Last Minute Windermere Cottages

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Rebecca - Verified booking

  Fantastic location and a really good redesign of the property.

  First impressions are wow this is super modern and looks great. We stayed for a week however and the more I looked the more I noticed how tired the property had become. Scrapes to the cabinets, marks on walls and stains on carpets. Also a layer of grime in crevices in bathrooms and kitchen. On arrival I found unwashed utensils in the cutlery drawer. On leaving I checked all the drawers and under sofa cushions (having kids they like to squirrel toys everywhere) and was quite disgusted to find a pair of socks in a bedroom drawer, 1 random sock and a whole array of crumbs and bits that make me feel queasy under the sofa cushions. I would think hoovering this would be a bare minimum considering how easily the cushions came off the sofa. Needs a professional to come in and give it a deep clean. The bed in the bedroom next to the bathroom was as bumpy as the surrounding area. It was incredibly uncomfortable and needs a replacement mattress at the very least. I was surprised that there wasn't a dishwasher considering how much kitchen cabinet storage there was. It would really add to the property. The carpets in the hall and master bedroom were essentially made from coir matting and really hurt the feet if you didn't wear socks. When we first arrived at the property there was a sheet with instructions for sky tv which stated there was no WIFI at the property. As the listing stated that there was, it meant that I had to ring the sykes rep which wasn't a great customer experience when you have just driven across the country. The rep couldn't get hold of anyone for me but whilst on hold we found a little cupboard under the TV and the wifi box was hidden at the back with the password. We are not sure whether this was purposely hidden or not but we used it anyway considering WIFI availability was one of the key deciders for booking the property. Coop and sainsburys a 2 minute walk down the road. Good parking at the back. Quiet area day and night. Italian, Indian, Greggs, Coffee shops and Chinese restaurants a 3 min walk away. We found the walk down to the lake too much for 2 kids under 5 so we caught the bus back instead, from the lakeside to the Windermere library (5 min stroll to bus stop and £2 for the adults single journey). Overall I think with a deep clean and a few replacements this property is a fantastic place to use as a base to stay in the lakes.

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• Richard - Verified booking

  Cottage was OK.

  However if you want a shower you have to go from your bedroom down two flights of stairs into the basement. Its damp and fusty in the basement and there is a dehumidifier working overload. The shower and toilet room is rather cramped. Kitchen was nice enough and had everything you need. 'The living room is alright but nothing reclines but that's fine if you want to sit bolt upright after a long day on the fells. Advertised is a wi game - it doesn't work so why advertise it. The TV is old so your not going to have much variety on what you watch. Parking can be a bit tricky and you might find yourselves walking a long way from whichever street you can find to park on. The upstairs bathroom had a faulty toilet cistern - there was an instruction note to advise us it was faulty placed on top of the cistern telling us we need to position the flush handle just so after flushing - otherwise the cistern would constantly be filling and discharging via the overflow all night. We manged this fine, but the real disappointment was the fact that the owner then put a claim in after we left to replace the their faulty/damaged toilet !!!! They said we had damaged it. Furthermore, Sykes cottages endorsed their claim £200!!! We have used sykes cottages before. Never again - check out their reviews its alarming. Sykes cottages work on a basis of don't call us you'll never get through to us.

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• Cheryl - Verified booking

  Well, this was the best holiday ever.

  We've travelled many times in the UK, but there is something so magical about the Lake District. Accommodation was very comfortable and had been decorated to a very high standard. Nearby, there is always something to do, such as the Lake District River Cruises., Horse riding and Escape Rooms. We tried Lakeland Pony Trekking at Lime Fitt - it was one of the most amazing experiences ever with such a beautiful backdrop and lambs grazing within feet of your ride. We also tried the Cliffhanger Escape Rooms - great for team building and we escaped the Pharoahs Curse too. Nearby is Ambleside where you will find a gorgeous little chocolate shop - still hand making chocolates today. Then there are larger towns of Kendal nearby with Keswick also not that far away. Our accommodation was within a couple of streets from the town centre so you can get everything from gifts, to conveniences, chemists and eateries/pubs. Fish and Chips really tasty and lots of clean and pretty areas to explore. I loved every minute of this holiday and even though we booked with Sykes back in July 2018 when we went to Cornwall, in my opinion, this holiday to the Lake District was even better. A great getaway for anyone who works hard and really needs a break.

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• Martin - Verified booking

  We loved The Belfry and would not hesitate to stay here again.

  The open plan upstairs lounge and kitchen is gorgeous and well equipped with everything you need including a welcome pack and a cleaning pack. The bedrooms were comfortable and bathrooms lovely. Location is perfect .. just minutes from the village centre on foot. Bus stops outside on main road and the 599 service every 20 mins in summer timetables takes you to all main attractions. One toilet doesn’t flush well as others have reported…downstairs lighting flickered quite a bit and we did think security could be a tad better… you cannot lock the door with the key from inside although there is a bolt. The entrance to the yard isn’t secure as no lock to wooden fence door. but it does appear to be a quiet area. The church bells ring constantly but didn’t bother us. Some reported a smell of damp downstairs and there is a hint of mustiness but again didn’t bother us. It’s an old building with great charm and a modern interior. The hot tub was awesome and available to use from arrival. The lane from main road to property is indeed very narrow and we turned our wing mirrors in for safety but it is passable with care. Plenty of parking space. This is a fantastic property and we would highly recommend it.

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• Graham - Verified booking

  Generally good but with a few niggles.

  The L shaped sofa is too soft and uncomfortable. The back rest is too far back and the cushions too soft. The dinner and small plates need changing to a flatter design as the upward lip around the edge means they don't fit the dishwasher rack so we ended up handwashing. A seperate dryer would be much more useful than a combined washer/dryer as a drying cycle takes four hours and is very noisy. An external washing line would be a good addition. The dining table is not hygienic. It is a big piece of wood but there is a large crack and a big hole in it where you can see crumbs etc have dropped in and can't be cleaned out. Likewise the chairs and bench seat look nice but they are hard and uncomfortable after a while. The freezer needs de-frosting as it's caked with ice. The toilet in the master en-suite needs sorting as it doesn't flush very well. Also the shower doesn't drain very fast so the tray is nearly overflowing when running. We had to lift the plug from the drain hole to make it drain quicker. The weirdest thing is that because this was obviously a larger building split up to provide separate accommodation, the window in the small bedroom looks out onto the garden of the property next door.

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