This is a lovely little holiday home in a peaceful part of the Peak District, furnished to a very high standard, so it was with some surprise to find that by the end of the week we had noticed a few niggles.
Firstly, the owners have packed a lot into the property: two double bedrooms, both with ensuite bathroom (one a shower only, one with a jacuzzi bath and over-bath shower), and both with flatscreen tv. Large HD television in the lounge with freeview, Playstation (1 controller only), wood burner, nicely planned fitted kitchen with all mod cons, full size dining table for four, downstairs toilet. The quality of the furnishings cannot be denied (the bedding in particular was luxurious) and the underfloor heating ensured that we were all kept toasty warm.
There are however a couple of things that we found eventually annoying, which could easily be sorted out: the lack of a coffee table/side table near the sofa's, having to always move the dining chairs in order to open the downstairs toilet door, no grab rail in either bathroom. It was also a bit of a stretch to call one of the bedrooms a double. Sure, a double bed fitted in the room, but access on one side was so limited and it was such a tight squeeze to get past between the bottom bedstead and the wall. None of these were deal-breakers or ruined our stay, just found them a bit annoying by the end of the week.
The garden is moderate in size and enclosed, however the walls are waist height so the more 'athletic' (or nosey!) dog will be able to jump over. The house is in the middle of a row of three and while one of the other gardens is fully enclosed, the other one has access from the back garden to the front. If your pooch manages to vault the wall into the garden of No3, as ours managed to do on one occasion, you may find him at the front of the property and investigating an open gate before you know it! The bottom line is that you'll have to keep an eye on your dog whilst in the garden (which is fair enough), unless it is a chihuahua!! The garden is a very pleasant place to sit out though, and a barbecue is provided for your use too.
But back to the positives - the garden is a very pleasant place to sit out and catch the morning sun, and a barbecue is provided for your use too. The owners had very thoughtfully left a welcome pack, which consisted of milk, tea, coffee, biscuits and a tin of beans. There were also some bottles of wine on the sideboard which we were invited to drink if we wished, at a cost of just £5 a bottle. Just a short walk up from the house is the owners private meadow, which is made available for guests to exercise their dogs, and our hound loved it. Following the trail around the perimeter was a really pleasant walk, with fabulous views over the fields.
The location is very quiet, with the nearest convenience shop about 3.5 miles away, although the High Peak Bookstore is closer and has a good cafe. The village pub is a short walk up the hill and a nice spot to enjoy the afternoon sun. Staff friendly, food generous and beer lovely. Dog friendly too.
Overall,we enjoyed our stay. The owners obviously take pride in their property and the facilities and welcoming touches were very much appreciated.