Dog Friendly Cottages In Aldeburgh

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Anne - Verified booking

  We were disappointed.

  We had really hoped we had found a place we could return to frequently, particularly for the festival. The good things: the location, parking, having outdoor space, the well stocked kitchen ( a sense that eating and hosting was important) and the 'cultural ambience' of art, music, film and books (what makes Aldeburgh a special 'by the sea' place for us). What's wrong then? A sense that some corporate fairy has waved a wand and decreed what brings in income: many beds, at least 2 bathrooms and TVs, and 'seaside themes (seagulls, beach-huts and bunting on table clothes and mugs etc). Does this matter? Yes, because it lacks integrity and pushes the accommodation into a generic 'seaside cottage' branding. It threatens to lose the specialness of this place and its heritage: which people like us are willing to pay for when we find it. More crucially, it can make accommodation uncomfortable when overcrowded with wrong or unnecessary things.. Too many beds!!!! All very clearly 'beds'...the in-your-face iron bed upstairs is almost fun in being such such a statement, but in the end it's a mistake, particularly when it is not being used and just sits there taking up space in the sitting room. The little beds downstairs take up too much space as well - a whole room given over to them. Why not redesign the two rooms downstairs as the two main bedrooms (move double bed downstairs) and then have a day bed upstairs for 'extra' space when needed? How often do 6 people use this place anyway? Must be quite crowded when they do - especially around the dining table. Other than bad use of space, other things niggle and as the week progressed began to irritate: the left hand French doors onto the balcony do not open (the lock key has no purchase and clearly needs replacing - we tried all the keys). Three glass panels in these doors are 'blown' - nice view of condensation in all three. Not being able to open these doors makes the room loess cool on hot days and funnels access to the balcony through one set of doors. Outside, this space (breeze and sea view) is wonderful but set up very badly for use. The chairs are very uncomfortable and very heavy: fine for brief dining, but not for sitting for a coffee let alone a book. Something more comfortable is needed (we carried deckchairs up there). The garden is so sadly 'let go', The grass has been cut, but the beds are overgrown with weeds (not attractive ones!!) and shrubs have not been pruned so flowering is sparse. I'm not a fan of tidy gardens, but this one is really badly unkept. You can just see the bones of what was once a well laid out garden with good architectural planting and interesting trees. Why would one sit a in a 'new feature/ of a half-boat seat when surrounded by weeds??? It would be easy to pack the beds with ground cover and herbs (rosemary, lavender etc) which could be allowed to take over (with little need for maintenance) as an alternative to weeds (and herbs for cooking would be great). Finally, there are some internal longer term maintenance problems which are already visible: the shower tray is moving away from the wall and opening up grouting (it will need more than extra grouting to deal with this), and the third or fourth stair tread 'falls' when trod on with what is almost the sound of a slam or something heavy being dropped. Why am I taking time to write although this? Because we were so looking forward to this rental, and with a little more thought and care (and a little less concern to maximise potential rental stream through generic sea-side cottage branding and stuffing it with beds and TVs), this could be such a good place to rent...............it is clearly important to the owners, and we would have liked it to have been the same for us too. (An up-note to end with: the welcome gifts of food and drink on our arrival were very appreciated - thank you, but, a last down-note: Adnams did not give us a discount as they said they couldn't without paper proof of offer, so please make sure some vouchers are made available in the property). Thank you for taking the time to read this - please keep and make this place as special as it could and should be....

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• Victoria - Verified booking

  We booked this property because of its uniqueness and we weren't disappointed.

  We really enjoyed being surrounded by Robert Sadlers beautiful paintings and sculptures and thought the top floor was an especially lovely and special space. Unlike a previous, frankly bemusing post, we felt the owners have done an excellent job of maintaining the history and integrity of the studio while making this a comfortable and well laid out holiday home. We loved the upstairs bed, it felt very special to sleep up there, and were not thrown by a seaside themed tablecloth or slightly squeaky step. The balcony is a wonderful place to enjoy a morning coffee and the garden is really lovely. Our dogs especially loved it and I really appreciated the mix of naturalistic planting to encourage insects and wildlife with the more manicured sections. The gardeners came while we were there and did an exemplary job of tidying the space and it is clearly well maintained. I was not bothered by the small TV either as I came away to visit the beautiful local area and to relax and enjoy the peace and tranquility of this property. We enjoyed exploring the town and ate out at several local restaurants, cafes and pubs. We have to give a special recommendation for the afternoon tea at The Chocolate Teapot which was delicious and amazing value, plus the staff were so friendly and accommodated our two large dogs without any fuss. We also enjoyed visits to some of the dog friendly beaches, walks in beautiful nature reserves, two English heritage castles and the stunning gardens at Helmingham Hall, so there were plenty of nearby low-key relaxed activities to give us the chance to recharge our batteries. Sadly, the Red House isn't dog-friendly so we couldn't visit,which was my only disappointment of the week. The only thing I would change would be that shower in the upstairs bathroom and I note it has been mentioned in several reviews before. It requires Herculean strength to turn it off. I could only do it using a towel and both hands for extra leverage, however this means the design of the shower means you get covered in icy cold water and/or cover the bathroom floor in water too. Other than that, this is the loveliest dog friendly property in a really good location for access to the high street and beach while offering something much more special than the other more generic properties available in Aldeburgh.

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• S & P Garten - Verified booking

  Arrived at Marsh View for a four night stay on 7th October, from the moment we arrived and was welcomed by the owner and her two delightful dogs. Our stay here has been relaxing and peaceful. With fantastic views overlooking the river and marshes. The property is in excellent order and well equipped with all mod cons. The welcoming hamper of basic food bread, milk eggs, cereal etc is a very nice touch. All little things to make you feel welcome. The property is Set well back from the main road into Aldeburgh with no traffic noise. For the energetic a must, is the walk from the premises to Snape Malting around 4 miles following a well marked footpath through woodland, heather and wonderful views over the countryside along the way. Arriving at Snape Malting and in need of refreshments and lunch this was taken at the Café 1885 on the first floor. We both ordered the sea food platter which was delicious an excellent choice. After lunch we strolled around the many retail outlets. All the staff we encountered here were very friendly and helpful. Time was approaching 16:30 walking back to March View was out of the question, which would mean returning in the dark. Phoned for a local taxi which arrived within 15 mins to take us back to March View. The next day was spent exploring Aldeburgh sea side town, a stroll along the beach with its many huts selling freshly caught fish. quaint houses and unusual shops. We stopped for lunch at the Lighthouse restaurant in the high street which had been highly recommended to us. The food and choice on offer are is excellent. Our four day break soon came to a end. However, I’m sure we will be back again soon to explore this part of the world again. Thank you for making us feel at home. We will return.

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• S & P Garten - Verified booking

  Arrived at Marsh View for a four night stay on 7th October, from the moment we arrived and was welcomed by the owner and her two delightful dogs. Our stay here has been relaxing and peaceful. With fantastic views overlooking the river and marshes. The property is in excellent order and well equipped with all mod cons. The welcoming hamper of basic food bread, milk eggs, cereal etc is a very nice touch. All little things to make you feel welcome. The property is Set well back from the main road into Aldeburgh with no traffic noise. For the energetic a must, is the walk from the premises to Snape Malting around 4 miles following a well marked footpath through woodland, heather and wonderful views over the countryside along the way. Arriving at Snape Malting and in need of refreshments and lunch this was taken at the Café 1885 on the first floor. We both ordered the sea food platter which was delicious an excellent choice. After lunch we strolled around the many retail outlets. All the staff we encountered here were very friendly and helpful. Time was approaching 16:30 walking back to March View was out of the question, which would mean returning in the dark. Phoned for a local taxi which arrived within 15 mins to take us back to March View. The next day was spent exploring Aldeburgh sea side town, a stroll along the beach with its many huts selling freshly caught fish. quaint houses and unusual shops. We stopped for lunch at the Lighthouse restaurant in the high street which had been highly recommended to us. The food and choice on offer are is excellent. Our four day break soon came to a end. However, I’m sure we will be back again soon to explore this part of the world again. Thank you for making us feel at home. We will return.

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• John - Verified booking

  On arrival the first thing I didn't like was the parking space, it was very tight.

  We entered through the back gate and this was our first clue, the latch was broken so if the wind got up it would bang all night. The yard we entered was unclean with rusty old steps going up and a rusty metal plate on the wall. We retrieved our key from the dirty key safe and entered the kitchen, our spirits raised a little as this was a spacious area and looked not too bad but there was a strong musty smell that wasn't nice. There was no welcome pack of any sort. As we explored the kitchen we found the freezer to be full of food with no room for anything we may have wanted to put in it. We then went to the living room at the front of the property and again there was the musty smell with the furniture covered with old musty blankets and certainly not where we could spend our evenings. At the back of the property was the bedroom which was like a cave ! There was only the overhead light, which had a low voltage bulb, with no bedside lamps. The pictures on the Web site showed 3 or 4 lamps in the room which I liked as I enjoy reading before I go to sleep, but they were non-existent. Finally there was the bathroom. This may well be the worst room of all. It was dark, damp and had mould on the shower curtains, horrible. This was the final straw for us, we phoned Sykes and told them we would not be staying. Due to health problems in the family this was my first holiday for two years so the last thing I wanted to do was leave but there was no way I was staying there. In fairness to the owner we were given a refund a week later. If the property had lived up to the advertising, without the smell, it would have been good, it looks as though it needs some TLC

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