Dog Friendly Ayrshire Holiday Cottages

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Andrew - Verified booking

  There is no disputing that this is a unique cottage in a great location and it was a joy to stay.

  We had a fantastic week exploring the Ayrshire coastal path, traffic free cycle ways and Arran. However, there were some fundamentals which could be improved. The heating was barely adequate. Any warmth provided from the under floor heating was cancelled out by the draughts through the single glazed west facing windows and the gap under the kitchen door. A draught excluder against the door and secondary double glazing would help retain the heat. The gas fire in the lounge did generate some warmth but this did not extend to the bedrooms. The extra blankets provided proved to be essential. We generally consider ourselves to be fairly hardy, dressing appropriately in cooler weather and keeping our heating low at home, but the cottage was definitely chilly. Parking – we followed the instructions to park across the yard, so it was rather frustrating to find other vehicles parked outside the property with full views into our lounge and ground floor bedroom. It would have been preferable to have our car parked there so strangers could park further away. No visitor information was provided or a guest book from which we could glean any helpful advice. The internet was weak so it was difficult to access information. There weren’t any reference books etc. which may have been helpful. The shower drain needed unblocking. The water spread over the floor and the squeegee brush provided was fairly ineffective. This is probably a maintenance issue. The cutlery and crockery were in some instances in short supply. The cottage sleeps 4 yet only 2 desert spoons were provided. Larger cereal bowls and more mugs/beakers would be useful, along with some microwave dishes with lids. The instructions in the cottage requested that the dishwasher should only be used when full, but there wasn’t enough basic equipment supplied in order to do this, and we ran out of mugs etc. before it was full, so we mainly washed by hand. The ceiling drying rack was useful and clothes washed in the daytime, dried overnight.

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• Stewart - Verified booking

  Marketed well, but needs higher standards.

  While the accommodation suited our needs as a base where we could stay while on our walking holiday there are aspects of the cottage management that could be improved. There is no anti slip mat in the shower. It becomes very slippery when lathered and wet. A potential for an accident. The short step down from the bedrooms to the lounge is a potential trip hazard. It should be highlighted with high vis' tape. No-one wants an accident the first day of their vacation. A minor gripe was that the hand gel soaps provided were watered down and the pump action on the bottles didn't work. Owners should consider renewing them now and again. No hand towel for drying dishes was provided. With two medium sized dogs there is no garden available for them to exercise in or yoga stretch. The wall at the front is very low and easy for pets to jump the wall onto oncoming traffic if unattended. Even with our well trained dogs we still had to maintain a ceaseless vigilance on them. The log basket for the wood burner literally had four logs in the basket. Hardly enough to keep the wood burner alight for 2 hours. There is a notice that you can fill the basket for an additional charge of £10.- deemed cheaper than the village shop. We brought logs purchased in Dunoon for £7.- We suggest the photographs of the Loch views should be taken from the cottage gallery as there is no Loch views from the cottage. My wife works for a company that also rents out cottages therefore our comments are based on an acceptable industry standard and not petty gripes. Having stated the above we still enjoyed our stay in Argyll as it is a beautiful part of Scotland. The cottage after all was only a place to stay at night after being out all day.

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• Deborah - Verified booking

  This is a cosy, semi-detached cottage in a small village called Millport.

  It has two bedrooms, each with a double bed, and a compact living area. NB: this cottage has no central heating or piped hot water. Gunpowder cottage has a lot to recommend it if you plan ahead for these conditions. There’s an electric shower, a wood-fired stove in the living area, and space heaters in the bedrooms. The floors are slate and can be very cold underfoot in October when we visited. Plan ahead by bringing warm slippers, warm pyjamas, and extra blankets if you are visiting in colder parts of the year (September to May). We found the location very quiet and an excellent base for exploring the Cowal peninsula. The internet works great. The dishwasher is weirdly in the laundry area but we managed because there’s no hot water to wash dishes by hand. Once you get the wood stove going, it’s very warm in the living room. You’ll have to pay £7.50 for each bundle of wood. There’s books, games, and a nice smart tv. Think of it as an upscale bothie. The Morrisons in Dunoon has everything for cooking up a great meal and there’s loads of beautiful walks nearby. Puck’s Glen is unmissable and the nearby Kilbride Bay is stunning. It is a gorgeous area. There’s a lot of wildlife, especially birds. If I had any suggestions to the owners: please include some extra blankets, a hairdryer and maybe a plunger for the toilet.

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• Evelyn - Verified booking

  Very well appointed and clean kitchen.

  ....Living and dining area 1 dining room chair requires fixing..very shaky. Overhead light very poor. Standard Lamp 1 bulb missing..no replacement left....Torches not working ..no rechargeable batteries as advertised.....Seating too low for disabled person ..a raiser could be fitted at very low cost...Sliding door between Dining and hall requires attention. Had to replace overhead light in hall bulb left...Bathroom Perfect. Bedroom 1 clean and tidy..bedroom 2 large and easy for wheelchair...however all mattresses require replacing as all were sagging in the centre so not a lot of sleep. Found myself sitting on the base and almost fell on the floor making this dangerous. The linen on all beds were Pristine this was great. I had asked for the double bed to have made into two singles this was not done. No linen left that we could do this ourselves. If all the little tweeks were done I would have no hesitation on recommending this cottage to anybody. It seems a great pity that the complaints let this cottage in such lovely surroundings down. And at the price I would have expected better and also being a member of the trust I felt very let down. Remember it is being advertised as a disabled cottage and this is from a disabled point of view. Evelyn Conn.

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• Allan - Verified booking

  The cottage is superb, the grounds are stunning but can someone please sort out the underfloor heating.

  Initially it wasn’t working so no hot water or heating but NTS staff reacted exceptionally well and had plumber in within a couple of hours, well done. Once fixed, the heating just kept heating and as I looked at thermostats they were all set to 25 or 26 degrees, our dogs thought they were on a hot plate. I reduced all to much lower temperature but after a while they all reset back to the higher temperature. Perhaps the thermostats could be made so that in order to alter temperature the NTS staff are required, I realise that is extreme but very evident that someone has been randomly attempting to adjust the temperatures and messing up the controls. Aside from that a great visit as always and really it isn’t the problems that cause issues, they only become an issue if they cannot be addressed and I have to commend the staff with how they dealt with us, even providing mobile electric radiators to warm the cottage until the heating could take over. Also a tv in the bedroom would be fantastic as being wheelchair bound I sometimes like to stretch out on top of the bed to ease pain and a tv would help pass the time more easily as I do this. Will definitely be back.

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