820yvonnew
September 2017
Our first holiday booked with Sykes Holiday Cottages was a let down before it had even begun. Two days prior to our holiday, and as requested by Sykes Cottages, we called the owner of the property for the key code only to be told by the owner not to use the bath in the downstairs en-suite bedroom because it was leaking. Then they asked us to take home any recycling which we would accumulate during our stay, the reason given for this was because ''the bin cupboard at the property was full'. We've stayed in many properties and never been asked to take home our recycling. More concerning to us now was the lack of a second bath, as five other family members including two children would be joining us during our stay, and this would be a problem. This information was given to us at such short notice, we had no choice but to continue with our booking, so as not to disappoint our guests.
On arrival at the property we were met by a garden full of weeds, which was not a good first impression, but on entering the property we were very happy with the ground floor interiors and the wonderful views of the Menai.We then opened the door to the downstairs en-suite bedroom, the strong smell of damp hit our nostrils straight away, we then entered a very dated 1970's brown en-suite bathroom, there was a huge wet patch on the carpeted floor besides the bath, the owner hadn't explained to us just how bad the leak actually was. I was instantly concerned about who, or if any of our guests would actually want to stay in this downstairs room. We then tried to open the downstairs toilet door, it was impossible to do so as it was well and truly stuck, my husband took it upon himself to force the door and mend the lock, a carpenter came later in the week but did nothing, only to say he would return at the weekend to repair it after we'd gone home.The upstairs bedrooms were very nice and comfortable, but once again we were very disappointed on opening the door to another dated 1970's pink bathroom suite. The carpeted floor was heavily stained around the toilet area, we wern't sure if it was urine or a previous leak, but it did smell. During our stay we found the plumbing in that bathroom very poor, in order to flush the toilet we had to remove the cistern lid and lift the valve most of the time.My husband called the owner, he told him about our concerns, the owner blamed the previous family for the stained carpets which we thought unfair, he also asked us to take photographs of any maks on the beige carperts throughout the house and email them to him, we thought this was a strange request, but obliged. Our guests arrived, but sadly as predicted, our daughter and her husband decided not to stay in the damp smelling downstairs en-suite bedroom, instead they had a two hour drive back home later that same night. This not only spoilt a few days away for them but it also spoilt the rest of our holiday. To the owners, updating the bathrooms and tyding the garden would have made all the difference to our stay, and we would have gladly returned in the future, but as it stands, no thank you. Sykes Cottages ought to vet their properties more rigorously so as not to disappoint other families in the future, needless to say we will not use Sykes Cottages again.