DrJennyS
May 2011
This is the first review as we were apparently the first guests!
Everything is even nicer than it looks on the website. The yurt is very solid (we had very strong winds and rain but no creaking/flapping), extremely clean and well thought out. It's quickly heated by the gas fire when required and well-lit. Hot water is on-demand so filling the bath is no problem. The fridge is quiet and there's a dishwasher, plus a really sharp knife-set and generally everything you need for the kitchen (inc salt/pepper).
The outside spaces are great: fire site under trees, open deck with clever lounge-chairs & barbecue or the covered deck with bar stools & space-heater (where we spent the most time). The compost loo is very clean (fancy Swedish design), well-lit and very close to the doors, via decking/astro-turf so no mud. It was fine popping out there in the light rain. There are clever little solar lights dotted around that you don't notice until they glimmer dimly at night to add to the atmosphere.
There were lots of geese around (but not right outside) so we heard/saw them and their goslings, plus ducks/ducklings and coots/cootlings(?!), lovely to sit outside to eat and watch them go by and the plop of the carp every now and again.
There were some fishermen not a huge distance away, however it's all very private due to clever digging/planting. Be aware there are no curtains over the glass doors (which look over the lake), however, you could hang the fluffy bathrobes over these (there are hooks) if you are coy. But honestly there's no way anyone could see in - you just get a great view of the lake from bed. I was happy to walk around out there in the buff! Oh, and also there is a glass dome at the top (can be screw-lifted for ventilation using a pole) so there is no way to keep the yurt dark when the sun comes up.
The owners were really nice, friendly (but not too friendly) and helpful and have obviously spent a lot of time and care setting this up just right. They sorted out the rowing boat for us and heated up the hot-tub (and let us know they were out which meant we felt more private in there as it's overlooked by the house). They were also keen to hear about any suggestions about how they could improve things for the next visitors (there were only very minor things). I strongly expect they'll keep everything in perfect shape.
The location gets 5* for the local area (lakeside, quiet road, close to shop) but to be honest there's not a load to do around here - we ended up driving quite a lot to get to interesting places (we recommend Great Malvern, esp the puppet theatre). Had a nice bike ride around the local area though (lots of quiet roads).
Top tip: there's a M&S Simply Food attached to a petrol station in Tewkesbury where you can get good food later than anywhere else.