Half Term Breaks In The United Kingdom

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Vivien - Verified booking

  All in all a great week after a shaky start!

  I complained and, to Sykes Cottages credit, within 24 hours the issues had been resolved. When we arrived I really felt like going home again. The table was sticky, there were bits on the floor. Some of the kitchen cupboards were unclean, resulting in me putting all the crockery through the dishwasher. The balcony, balcony table, the apartment windows and balcony balustrade glass were filthy - the amazing view was obscured through not just the weather on the glass but smears, where, possibly, others had tried wipe the glass in the past. I complained and, to Sykes Cottages credit, within 24 hours the cleaners had been back, cleaned the floor, balcony, outside table and apartment windows. (I had cleaned the table and crockery by this point) Though the balcony balustrade glass was not cleaned, we finally felt able to relax and enjoy the amazing view which is a key reason why we chose this apartment. The swimming pool was only available on 3 days of out stay - another key reason for choosing the apartment and, therefore, quite disappointing. We did throughly enjoy our stay, it is a beautiful apartment, just unfortunate that we needed to complain to see the accommodation brought up to standard. The local area that was rejuvenated for the 2012 Olympic Sailing Events is fantastic. A beautiful marina and walkway. The Boat that Rocks is a good place to eat. The apartment is walking distance to the beach where we spent much of our time paddle-boarding (we brought our own equipment but the national Sailing Academy is on Portland and courses / equipment hire are possible from here - sailing, wind surfing, kayaking, paddle boarding, kite surfing) From our apartment we could watch ships arriving and departing port, sailing boats in the bay and the helicopters coming in to land and take off at the Heli National Training and Development Centre - which we throughly enjoyed. There is evidence of the demise of the area due to the Navy moving away: the derelict building next door, and run down pubs towards the port. There are lots of info boards about the history of Portland, through the ages, during Naval occupation and regarding the Olympics which are interesting to read. A D Day Museum, and Tanks and Torpedos on display on the kerbside - fascinating. We highly recommend the Frontline Cafe run by Firefighters - great cakes, coffee, ice cream and crepes; they are open in the evenings occasional for events too with a more extensive menu. Visit Portland Bill and the High Angle Gun Battery! FYI there are several maintenance issues with the apartment: the toiletry rack in the bathroom is rusting, water seeps onto the floor by the shower screen in the main bathroom, causing a lot of water to disperse onto the floor and around the toilet. It needs mopping up after each shower. The towel rails are rusting, the shower in the ensuite needs descaling or replacing and the kitchen tap is badly marked - I guess from cleaning agents - but it looks unsightly. One of the wicker chairs on the balcony has a damaged leg and is unusable.

  Read more less >

• Judith - Verified booking

  Firstly the good points.

  The accommodation is well positioned within the town with everything on the doorstep. It was generally clean and tidy when we arrived (but see below). The large garden was great for our grandchildren who joined us during our stay. The bad points: outside – steep steps down to the house would benefit from some proper lighting. The barbecue was rusty and not very clean, we didn’t feel inclined to use it. The log burner was rusty, full of ashes and burned through at the base – again it wasn’t really usable. We tried for several days to get the hot tub to heat up (instructions in the house were basically a brochure for a range of different tubs so not specific to the one installed at Knights Corner and not very clear). Finally contacted the owner who replied to say “press the heat button”. We’d already done this without success (it’s actually labelled “warm”). Two very helpful maintenance guys from the castle turned up the following day and tried several times to get it to work They came back three times during the day and said they thought there was a problem with it before it finally started to heat up and tried twice to contact the owner without success. We were finally able to use it once the evening before we left. Inside – house and wardrobes smelt musty when we arrived; we had to buy a plug in air freshener. TV remotes needed cleaning; the oven wasn’t cleaned properly and there was a burnt fat smell when we first turned it on. The extractor hood for the cooker wasn’t working – in an open plan property this is a must – and from other reviews we’ve seen this has been a problem since last year. Only half of the toaster worked and the kitchen itself wasn’t particularly well equipped (for example, there was one shallow serving dish for a property accommodating six people). The bathroom toilet leaked and the plug in the bathroom sink didn’t work. Five days after we returned home, having heard nothing regarding return of our damage deposit, I contacted the owner who immediately sent back photos of damage we had allegedly caused. I wasn’t aware of any damage and would have expected to be contacted much sooner if there was any issue, not much later in response to my request for the deposit to be returned. In short, for a property costing as much as this one to rent, there are too many negatives and I would not recommend it. For anyone considering a Stanhope Castle breaks please look at the more recent reviews which are available on many different websites.

  Read more less >

• Nicholas - Verified booking

  For publication: This apartment near Chesil Beach boasts a convenient location with captivating views of the harbour and bustling boat activity.

  It's conveniently close to the shingle beach and local attractions, with essential amenities like a small shop and Lidl within reach. Before booking, it's advisable to check out the area on Google Street View for a better understanding of the surroundings. The apartment itself is impressively spacious and filled with natural light. For enthusiasts, there are plenty of boat-related activities to enjoy (it's near the National Sailing Academy at the Marina), including the excitement of observing helicopters landing and taking off. While Chesil Beach may not have sandy shores, its unique shingle landscape offers a picturesque and distinctive experience. Additionally, the proximity to Portland Bill makes for an easy 10-minute drive to access stunning viewpoints and walking trails on the small island. With a mere 5-minute walk to the waterfront, this apartment offers both comfort and convenience for a memorable stay. PS either travel very light or take a trolley to help loading and unloading luggage (there is a lift) *** Not for publication: the Wi-Fi is not properly secured; it comes up with a message saying it is weak security( It would be a simple administrative fix to resolve). As a result we did not feel comfortable using it. This is an inconvenience at best and potentially far worse for users and we suggest it is resolved as soon as possible. There were some signs of inadequate preparation/checking by the maintenance/cleaning team: the boiler was switched off so there was no hot water; there was no towel pack for the kitchen; the cafetiere had parts missing and would not work; the casserole dish did not have a fitting lid, so we could not use it to cook dinner. All of these (except the casserole dish), were quickly resolved by the dream cottages representative, for which we were grateful.

  Read more less >

• Jill - Verified booking

  Although the property was superficially clean it was generally grubby/filthy.

  Two bags of laundry were left in the hallway - these were, however, removed the next day after we had alerted Sykes. We contacted Sykes to complain about the issues of dirt, missing equipment (no Dyson as listed) and broken blind in the kitchen area. The en-suite was unusable as it was so filthy - old rust and dirt on the shower cable and caked on soap in the shower tray. The panel behind the toilet in the main bathroom was coming away from the wall. Both bathrooms had rusty shower caddies that rendered them unusable. The balcony area had not been cleaned - the table and chairs were filthy (as was one of the seat covers) and there was old food debris on the floor. Photos were attached and sent to Sykes - we did not here back during our holiday. We happened to speak with a couple of the complex cleaners (not the ones involved in our apartment on this occasion) and they informed us that the Dyson had been missing for a considerable period of time; also that the blind had been broken for a considerable period of time - both had been reported on several occasions. As Sykes and the owner have been made aware of these issues we feel that they should have been addressed before letting out the apartment again - we paid a considerable sum of money for the apartment and it was substandard. We are still waiting to hear what Sykes is going to do about this.

  Read more less >

• Ian - Verified booking

  This is a lovely modern apartment and the six of us had a wonderful week here.

  It was comfy, clean and in a great location, plus the huge garden and hot tub were used every evening. We certainly wouldn't hesitate to recommend this apartment to anyone looking for a base in this area of the country. The kitchen is well equipped and the additional extras such as satellite TV, Bluetooth speakers, and a chimnea all helped make it a memorable stay. There are a couple of minor improvements which would have made us appreciate the stay even more. Whilst there was a lovely welcome pack provided with a bottle of fizz (thank you!), we ran out of washing-up liquid/loo roll/ washing powder/kitchen roll within a few days. It would have been nice if the owners could have ensured there was enough of all of these items to last a week and save us the expense of replacing them all. Also some instructions on how to work the hot tub would have been welcome too. We managed to sort an issue with the filter program not running by finding tutorial videos on YouTube, but it would have been nice if full user instructions had been provided. Finally, it's now 2 weeks since we left and we've yet to have the housekeeping bond returned to us which is a bit disappointing. Overall though these are just minor issues and didn't distract from a great holiday in a great place. We wouldn't hesitate recommending this place to anyone looking for a chilling break

  Read more less >