Villas In Sennen

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Simon - Verified booking

  "If Carlsberg made views…” The view across Sennen Cove, past the Longships Lighthouse and out to the Isles of Scilly is simply stunning and Cragford is superbly placed to make the best of it.

  Cragford demands a premium price and in return offers a 5* experience; but does it truly deliver? Initial impression are good, with large communal rooms, comfy furniture and lots of windows to capture and enjoy the spectacular view. The bedrooms are well appointed, decorated and furnished, with the master bedroom offering a unique experience including a semi-circular window overlooking Gwynver Beach. The downstairs layout is fairly conventional whilst the first floor develops into a bit of a warren. A recurring peculiarity is the placement of the ‘ensuite’ WCs into odd shaped cupboards; some might say quirky, others a clever solution when adapting the building. But in general, the house is ideal if you want to entertain a large group/family. The descriptions/details on the website are factually correct, although in the execution they do fall a little short of expectation. The property is a little shabby around the edges, and the more time you spend there, the more cracks in the veneer you spot: damage to the walls/paintwork, unfinished door frames, loose flooring, broken/missing curtain rails, lights not working; the snag list rolls on… The windows, which should be Cragford’s best feature, are a mixed bag. Some simply do their job of letting the view in and keeping the weather out, but others are discoloured (yellowed panes in the main picture windows/master bedroom), draughty or with leaking frames. To be fair, we did experience two named storms during our visit, but we did find water had made its way through the wooden window frames. Door locks, apart from the main (fire) door, are stiff, rusted or simply inoperative; so that’s your best route in and out. The kitchen has a good range of equipment, enabling you to cater for a large group, but again, scratch the surface and the cracks are there. The dishwasher has seen better days, the dual fuel stove is a bit of a voyage of discovery and for the love of me, I couldn’t find a simple baking tray in any of the 20 cupboards. Personally, I was looking forward to using the cinema room to it’s full extent with a couple of planned movie nights around our favourite films, but the chaos that was the AV setup put paid to that. I finally managed to get the 5.1 surround to work as 4.0, but not in a useful way. Forget watching DVDs (once you’ve found them) on a big screen whilst you’re there, as the necessary cables are either missing or even broken. Previous visitors mentioned the lack of certain items, but the thing that we found glaring by its absence was a welcome pack. You know, a folder with the basic information of where things can be found in the house, how to work the heating and the kitchen white goods, where the bins are, where the local amenities are (shops, pub, petrol station, hospital, etc). And not even a pint of milk or the makings for a cup of tea on your arrival… Am I being too harsh? You’ve decided to go there for the view, first and foremost, after all. But does Cragford deserve the price it demands? I would say that in it’s current guise/state of repair, it’s running at 20-25% over it’s actual comparative value and that’s taking into account the USP afforded by its position in the landscape. Both wonderful AND disappointing in the same breath. Would we go back? Of course. It’s a great place to unwind and enjoy the best view in Cornwall. It would be good to see that improvements have been made to ensure that the Guest’s expectations are being met and that Cragford can deliver on it’s 5* promise.

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• Pat - Verified booking

  He general location of the property was excellent with easy private access to the beach.

  The main living area was spacious and comfortable. The kitchen was well equipped and adequate but one burner on the cooker did not work. The utility was very well used after numerous trips to the beach. The main issues were with the downstairs bedroom where my husband I and slept.One of the beds collapsed on the second night as a temporary repair on one of the legs broke off. This necessitated using the sofa bed next door which was very uncomfortable.Without this we would have been one bed short as there were 8 adults staying in the house.The light over the washbasin did not work and the main light switch only activated the bedside light and this depended on how the bedside light switch had been left. At times you had to go into a dark room and feel around to switch the bedside light on. Why was there no main room light? The curtains did not meet as one of the sliders did not work ( this was also a problem with one of the curtains in the main living room also). The heating was poor with only 1 radiator working. The shower opposite could not be heat controlled and was scaldingly hot.This was mentioned in the visitors book back in May 2023.This has to be a priority as it would be possible to be hurt using this shower. As a consequence we had to use one of the ensuite showers upstairs. The lighting was difficult to use on the landing and stairs. The feature bedroom was spectacular but there was no way of blocking out the light from the big window at night. Again the lighting was inadequate with the only lighting in the bedroom part, being 2 bedside lights one of which did not work. It seems pity that a house that is in such a good position and well designed is not better maintained.

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• Darren - Verified booking

  'Could do better' in short.

  The location is great with lovely views onto the beach and down the coast. The cottage is fine in terms of room sizes and design. It was basically clean and tidy. However, it was let down by simple things. The garden was a mess with uncut grass, nettles and weeds. The paper lampshade in the sitting room was broken - really obviously broken to any cleaning team. The cutlery didn't match. When you sat on a dining room chair it would buckle slightly because a bolt was missing. There were no cooking trays, just an enormous roasting pan. There was no kitchen scourer when washing up that roaster after cooking in it. The Freeview didn't work. The double mattress needs changing. And - yes - I suppose this does all sound a little overfussy, until you combine them with the general tiredness of the decoration, marked carpets and a lack of any form of 'welcome pack'. In general terms, we enjoyed the location but don't feel encouraged to return to this accommodation, which is a shame because these are all simple things to get right. We tend to use Sykes Cottages because they achieve a certain quality of accommodation but this one doesn't reach that standard. A few practical points. The beach is lovely but the walk up and down isn't easy. The driveway down to the cottage is not the best for someone worried about their low-profile tyres. There needs to be some system in place for parking between the cottages on the site; there was no direction as to where to park which, although not an issue for us, could easily lead onto problems which might spoil someone's trip - tempers might get frayed!

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• Bridie - Verified booking

  We really enjoyed our short break at Cragford, the views were beautiful and we had a very comfortable stay.

  The access to the beach was amazing to have our own private access and at times, we were the only ones on the beach! Cragford really is in a great location! We would stay again and recommend to others, however we would like to see that some repairs and improvements were made. The fixtures and fittings are looking rather tired, as is the decor and furnishings. There are broken doors, external doors are stiff to open/close, stained furniture and carpets, and a general feel that the decor has not been redone for some time. On arrival, we noticed it was rather cold, so we popped the heating on. However, two of the bedrooms did not heat, so we had to call the maintenance team to fix. This was done promptly, however, this should have been checked prior to our arrival. We had also asked for some firewood for the open fire, as none had been left for us and we were told we would have a delivery the following day. Unfortunately, this meant that we had already stayed for two out of four nights without the use of the fire which was a real shame. The kitchen, although suitably stocked of equipment, needs reorganising and we would have appreciated a small gesture of a welcome pack, particularly as this cottage is priced quite high. We would like to leave this review on a more positive note by saying the beds were very comfortable and the cottage is actually very beautiful! It Just needs a little bit of love and attention to bring it back to its full glory!

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• Jon - Verified booking

  In general, we had a great time!

  the location is unparalleled. but, as most of the reviews say, the property needs a lot of improvement. Some may appreciate the lingering atmosphere of many a wild aristocratic party in the 70s , but it’s probably time to move on now. Three points in particular are worth spending time on : 1. the kitchen is bizarrely under-equipped for such a large house (there are about 25 mugs, but about two knives and forks), salt and pepper cellars empty - it feels a bit of a farce 2. The main windows looking out to sea are misted up ! Perhaps time to use some of the substantial loot generated by paying guests to replace them , so we can all see the wonderful view unobstructed by the grimy looking sheen . And it really is a wonderful view 3. Moving outside on the decking reveals the view is obscured once more, this time by shrubs - these need to go ! When sitting and relaxing on this amazing decking all you can see is shrubbery. Yes you can stand while enjoying your morning tea but most will prefer to breakfast whilst sedentary. As the house and location as a whole are so extraordinary , I would imagine most guests simply accept these issues as part of the charm , but it’s doing the place and the visitors a disservice to not value the magnificent surroundings, but just giving the shrubbery a trim and sorting out the windows. Maybe add some forks also.

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