Dog Friendly Cottages In Ambleside

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Mr John Forster - Verified booking

  The location just a short distance from Ambleside was perfect with a safe walk into the town which had plenty of amenities. We all had a wonderful time as the lakes are stunning and the weather was very kind and dry. The equipment at the property was plentiful, no real need for an iron, ironing board, who irons when on holiday and a dishwasher as there’s only the two of us. The log fire is also OTT as you have underfloor heating. There’s no permanent place to put clothes or towels in the bathroom so everything has be hung on either the shower stall or the clothes airer which takes up half the bathroom. The sink outlet pipe is obviously blocked as the note above the sink testifies to other stayers having similar issues. A number of the wall unit doors were sticking especially the end cupboard door and the dishwasher unit was badly fitted so the door was 2” out at the top. 3 of the plates were chipped. We were asked to remove the bedding which revealed large stains on the Mattress, mattress cover and duvet cover. The storage cupboard had a freezer an iron, an ironing board which reduced its capacity and wasn’t needed. Overall the-feel of the property was a little cramped and that it needed a good clean especially to the outside of the property which let it down. We’ve become accustomed to having a few treats on arrival with all the properties i.e. milk tea coffee or a bottle of wine etc so was disappointed with not even a welcome card. The property was very comfortable the bed the sofa etc, apart from the 2 pillows which were rock hard, but as I said difficult to move around the bed with the TV on the wall next to the bed end, next to the fire base, the stools as well as 2 large dogs and their beds. Value of the property was ok but never sure what the accidental damage charge and the £20 per dog goes to as the property had all wooden floors. We booked a midweek break but the 4pm arrival and the 9am departure time for the soul purpose of cleaning left me with the feeling it was more like 3 days and the regular reminders of the arrival and departure times x6 were tedious and excessive. We would have no issue with booking with your company apart from the additional charges, admin dogs etc if we found a property but not The Hideaway. I Never recommended companies or products. Just to say we did have a pleasant stay but due to issues raised above it felt short of our usual experience and expectations

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• Steve - Verified booking

  First of all, we did enjoy our stay, it's a wonderful location and ideally placed for exploring the area without having to drive.

  The facilities that have been fitted into a very compact space are excellent, and the property is well fitted out - the custom carpentry is very impressive! The kitchen has everything that could be needed, with the single exception of a rolling pin (I used a wine bottle). Both the bathroom and the bedroom suffer from very low ceilings. The photos in the listing do show both rooms as they are, but it's difficult to get an idea of just how little headroom there is from the images. It's not possible to sit up in bed and have a cup of tea, for instance, as the ceiling is too low. The bed is very comfortable though. In the bathroom the only oart of the room which allows a normal sized adult to stand up is the strip between the door and the toilet - other than that bending over is required - an inconvenience when using the sink. When we arrived there was a cleaning welcome pack - nice idea, but not well executed. It had dishwasher tablets (there is no dishwasher) and bin bags that were far too big for the small pedal bin in the kitchen, and no washing up liquid. This was rectified with a trip to the co-op, but the contractors doing the servicing were clearly not paying attention. Also there was one roll of tolet paper provided - this is not enough for two people, for a week. It was a nice touch to put up some festive decorations, we appreciated it. Although we came prepared as we have a log burner at home, it would also be a nice touch to have an initial supply of kindling & logs for at least one night. The information pack with local walks was very useful and got us to do some walks we wouldn't otherwise have attempted. But why in the list of pubs & restaurants is there no mention of the Swan? It's the nearest & we had a very good Christmas dinner there!

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• Chris - Verified booking

  The key question is always "would I stay here again?

  " and this time the answer is unfortunately no. On the plus side the property has an absolutely fantastic location, 60 secs walk from town, a pretty (but not enclosed) garden and a nice wood burner. The negatives far outweigh these positives though. There is a very bad smell in the kitchen, like years of grease are ingrained in it and a strong smell of drains from the down stairs toilet. Try as we might with candles etc we could not cover it and it returns very quickly, it's really unpleasant. The next main issue is that the boiler is very noisy and it's in a cupboard in your bedroom, we had to turn it off each night to be able to sleep which results in a freezing cold house in the morning. The shower is also a really, really old design with very bad water pressure so no refreshing hot shower after a day on the hills. Finally the place is just in dire need of upgrade, very tired decor throughout and comes with the absolute bare minimum essentials when you arrive, every other cottage we've ever stayed in had more. The "welcome pack" for this cottage is just a book of equipment manuals and risk assessments rather than the usual personalised book about the cottage and how to make the best of it. Seems like it is being run with minimal effort and investment. We enjoyed our week in Ambleside as always but compared to other similar priced properties we've stayed in before this one was a let down.

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• Louise - Verified booking

  Such a charming little cottage and I would definitely return if staying in this area again.

  We had 3 nights, on one of which we stayed in and cooked Italian and lit the log burner, and it was so cozy. Everything was as clean as it could be (in a rural setting, you are going to expect little cobwebs) but the important stuff like bedding and towels, soft furnishings etc were spotless. Indeed, the slanted ceiling upstairs would be a challenge for taller people after a few days, and the staircase a challenge for less able bodied guests (although, access to the upstairs can also be achieved via the outside staircase…so this is fine!)……but this little place was just magical. (Not really big enough for 3 adults…more of a couples or single traveller place)… A 5 minute walk to a lovely pub with excellent food (dog friendly), and a very pleasant few more minutes into the heart of Grasmere. There are lovely walks direct from the cottage, one of which we had the pleasure of seeing a couple of otters playing in the small lake. (And on the day of arrival, a red squirrel was in the cottage garden!) My only “miff” would be that there was no welcome pack….I have used Sykes cottages several times, and most have left a little tray with the basics on arrival to have a cup of tea/coffee and a biscuit….but luckily we had our own. The village shop is currently (as at October 2024) being refurbished, so the nearest shop is in Ambleside. Highly recommend this little place!

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• Matthew - Verified booking

  Not sure where this feedback is going as I cannot seem to display feedback to customers which is disappointing - seems that only good feedback is shared.

  Shock! This property is not pet friendly and I am extremely upset about my stay. Within an hour of my stay I had to leave the property due to my dog getting injured from going up the stairs. I appreciate it states in the listing about the stairs but this cannot be sold as pet friendly. Shortly after arriving I used the toilet, upstairs, my dog followed me up. As it was a new environment for her this is not an unusual behaviour to have. However, she fell off the stairs as they are dangerously steep and injured her front leg. I vacated the property and booked in at the Swan at Grasmere Hotel - a lovely hotel (stay there instead). This set me back £450 on top of the cost of the cottage to stay at Dovecot. I sent a complaint to Sykes cottages and they said I did not have a case for any compensation as it is advertised on the listing. I completely understand it’s on the listing, however the property is no where near dog safe - if it was, there should be a stair gate at both ends of the staircase. When I suggested this to the customer service agent I spoke to she said “well did you ask for one” as if to say it is my responsibility to check if it is safe for my dog. Anyway I would stay away from this property if you have a dog, it is not safe and is being miss-sold. There are lots of other places to book which would make your stay a lot less stressful.

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