Dog Friendly Cottages in Cumbria

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Isla - Verified booking

  A fantastic Christmas getaway.

  We spent 4 days here over the festive period and it was perfect. A gorgeous hamper awaited us on our arrival and a cheese selection in the fridge! Loved the decorations too. The kitchen was well equipped and we successfully cooked Christmas dinner. Oven/hob very efficient and easy to use. The cottage was never cold but also never too hot and we made good use of the log burner (pleased we brought a huge bag of our own as we got through them quickly!) detailed welcome guide which was also enjoyable to read. Solid floors throughout the downstairs, which was good as it never stopped raining whilst we were there, so we didn’t have to do balancing acts on the doormat! Also useful if bringing a dog so they can’t get muddy paws all over the carpet! A rug by the seating area would be appreciated though, as any blankets we put down for our dog just slipped everywhere and it would have felt a bit more cosier. Enclosed garden front and back so we could safely let her out too. Good storage facilities in bedrooms and bathrooms, limited cupboard space in kitchen but we managed. Airer provided which was useful for drying all out waterproofs and the muddy boot box was handy, though we didn’t use it as boots needed to dry. Info on recycling would have been appreciated as we brought all ours home (we don’t live far away and being Christmas we had a lot!) Cottage was spotless in all areas you could see, however when I dropped something, I noticed that under all the sofas the floor was filthy! Also found a polo under the bed when I thought I had lost a sock under there and dusty behind bedside cabinets. A little more attention wouldn’t go a miss. Info for travellers: 2 washing tabs & 2 dishwasher tabs provided. Logs for one use of fire provided, with enough fire lighters and kindling for a few fires. Co-op in Kirkby Stephen had some for sale. Tea towels provided Kitchen utensils, cutlery, pots & pans are plenty but bring your own roasting trays if you want to do a Christmas dinner!

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• Sheena - Verified booking

  Great Location & Hot Tub.

  Poor Maintenance POSITIVES: great rural location near Bowness, lovely garden with hot tub overlooking valley, light conservatory dining room, cosy living room, well planned small kitchen, good shower NEGATIVES: - Maintenance: our holiday was marred by constant issues including no running water for a day (water was delivered to us, but no showers were possible), heated towel rail not working, no light in outbuildings or hallway (bulbs?), hot tub privacy screen not retracting, electric car recharger not working on last day, plug in bathroom sink not holding water, wardrobe drawer knob unattached, mixing bowl cracked…. - Sykes. It was difficult to speak to the staff as we always got the message “we are experiencing longer than normal wait times”. They offered to resolve the maintenance problems but we didn’t want the inconvenience and hassle of tradesmen calling during our stay (had to for the water problem). - Cleanliness: Outside and outbuildings not swept/cleaned and no outside broom to do it. Bathroom dusty. - Bedrooms: 2nd bedroom mattress ‘saggy’. All duvets too thick for summer - Intrusive neighbour: male on driveway (said owns) near house, and dog barked at us in hot tub and in conservatory (was called back). OTHER - Garden Furniture: Sykes incorrectly told us there were none. There is a table, umbrella, 6 chairs (some arms rusty) and 2 reclining chairs. We wasted precious car boot space taking our 2 Fishermen’s chairs. Not provided: bread knife, measuring jug, butter dish, biscuit/cake tin, plastic picnic-ware (especially glasses for hot tub), kitchen scales, oven gloves, thin kitchen hand-towel, laundry basket, clothes airer/line for swimwear, outdoor broom

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• Derek - Verified booking

  Firstly the pros.

  The cottage was extremely clean and well equipped and the beds were very comfortable. It's location is great for touring the Yorkshire Dales or the Lakes or the North Penninnes Now the cons. The check in time of 4.30 p.m. was far too late in the day. Check in times used to be around the 2 p.m. mark which gave time to do other things when you had off loaded food and clothes etc. A check in time of 4.30 p.m. means you have effectively lost half a day of the holiday. We found the siting of the TV high up on the wall in the living room very uncomfortable.. After a day or two we ended up with a crick in the neck. The TV in the double bedroom didn't work at all. One of your previous customers mentioned in her published feedback that it was nice to have enclosed gardens to the front and the rear of the house that her dog could enjoy. We were therefore surprised to find a note on the back door stating that the rear garden belonged to the neighbouring house and we should therefore refrain from using it. On looking further at the description the owners were in fact only offering use of the front garden. It would be useful if Sykes would make sure that any feedback they allow is accurate and not misleading. Whilst mentioning gardens it has to be said that the front garden which is part of the cottage is only plastic grass with a lot of weeds growing through it. It can only be described as being in a parlous condition and badly needs some tlc.

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• Paul - Verified booking

  Positives: Keybox entry.

  We found it a nice location on edge of village. Pub a couple of doors away. Car parking. Complimentary bottle of wine. Fire kindling left (but take your own paper & matches). Electric storage radiators worked well. Switch socket night lights were good. Induction hob & dedicated pan(s) Negatives: Milk & coffee sachets along with the wrapped biscuits were out-of-date (they went out straight away). Dusty cobwebs in many ceiling corners. Bathroom extract fan dusty. Very dusty behind and under the double bed, that took some cleaning up. Shower head replacement was a poor substitute, it wouldn't stay in one position. Wood burner fire hearth not set (couldn't find any matches or sparking flint, locked away or otherwise. No wood burner fire guard. Half-glazed rear back door was a bit of a security nightmare the glazing was only kitemarked as toughened with only an internal thumb turn for the dead lock (should have been laminated glass to provide containment). Front astro-turf garden area could have done with a little more TLC. Have to say we did book very last minute, booked one day went the next, so that may explain some, not all, of the negative items.

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• Pauline - Verified booking

  This holiday was for my 60th birthday and it was perfect in every way.

  I chose the property due to the location and the easy access to the beautiful Lake district. The setting was idyllic, in a quiet remote area surrounded by rolling hills, mountains in the distance and grazing sheep and newborn lambs. The cottage exceeded expectations; stylish, quaint and full of charm. The cottage was spacious with an attractive outdoor garden and furniture which we used quite a lot during our stay despite it being March and the weather being unpredictable. The lounge was small, but cosy and really we didn't spend much time in the lounge. The rest of the cottage kitchen/dining room were spacious and full of everything that we needed for a pleasant stay. The owners left fresh flowers, dog treats, tea and coffee and biscuits which was very much appreciated and welcoming. I have stayed with Sykes cottages a few times in the past and I can definitely say that this is my favourite cottage so far. Clean, comfortable and full of charm, we loved our stay at Brookside. it was perfect in every way. Many thanks to Sykes Cottages and to the owners. Paula

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