Holiday Cottages in the New Forest with a Swimming Pool

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Anne - Verified booking

  We did have a lovely family holiday at Abbots Wood, location fantastic, some great walks and wild life, Deer visited and we sat and watched the bats of an evening.

  There are a few things that you need to be aware of. Cleanliness was very below the usual standard we have had when holidaying with Sykes before, (cobwebs dead flies, dust under furniture, sinks needing some bleach, shower cubicle need a good clean ). Furniture needs to be up dated in the lounge, settees, very very used all the seat cushions are flat and looking very tied. Pans in the kitchen, loads of them but only a couple you could use on the hob as its a hob that needs specific pans. Pool is lovely, but we had to contact the owner to ask for the water temp to be turned up, which they told us how to do. Bedrooms, only have double beds which was a bit of an issue, but other reviews had stated this so we took camp beds, not ideal but it worked for us. The two bedrooms that shared the Jack and Jill bathroom were a nightmare, beautifully decorated but too hot to sleep in and the boilers kept coming on and off all night, they where very very noisy. We had to sleep with the balcony doors open all night which then let midges in. There was no cold water pressure in this bathroom which again was an issue, one of our guests is a plumber by trade and he said the whole plumbing water system needs an over haul. Garden furniture was dirty we had to wash it before using, the decking area needs some TLC, all doors on the rear and side of the house need some work doing to them as they where difficult to open and shut. The family room down stairs with two double beds was cold no heating in here, the quiet room at the end of the dinning room would make a lovely games room, snooker table, darts board etc. to us this was a waste of space but that's only our opinion. One of our main concerns was the balcony upstairs which you look down over onto the pool. This is very lose in places, if we had had small children with us it would have been a major issue, also the balustrade on the stairs from upstairs into the pool area this is lose as well, these need attention. It is a fantastic property in a lovely area and like I said we did have a fabulous time here but its crying out for some tender loving care.

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• Jane - Verified booking

  After reading some of the previous feedback I was prepared for the possibility of some issues when we stayed at Downton Lodge.

  . However, I needn't have worried. We enjoyed our stay so much that we are already planning to rebook. The house is indeed a little tired in places, however being a grade ll listed building there will be many rules and regulations to navigate regarding its upkeep, and this needs to be taken into account.. The house was clean, full of character and well equipped. There are many little touches that show that love has gone into the house, and many efforts to make sure that the guests are comfortable. Pros - A lot more privacy around the pool area than I was expecting, aka not as overlooked as it first appears. The owner was lovely, and very accommodating. Especially when it came to use of the pool! The aga was a big plus point for me, having grown up with one I loved cooking on an aga again, and enjoyed showing it to my children who had never seen one. The sitting room, contrary to the pictures, does not only have conservatory furniture - but also has armchairs and a sofa. The showers are remarkably powerful. The best I've seen in a long time. When staying in holiday homes we normally find "bath towels" that don't look big enough to be away from their mother. The ones in Downton Lodge are huge, fluffy and good quality. The location is superb, within easy reach of the beach, shops, local towns and plenty of places to explore. Cons - just the one... The lack of a washing machine! To be fair I did know there wasn't one available when I booked, but I hadn't anticipated how much I would need one. Due to the pool and having 3 girls I found myself doing quite a few "handwashes", and while this isn't the biggest deal in the world - it would be nice not to have had to. Maybe the owners could think about installing one? As there is space... All in all, we had an amazing break away in a tranquil, beautiful setting. Thank you to the owner Karen. We look forward to visiting again soon!

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• Beverley - Verified booking

  The house is very large, beautiful and set in stunning surroundings with some lovely walks.

  However we felt that the property does need a little tlc in places. We got to the property and one of the curtains to one of the rooms were down which was soon addressed by the owners. The bedrooms are all great sizes with two having large dressing rooms and all having ensuites. As picked up by other residents the kitchen is very small with very little work surface however more or less everything you would need is in the kitchen including a lovely range cooker. However a new set of knives, a new can opener and some egg cups would be a great addition to what is already there. We marked the house down on cleaniness as we felt all the shower cubicles could do with a good scrub and bleach and was very disappointed that the glass to the windows and internal doors had not been cleaned from a previous visitor who had obviously had little children or dogs. To me this is part of a cleaning process from visitor to visitor. The chairs to the garden also hadn’t been cleaned and there were broken chairs around the lake which didn’t do the house justice. Having the pool was a real bonus and well used by all the visitors. It was lovely having some conservatory furniture and chairs to lay on a great addition to the area. If you do take a dog just a word of warning we were told by a neighbour that some of the residents down the lane are not keen on some of the wildlife visiting them and was told that a trap had been set to catch deer, foxes etc and it had caught their dog thank goodness we didn’t take our dog as this would have been a real worry for us. We had a lovely week and although the weather wasn’t great it just meant we used the pool more!

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• Alan - Verified booking

  Some items to consider if choosing this property: The sitting room photographs are misleading.

  The actual armchairs (not in any photograph) are very old, but usable. The bath/shower room had a considerable leak from the mixer unit, leaking water all over the end wall. The second bedroom mattress was uncomfortable and should be changed. No iron No hair dryer No vacuum cleaner The door to the en-suite bedroom seemed to be locked. After four nights we realised the door required a very hefty push to open it. It should be made clear that the entrance to the property is by the five bar gate drive and not where the sign for Downton Lodge is. The property was clean and tidy but I think there is too much play on the listed building aspect. Considering this is a high end cost property it certainly needs some work. The main benefit of this property is the excellent heated swimming pool. Very clean and well looked after. A pleasure to use. We had a pleasant time and the property is in an ideal location for the New Forest and the general area. However, it is unlikely I will use Sykes Cottages again. I do not like wasting my time going through several groups of multiple choice questions several times only for the phone line to go dead at the last choice. The web site could not understand my need to change a single 'date'. ( We had to leave a day early ). Also, I do not like being 'pestered' by emails wanting to know how my first night has been and what to do when I leave. I was told by some very helpful ladies ( not Sykes ) that the emergency phone number was some considerable time out of date.

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• Philip - Verified booking

  Before I comment on Abbots Wood Hampshire, I'd just like to say we enjoyed our holiday because we won't let anything ruin it.

  It's supposed to be 5 star, no way, but it could be. Maintenance is none existent. Outside other than mow the lawn, nothing is done. The windows are dirty and desperate need of painting. The decking needs replacing, and the patio needs tidying up and repointing. There's old chairs and some other things stuck up the corner, needs removing and a good sweep. The balcony's have never been painted or cleaned it seems. The overhang from the roof over the patios in a bad state. The guttering has become detached in several places and is full of leaves, so when it rains it's like a waterfall. Inside the house again a lot needs doing, everything is well used which we expected as it's a rental property. In one room they had a job to get cold water in the sink, and when they pulled the plug out it really stank. It was also too hot in the room to sleep as there is a boiler in the wardrobe. Mind you the pool was lovely, as was the pond/lake if you like fishing. I know it sounds like I'm hard to please, I'm not. We didn't complain because we knew nothing would be done. There are lots faults with the place. We were not looking for a palace but it should be better. With the Coronavirus I don't think anyone would be using it. Why didn't they give it some TLC/maintenance. I don't think anythings been done for years. The house has a lot of potential, it's such a shame. I think properties need to be reviewed regularly to make sure of standards. Regards Mr Philip Higginson.

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