Self-catering luxury holiday cottages in the UK & Ireland

The heating had not yet come on when we arrived on the dot at 4pm - the place was very cold. We had to have the heating on permanently for 24 hours and use the wood burner to get it up to temperature. One spare toilet roll, no spare bin liners, no salt and pepper. Rubbish bins dumped into a hedge nearby. There is wifi but the access code is not given anywhere. Some of the local info is years out of date (like 5 years or so!). Probably a different experience in the summer. Convenient location and tidy enough, hence the 'good' award - but we wouldn't go again as despite an apparent recent decorative upgrade we didn't think it was up to the overall Rural Retreats standard.

Cottage Excellent , beautiful surroundings. Rooms comfy & warm.
Christmas tree was a bit pathetic !

Housekeeping service inadequate. Christmas period but no cleaning products at all, spare kitchen towel/ toilet paper left. 1 dish cloth & 2 tea towels I had to wash . No filter papers for coffee machine etc . I had to go out Boxing Day & purchase these myself . Very disappointing in this respect.

Cottage was lovely and very comfortable. It was obvious that many upgrades had been made. Location was convenient. However, it was difficult to find the cottage with only a very small sign at the bottom of a wall. Parking was difficult. In addition, stairs inside and out were extremely steep and difficult for an elderly person or a child.

The holiday cottage was delightful and we would have no hesitation in recommending it. However when we arrived two alarms - smoke and carbon dioxide - were sounding, indicating their batteries needed replacement, and we had to disable them. We also had a major ant infestation the first night, which we dealt with using the ant powder that had been provided, and the bathroom sink cracked when being filled. These are only minor, but we do feel the batteries on the alarms should have been replaced prior to our arrival, as they were very likely sounding for some time.

This was my third stay in this lovely cottage. There has been some updating of the facilities since my last stay there. A charming comfortable cottage in a brilliant location. I would certainly return and continue to recommend it.

Catalpa cottage is very nice, but really could use a bit of touching-up here and there (chipped paint in upstairs hall and on stairwell, a few lamps didn't work (in the lounge) and a few 'homey' touches here and there would make a difference (some pictures in the hallway and master bedroom, perhaps). But overall, we enjoyed our stay there very much! (Parking is difficult with anything bigger than a compact car - but we did manage!) Also, we tried to find the trash bins and just couldn't locate them anywhere.

As regular Rural Retreats customers we were looking forward to the stay and have grown accustomed to a level of quality from the properties.

The house was lovely as usual however there were a number of factors which did not in my opinion reach the usual Rural Retreats standards.

When we arrived, the welcome hamper was not of your usual standard - the bread was a loaf from co-op rather than from a lovely local bakery of which there are 2 in Tetbury. It appeared everything was from Co-op, the fruit bowl was some bruised apples and a plum, the biscuits were Fox's Viennesse rather than your usual local packet and there was no butter instead a dairy free margarine.

The flowers were already half dead and the dishwasher had not been emptied. There was only the bin bag which was in the bin and so we had to buy more. I would expect one spare bin bag in the property and assume you would too.

The shower gels in the shower were half full, making it feel less luxurious and making you feel like you were using someone else's!

When it came to the bins, when I went to empty it into the outdoor bins I found the outdoor bins had been chucked into a hedge and one forced into the other. I had to pull them out and then could not release them. There were no recycling boxes available.

On arrival we found it hard to find the property, not helped by the sign being overgrown and so you could not see it. We asked for an extra bed linen and found the house keeper unhelpful and not keen to assist.

We had a lovely weekend but the things noted above are not what I would expect of Rural Retreats.

Cottage now tired. Cold when we got there. Dishwasher faulty. Beds too soft.

Poor maintenance, dirty windows, general lack of care by owners, outdated appliances, dangerous steps down to cottage, etc, etc. Time for an upgrade

We had to abandon our Easter break at catalpa cottage. It needs a deep clean, some new pans, some decoration and new carpet. Very disappointing and not up to the standard of the cottages we have hired from RR in last 14 years. RR were v professional and refunded our money . Not recommended

The fridge was not very clean, had missing shelves, with one shelf unstable, therefore we had to pile up the food. In our opinion a new fridge is required.

The cottage required better dusting.

Being Christmas we wished to watch some TV - this did not work well with the picture continually breaking up. The radio aerial did not exist - so we could not get FM.

Two radiators were not working - one of which gave out no heat at all.Towel rail in en suite did not work.

Heating remained on despite being off on the control panel.

Several light bulbs were not working, and one bedside lamp didn't work despite us replacing the bulb.

This was an 8 day stay over Christmas - and we left the comfort of our home to celebrate, going with Rural Retreats we expect a higher standard of cottage, particularly paying £1400.

Beautiful cottage and everything inside lovely. Only one complaint - we were an elderly group and found the steps down to the front door quite hazardous. they need to be made safer (for kids too) and a rail put in place.

Housekeeper very helpful.
I have already spoken with the office as there was a short list of items to alert them to - need for minor repairs.
Parking arrangements are not good - there is a narrow entrance to a gravelled area - not adequate for two cars. We damaged our car on reversing out. Road parking is possible and is a very short distance away - should be recommended.
Steps are uneven and need re-surfacing - also better lighting as they descend to the front door between stone walls.

Clean, comfortable and charming fully equipped retreat with nature on the doorstep.

So stylish and sleek interior, and so peaceful

Cottage was clean and tidy and Harold was friendly and helpful.

A leak in the roof spoilt one night as it fell on bed and caused problem with wet duvet and continual dripping whilst it rained outside. Otherŵise lovely.

A top class holiday property for two people. The owner, who lives almost next door was a fund of local information - helpful but not intrusive.
Would go there again.

Good location, although a little tricky to find. Very comfortable with nice amenities. Space is a little quirky.

The HopKiln was great and the walled garden a real sun trap with lots of butterflies and a very friendly robin.
The owner was very welcoming and informative about the local area.

One of the best cottages we have stayed in

having confirmed with the owner the date and time of our arrival we were very disappointed on arrival to find that the property had not been cleaned since the last letting more than a week before - food that had gone off in the fridge - pots in the sink - dead flowers on the table and the whole property requiring cleaning. The owner did arrive and was very apologetic but this did not make up for the disappointment. Despite the bad start it is a very pleasant property.

Hamper did not contain items listed . Cleaner had not moved furniture - when we slighyly moved a chair we found rubish fronm aprevious tenant. Difficult to make contact for the key. Involved 5 phone calls

couple of potential issues: sound of mice or similar in skirting in bedroom, and bees nesting in the door jamb at entrance door: could be problem for future residents. Plus could do with new sun umbrella-one in situ seen better days!

An excellent cottage - everything as per the website if not better.

Charming annexe to Tudor hall. Well equipped and lovely location.

Kitchen & conservatory in need of refurbishment

Beautiful place, definitely recommend it

We have stayed in many Rural Retreats properties over the years, but this was undoubtedly the grandest! Super accommodation and a great garden to enjoy as well.

fantastic property in a wonderful location, great facilities and lots of history

First class holiday accommodation with friendly and helpful owner

Lovely property, clear directions, generous welcome pack and firewood provision. A great new year - thanks to all