Holiday Cottages in the Lake District with a Swimming Pool

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Steven - Verified booking

  Hello I am sorry to do theirs but I would like to raise a complaint at the ...

  Hello I am sorry to do theirs but I would like to raise a complaint at the issues we have had during our stay For the whole visit we had hot water for approximately half of one day the rest of the stay the water was cold we could not shower or wash properly the electrician came and fitted a new part on the hot water but this did not improve the issue the water was hot and went cold so quick that only two people could be showered before the water went cold this was terrible for such a large party and new born babies The fridge was in a complete state the smell was terrible and there was rancid waste products behind the fridge we could not use the fridge for approx 36 hours I had to pull the fridge out clean it and disinfect the floors I do not know how the cleaners could miss this There was animal faecies all around the grounds right outside the double patio doors my daughter stood in it when we arrived We did not bring our pets so do not expect this at all There was black mould and damp in the bath rooms this is terrible and not safe at all The upstairs bedroom second from the right the window leaked causing damage to my daughters MacBook Air laptop this now does not switch on I am going to have to get this repaired The bedroom on the far right the radiator nobs are broken and cannot be adjusted causing discomfort during the night The bathroom/shower upstairs on the far right had shelves hanging of the wall The down stairs bedroom had a leak coming from the ceiling leaving water marks on the ceiling At the top of the stairs on the landing the floor was damaged and not load bearing this was unsafe The overall state of the cottage was under maintained and frankly the stay was very unpleasant I had to complain on numerous occasions about things I do not think the cottage was cleaned prior to our stay I spoke to the shop keeper and we nearly went home on day two the only reason we stayed was the adverse weather We came to the cottage with the intent to try it prior to our wedding in September we were hoping to book the whole grounds for our guests I find this very disappointing The cost of the cottage was high for four nights especially when we had no hot water also the other issues we faced The whole party think this trip was ruined The cottage has such potential and looks beautiful but in truth we are very disappointed I have photographs of some of the issues

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• Simon - Verified booking

  Very poor I’m afraid to report from both the owners and Sykes themselves.

  The apartment initially looked lovely, clean and modern in an isolated area but was met with a rather stern cleaning note on how to strip the beds at the end of the stay and how to tidy up after ourselves. The property looked lovely but we soon came to see the many downfalls. The lights in the bedrooms are simply too powerful and are motion sensitive, so every time you moved in the room the lights came on. Unfortunately we found this out during the middle of the night whilst popping to the loo. Also, the door going out of the property in the main bedroom requires a blind as the external lights will light up the room too. Sensitive sleepers be warned! I did find the shutters did not keep the room dark enough in the mornings either but that’s probably personal. The secret room was a joy and can in handy when a bat flew in (so definitely close to nature) as one member of the family could hide in there, whilst my daughter was delighted to see such a creature close up. The site the apartment is in contains a bar and restaurant, whilst the food is good, please book your table ahead of your stay as we were turned away one evening. Lessons learnt. The crazy golf was free and a great way to spend a wet afternoon Now the crux of the problem. We only booked this apartment on the basis it was served with a heated indoor pool but on arrival day, it was closed due to a leak. It remained closed all week whilst we stayed there, if I was made aware of the matter beforehand, I definitely would have picked somewhere else to stay. I raised a complaint via Sykes whilst away but they only contacted myself when I returned home. I complained about the pool to Sykes who passed it onto the owners, but neither Sykes nor the owners were willing to help out. I was offered a £100 compensation from the owners only if I stayed with them again, but I don’t feel like I would like to stay in the property again. Neither Sykes nor the owners were willing to help out (NB The receptionist at the pool did not offer an alternative either nor did the closed pool signs suggest alternative arrangements had been made). Sykes suggested a small claims but this isn’t something I’m willing to do due to unnecessary stress. I’m afraid due to the lack of understanding from the owner, I won’t be booking from Sykes in the future.

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• Stuart - Verified booking

  Grassholme is a wonderfully decorated and perfectly located property, however it is somewhat lacking in maintenance, cleanliness and basic supplies.

  The positives: - The carpets, sofas and decorations of the cottage is really very modern and homely - the cottage is in a stunning location with a fantastic view over Lake Windermere - it comes with some nice basic food supplies such as freshly ground coffee, tea, biscuits and jam - the kitchen white goods were of a high quality brand which made use of the kitchen very easy. I normally hate electric hobs but the Bosch hob and oven were brilliant! - it’s brilliant that dogs are allowed in such a well decorated property, as it is so nice to be able to have our dog with us! - the Graythwaite estate is wonderful and has plenty of nice walks in the surrounding area The issues: - there were no hand towels provided for the bathroom - various cobwebs and spiders in corners of EVERY room - there was no hand soap in the kitchen - there was no kitchen spray or cloth to clean the worktops after cooking - the curtains were beautiful, however they were poorly attached to the curtain pole with some hooks having come out - the log fire needs kindling as well as large logs and firefighters otherwise it’s pretty difficult to get the large logs to light properly - there were no matches to light the fire, so you need your own - the outdoor furniture definitely needs some TLC, which has been pointed out in a previous review - the “Grassholme Cottage” sign at the front of the property is completely worn and you can’t actually see why it says - various walls need a lick of paint from wear and tear Also, the description of the cottages is incorrect as it is not detached. It is semi detached. Overall it was a lovely stay which we thoroughly enjoyed and didn’t want to leave!

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• Ian - Verified booking

  I have used sykes many times for a doggy friendly cottage across the UK and every time I have been extremely satisfied with the property.

  As we have had such lovely places in the past and sadly unable to afford a foreign holiday this year I thought I would pay a little more and go for a premium property. As the property cost almost £700 I expected it to be perfect I certainly expected EXACTLY what was promised and although the cottage was very beautiful and incredibly well positioned it was advertised as a dog friendly property with a fully enclosed garden , the pictures even showed a garden with a fence all the way around but this was very misleading! There were a number of things that although very minor to resolve impacted greatly on my holiday. The enclosed garden that was shown only had a fence on 2 sides meaning my dogs if off the lead could get out and get into the local woodland or on the main road but also the drive was shared and other vehicles came down so if I let them off lead they could have been hit I was FURIOUS this was the case and even more irritated that each morning when I normally let them out for a wee I had to put there collars on and a long lead and go outside myself and wait in the rain instead of just leaving them in the secure garden as it was anything but. I also thought it bizarre that as its advertised as a dog friendly cottage the property had creme carpets downstairs, how are you supposed to keep the carpets clean with muddy dogs? All in all despite the property being very attractive the lack of a SECURE enclosed garden as PROMISED was a disaster and ruined my holiday, all the property owner needs do is put a fence on the other two sides and a gate or a farmers gate on the drive way. I doubt sykes will contact me about this feedback but I would like some form of apology.

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• Sarah - Verified booking

  The cottage is a little style over substance - it’s beautifully decorated and has some clever touches such as the boiling water tap, but lacks functionality and some basics you’d expect.

  As a fellow holiday cottage owner and holiday maker I expect the following to be in situ - a toaster, some baking trays, blinds at all windows (the double bedroom back door has glass panels and no blind), working TVs - there are three but some don’t have live TV consistently working on them) and welcome instructions regarding the site itself eg recycling, bins plus using the technology (the less tech minded may find this challenging). From a safety perspective there’s a step from the kitchen to lounge which is difficult to see. Another guest has kindly put silver tape on this to make it stand out and has flagged in the visitors book - this isn’t up to safety standards in my opinion. Finally the hall and bathroom lights are motion sensored. I have no issue with this except that if someone gets out of bed in the double bedroom the light in the open bath area comes on and wakes up the other person - there’s no way of turning this off. This should not be on a sensor as we had disrupted sleep each night. The site itself is lovely - very quiet given it was half term. The restaurant serves good quality food and the mini golf etc are well maintained. Only and quite big negative was the pool temperature - it’s very cold. Our five year old learns to swim in a cold pool but this took it to another level and she didn’t want to go in the main pool - which we didn’t blame her for as neither did we! If the pool temperature was rectified we’d love to stay on the site again but we wouldn’t stay at this property.

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