“Overall this is a lovely cottage.”
Comfortable, spacious, clean and quite well equipped. Inside is gorgeous although a couple of minor observations - the TV must be 20 years old. It's not a smart TV so couldn't log into any of my digital services which means a very limited offering of channels. The picture isn't great either. The information posted on the wall in the hall is completely out of date as it says that there is no internet in Oxen cottage. We found a router in the kitchen but because of the information sheet and the fact there was no ethernet cable or password on the back we didn't believe we had internet. We couldn't contact the owner so contacted Sykes. The owner came back to us next day to say there is indeed internet but the password was on the bottom of the router. Once connected the internet is very good and reasonably fast but would have been good to have up to date info in the first place. In fairness the owner wasn't very well at the time we visited. The other thing is the garden furniture - it is literally falling apart and very old/uncomfortable. Which is a pity given that the other properties all have really lovely smart modern garden furniture. These are only minor things though and overall we had a great time. The cottage is generally lovely and the farm is beautiful. The bed linen and towels are spotless and of good quality and everything in the cottage with the exception of the wine fridge works. Not sure why other people have complained about flies - the weather was very hot when we were there and we had no particular problem with flies or indeed any farm smells. They did provide a fly spray and some very good fly screens on the french doors which may have helped? We would especially recommend The New Inn in Upper Seagry. We had Sunday lunch there which was divine (you need to book but they are very good with e-mail) and we ate there again on the Friday night which was fabulous. It's very much a "real" pub used mainly by locals and it really is lovely.
Hello Diane, Many thanks for your constructive feedback. I am pleased to read that you found the cottage lovely, the farm beautiful and the local pub got a tick in the right box also. There are some elements to your review that do disappoint but also need some clarification for readers. I accept your point that the TV is not entirely up to date, it is however flat screen with full freeview channels available. I often have to ask myself when the right time is to change items that aren’t broken and still serve the purpose they're intended for. However, I shall consider updating the TV although technology is hard to keep up with these days. The garden furniture is 3 years old, is all weather rattan material and I can see no reason why you feel it is falling apart and old? Oxen cottage is our entry level cottage and yes, other larger more premium properties on the farm do have furniture suitable for the pricing of the property. However, we never detract from quality regardless of price.
Lastly, the internet; The general information on the wall as you enter is very broad to cover all aspects of the property and farm in general. Oxen Cottage is the last to be connected to the internet relatively recently. The cottage is advertised as having internet, the cottage has internet and the flashing router that sits prominently on the kitchen counter is clear to see even if that small aspect on the information sheet is dated. You stayed whilst i was suffering with covid hence keeping a low profile. You called and left a voice message; I returned that call within 5 minutes with no answer and your phone does not offer a voice mail service so I followed up with a text message all within 5 minutes of your call. The following day sykes called to ask about the internet and they too tried to return your call but could not get through. I then tried calling the secondary number on your booking, again with no answer and no voice mail service and I followed up with a further text message which you received, and the situation was resolved. I feel that as hosts and given the circumstances we did all we could in a swift and professional manner. That said, you clearly had a lovely time here with beautiful weather baring the couple of niggles mentioned. You are certainly welcome as always to return and we'd be happy to see you. Martin
Property Owner
