Gorpen
June 2014
Bluebell Cottage 14th June to 21st June 2014
We arranged to meet the owner at 3.0pm on the 14th June so keys could be handed over. In the event we arrived at 3.45pm simply because we could not find the cottage. Both the owner and his wife were waiting and it was obvious they were in a hurry to depart.
The owner’s wife cursorily showed my wife the kitchen, washing machine, tumble dryer and dish washer, none of which had any written instructions or manuals. In fact the tumble dryer was still working when the owners departed; the wife simply said “the towels are nearly finished!
The owner showed me the TV (with satellite dish connections) which was located in the very small lounge with the wood burner. This room was small and very claustrophobic so we did not use it. See photo attached. The other “lounge” was actually part of the large kitchen. It also had a TV which could only receive Irish channels.
The owners explained that they had intended to “clean up” the BBQ, but had not got around to doing so therefore it was not useable. See photo’s attached. They also said the shower in the en-suite was broken so would we use the shower in the main bathroom. They did not mention the toilet in the bathroom was difficult to flush and it was only after I found some oil to lubricate the mechanism could we use this toilet.
The owners left us after about 15 minutes, saying any problems phone them.
I was not shown the “starter pack” for the fires. After searching I found the “starter pack” which was half a hob of coal, a couple of wooden logs and two peat logs, and that was it!
We were given two very large luxurious bath towels and invited to use their beach towels. The bed was large and very comfortable. They also left some scones and a pot of jam.
The kitchen was well stocked with pots, pans, crockery and knives and forks. The trouble was not all the appliances had been washed adequately and we could not find one sharp knife. This cottage is clearly used by the owners because their personal belongings were everywhere. In the utility room a large wet suit was hanging. Their clothes were in and on top of the wardrobe. Items were also in the drawers etc. Not what you would expect from a holiday cottage!
In the “amenities” a CD player was listed, as I could not find this CD player I spoke to the owner by telephone, his cheery response was that the player was damaged/broken two weeks previously and he had to take it away for repairs. He had meant to bring it back on the day we moved in but forgot! He did not offer to bring the CD player to us and we did not have one for the week!
Also under “amenities” a shop is listed as 12 minutes’ walk and a pub in 7 minutes’ walk. What the owners failed to inform us was that the “pub” was reached by turning left when you left the cottage, and was in fact a hotel with limited menu and hotel prices. The shop was a right hand turn from the cottage and was a small mini market attached to a garage. If anybody could reach either in the time given they must walk very quickly and as it meant walking along the main N67, without any foot path we did not attempt the walks! See photo’s attached.