Kendal Holiday Cottages

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Eric - Verified booking

  It gives me no pleasure to give such a review, but I feel obligated to warn potential future guests that this property is not what it appears when looking at the photographs provided.

  What no photograph can convey, is the terrible and overpowering smell of damp that hits you the moment you enter this property. Like a musty cave or old damp cellar, the air is thick with damp. Quite frankly, it is a health hazard. I booked for three nights with my family, and everyone was shocked by the state of the place. Apart from the smell, the bedsheets were unchanged, damp to the touch and even had pubic hairs on the base sheet. My room was worst affected by the damp. ( Left of the entrance ) and it was impossible to sleep there. I was forced to sleep upstairs on the couch but that brought it’s own problems as it was full of dog hairs, this being a ‘pet friendly’ establishment. My eldest son, daughter and son in law were forced to leave early as the damp in their rooms were causing them breathing problems. Cobwebs and spiders were everywhere, and the whole place was in desperate need of a deep clean. All surfaces were sticky to the touch and the shower drainage was blocked causing the base to fill with foul water when showering. Nobody should be sleeping there until these problems are fixed. It is a sad state of affairs, because the potential this converted barn has, is clear from the photos they provide. The upstairs is spacious and appealing to the eye, but it is totally spoiled by uncleanliness, neglect and above all, a very serious damp issue. These concerns were raised in private with Sykes cottages who promised to speak to the owner and get back to us but unfortunately after chasing them for a week there has been only silence in return.

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• Eric - Verified booking

  It gives me no pleasure to give such a review, but I feel obligated to warn potential future guests that this property is not what it appears when looking at the photographs provided.

  What no photograph can convey, is the terrible and overpowering smell of damp that hits you the moment you enter this property. Like a musty cave or old damp cellar, the air is thick with damp. Quite frankly, it is a health hazard. I booked for three nights with my family, and everyone was shocked by the state of the place. Apart from the smell, the bedsheets were unchanged, damp to the touch and even had pubic hairs on the base sheet. My room was worst affected by the damp. ( Left of the entrance ) and it was impossible to sleep there. I was forced to sleep upstairs on the couch but that brought it’s own problems as it was full of dog hairs, this being a ‘pet friendly’ establishment. My eldest son, daughter and son in law were forced to leave early as the damp in their rooms were causing them breathing problems. Cobwebs and spiders were everywhere, and the whole place was in desperate need of a deep clean. All surfaces were sticky to the touch and the shower drainage was blocked causing the base to fill with foul water when showering. Nobody should be sleeping there until these problems are fixed. It is a sad state of affairs, because the potential this converted barn has, is clear from the photos they provide. The upstairs is spacious and appealing to the eye, but it is totally spoiled by uncleanliness, neglect and above all, a very serious damp issue. These concerns were raised in private with Sykes cottages who promised to speak to the owner and get back to us but unfortunately after chasing them for a week there has been only silence in return.

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• Eleanor - Verified booking

  We were moved to this cottage last minute the evening before our holiday by Sykes who suddenly cancelled our original booking.

  Only 3 alternative options were given, the other 2 being further from the lake district so not suitable. The owner was extremely friendly and helpful over the phone and the location in the centre of town was great, and we were grateful they accepted the last minute booking. It had a large kitchen, was clean and warm and a visitor permit for parking was provided. It worked well as a base for exploring the Lakes and isn't too far from Windermere and Ambleside. Our main issue was that this was not an equivalent cottage to the one we had originally booked (this was entirely Sykes doing and not the owner's who had given accurate details when we checked their listing so please don't hesitate to book this cottage if it meets your requirements). We had booked a 2 bedroom pet friendly cottage that slept 4 adults, with large living room and views, and had made sure this had wifi which my partner needed to be able to work, and also had a washing machine and dishwasher. Unfortunately the cottage we were moved to had none of these and Sykes suggesting this was an equivalent alternative for the same price I feel was very dishonest. My partner ended up having to leave early due to the lack of wifi and phone signal and there was only one bedroom and one bed, which would have been a bit of a squeeze if 4 adults had been coming! We have still had no response/apology or partial refund from Sykes and I would be very hesitant to book with them again after this experience.

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• Stephen - Verified booking

  We were very unhappy with the fact that on our first night, the lock on the only door jammed, and we were unable to get out of the property.

  The 24/7 Emergency number was not answered and it was the following day that we were able to get through to anyone and a maintenance man arrived in the afternoon. The only access was through a narrow window and even the thin maintenance guy had trouble getting in to fix the lock. He removed this, and then left us with only a Yale, rather than a 5 lever Chubb for the remainder of our stay. We were told someone would come to replace the lock but no-one did.We effectively lost a full day of our holiday, being unable to get out of the property. The ground floor was damp, with black mould in a number of places. We have contacted Sykes a number of times, but they are hiding behind a blanket, standard response that says they can do nothing, and neither they nor the owner would pay any compensation, as this is a Health and Safety issue!! We would like the owner, who we are unable to contact, to confirm that this problem, both the door and the lack of proper escape windows has been sorted, so we can feel comfortable that any other renters are safe in the property. There would appear to be no route to report this issue to Health and Safety Executive, only to Sykes and Lake Lovers. We feel there is no way we can give any positive recommendation for the property without confirmation that the issues are resolved. We are also very unhappy that Sykes have at no time made any direct contact to apologise for the problems we have had,

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• Allison - Verified booking

  Sykes responded to our requests promptly and efficiently.

  However, there were a number of issues with the property that should be addressed given it is a 4 tick property. The main concern was the cleanliness. The lounge carpet is filthy. I accept it is a rural location but I have photos of the dirt and stains on the carpet. I really do recommend the carpet is cleaned or the flooring is replaced with slate or tile. The house was clean on the first inspection but as I moved furniture and items around it was apparent that it was not given a thorough clean eg underneath the sofa to retrieve toys or breadcrumbs under the marble chopping board. I thought the bathrooms were fantastic and clean. The other niggle was the main kitchen bin was broken so the clip lid was not working and had to be prised open and shut. I called and asked for it to be replaced. It was replaced with a bin with no lid which is equally inappropriate as this would then expose the contents and smell of the bin in the kitchen. I loved the location and the kitchen was well equipped but I do think the cleanliness and replacement of broken items took the polish off the property. Despite the above, my family and I had a wonderful holiday in the lakes and Sykes contributed to making this happen.

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