“Good with potential to be great but missing the little things that make a big difference.”
The property was a little rough around the edges for a 5 star rating on Sykes as we have stayed in more well kept property with less star.
Location was good, very easy to get to Poole, Bournemouth and Weymouth etc. Great local pub with fab food within walking distance.
You can tell there were thoughts put in when it was first refurbished but it does require some more maintenance and upkeep. For example: we understand it is difficult to keep the moisture away as it’s an old cottage but regular maintenance and silicone would have made a huge difference in the bathrooms, some of which smelled of damp, particularly the ground floor wet room, even with the window open. There was a patch job to the wall at the end of the stairs which could have been quickly and properly repaired in between stays etc.
Hot tub was good but we were asked to test the water ph each day which we have never been asked to do before and there was a little sand in the bottom before we had our first use.
Like the other reviews, we did not get a welcome pack, can’t imagine this is a COVID issue seeing as there were condiments which had been left by previous occupiers but no useful/essential ingredients. Some tea bags, sugar and a small bottle of milk (any type) would have made it a much more welcome first night. The Aga oven was good on paper but not practical for a holiday let in summer or for a self catered property let generally. Factor this into your cooking times if you are planning to make any meals.
We were scratching our heads trying to find the TV the first night (it is hidden in the cupboard in living room). WiFi was fast with great coverage, especially useful given that there was no mobile signal but the password in the folder didn’t seem to match with the one on the router.
Plenty of kitchenware but we feel less in more in this case as we found plenty of dirty cutlery/plates and non useable kitchenware, burned frying pans etc which could have been cleared out to make the useable stuff easy to find (lots of cafetieres but no coffee). Given COVID is still around, it didn’t give us much assurance that everything was as clean as it should be. As a side note, we did raise one of the kitchenware issue to the owners and we had a replacement on the same day but we would have preferred not to bother owners during our stay and vice versa.
Plenty of white goods in the property but cleanliness remain a concern so we didn’t use these if we could help it during our stay. Dishwasher had pool of water at the bottom before we had our first use.
Overall, a good little place for a family get together and it has the potential to be a great accommodation if owners want to give it a bit of tlc.
We have flagged these with the owners, they have acknowledged these but said they weren’t aware of the cleanliness issue before. It seems like there are similar feedbacks left by others since we made our booking but we do hope they will improve for future customers. I can’t say we will be revisiting again.
Thank you for your comments.
The wet room was cleaned, mopped and aired prior to arrival, the character property dates back to the year 1600 and so due to its nature, may have more moisture in the air than a brand new property. The wall regrettably was damaged by a previous guest and had been repaired but due to limitations of changeover time, the repaint could not be done at the time but has been done since. Tester strips are provided for the hot tub, this is because depending on group size, the hot tub chemical balance may need adjusting at different periods and so we like guests to be able to reassure themselves during their stay that the hot tub is accurately balanced and they can top it up if required at a time of their choosing, when convenient. The hot tub does not have sand, it is actually chlorine in a granule form which stays granulated until the water temp reaches over 28 degrees.
Welcome packs regrettably have been temporarily discontinued due to the current covid situation and any condiments have now also been removed from the property.
The property is advertised as having an Aga and while we appreciate that cooking with an Aga can be longer than a conventional oven, it enhances the period feel of the property -we do make guests fully aware that it is an Aga so that guests can make an informed decision about whether to book the property as suitable for their requirements.
The TV is located behind a pair of Oak doors in the recess of the Inglenook fire in a cupboard on the lounge.
There is superfast broadband wifi signal at the property that can of course be used on mobile devices and tabletc etc for wifi calls, facebook video calls, whatsapp, wifi calls etc. Due to the thickness of the walls and also the rural location, we do acknowledge that when away from doors or window then the mobile signal can be intermittent depending on network provider, but the superfast wifi can be used to compensate for this, we also feel that occasionally to get the benefit of a peaceful idyllic surround, that low mobile signal is unfortunately regrettably necessary - however our super wifi more than compensates for that. We will ensure that the router itself and manual information match after the recent broadband upgrade.
The frying pan was immediately replaced when I was made aware, I have discussed your feedback about the white goods with my contract cleaners to ensure that the Sykes covid cleaning guidelines are still being followed, this is being monitored moving forward and I have also asked them to let me know about items needing replacing as soon as possible and thanks very much for letting me know
Due to covid, coffee regretfully cannot be provided however two cafetieres are at the property for any guests that bring or buy coffee during their stay.
The dishwasher is put on a spin cycle pre arrival by the cleaner to ensure it is covid compliant before any guest arrival and it is likely why this happened.
I am thrilled that you enjoyed the location and that it was easy to get to places
I do provide my contact information pre arrival and am always only to happy to assist, and Sykes Cottages also have a dedicated phone line to assists guests in a property who do not necessarily wish to be disturbed by an owner. If I had known you had any concerns or queries I would have acted immediately to rectify them and I am sorry that you did not give me further opportunity to do so at the time. Property Owner
