Lodges & Log Cabins in Dorset

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Lynda - Verified booking

  I have booked with Sykes for many years and never before been disappointed or given a negative review.

  The directions to find this property were useless. It is described as a lodge on a farm but is really a static caravan. It stood on gravel at the end of a long drive, through a caravan & motorhome park (no mention of this from Sykes).We arrived in a storm to find that nothing was provided, not even milk to make a cup of tea. The owners had assumed that we only wanted to use one bedroom & only one bed was made up. The owner rectified this. The gas cooker ignition did not work so we were supplied with a lighter. I didn't want to risk a naked flame on an unfamiliar gas oven so found instructions for the particular model on line. On the positive side it was clean (apart from heavily soiled and stained lounge carpets) and the lounge furniture and beds were quite comfortable & the bedding was clean. The kitchen was reasonably equipped. There were no instructions as to how to use anything in the accommodation; there was no information about the local area and what to do there. The living area was adequate & comfortable. The bedrooms were extremely difficult to use. Large double beds were stuffed into very small spaces with no room at all to move. Getting out of bed in the dark with only inches of space was dangerous & resulted in several bangs and bruises. They were very claustrophobic. The wardrobe sliding door did not close & the shower cubicle door was very difficult to use. The bathroom was tiny with very little space to move. We did not approach the owner. The whole place felt unfriendly with notices telling people not to go to the farmhouse but to text to make contact. I texted to tell her we were leaving early - it took her 15 hours to respond. I would not recommend this property, especially to older people. It was a very disappointing holiday and we returned home early. Certainly not what I have come to expect from Sykes over the years.

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• Richard - Verified booking

  Having recently rented Bobbin Cottage and its sister property, The Old Haberdashery, I cannot recommend both of them highly enough.

  The cottages are situated in the lovely village of Langton Matravers, a few minutes’ drive from Swanage, the Dorset seaside resort ranked in the top 10 in a recent survey of British seaside towns by Which magazine. Apart from the excellent beach and attractions in Swanage, the village is only a 10-15 minute drive from Studland and its 4-mile stretch of sandy beach. The village is also great for walkers/hikers as it offers easy access to the South West Coastal Path which runs along the Jurassic coast for 600+ miles. The accommodation itself was clean and comfortable with a kitchen fitted out with all the mod cons one would need for an enjoyable stay. The owners also left us a very useful welcome pack of tea, milk etc and some household items. Parking our cars was easy on the not very busy main road outside the cottages. The village boasts a very friendly pub, the King's Arms and I would also recommend the nearby Square and Compass and Scott Arms pubs, both of which have stunning views, the latter over Corfe Castle. All in all a very enjoyable week. We will be returning!

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• Brigitte - Verified booking

  A fabulous property which I could not fault.

  It was spotlessly clean, warm (pretty essential when you had the weather we had!), comfortable and well equipped. Janet was friendly and helpful without interfering in any way - something I think hard and long about when renting properties which are situated in their owners’ grounds, which this is, but the lodge is completely private on its own area of land and has lovely views over the fields. We had gale force winds and torrential rain for the whole week but still had a good time, which speaks volumes I think. Self catering is easy in the well equipped kitchen and Wareham, with a variety of pubs and restaurants, is a five minute drive away. We’d love to go back in better weather to take advantage of the outdoor dining facilities and to have a glass of wine on the veranda while watching the rabbits, deer and birds of prey.

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• Terry - Verified booking

  We had a thoroughly enjoyable stay at the quiet and secluded Lilac Lodge, a modern and immaculate home from home with lovely views and all the facilities we could possibly need.

  Janet and Mark, the owners, were welcoming and friendly and provided a surprise basket of goodies including bread, butter, milk, tea and cofffee while the local fudge and biscuits were quickly consumed. Just three miles from Wareham on the banks of the River Frome, Lilac Lodge was the perfect base to visit all the major Dorset landmarks such as Corfe Castle; Lulworth Cove; Durdle Door; Brownsea Island; the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site where we highly recommend the Guided Fossil Hunt; Studland Bay; Old Harry Rocks; Chesil Beach; Portland Bill, Sculpture by the Lakes and much, much more. There were plenty of good local pubs/restaurants with the Weld Arms in East Lulworth our particular favourite. 10/10 for a much needed holiday after all the lockdown problems! Thanks, Janet and Mark.

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• Michael - Verified booking

  A lovely week at Lilac Lodge.

  Thanks for the lovely welcome basket. Shame the weather wasn't its best but we were able to get out and about every day. Tank Museum well worth a visit for all ages. Monkey World was a bit disappointing as didn't see many monkeys , nothing like you see on TV and cafe very poor. Swanage easy to get to is small but a good sandy beach great for families. Lulworth good for walking around but not so good on a cold windy day - it was freezing the day we went - good for blowing the cobwebs away. Bere Regis very near the cottage two good pubs and a useful village shop. Easy to find your way round straight route to Dorchester / Weymouth area. Well worth staying at Lilac Lodge but the mattress and settees were a bit soft for us - just personal choice., but otherwise all OK.

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