Sandown Holiday Cottages

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Chris - Verified booking

  An excellent new house, in an ideal location that is let down by the equipment and bedding.

  The house furnishings have an unfinished feel. We had a feeling that the property was rushed onto the market with little thought given to the needs of the guests. There was a significant shortage of cutlery for example and that which was provided was of poor quality. There was only one small sharp knife so there was no means to cut a loaf or carve a joint. There were no baking trays. In fact kitchen utensils were in very short supply. In fact we have stayed in many self catering properties over the years and this was the most inadequately equipped that we have experienced. A washing machine was fitted in the kitchen, but there was only one small collapsable airer, no dryer and no line outside, so a family would have found drying washing impossible. The furniture and bedding in the bedroom definitely need attention. The pillows were very poor quality and uncomfortable. The bedding was also pretty poor. When we stripped the bed, the duvet stuck to the cover, so either the cleaners had spilt liquid on it or it had not been changed after the previous guests, ugh! My wife struggled to find anywhere to satisfactorily store jewellery and there was no practical place to apply make up because there was no appropriate shelving in the bathrooms or the bedrooms. When we came to clean before we left we found a sweeping brush and a vacuum cleaner, but no dustpan. We had to sweep and then vacuum up the bits. In concluding we had an excellent holiday which was marred not by the property, which could have been lovely, but by the owners lack of attention to the needs of their guests.

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• Michael - Verified booking

  Property was very clean and tidy on arrival and all amenities were provided, including toilet rolls and hand wash in all toilets / bathrooms.

  Good location in terms of proximity to beach and kids play facilities being in easy walking distance of Sandham Gardens, Dinosaur Isle and the IOW Animal Sanctuary. Around a 10 minute walk to the pier. Earlier reviews had commented on the evening noise from nearby Hotels etc. We didn't find it to be particularly loud or disruptive, no more than you would expect when the property is located centrally in a seaside resort. The early morning sea gulls made more noise !! Currently there is building work going on just 20 yards or so from the property. Doesn't make for a great view but not a major issue. Work started each weekday morning around 7:30 finishing about 16:30. There was some low level noise but since we had young children in our party we were up and about before the workers started so no real issue to us. The property comes with one reserved parking space. There are a number of visitor's spaces. We had 2 cars in our party. Having been out for the day and returning before 16:30 all visitor's spaces were taken up by the construction workers. Fortunately the property is directly opposite to Fort Street long stay car park which has plenty of spaces available, so we would park there and then move the car when the construction workers had left for the day. So no big deal. I felt that the towels provided weren't of a great quality and that perhaps the bathrooms could have benefitted from some shelving to hold toiletries etc.. Other than that a nice property in a convenient location overall. Thanks.

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• Sarah - Verified booking

  We had a wonderful week at 34, Station Avenue!

  The house is a bit of a ‘tardis’: from the street, it looks like a normal terraced house but there is so much space inside! On arrival, the owners had thoughtfully left us bread and milk plus some biscuits - thank you so much. All the interior design was lovely, with high ceilings and original features which made it feel quite grand, and the whole house felt bright and well presented. My husband particularly loved all the lamp shades! My children LOVED having their own ‘kids’ lounge’, all the bedrooms were well proportioned with really comfy mattresses, the kitchen and dining room were great and it was handy having the utility space. One of the highlights was definitely the hot tub - it got a fair bit of use! Sandown felt a bit run-down, but it’s really well positioned to explore lots of other places on the island. The house is also really close to the High Street, where there is a Coop and Sainsburys. The only negatives were the showers, which were lovely and hot but just didn’t have much power to them. Apparently they were being replaced the week after we left! The oven also took a bit of working out - some instructions would have been helpful - but we got there! We all said it’s the best holiday house we’ve stayed in and would thoroughly recommend it for other families. (We were parents, two children aged 12 and 10, and my mother-in-law with her small dog.) Thank you so much!

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• Janet - Verified booking

  We had an excellent holiday at 4 Old Post Office Mews.

  The owner was extremely helpful and contacted us prior to our stay with useful information. There was milk, fruit, biscuits and wine left for us which was very much appreciated. The house was spotlessly clean and had everything one could have wished for to enjoy a pleasant and comfortable holiday. We had a delicious Sunday Roast at the Hungry Bear in Brading and enjoyed several suppers from "The Brothers" Fish & Chip shop which is less than a minutes walk from the cottage and had a good selection of reasonably priced take-away food. We travelled to the IOW as foot passengers on the Wightlink Catamaran from Portsmouth Harbour station to Ryde. Bus Nos. 2 & 3 from Ryde pass through Brading every 15 mins and stop round the corner from the cottage (you alight at Brading Bullring bus stop) so getting out and about wasn't a problem, you don't necessarily need a car as the buses run until late evening. Brading also has a train station which we used when we visited the IOW Steam Railway as it has an easy interchange at Smallbrook Junction station. If one is looking for a central base to explore this beautiful island and maybe enjoy some of the scenic local walks, then 4 Old Post Office Mews is a delightful cosy cottage in a perfect location.

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• Sue G. - Verified booking

  Fab-u-lous !

  The Culver Down Manor exceeded all of our expectations. From the moment we were warmly met and shown around by the lovely house manager Sara, until the moment we regretfully closed the door for the last time, behind us, we had the most amazing weekend. The house is beautiful and spotlessly clean. It is evident that so much care and attention to detail of this period property has been made by the owners Laurence and Sharon. There is a wide choice of stunning bedrooms. I can certainly recommend bedroom 4 with en-suite facilities and panoramic views of the garden and the sea beyond. Everyone commented about how comfortable the beds were. You will be equally amazed by the communal facilities of the drawing room, dinning room and kitchen. I have never seen such beautiful stained glass windows in a house before. We were lucky enough with the weather to sit out and appreciate all that the garden has to offer. Without doubt our stay at the Culver Down Manor has created such wonderful memories I don’t think anyone in our party will ever forget. If only I could give it more than 5 stars I would.

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