Villas In Penzance

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Beverley - Verified booking

  We arrived late Saturday and quickly realised there were serious housekeeping issues with this cottage.

  Sunday morning I bought rubber gloves and cleaned the kitchen and bathroom. KITCHEN: The fridge was warm and the icebox was completely frozen up and unusable. The drainer tray and cooker were dirty with bits, crumbs and dog hairs. There was dust and dead insects on the shelves. Under the sink was a dirty, worn Spontex and an old J Cloth. The oven and grill trays were unwashed with stuck-on food and fat. The oven/grill lights do not work. The toaster was full of previous guests' crumbs. There is no plug or washing up bowl in the sink. The bin was dirty and had no fresh liner although there was one under the sink. BATHROOM: The washbasin had stuck on toothpaste and the bath needed cleaning. The towels were grotty (one was torn) and they smelt absolutely dreadful. Only 1 handtowel for 2 people. The extractor fan still doesn't work (previously mentioned by a guest). There is no bathmat so the floor gets really wet after the shower. BEDROOM: The bed linen did not appear fresh; it smelt very stale and there were stains on the duvet. I questioned whether it had been changed! GARDEN: This looks nothing like the photos. The furniture was overturned and I noticed dog poo. EXTRA BED: We were promised an extra bed to enable my daughter and I to sleep separately and this finally arrived four days after our arrival. This is my first bad experience in 15 years of holiday cottage rentals with Sykes and other agents - I am a Sykes Level 4 Champion Client and I spend at least 6-8 weeks a year on rentals. Sykes contacted the owner, we met on the Monday and it did not go well in the circumstances. She claims the cooker is old but does function, despite no lights - how areguests supposed to know this or that the correct cooking temperature is reached? She claims the bed linen was changed but admitted "the wrong linen was put on" (?) She bought round different linen and left it for me to put on....She brought different towels but all these replacements still smelt unpleasant. She washed the oven trays and left them dripping on the drainer and gave us new cleaning cloths. The dog mess I mentioned on Monday was still there on Thursday... The owner offered us a free night in her other property but I did not accept due to a prior commitment and another night had no appeal whatsoever after this experience. Despite all this we enjoyed our week, Ludgvan has great views and we have spent many weeks around there; Cornwall will always keep on giving and we had wonderful walks on our favourite beaches and the spectacular SW Coastal Path. We can highly recommend the local pub, the White Hart, which has reopened and the new Manager and Head Chef are doing a great job building the business back up again. Also a mention for Kev the hero AA man from Hayle who came out within 40 minutes of call out to check a warning light on our car to get us safely on the road home the next day. This owner blamed all the problems on everybody and everything else and took no personal responsibility. A previous guest has mentioned dog poo and the owner has written a counter-note in the guest book blaming her daughter's dog! There was no apology for our distress and bad experience. After discussions with Sykes I requested £200 compensation, less than half the weekly rental. The owner refused. This property has a good housekeeping bond of £200 - what a shame it doesn't work the other way round! After we had left (!) she repeated her offer by text of another night which I had already made clear was not possible. Sykes advised the only recourse for clients in cases like this is the Small Claims Court. Despite the owner's protestations and messages asking ME to show compassion I am afraid my compassion is reserved for guests, who, like us, hand over considerable amounts of money to owners like her who spectacularly fail to provide the service they promise. Highly unsatisfactory.

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• Edward - Verified booking

  Our family of two adults and three children enjoyed our stay in the cottage over a period of three nights.

  The cottage was very private and we didn't meet any neighbours. We enjoyed our stay and the facilities in the cottage were very good although we did find the wooden log fire in the living room pretty ineffective as a source of heat; and since there was no other form of heating in the living room then we were a bit chilly. A fan heater is supplied but since the whole house runs only on electricity and energy prices are rising fast then we spared the owners the expense, otherwise they'd be making no profit from our stay! The cottage was draught-free but bring a warm jumper and slippers in the cold months as the tiled floor in the kitchen feels cold if you're one of those families who take their shoes off when you enter a home. All the bedrooms had a heater but one was broken. The washing machine and tumble dryer are in an out-house and we didn't use them. In the kitchen we had most things. The knives were good quality and there was even a knife sharpener and sharpening steel. If you like to wash up using a sponge and brush then bring your own. Towels were provided in both the kitchen and bathroom. The beds were comfortable and the whole cottage was cosy. There's a TV connected to WiFi. The Samsumg TV has apps for Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. so all you need to do is login. There's no DVD player. Some books and games are supplied. Make sure to read the black folder before you move in because it has tips on where to find important electrical switches (eg. emersion heater) otherwise you'll have no hot water or shower. The small village of Pendeen has one small Spar shop, which also sells logs for the fire. Local pubs do meals at London prices. There's an old-fashioned petrol station in the village too, selling petrol as motorway prices. We recommend a visit to Geevor tin mine in Pendeen. We would happily stay in the cottage again. Thanks to the owners for a very pleasant and comfortable experience.

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• Judith - Verified booking

  There were positives and negatives of the property.

  On the plus side it was very peaceful and had beautiful views. Definitely quirky and just the right size for the two of us. It's looked like a brand new cooker and a dishwasher was a bonus. There was plenty of hot water and the shower was really powerful. It was close to local amenities and there were plenty of lovely places to visit nearby. Unfortunately we didn't have any info on how the appliances worked. No details of rubbish and recycling so we grouped things together as we would at home. There was just one teaspoon and not really enough crockery. One of the dining chairs had a loose and wobbly back that needed repairing or replacing. The slats on the bed kept popping out of the plastic restraints, we had to shove our luggage under them to hold them in place and that's when we noticed a big box of something holding them up in the middle. Some visitors mentioned a lovely welcome pack but we didn't receive anything but luckily we brought plenty with us. Did not meet the owner but she did send a text on the Wednesday to say she'd see us the next day and she hoped everything was ok but she didn't come. On the whole it was an OK stay and we enjoyed our holiday but just an attention to a few details could make this a wonderful cottage.

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• Shelley - Verified booking

  Absolutely awful!

  ! The Miners cottage was so unclean that it made me cry. There were layers of dust on all the many niknaks around the property and clearly visible under tables/ chairs (Covid!!) why are there so many unnecessary things around. The sheets appeared to be nice and clean but the bed throws and pillows felt almost damp and clary to touch, I was not convinced that they had been washed and again, just another unnecessary item to risk the spread of germs. The shower was appalling, a trickle of water. There are walls crumbling on the staircase. The heating was almost non-existant, there are a few old storage heaters that didn’t give off much heat and a log burner with enough wood for one fire which lasted just a few hours. (We stayed in January) The whole place made me feel unclean, I would never go back and would never recommend. It should be removed from the site until they give the place a complete overhaul, it needs cleaning from top to bottom. The location of the cottage is fabulous and it could be amazing if the owners addressed the issues. This completely spoiled our stay in Cornwall and has made us reluctant to use Sykes Cottages if they allow places like this on their website! I very rarely complain about things but this really upset me.

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• Stacey - Verified booking

  The cottage was immaculately clean!

  The bed was comfortable and the shower was great too. It is a beautiful old school building with so much charm. We loved the garden space which is currently being redesigned and we can't wait to see what comes next. The use of the sauna is a massive bonus. The owner is lovely and answered all our questions. She kept in contact but you also didn't feel like she was with you on holiday. It was so lovely. The location is perfect!! You are so close to everything. There is also a bus that runs to penzance, from Long Lane, and you can go from Penzance to so many of the places you would want to visit - this will be so useful in the summer. We recommend St Ives, Marazion, Mousehole and Newlyn. The beach is gorgeous but there is also a local walk to the cottage which our dog loved and was equally beautiful. It was very dog friendly and he had the best adventures. The pub literally up the road is also lovely and great to have on the doorstep - good food! Even when the weather was less kind to us we had the most relaxing and enjoyable time staying in the cottage, cosy, warm and with the most stunning view. It was a relaxing, enjoyable stay and we will definitely be returning again. I would recommend this to anyone.

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