Holiday Cottages With Hot Tubs In Durham

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Deborah - Verified booking

  I wrote to Sykes Cottages and the property owner reporting the concerns I had about the property regarding the level of dampness in the cave area.

  My complaint to Sykes is below, which was also copied direct to the owner. "Whilst we understand the cottage is part of the castle, the tunnel area is very damp and smells mouldy. There are three air fresheners in place in the tunnel to try to hide the bad smell which is overwhelming. There is a dehumidifier in what should have been the wardrobe space and the whole cupboard smelled mouldy. Therefore you had nowhere to put your clothes. I have respiratory problems having had pneumonia in the past. The dampness would be leading to spores in the air affecting my health. Each day I had to empty the dehumidifier which was full demonstrating how damp the place is. We did speak to the owner and he admitted there was no airflow in the tunnel area. He said he had tried to drill this previously but failed to get all of the way through. This needs to be fixed or people to be warned. The lack of airflow has exacerbated the issue. People should be pre warned that the place is damp. This should be in the property description. This is a health hazard. Particularly if you have any respiratory problems. We ultimately decided to leave after only 3 nights as I could not put my health at more risk. The place needs air flow to make this safe. This trip was for our honeymoon. If the advert had stated that there was a problem with air flow and damp in the old part of the cottage then we would have gone elsewhere". As noted above I would not have booked the cottage had I been aware of the dampness issues as I was hospitalised when I previously had pneumonia. This break was for our honeymoon. So even more disappointing. I have been in discussion with the property owner about reimbursement as we left the property early. He had agreed to make a refund on 11 September and despite having chased this up no refund has been made. I think it is important that other potential guests are aware of the issue up front and in the listing it needs to say that the cave area is damp. Having looked on line to see if anyone else reported any issues I have now found two similar complaints on Trip Advisor made in March 2024 and August 2024 about the level of dampness in the property. This is a health issue and Sykes Cottages have never responded to the complaint I made either, which I also feel is inadequate. I will be chasing the owner for a full refund, but felt that sufficient time has passed that it was important for me to put the review on line. I will also be putting the same review on Trip Advisor so others are alerted to the issue.

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• Aman - Verified booking

  When we got to Cosy Cave, the first thing that we noticed was that the garden is not enclosed, what looked like a fence dividing the 3rd property in the photos of Cosy Cave were now a set of planters.

  The grass area is not really accessible as there are no stairs or ramp to get to it. But thankfully as the property sharing the courtyard/garden (of which we were unaware of before booking) was vacant for our stay we were able to make some use of the courtyard. When entering Cosy Cave it presented well, was clean overall but there were a few things that could do with a clean (kettle was extremely limescaled and bed sheets had a couple of small patches of dried blood on them). Getting into the evening, it was getting rather cold so I searched for a heating controller but could not find anything, I changed the heaters from 0s to 5s but no luck in warming the property up. I emailed stanhope castle and they sent someone round really quickly to give us the heating controller. The issue with the controller was that in Cosy Cave it is very hard for it to get a signal to actually turn the heat on or up. We tried searching online and found that someone else also had heating issues here as the heating controller is kept in the property above Cosy Cave. Again we were lucky no one was booked in upstairs! There is a dehumidifier in Cosy Cave that is next to the TV room. After 1 night this gets full and needs emptying other wise will not be running. Whilst it is off you can really feel a difference in your chest when sitting in the TV room. The damp/moisture is a real problem in that room. We also found that our clothes from our suitcase felt damp as we kept our suitcase in the walk through section to the tv room. What also doesn't help is that the heater in that room does not warm up much at all (even when on 5). If those 2 issues were fixed it would make that room so much more enjoyable because the TV is great and the surround sound was amazing. The bathroom was really nice and clean. The pressure in the shower was great! The hot tub was really nice! We did notice however there were some bits at the bottom of the hot tub, not sure if these fell in from the cover or if it wasnt thoroughly cleaned. The cover is a bit worse for wear but with use that happens. We did clean the cover and the gazeebo as it was covered in spider webs etc. If we had known that the courtyard/garden is shared, not really enclosed and that the grass area is not really accessible then we would not have booked Cosy Cave. With the moisture issue in the TV room it feels unsafe for us to stay the full length of our stay so will be leaving on Thursday.

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• Mandy - Verified booking

  This is a lovely holiday home and was perfect for our needs.

  I would recommend to others. The reasons why it suited us are that it was very quiet location in a peaceful setting with walks from the door and lots of short day trips (nothing too taxing for a short break) nearby. The property is really nicely presented, super clean but cosy as well. I think having 2 en-suites both with baths is a great idea, it means each person or couple can both have a bath after a long days walking if they chose to. We particularly enjoyed the conservatory as the weather was unpredictable, so this gave us a place to relax and enjoy the view which was really restful. I know everyone always says 'home from home' but I have never used this to describe a holiday home before even when they have been a really high standard/fantastic, but I have to say the owners have really added a personal touch which did make me feel like I was staying in somebody's home rather than a holiday home, there was every single item you could think of in the kitchen and a really lovely welcome basket, but what was so nice was that it was equipped with nice china and bowls (very cottagey),the dining table was set out nicely on arrival and it looked really attractive and welcoming, loads of tea towels and cleaning stuff, plus waffle robes in the bedrooms, great especially if using the hot tub .. who takes a bathrobe on holiday especially for a short break? and remembers dishwasher tablets? plus water bottles and bathroom toiletries. We had a minor glitch with the hot tub (air in the pump) but it was easily resolved, and the hot tub was perfectly placed in a sheltered spot in the garden to enjoy the view. The summer house is fantastic and we used this to sit and read in the evenings when too cool to sit out but too nice to be inside. We received a text from the owners when we arrived to check we were OK which I appreciated, having a few week earlier stayed in another (expensive) holiday property with another well know holiday home rental company (not Sykes), but then couldn't get a response when we left messages about a problem

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• Neil - Verified booking

  We’ve had a relaxing week.

  The kitchen was well-stocked with cutlery, utensils and the essentials. Furnishings and bathroom are lovely- certainly quirky. Outdoor area was nice and we enjoyed breakfast and long days outside in the sun. Saying you had a lawn was a bit of a stretch. A ‘welcome’ basket would have been nice. Other Sykes cottages have left us dog treats, home-baked cakes, butter, biscuits etc. That was missing here. We’d have liked the hot tub a couple of degrees warmer. The bed could be bigger. Wo-if was unreliable. Tab needs more stable connection to channels. We stayed in probably the most expensive week of the year and it cost £931. Although we had a nice time, the accommodation needs some TLC and attention to be worth this much. Around the £700 mark would be a fairer price. Also lacking was a better thought out indoor eating area. The place where we hung our clothes was covered in spiders’ webs and spiders. Yes it’s a property from the 13th century but a bit of TLC is needed. The two arm chairs could be replace with a lovely comfy two-seater. These were not as comfortable as they looked and actually the premise of a cinema room was stretching it a bit far! In essence- a quirky property. Not 5* and excellent - more 4* and good with improvements needed.

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• Robert - Verified booking

  Absolutely beautiful quirky spot.

  .. we managed to book for what was the hottest weekend of the year so far so didn't get to use the actual cave as much as anticipated just because it would be a shame to waste so much sun! Ruth and Scott were a delight to deal with, very helpful upon arrival etc. The courtyard garden on an evening with the gate closed was very picturesque and relaxing. Only a few minor niggles, we could of had a couple more towels provided but to be fair we never asked and I'm sure they would of been provided if we did. One thought for improving the property would be a proper curtain rail and curtains in the main bedroom for sleeps in on sunny mornings! lack of any form of welcome tray basket was a bit amiss, usually in our experience and in this price range its almost expected, and when reading the guest book it looks like it has been provided previously. That said we had a lovely experience, having the town so close for amenities is really great, shops are handy so close, the pub was nice and the takeaway brilliant, the grounds are beautiful and whilst we were there we have rebooked the Knights Corner for next year to take the family away. Couldn't recommend this place enough.

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