Holiday Cottages In The United Kingdom

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Judy - Verified booking

  This booking was a late change of venue so not initially chosen by me for our stay in Aldeburgh.

  I wrote a short comment in the Visitors’ Book of the cottage before the end of my stay and I deliberately did not mention any of the things that we had found negative as I know how damaging that can be - the fast, noisy and frequent traffic, the potholed access to parking, the lack of space to do anything on the kitchen worktops, the paucity of equipment in the kitchen, the tight turn in the steep stairs and dangerously short distance from the landing to those stairs, the general shabbiness of it all, the awful smell in my bedroom; we had been grateful to have rescued our trip so were prepared to take what was available. However, I felt it right to contact Sykes directly about a very specific issue, the bed. I was absolutely disgusted to see huge stains on my mattress as I was packing up to leave, the cleaners MUST have noticed that there were NO STAINS on any of the mattress protectors or bedding from our stripped beds so this stain already existed and had been covered up… ugh. Had the cleaners not reported this before now or was this just ignored? I took photos of the stains and it looks disgusting. I'm happy to share these photos. The owner offered me a small reduction on a future booking and were apparently already addressing the issues I raised - thereby acknowledging that standards were below par. In the light of gesture of goodwill from the owner, I said that I would prefer to have a small reduction from THIS visit - I have no intention of staying there again. The owner "is not looking" to offer this. I've asked Sykes to escalate this to their Senior Management (as I booked it through the them). This request had been completely ignored. Not only that but you keep asking me to write a review - so here it is. Sykes seem to be keen on ticking boxes and getting feedback but not so keen on actual good customer service. This experience does not merit even one star.

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• Mr Peter Rimmer - Verified booking

  When we arrived at the property after our 4-hour journey, it was a little disappointing to find that the bed had not been made up and there were several piles of used towels in the kitchen and in the back bedroom. It was as if the job had been interrupted. This was all the more disappointing, given the strongly worded email/text message received before our arrival, to the effect that we must not arrive at the property before 4:00pm. However, we decided to swing with it, as we felt this was something that could/would be sorted before too long. What was more disappointing however was the response we received when we phoned the Suffolk Secrets phone number. Neither of the two people we spoke to was able to give a firm indication of when the situation would be rectified, simply falling back on the not very re-assuring "as soon as possible" formula. Particularly disappointing was the reply from your representative during my first call who said she would arranged for the property care people to call me directly. I then had to explain quite forcibly that I expected them to contact Suffolk Secrets and Suffolk Secrets to contact me, as I was Suffolk Secrets' client and not a client of the property care firm you use. I think this might have been due to inexperience of the young lady I spoke with - so, clearly a training matter here. It was re-assuring, however, to receive a text message within minutes of my second call to your office telling me that somebody was on their way to finish off the job. In the event, the bed was made up and used linen removed, and we had a lovely break in a lovely part of the country.

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• Mrs Hudson - Verified booking

  How lucky were we to find this beautiful cottage available for the 3 nights we wanted, and it was yards away from my grandparents' cottage I spent a lot of my childhood and early teens in from the 1940's to the early 60's. Opening the door we walked into a lovely comfortable lounge, so tastefully decorated, as was the rest of the house. A lovely welcome note from the owners and a basket of "goodies", wine, cake, peanuts, biscuits etc was a very kind thought. The equipment was second to none and everything spotlessly clean. Very comfortable beds, you don't get that everywhere ! We were warned about the windy narrow stairs so were well prepared. My husband has some walking difficulties, but we helped him up and down and I found coming down backwards the best way. I am biased as Youlgreave is my roots, but it's a lovely village with fabulous walks, good pubs and food and so many places to visit from there like Bakewell, Matlock, Chatsworth House, Haddon Hall., Robin Hood Stride.The old co-op where I was sent for the shopping, as a child is now a YHA, with a fabulous cafe with great food and drinks at very reasonable prices. Do visit Stanton - in -Peak, near there, for views to die for. I could say more, go and find out for yourself.

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• Deborah - Verified booking

  The cottage is lovely. It’s very well renovated and decorated to make the most of the cosy space. It was perfect for me and my husband to explore the Peak District. The stairs are narrow and if you have mobility problems this could cause difficulty. When we arrived we were left a lovely hamper and everything was so clean and tidy. It felt quite luxurious. My husband is 6ft 1 and he found the shower a bit tight but absolutely manageable. There are 3 pubs in Youlgreave and we went in the Bull and the Farmyard both were excellent. The village is only about 10 minutes from Bakewell and there are lots of dining options there too. Plenty of walks on your doorstep and Chatsworth house is only about 15 minutes away. Great little cottage, romantic and cosy! We loved the wood burning stove, the beautiful décor and the location.

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• Ms Denyer - Verified booking

  This is a warm, comfortable cottage in a perfect location for beach, town and the wonderful river walk we always enjoy on our regular visits to Suffolk. Kitchen, well thought out with every item and appliance you could need. The welcome basket, again, well thought out - tea bags, sugar, coffee gorgeous apple juice, the all important Stokes sauces with Aldeburgh traditional favourites in mind. Ketchup for the famous fish and chips across the road. Tartare and mayonnaise for the fish, fresh and smoked you'll buy from the fisherman's huts along the beach. Comfy sofas. Comfy bed and so importantly, incredibly clean, cosy and warm. Also, if you've never been to Aldeburgh you can't put a price on having your own parking space.

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