Dog Friendly Cottages in the Cotswolds

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Jamie - Verified booking

  The property is beautiful, lovely layout and decorated beautifully.

  It was clean and it’s fully equipped too with all the crockery and cookware you’d need and we were even left a small milk in the fridge, some shortbread biscuits and there was tea, coffee, coffee pods for the nespresso machine, washing powder, dishwasher tablets, tea towels, kitchen paper - all the things I brought with me we didn’t need as it was all provided. There’s a tv in the living area and bedroom and both were smart tvs which worked great with the brilliant wifi. The hot tub is lovely, although wished it had more of a view - such as in the front garden area it’s a shame these are split areas although we obviously appreciated the privacy of where the hot tub actually is but just not the view of the iron barn next door. It’s also great that it’s dog friendly, and it’s peaceful and quite remote but still close to main parts of the Cotswolds and attractions. The only downside was the extra charge for the hot tub - this is a premium property and it’s expensive to stay here as it is and I think the hot tub should have been included in the price as it’s unlikely people who are booking this property are not going to use it - for us it was the main reason for booking this particular property. I only found out about the £50 extra charge for the hot tub 5 days before we were due to arrive, which is lucky as I would’ve been disappointed had we arrived and the hot tub not been filled. It was not clearly advertised that there was an additional charge for the hot tub when we booked through booking.com (unlike the £25 dog charge which is clearly advertised and I rang up Sykes cottages after booking online to pay that fee - had I the hot tub fee been clearly advertised I would’ve paid this at the same time or probably would’ve booked a different property where the hot tub was included). This was very disappointing and really put a dampener on our birthday celebration minibreak before we even set off

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• Carolyn - Verified booking

  We arrived after a long , but trouble free journey and once in the location of the accommodation , proceeded to follow the detailed instructions sent by yourselves which we received with all holiday confirmation/ documentation.

  Unfortunately, it took us an extra 50 minutes to find the exact location. The instructions were detailed but wording extremely misleading ...i.e quotes the property is situated on a lane ? We therefore went down many lanes leading to either nowhere, farms or remote areas. It is clearly not a ‘ lane’ but a proper road. We had been in the correct loacation so many times , and bypassed it. If the instructions had stated that the property was simply located ADJACENT to Phipps feeds and OPPOSITE JB Auto Services, that would have been simply perfect and saved an awful lot of uneccessary mileage and frustration. First impressions are very important and we were disappointed to see that the door and window frames were covered in dust and cobwebs ( these had clearly not been brushed over for some weeks ) and all light fittings and Venetian blinds were VERY, VERY dusty. ( I did take photos as evidence if required ) Such a shame , as this shows such poor attention to detail from the cleaners. Not what one would expect when paying a premium for the property. It was extremely hot and stuffy in the property , even with windows and doors open , and although there was one very small fan provided in the bedroom, this was not ‘man’ enough . For extra comfort, especially at night , we purchased a large tower fan which was much needed. In the absence of air con, ceiling fans would have been an excellent addition and much appreciated ! The pillows were too soft for our comfort and no extras provided . To conclude , the property is in a fantastic location , and very well placed as a base for visiting other areas of interest . It has been built to a high standard and was very well appointed and the hot tub a valuable addition. Hopefully, our comments will be noted in an effort to make a few small improvements and adjustments for future guests.

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• Richard - Verified booking

  The cottage its self was OK, the location however is terrible.

  I understand that's no reflection of the cottage but I feel more could have been done prior to our stay to warn/advise on just how remote the location was. We researched the location online but getting a feel for the lack of taxis, buses and general public services is something you really don't find until you're there. What we did receive prior to our stay was lots of "if you need help then please ask" and "don't suffer in silence, we're here to help you" kind of thing. This obviously gave me the impression that people would actually help me should I have needed it. After struggling to find public transport we sought help via the overly 'we WILL help you' email to find a taxi. I got a response along the lines of 'yeah I know bloke, he's near you'. We contacted this nearby man who said he might be able to taxi us and he'd let us know. Nearby Taxi man, never got back to us and so I returned to the handy 'we will most certainly help you' email asking if there was anymore taxis or alternative transport available. I guess not getting back to people must be a good bit of Cotswold banter as this email was also ignored. I get it's a remote area, and I understand that public transport in the area may be limited but what I have no understanding for is poor customer service. To just not reply, I think is terrible especially after receiving an email encouraging to ask for help. Once again, the cottage was OK, not amazing but OK but poor customer service has overshadowed the whole experience for me and based on my experience, I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone.

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• Emma - Verified booking

  We liked the village location of Swan View cottage and its proximity to Lechade on Thames with its pubs, cafes and shops.

  A pint of milk and a bottle of wine were left for us on arrival which was appreciated. The overall standard of accommodation at the cottage is good. The lounge, kitchen and dining areas are all a decent size and tastefully decorated. The cottage also benefits from a pleasant and a neat garden with seating. There’s also a conservatory which is a lovely place to relax. The cottage is reasonably well equipped, but there was no toast rack, or shaver socket in the bathroom. Only one hand towel was provided, luckily we brought a couple of our own. The freezer needed defrosting and the kettle needed descaling. On the negative side the bathroom was in dire need of a refresh, we were told that there are plans to do this. The shower riser rail is too low and the bathroom window is a poor fit and is draughty. Parking on the drive could be an issue for some as there is an awkward slope which makes it difficult to reverse onto; made worse by the cottage being on a bend restricting visibility. There was no information pack providing the usual useful information you would normally expect; details of local shops, GP, vet, hospital, local amenities, pubs, public transport etc. There was no fire escape plan either which is a serious omission and which needs to be remedied. Overall we felt the cottage was quite good but could be a lot better if the above issues were addressed.

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• James - Verified booking

  Park Bothy was unbelievably clean.

  The facilities were lovely and and well appointed for a couple. That being said, there were a few minor frustrations during our trip. 1. When we arrived there was no fire lighters to light the fire. With such a main feature of the property I thought this was frustrating. I called and I was told that someone would drop them off soon and that took 3 hours. 2. The radiator in the bedroom didn’t work. I again called the maintenance and someone was sent to look at it (the same chap bought fire lighters) but again it was around 3 hours since I reported the issue and we were just sat about during our relaxing break waiting for someone. We were also told he needed to come back the following day to fix so again, no heat in the bedroom in November. 3. The bedside lamps don’t work on the far side of the bedroom. I didn’t even want to bother with this as it was late and we only had one more night. 4. The knives were really poor in the kitchen. They are more dangerous when blunt than sharp. I’d like to reiterate that aside from the above the stay was excellent. The hot tub was fantastic, the place was cosy, easy to find and an easy walk to Stow and Bourton. The above points are just feedback that would of made our stay perfect. We would certainly return.

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