Casa Rural La Jara

The patio is lovely, with an above-ground pool that must be very pleasant in summer. You can park right outside, at least at the moment. The country house is very cute, clean, and has friendly staff. The only real drawback is that there are no services, not even breakfast. I'd also say they should put soap and shampoo in the bathroom, and there's no hairdryer.

The place itself is beautiful and peaceful, and the house is clean, with a spacious room. But the lack of professionalism was awful. The girl helping us seemed distracted by her exams and scolded a child in front of the guests, which made us uncomfortable. There wasn't any soap or even a plastic cup in the bathroom, and the bin had no liner. The electrical outlet was broken, the TV needed fixing, and the glass door to the patio had no blind. We didn't even ask whether breakfast was served. They did ask three times whether Booking.com might charge us through its website instead of them, which showed where their concern was.

Rooms are for two people, so children need to be included in the booking too. Children count as people, and not every room can take an extra bed, which isn't available all year. If a booking says two guests but three arrive, the extra person can stay only if there is space. If there isn't, and no other arrangement works, they won't be able to sleep there. Rooms are cleaned each morning. If someone is still in the room, we try to wait until they leave; guests who don't want or need a cleaning can just tell us. This is a rural house that rents individual rooms or the whole house, both options being allowed by the regulations, as is common in Spain. It also has a kitchen, living room, dining room, and a 300-square-meter garden. There is no barbecue because its use is prohibited throughout Spain in summer, especially in protected La Codosera, to safeguard the environment. We don't take credit cards, not because we don't want to, but because we're a small business. A larger place would be classed differently, such as a hostel or hotel, and could offer card payments. We also don't pass on the commissions charged by booking websites and agencies. We think those websites should earn money for providing a virtual space, and guests shouldn't have to pay those fees, so they save that money. For advance bookings, think of reserving a plane seat to destination X: you pay the full price at booking, including taxes, baggage fees, and extra weight, and that payment isn't refunded if something happens or you decide not to travel. More hotels are using this approach because customers make the booking themselves and are more likely to actually come, rather than making a fictitious reservation. At our rural guesthouse, payment on arrival is also possible when the booking is 100% confirmed. Not all rural accommodations provide bed linens or toiletries. We supply cotton sheets and towels, and we try to use renewable energy, such as wind power, for cleaning.

The room had plenty of space, but it was very hot and there wasn't even a fan. Wi-Fi was weak, and the password didn't work in the shared areas. There was barely any hand soap in the bathroom, the toilet bowl was dirty when we arrived, and the towels were very old and scratchy.