jamesdmcfadden
July 2020
Where to start.
St Hildas Cottage issues List
Suite of furniture different than pictured - Not a big deal , but not as advertised.
Dining Table - not as pictured, not comfortable to be sat at - Clearly was from a bar, type that are commonly seen in Weatherspoons etc, as it had the number 33 on the table.
Fireplace did not work - Batteries missing from remote.
Decking out back - Not swept - Leaves everywhere and generally dirty in appearance. Nettles growing and overgrown in general. The hanging seat in the garden photo’s also attached, this had bird droppings on it, and was a mess, The overgrown shrubs are growing into it. The Pizza Oven in the garden is a nice addition, however, if you actually used it, would cause fire and burn the overgrown branches and vegetation around it.
On sweeping the decking ourselves, we noticed that there were a number of Bee’s crawling around on the decking. In the space of 10 minutes we seen 40+ bees go into the corner were the hot tub is, and underneath the decking - Clear to see there is a Bee’s nest underneath the decking
Glass out onto decking on doors - Grubby and Dirty - We cleaned this on arrival ourselves.
While starting to cook on our night of arrival - I noticed when taking a plate out that it was marked with a few specks of dirt - So I cleaned it thinking that it may have been overlooked. I got a few pots and pans out, and noticed that the bun tin was really beyond any fit state to be used, let alone offered for visiting guests to use.
The colander - See attached photo. The marks on this, really put us both off, it looks like human excrement. As we were still intending on staying when we noticed this, we put it through a boil wash in the dish washer.
The bedrooms had clean linen on the beds, but there were grubby marks on the carpet and on the Main Bedroom Duvet - Photos Attached also.
Overall the cottage needs to have a deep clean. Having both worked through the COVID Pandemic as key workers, we just wanted to get away and have a hot tub cottage were we could relax. Having a property that has been closed the last three months, we would have expected that in the current situation where hygiene and cleanliness is necessary and expected, we were very shocked and disappointed to see the state of this “Luxury” Cottage.
Not being able to contact the owner has been frustrating, as we feel both the onsite help, while friendly and apologetic were very keen to make it clear that they didn’t own the property. The only contact number, which misleadingly states is for Mr David Barker, actually routes through to the staff looking after the guest house, who say they have nothing to do with the cottage.
We had booked for 7 nights in total, but 2 nights was more than enough. We reported the issues to the onsite staff, and allowed 24 hours for remedial work to be acknowledged - But as per the pattern with this property - No one can ever contact the owner.
Having taken this up with Sykes, and been advised them that we will be seeking a refund for the full amount through our credit card, they have told us, that if we do, they will place a debt against us, and sell it on, therefore creating a CCJ against us. Sykes – Please educate your staff, obviously if they knew that to get a CCJ (County Court Judgement) Yes the clue is actually in the name, this will have to go through court, which, due to the evidence and the photographs we have taken, will happily stand up in court and argue the case in point.