School Holidays 2017 Cottages In Oxfordshire

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Carol - Verified booking

  We had a reasonable week but there were a few niggling problems.

  I know we could have reported issues to the management but we were on holiday and didn't want intrusions. The kitchen work surfaces and table were grimy along with some of the crockery. The fridge door is broken so not able to store opened cartons. The fridge also froze the contents of the salad drawer. The microwave was very temperamental as was the cooker. I think the television also needs replacing/upgrading to a smart tv. The wall brackets seemed to be broken so the tv slants downwards. I know a lot of people won't be bothered by not having an up to date tele but they don't have to use it and that's their choice......but for those that do like to view then the facility of stuff like "catch up" should be available in a "high end" property such as this. One last moan.....the en-suite bathroom in the attic bedroom. It's a lovely room but please provide a bit of privacy in the form of a blind for the clear glass window. The attic bedroom can provide a bit of a challenge for the less mobile but at 73 years old I managed the staircase and the low bed. Our 2 grandsons shared the twin room and loved it. My Husband has health issues so he had the 1st floor double bedroom and was happy with it. . On the positive side the building was charming and sympathetically restored with lots of original features. It's a very quiet area as well so not much passing traffic. It's also located in a beautiful part of the country which is central to many other places of interest. . Sadly we probably wouldn't return to this cottage but what doesn't suit us might not be a problem to others. We've rented very many properties over very many years so have a lot of experience in rating. For us we would rate this property as "middle" because there is room for improvement in facilities and cleanliness.You can't alter the layout of the property but despite having a reasonable sleep in the attic bedroom I wouldn't choose to do it again. I've no doubt that younger people wouldn't feel the same way though.......they would probably love it. ;-)

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• Dave - Verified booking

  We stayed at Gardeners Cottage for 4 weeks during a house move to Alvescot.

  The cottage is cosy, comfortable (especially the bed), quite well equipped with a large garden with wonderful views over the countryside. Good off street parking although it took us a while to understand you park adjacent to the house on the grass verges. The key safe was a bit of a challenge at first but ok to use after we’d mastered the code. If you’re bringing dogs, the garden is not contained so we used a roll of garden netting to keep ours from wondering off, or bothering the neighbours. The garden furniture is in need of a refresh, but ok to sit out on and enjoy the beautiful view. You’ll need accounts to all the streaming services on the TV as there’s no access to Freeview or terrestrial channels via an aerial. We have streaming accounts so it was ok, just not possible to scroll through channels (a good excuse to forget the TV and go for walks with the dogs!). We changed the batteries in one of the TV remotes. A note to the management team - we had the plumber visit twice to take air out of the system which was caused a lot of disturbing noise in the early hours of the morning. They came promptly the next day and rectified the problem, but I think the system needs a good overhaul in general - ou can’t shower upstairs if someone is issuing the shower downstairs for instance. Agree with other tenants that a microwave would have been convenient and the cutlery is a little tired The village is peaceful (a sleepy hollow) but it’s a drive to a shop and a decent walk to the Hare pub. Careful where you walk as one of the neighbours was upset that we hadn’t followed a public pathway which wasn’t marked to be fair. I think on balance it may be on the pricey side for what is offered and we noted that it wasn’t booked at all in July & August which is a shame. It served us well for our move. Perhaps the pricing needs looking at?

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• Dave - Verified booking

  We stayed at Gardeners Cottage for 4 weeks during a house move to Alvescot.

  The cottage is cosy, comfortable (especially the bed), quite well equipped with a large garden with wonderful views over the countryside. Good off street parking although it took us a while to understand you park adjacent to the house on the grass verges. The key safe was a bit of a challenge at first but ok to use after we’d mastered the code. If you’re bringing dogs, the garden is not contained so we used a roll of garden netting to keep ours from wondering off, or bothering the neighbours. The garden furniture is in need of a refresh, but ok to sit out on and enjoy the beautiful view. You’ll need accounts to all the streaming services on the TV as there’s no access to Freeview or terrestrial channels via an aerial. We have streaming accounts so it was ok, just not possible to scroll through channels (a good excuse to forget the TV and go for walks with the dogs!). We changed the batteries in one of the TV remotes. A note to the management team - we had the plumber visit twice to take air out of the system which was caused a lot of disturbing noise in the early hours of the morning. They came promptly the next day and rectified the problem, but I think the system needs a good overhaul in general - ou can’t shower upstairs if someone is issuing the shower downstairs for instance. Agree with other tenants that a microwave would have been convenient and the cutlery is a little tired The village is peaceful (a sleepy hollow) but it’s a drive to a shop and a decent walk to the Hare pub. Careful where you walk as one of the neighbours was upset that we hadn’t followed a public pathway which wasn’t marked to be fair. I think on balance it may be on the pricey side for what is offered and we noted that it wasn’t booked at all in July & August which is a shame. It served us well for our move. Perhaps the pricing needs looking at?

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• Deborah - Verified booking

  We have been before and it was disappointing that more had not been done to make the garden more secure for the dog.

  Also, a shame that more cannot be done about the old barn. However, these are problems that we were aware of and prepared to live with. What was not acceptable was the later check-in time of 6pm to find that the property was less clean than the first time we booked. There were sticky marks on the kitchen floor from previous spillages, which we wiped to find the cloth was black with dirt and the skirting boards were very dusty. We also found, on striping our own beds, that some of the bedding and protectors were stained. It is interesting to note that, although assured in the welcome folder that mattress and pillow protectors are washed between bookings, it was requested that these were left on even though it was requested that we strip the beds. The biggest disappointment still, was that the bed in the upper bedroom was broken. This was only discovered when sleeping on it and it became more like a hammock in the middle of the night. We attempted to fix the problem, which turned out to be loose base supports, but again they moved in the middle of the night. The people sleeping in that bed were leaving a day early so at that point there was little point in calling in maintenance. Either way, it should not have been left in this state for someone to sleep on, surely this would have been known about when the bed was changed last time? It was also noted, on attempting to fix the bed, that underneath was a pile of disused wood and again more dust and dirt. I have photographs if anyone would like them as evidence of the poor state of maintenance. Sadly, we will not be returning next year. It is such a shame these issues have let down what is otherwise a beautiful property that is well equipped and in a lovely location, if only it was cared for properly.

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• Jacqueline - Verified booking

  We hired the cottage for a mini Christmas break.

  2 adults, 3 children. The cottage was plenty big enough for all of us. (Although the living room is probably the 'coziest' for space of an evening) It was clean and warm with everything we could need and we would definitely stay again! The welcome gift was thoughtful and essentials in the fridge and cupboards etc were very gratefully received - Thank you!! It was a perfect location we used it as our base and then explored Stow-on-the-Wold, Bourton-on-the-Water, The Slaughters, Bibury and Blenheim Palace, it was such a beautiful break. Practical things that I'm sure other reviews mention, yes the barn right next to the property isn't pretty, but they are open and honest about it, it's seen in the pictures and if you can just look past it, it shouldn't detract from how great everything else is. Some light bulbs didn't work, some kitchen pieces had a few minor breaks, all of which would probably be rectified if the owners were aware I have no doubt. The only negative comment I have regarding my whole stay was the mattress in the attic room. It is a memory foam mattress and I'm not sure if it has been damaged, or the slats underneath to support are damaged? But I spent my nights sleeping, feeling like I was falling into a definite dip. By the end I had two pillows over the area to level me out, but if this is a permanent issue I can see it would agitate many guests! It is a beautiful home in a gorgeous location!

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