10/10 Excellent
Kate S.
17 July 2021
Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy
Perfect location for a beach holiday
We had a very pleasant stay at River Cottage, and would definitely recommend it for families wanting to visit this part of Dorset.
We had to pay for the property directly with Sykes who manage it on behalf of Dream Cottages, rather than through VRBO.
The property was easy to find from the directions, and has a key safe so access was very straightforward. There is parking for two cars behind the cottage in a shared driveway area used by another holiday let on one side, and owner-occupiers on the other side. The private garden, which is a lovely walled and private space, is accessed across this shared drive. This separation between cottage and garden wasn’t initially clear from the photos of the property, but once across the drive and through the garden gate it was secure for our dog.
There is a great kids playground in the field next to the property, and two lovely pubs an easy walk into the village. We ate at both and the food was excellent. Slightly further afield, the Hive Beach Cafe is fabulous especially for breakfast, and the Club House also had great food.
The cottage is walkable to the beach, but we drove as the kids are small and walk slowly! The carpark at Hive Beach is National Trust, and free to park for members. Hive Beach was very safe when we were there, with a small shore break and no rips or large currents. The kids had a great time (with wetsuits as the water was FREEZING).
The cottage itself was very clean and comfortable. The toilet smell mentioned by other reviewers on the Sykes website wasn’t a problem for us, so seems to have been resolved. There are blackout blinds on all the bedroom windows, and a hairdryer and nightlight are provided. The linens and towels were in good condition, and some welcome provisions were provided including hand soap, a loo roll and some dishwasher tablets. Despite dire covid predictions from Sykes, the cottage has not been stripped bare of every comfort.
The kitchen is well-provisioned, with everything we needed (even a knife sharpener). There are two comfortable sitting rooms, one with an enormous tv and a freeview box that we used to log into our Netflix and BBC accounts.
The cottage is let down by the mattresses, which are saggy and not comfortable. The cottage bedrooms get very warm on hotter days unless the windows are open, and the road noise is loud as there is no front garden - we had no problem sleeping through it as it isn’t hugely busy but YMMV.
Kate S.
Stayed 14 nights in Jul 2021
