Villas In Dumfries And Galloway

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Nicolene - Verified booking

  This is a dog friendly property a few minutes drive from the local shops, Morrisons, Lidl and a terrible Tesco.

  There is even a dog friendly cafe The Royal Cafe…..which we found on the last day. Waters Edge is a redecorated four bedroom (two of which are downstairs……) 70’s house with splendid views over Loch Ryan as far as the Irish Sea. I didn’t venture upstairs but my husband had a tour so I’m aware there are two bedrooms and a bathroom. On arrival, we were delighted by the appearance of the house and it’s proximity to the Loch. There’s a great lobby for coats and outdoor paraphernalia which is certainly a plus for keeping the interior clean and tidy. However, on opening the connecting door the overwhelming smell of cooking/dogs was most unwelcoming; perhaps an open window or two might have made this more bearable? The front bedroom has a very small double bed but, as we wanted the view, this was the room we settled on; our stay would have benefited vastly if the Master bed had been in this room. The kitchen diner is large and extremely well equipped, but there was food in the freezer and an (open) bag of some sort of savoury biscuits in the cupboard and many of the plates/pizza tray were filthy. A broom would have been good, I am disabled to the point where I can’t use a vacuum cleaner, There was an abundance of loo rolls, towels, bedding, which was brilliant but no bleach for the showers or the loos. Also, the electric shower power is desultory at best and you have to wait a long time for the water to heat up, but the absolute negative was the size if the showers - they are tiny. Agreed, there are baths, but I haven’t been able to access one of those in 17 years so it’s a shower or nothing. My tummy is black and blue from the shower door knobs. For that reason alone we could not recommend this property despite it’s excellent nature and dog friendliness. Also, there is no garden which people with dogs need to be advised about; it’s a dark, dangerous step to the park late at night for last walkies. And, please note, there is no milk at the property (other companies ensure a “welcome” pack of one degree or another). There was some fudge, but we left that behind as we wanted to leave everything exactly as we had found it, as instructed time and time again by Sykes Cottages who really do know how to write the rudest email messages I’ve ever read, implying all paying guests are somehow filthy, entitled and disrespectful. Overall we had a great time and the area is very relaxing especially with the five days of lovely weather when we could enjoy the patio table, but as much as we’d love to, I guess we won’t be back because the facilities do not meet my personal needs.

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• Julie - Verified booking

  Unfortunately we didn't receive a very warm welcome.

  We booked the cottage in Jan and it was listed as dog friendly so we booked and paid for our small dog to come too. When I called to get key info the day before our arrival the owner said it would be ready for 4 and they would be in the door. (listing said ready for 3, but hey ho). She said she was busy and would come to see us on Mon morning. We arrived just after 4 and had just un packed the car when the owner turned up. On seeing our dog who was just sniffing around getting her bearings, the owner proceeded to tell us dogs not allowed in the bedrooms, hadn't we read their policy, had we brought blankets to cover the furniture at which point I said she doesn't go on the furniture. She then proceeded to tell us how much damage people and their dogs had caused and that was why she was no longer a dog friendly accommodation. All this time she stood with the patio door open, I asked twice if she wouldn't mind closing it so that our dog couldn't get out as the large gate onto the road was open. This was ignored and so I had to take my dog into the kitchen. We didn't receive any instructions on how to operate equipment at the property or how to find the badger cam that we'd read about. No friendly recommendations of nice places to go. The only info shared was negativity about our dog and how we must shower before using the hot tub. Just as well it is no longer dog friendly as the fields surrounding the cottage were beautiful and full of animals, but unfortunately no pavements on the road and no paths explained or found where we could walk the dog. On another subject we found it odd that there was a full sized dishwasher but only 4 cups, 4 plates 4 bowls 4 side plates. Very nice that the crockery was Denby, but again a negative note in the cupboard warning that any chips or cracks would be chargeable. Even worse that the kitchen sink was pot. Simple white crockery in abundance would have been preferable and more conducive to a relaxing break. We felt she had her priorities wrong and would have appreciated settees with more comfortable and supportive cushions. One of the seats in the jacuzzi was brown and the plastic coating was peeling off so we couldn't use it. It would have been helpful if there had been a folder with information about how to take the cover off the jacuzzi, how to turn it on and off, information about the area, the WiFi code, how to control the heating, restaurants to go to, the badger cam etc. Instead we were insulted and made to feel uncomfortable, tarred with a brush meant for others who had previously caused damage.

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• Confirmed Guest - Verified booking

  the whole cottage needs a thorough clean and furnishings very old and worn .When we arrived Mr Sinclair was just coming out of the cottage saying the TV wasn't working and he would be back. He did return a few minutes later and sat in the room trying to fix the TV. What a start to our holiday trying to unpack with a stranger sat there. The bathroom door wouldn't open properly, old rusty bin, light over mirror not working, heater in bathroom full of dust, old rusty tin of air fresher, shower screen on bath had black mould along the bottom. The kitchen had dirty cutlery trays and all utensils in them were very old. cupboard handle broken, dead beetle between the melamine plates, spider and web in a cup. No icebox in fridge so Mr Sinclair said to use the freezer where the dogs were kept in a separate outhouse which was disgracefully dirty. We were told not to shut the curtain in the hallway as the rail was broken. This meant when we left the bedroom to use the bathroom, we were on view up the lane. The single beds were very hard with child size quilts. furniture old, random old xmas decorations etc in draws which needed cleaning out. The carpets and flooring all needs changing as it is so old. there were dozens of flies every day due to the cottage facing the horse stables. We bought fly killer and were constantly spraying them. My partner honestly thought I was going to say " take me home" but because he had booked it for my Birthday I tried to make the best of it. We left 2 leg rest from our reclining sunchairs in the cottage shed by mistake, and after a call to them the day after our return, the daughter said she would get Mrs Sinclair to ring me. I have a friend in Ayr and though I could collect them when visiting my friend later in the year but I haven't had a call back and that was a week ago. I would have contacted you before now regarding how upsetting and disappointing our holiday accommodation was but I am just recovering from Covid and haven't been up to writing. On a positive note, we loved the areas of Rockcliffe and Kippford and would like to see other areas of Scotland. Baring in mind our bad experience at Tumbling Banks would the company give us some form of compensation for not only how upset we were but also for such poor accommodation as we would use Discover Scotland again but would suggest you think twice about using this accommodation to future clients in its present state. Kind regards, Susan Harwood

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• Nick - Verified booking

  We had a nice stay here overall but we did leave a day early.

  . The owner left our children Easter eggs and decorated the room with bunting as it was Easter.. Which was really kind. The house is decorated and equipped to a very high standard with everything you need. The area is nice with plenty of pubs but you need to be aware of the opening times for food. Whilst we was there not much was open on the days that we went out. We couldn’t go out much because of the weather being so bad. The Indian takeaway is very very expensive and isn’t nice food, the Chinese takeaway is cheap and isn’t nice food, but that’s our own preference. If you fancy a takeaway make sure you know the opening and closing times as we wanted a pizza around 9pm and the pizza/kebab shop had already closed. The chippy was nice and the pubs also serve nice home cooked meals. The sweet shop is also worth a visit. As someone else stated in their review there is nowhere to sit whilst using a mirror, no plugs near a mirror either. The road outside is very busy which wouldn’t bother some people but this disrupted sleep every night for us. We don’t own a dog and we did see that the holiday home accepted well behaved dogs. Unfortunately we could smell dogs especially in the living area from the cushions and rug. I’m sure this wouldn’t bother everyone but for us as we don’t own a dog the smell just lingered but this will happen when dogs are allowed in the property. Also dog hairs were on the downstairs bed were someone has let their dog sleep in the bed which we personally think shouldn’t be allowed as people who don’t own dogs don’t want to sleep in a bed with dog hairs. The upstairs bathroom was really hot like a sauna and we couldn’t figure out how to turn off the two radiators so we kept the door closed all the time due to the heat being unbearable. The hot tub was lovely, our children enjoyed going in every day and it’s a good size! We did however have maintenance messaging us early morning regarding the hot tub to come and clean it etc… We have stayed at many holiday homes and this work is usually done without disturbing the guests. Then on another occasion they wanted to come round and put up a curtain pole which we think should have been sorted before or after us leaving the property. We decided to pack our things Thursday night and leave a day early as we felt uncomfortable and unsettled.

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• Daniel - Verified booking

  We booked Waters Edge for Christmas and had a most enjoyable stay.

  We would like to thank the owners for decorating the house and putting up a Christmas tree for our arrival. The house was very spacious and clean. The views from the lounge and the bedrooms looking over Loch Ryan were wonderful. It was like being on a cruise ship looking out onto the sea. There were a few issues with leaking windows which didn’t impact on our stay as we contacted the owner who responded promptly. The kitchen was large and had plenty of cupboard space and was well equipped. We enjoyed eating our Christmas dinner at the large dining table. Location is good as it is a short walk into town although you have to drive to the nearest beach. Despite it being dog friendly lack of a garden was an issue. If you are going in the winter months bring a torch with you to navigate the uneven concrete steps down to the road. There is a light on the porch but it doesn’t help going down the stairs. A security light on the garage door would help solve this situation. The owners were good enough to let us use their garage as we had two cars with us but it was tricky to navigate into as you have to reverse in at an angle. The parking for the other car was also difficult as it wasn’t easy negotiating the uneven concrete parking space. Some of the furnishings didn’t reflect on the price that we paid for six nights (£1200). Beside cabinets in the main bedroom were more suited for a bathroom and small plastic lamps were not a good look. There were two side tables in the lounge but both had lamps on them. A couple of extra tables or a nest of tables is necessary as there was nowhere to place our drinks or snacks. None of the bathroom windows had blinds but windows were covered with a plastic film which made them look unfinished. The upstairs bathroom in particular needed a blind as the top part of the window had no plastic film on it and you felt as if the neighbours could see in. Some of the issues may seem as minor but again reflecting on the price would need to be addressed. Unfortunately we would not return due to the lack of garden and the parking issue. If we had had a third car, as the house accommodates eight people, I would not like to park my car 100 yards from the house. We would still recommend this holiday house for families if you don’t mind the issues we have highlighted.

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