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8/10 Good
Phil W.
9 September 2023
Lovely cottage but changes needed
The cottage is ideal for 2 people, we really enjoyed our 4 night stay.
BUT ... We were looking forward to a rest after a difficult 18 months, but we were woken before 6am on all four mornings by the very noisy boiler. After the second morning's early waking we contacted Dart Valley Cottages (DVC) and were told there were instructions in the hall with a Honeywell control unit for the boiler. There was neither. By 6pm that evening, after a few emails and phone calls, we were eventually believed and it was apparent that the Honeywell unit (which we eventually found on the floor of the boiler room) had been disconnected and replaced by the 'Nest' controller in the living area, for which there were no instructions.
During a phone call to DVC we thought we had found out how to turn the boiler off (someone at DVC was having to Google the instructions!) . Because there was a very poor signal in the cottage, we could not use the internet next to the Nest unit to Google instructions ourseves and had to rely on shouting messages from one of us in the hall to the living area (because the mobile reception was also poor).
We had been told during a phone call on the second day that someone from housekeeping would come out to help but unfortunately they went to the wrong cottage.
The next morning proved that our efforts were in vain as we were again woken before 6am. At this stage, with only one more morning to suffer, we gave up.
The boiler would repeatedly turn itself on and off for about 5 mintes at at time for the next 90 mintes or so, making it not conducive to a good night's rest.
The boiler really needs replacing!
Dart Vallet Cottages need to update their details. The above is not the only thing that requires addressing:
- There is a coffee machine that had no instructions, so could not be used. We called DVC but they had to Google instructions and were not really helpful.
- Instructions for emptying waste bags is incorrect.
- We were not too bothered about watching television but found that, bacause of poor internet connection, streaming video services could not be used.
Whle I have this opportunity to comment, the bathroom would be better served with an extractor fan as everything stays wet after using the bath/shower, including the toilet roll, which should be placed away from the radiator which gets wet with condensation.
The sunken bath, while being a 'great touch' can be difficult to negotiate for some people.
Support from Dart Valley Cottages, apart from phone calls, was poor. We had to chase instructions for anything we required but noone could be found to actually come out to the cottage.
This may look like we had an awful time, but if there had been no problem with the boiler we would have been happy with our stay and able to recommend Shippon Cottage and above scores would have been much better. However, unless the boiler issue is permanently resolved we would not recommend this cottage.
