the three double bedrooms, one has the boiler in, with a sign to not switch it off. However, having the boiler on meant the room roasted, and was extremely difficult to sleep in. Also, the boiler timer ticked incessantly all night, and anyone switching a tap on made a very loud noise in the pipes in that room. You could also hear any noise in the room below from there. My son and his wife who were in the room did switch the boiler off so they could sleep, which meant we had no hot water to shower in the morning until he woke up and we could switch it on again. Inside the house was very clean. However, outside, the gate to the neighbour's back yard was broken and off its hinges (and we had a dog with us), and the passage between the two houses was scruffy, particularly compared to others in the row, with broken slates, etc. on the ground (hence one mark off for cleanliness). Overall, we were very pleased with our stay, which we felt was better than our expectations.

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• Karen - Verified booking

  We had a lovely time at the cottage.

  The cottage sits in a well maintained site, on the side of a steep valley, with great views across to the other side. It was clean, modern and perfect for our needs. The kitchen seemed well equipped but we didn't end up eating in the cottage as there was plenty of other options nearby - we had hoped to get an evening meal at Ye Olde Cheshire Inn but they were always full, so we had fish and chips one night and had two meals at the Pack Horse in Crowdecote, which were all delicious. We found an interesting walk in the cottage which we did from the cottage - this took us out to the Pilsbury castle and then onto Crowdecote, Longnor and back around the Manifold river valley back up to the cottage. In an area like this mobile signals can be limited, but we were able to get mobile signal by holding phone outside the property (and it was even better further up the hill); but couldn't seem to get the wifi to work - which would have been helpful for planning our days out, weather updates etc. It wasn't until the departure day that I noticed in the guest book that others had asked Justin for help with this, so any issues were likely to be resolved if I had asked. Justin was very helpful with another more personable issue which was unrelated to the cottage.

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• Susan - Verified booking

  We really enjoyed our holiday at Ivy cottage.

  Set in an ideal location in a quiet village, made it easy for us to access all areas of the Peak District, with Buxton only a 10 minute drive away, and plenty of walks on the doorstep. The property was well-equipped and full of unique items of furniture which added a personal touch. There was enough space for 5 adults to relax comfortably throughout the week. Only 2 minor points to highlight: as mentioned by other visitors, the garden is somewhat overgrown and it was difficult to navigate at times, especially to the various seating areas. When it had rained in the night, getting to and from the gate without getting wet from the plants was a challenge. However we do appreciate that trying to maintain the garden during high season must be a challenge. The second point to note was the downstairs shower which we were unable to use as, as a family, we are generally above average in height. Again, we appreciate that it is an old cottage, with low ceilings, but found that, unless you sat in the bath, the shower is better suited to children than adults. These points aside, we had a very enjoyable, relaxing holdiay and would recommend it to friends and family.

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