Dog Friendly Halesworth Holiday Cottages

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Rachel - Verified booking

  Home from home, we cant wait to return.

  The property is simply stunning, spotlessly clean with the most comfortable beds, linens and towels I've ever had the luxury to use. Don't worry if you've left something behind at your own home because I can almost guarantee you'll find it here. The garden was beautiful but being a wet October, we didn't really get the benefit of this, and intend to return in the summer months. The owners attention to detail is incredible, thinking of absolutely everything you could possible need during your stay, with tons of things you didn't realise you'd need too! I think its important to mention that all of the ground floor internal doorways are very low with large supporting beams across each one and whilst it adds to the wonderful character of the property and didn't affect our enjoyment of it at all, its not as clearly described in the details. You will need to duck or grouse! My elderly parents managed perfectly well with the internal doorways but struggled with the steep step inside the entry way of the property whilst navigating the low external doorway above the step. The entrance floor bedroom is really beautiful. Also important to mention here that the bathroom for this bedroom is not en-suite (as per the two bedrooms downstairs) but is a simple short walk, off the utility room. The wrought iron spiral staircase is very steep but once downstairs the lower floor bedrooms and bathrooms are beautiful and so very comfortable. Blythburgh and the surrounding areas are fabulous for walkers with lots of mapped routes to take. We enjoyed popping into Halesworth for a morning coffee at The Black Dog Deli, where the staff were so friendly and welcoming offering advice about places to go in the local area, not to mention the best coffee and cake I've ever tasted. The White Hart across the road had lovely roaring fires lit to enjoy a drink in the evenings. Our unanimously favourite restaurant though was The Fox Inn at Darsham (postcode IP17 3QE) 4.6 miles up the road. The whole experience at the Fox from greeting to eating was absolutely outstanding. Friendly welcoming staff and amazing food. October 2021

  Read more less >

• Alexander - Verified booking

  We've visited the property a couple of years in a row now.

  And we may leave it a little while before we visit again primarily for reasons in regards to facilities and maintenance. Please do not get us wrong. The majority of the property is in good nick. But there are a few things that could be improved. For instance, the washing machine either needs maintenance or replacing. The drum is loose and bangs against its chassis making it sound like something is banging a door loudly disturbing us and possibly the nice lady with the cats upstairs. The dishwasher fuse spur is faulty. It makes an intermittent buzzing noise which is a little disconcerting and could be an electrical hazard. You need to give it a little tap to ensure the connection works otherwise the dishwasher doesn't turn on. I think I remembered this from our previous stay as it took a while to work out why it wasn't working. Also quite a few light bulbs weren't working, including the one in the cooker hood that I think has been that way in both our stays. So likely broken for more than a year. I know this feels like splitting hairs, but it's the little things that add up and make a place feel looked after and special. Especially when you are paying a fair amount to stay there. Just a few things like the Jenga tower in the cupboard with the taped up bag could be put in something that looks a little less sad, and a bit more loved. The door's knocker and letterbox have seen better days. From some of the feedback left in the guest book about how much hasn't changed and that aspects of the property could do with a little TLC, we agree with this and things like the aforementioned. Would we stay here again in future? Absolutely. The above is by no means a deal breaker. The property has a very calm feeling about it that we can't explain. Whatever happened when the whole property was a hospital must have been good. The beds are very comfortable. It's very clean and the instructions clear in regards to monitoring our energy use.

  Read more less >

• Joanne - Verified booking

  On the whole, we had a lovely week.

  The cottage is very clean and does have a homely feel. I cannot 'complain' about the property however, there are some points which would have been useful to know before you go. The garden is lovely and has several seating areas although if you are intending to spend a relaxing/quiet time there, the noise is quite loud with the traffic passing by. It didn't effect us greatly as we were out all day and only used it for short periods for the kids to strectch their legs and play with the dog but I dont think I would be able to spend much longer there. We didnt hear it overnight and it certainly didnt stop us from sleeping! The spiral staircase to the lower floor is narrow. It's not the easiest to tackle depending on age and size although you can can access the lower floor from the door onto the pavement - just be mindful of traffic passing. All bedrooms were beautiful and spacious however, the upstairs bedroom has a separate bathroom which is accessible via the kitchen. We knew it wasn't en suite however hoped that it may be next door to the bedroom for ease of use. The bedrooms do not have televisions, again no big issue as we had phones but the only television is in the living room. We were a family of 6 with varying ages and so trying to keep everyone happy with one channel wasnt the easiest. The only other issue is the height of the door frames - they are low! There are warning signs on each frame and the owners really couldn't do any more to remind you however, it's still easy to forget. Overall, we did have an enjoyable week. The owners have catered for everything they can and the location is great for day trips out. It suited us and we made it work however, I think these things are just useful to know when you book depending on your age group and requirements.

  Read more less >

• Tracy - Verified booking

  The cottage is very quaint, quirky & charming with a beautiful garden.

  However, there are several safety hazards which you should be aware of. First of all it’s on the main A12 from Ipswich & the noise is immense, if you try & have a conversation in the garden, it’s impossible. It’s also very hazardous trying to get out on to the main road. The metal spiral staircase is scary, we are very agile people, but if you weren’t, had small kids or in our case a small dog, don’t risk it. We’d blocked it off from our dog, but there is a large gap at the top right & he got through it, how he didn't break his neck we will never know. The low beam doorways were ok for me but my poor husband cracked his head so many times, took skin off & made it bleed. In the end his head was such a mess we had to got to the pharmacy & get cream & dressings. The doorway to the kitchen is only 5’8” high & very, very deep, so you think you are through it & you're not. The decor is beautifully done but the basement bedrooms feel damp & smell fusty, the dehumidifier collected a full tank of water every day. We had a maintenance man come out as neither of the extractor fans work in either downstairs bathrooms, but he couldn’t fix them & stated they need replacing. We ended up sleeping in the top bedroom, which was dry & safer for our dog & us. Outside the decking has long seen better days, the struts underneath are rotten, so the decking bounces up & down & makes the screws come loose. Again the maintenance man tried to fix it, but stated that it needs replacing. It’s such a shame as it’s a lovely & interesting building, but the safety hazards outweigh the fun of staying there.

  Read more less >

• Steve - Verified booking

  We have just returned from an amazing week at The Old Custom House (TOCH).

  We booked the week before Christmas and were delighted to see how wonderful the cottage looked complete with Christmas decorations too. The place was spotlessly clean and the attention to detail at the property was second to none with very eventuality catered for. We appreciated the welcome pack and the notes left around the cottage with instructions etc and leaflets of things to do too. The guest signature book was also a good source of information of places to visit in the surrounding areas. Our personal favourites were a visit to Thorpeness and a walk along the coastal path and beach; Dunwich forest and a short drive to the beach at Dunwich followed by a lovely lunch at The Ship; a walk around the marshes and beach at Walberswick and of course a trip into Southwold. We would also recommend a trip into Halesworth and a sour dough sandwich at The Black Dog Deli. We were also very fortunate with the strangely mild weather for December and took some amazing photographs of our days out (a week was just not long enough). We have already started planning our return trip and look forward to returning to TOCH in the Summer. A big thank you to Pat and Tony for making our stay so special.

  Read more less >