Guests say
Boxtree Cottage in Penrith is highly praised for its cleanliness, comfort, and prime location near a friendly pub. Guests appreciate the well-equipped kitchen, secure garden for dogs, and cosy atmosphere. The property is ideal for both couples and families, offering a warm retreat after exploring the Lake District. Some minor concerns about early check-out times and housekeeping stock are noted, but overall, guests are delighted and many plan to return.
Guests consistently mention the spotless condition of Boxtree Cottage, highlighting its cleanliness even as a dog-friendly property. One review mentioned an issue with flies in the conservatory, but this seems an isolated incident rather than a reflection on the overall cleanliness.
The cottage's location is frequently praised for its proximity to a great pub and its accessibility to the Lake District's attractions. The quiet village setting is appreciated, although one review mentioned the need to walk across sheep fields or the road for dog-friendly walks.
Many reviews commend the comfort of the beds and the cosy, welcoming atmosphere of the cottage. The secure garden and conservatory are also appreciated for relaxation. There was a single complaint about an uncomfortable mattress, but overall, comfort levels are rated highly.
Facilities are generally well-received, with mentions of a well-stocked kitchen and comfortable furnishings. However, some guests noted a lack of housekeeping supplies and issues with early check-out times, which suggests room for improvement in maintenance and guest convenience.
While many reviews express satisfaction with the cottage's offerings, there is no specific mention of gifts or extra thoughtful touches provided by the hosts. Therefore, it is not possible to accurately score this category.
About this property
Dating back to the 18th century, this stunning farmer’s cottage has been beautifully renovated to provide luxury accommodation while retaining its original charm and period features. With its village setting and being just a stroll away from the shores of Ullswater, this property most certainly has the wow factor.
Entering through the rear door of the cottage, guests will be charmed by the cosy sitting room with feature fireplace, log burning stove and exposed beams. A choice of deep-cushioned sofas and huge armchairs make this is the ideal spot in which to curl up and relax after a busy day outdoors. Boxtree’s kitchen is fabulous. Extremely well-equipped, with shaker style units, natural stone floor and up-to-date appliances, this bright and airy room has everything needed to cook up a fabulous family meal. The adjoining dining room, with its farmhouse style table and chairs, is prefect for enjoying a lazy breakfast or more formal supper. Through the kitchen to a wonderful sunroom overlooking the adorable cottage garden, and a useful cloakroom-cum-drying room with separate wc completes the downstairs accommodation.
Upstairs the master bedroom features a vaulted ceiling, iron bed and period furniture complimented by an en-suite bathroom with attractive roll top bath. The equally charming double room comes with modern en-suite shower room. The cottage garden faces south west and is entirely enclosed, a safe place for dogs and children to play. There is parking for two cars and a lockable stone outhouse is perfect for storing mountain bikes. This is also where guests will find the tumble dryer.
Boxtree has so many exciting things to offer, with footpaths, cycle routes and lake on the doorstep. Glenridding and Pooley Bridge are close by, while the A591 runs from Keswick to Grasmere and on to Ambleside.
The bustling market town of Penrith, once the capital of Cumbria, enjoys a central position between the Lake District and North Pennines and is ideally placed for taking in all that the region has to offer. Renowned for its wealth of specialist shops, the sandstone buildings of Penrith hide intriguing yards, lanes and alleyways, with a myriad of attractive cottages, gardens and little shops. With a wide choice of excellent pubs, hotels, restaurants and entertainment, Penrith also offers a museum, and Millennium Trails round the historic city streets. Within easy reach of the town is Rheged – an innovative visitor centre with shops, restaurants, exhibitions and a giant cinema screen showing educational and informative films. Brougham Castle (The Windsor of the North), Long Meg and her daughters (the 3rd largest stone circle in England) and the historic city of Carlisle are all a short drive away, as is the stunning scenery of both the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales.
Accommodation
Two bedrooms: 1 x super king size (can be twin) with en-suite shower room, 1 x double bed with en-suite bathroom.
Downstairs cloakroom with basin and wc.
Sitting room.
Kitchen.
Dining room.
Sunroom.
Drying room.
Oil central heating.
Log burning stove.
Electric oven and hob, microwave, fridge/freezer, dishwasher, washing machine, TV, DVD, WiFi.
Fuel and power included in rent.
Bed linen and towels included in rent.
Cottage garden with furniture.
Lockable stone store for bikes.
Private parking for 2 cars.
Pub nearby.
2 well behaved dogs welcome.
Sorry, no smoking.
Nearby points of interest
- Brougham Castle
- Derwent Pencil Museum
Reviews (27)
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Keely
It has everything you need for a relaxing stay in a perfect location of Ullswater and other local hotspots. Well stocked kitchen, welcome gifts and comfortable beds made our stay easy and enjoyable. Would definitely stay here again!
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Judith
Always very welcoming and cosy. The beds are first class, as are the general fixtures and fittings. It is a very well looked after house. Thank you.
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Gill
For example - no detergent for the washing machine (in the countryside, wet muddy walks, in winter?), peppermill was empty, torch batteries flat or low, no spare toilet rolls, single small discs of packet soap in bathrooms with no refills, a single replacement bin liner only, outside shed bulb not working. As a pet friendly cottage, comments such as âObviously dogs are not allowed upstairs or on the furnitureâ and âthere must be NO evidence of dogs left in the property on vacatingâ feel quite disrespectful to guests and assumes the worst of them. The 9am checkout is early and difficult to rationalise particularly when the guest is expected to do most of the tidying. To be packed up, beds stripped, house ordered, had breakfast and on your way, under the threat of leaving not a single dog hair, by 9am on the final morning makes your last day a very early start and/or takes up much of the previous evening. Things like this detract from what could have been a really enjoyable and relaxing stay. Whilst we appreciate all prices have increased, the cost for ensuring usable items are well stocked and refilled should be a reasonable inclusion to the overall cost. The cottage is not cheap and for this tariff, we really would not expect to feel penny pinched and unfortunately it engenders a degree of dissatisfaction. Initial supply of logs is as stated in the description, but again, refills require a car journey to stock up and in our experience cottages of this cost and marketed as luxury would have extra logs on site and available. The village pub is excellent and well worth returning to, the location is good for local attractions, walking from the door is good if without wanting to let your dogs off lead but requires walking across a lot of sheep fields or the road to get to better dog suitable walks. Overall a very lovely property but not the luxury relaxed holiday ambience we were anticipating. Lots of positives but definitely some areas to reflect on to improve the user experience or expectations