Cringoed House

We were asked to leave Cringoed Cottage the day after our stay, with no warning beforehand. The reason given was loud music after 11 pm, supposedly against the terms and conditions, but I couldn’t find that rule on the Sykes Cottages website. It also hadn’t been raised when the owner’s friend came by during my daughter’s 21st birthday celebration. My daughter said everyone could come inside, but he replied, “no don’t worry you guys enjoy yourself.” Later he became standoffish with one of the boys. That visit had happened at 2 am. The owner’s friend, a man we didn’t know, arrived clearly intoxicated and asked to use the hot tub, where a group of 20-21 year old girls were sitting. Another person turned up, and the friend got aggressive towards one of my male friends. He then falsely accused him of being aggressive, though my friend had only asked why the owner had come by so late. As we were leaving, the same man confronted another member of our group while he was sitting in a car, this time claiming he was staring at him. These encounters added a lot to our disappointment. We followed the request to leave, apologised for any inconvenience, and left the cottage tidy, with no damage apart from a broken glass. We initially decided to forget it and take no action because the whole thing had caused anxiety and stress. Then I was charged £350 for damage to a table. I had taken pictures of the house, but the supposedly damaged table wasn’t visible in the photo. The experience was horrific and left us feeling robbed of our money and our stay.

We had a great New Year at this house. The rain meant we couldn’t go out and explore, but there were plenty of board games tucked in cupboards and a gaming console to keep the children busy. With 18 of us, we had room to eat together in the dining room and spread out in the two living areas. The hot tub was ready as soon as we arrived. The house is full of ornaments and old pictures, which might not suit everyone, but they’re part of its character. It’s beautifully quirky and feels in keeping with its past. The bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchen all met our needs. Bedding and towels were fresh, the hot water worked, and the appliances, pots and pans were clean and ready to use. We had no complaints and would certainly return. Don’t let the negative reviews put you off.

After our six hour drive, the person described as the cleaner or maintenance worker let us in twenty minutes before check in. We thought that was a nice start. Before we went inside, though, we saw him walk over a large carpet in the side porch. It was soaking wet and smelled of cat urine. Since we could avoid that room, we tried not to let it spoil things. The house was old and dated, which we could accept, but it clearly hadn’t been properly cleaned. There were mouldy teabags in the complimentary biscuit jar, rubbish and empty cigarette packets in bedrooms, mould beside a bed, and bedding that smelled as if someone had slept in it with a sweaty head. Plates, cups and cutlery needed washing. The dining room drawers had odd dead animals, including bats, and there were cobwebs and dust all over the house. The hot tub seemed the best feature until its water started giving off a horrible musty smell after the first day, and the children got rashes. We tried to put it aside and enjoy our family weekend. The owner was quick and helpful during the stay, but things changed afterwards. Nine days after leaving, our refundable deposit still hadn’t arrived and I’d had no message. I emailed without a reply, then texted. The owner asked for my bank details to return it. Three days later, 16 days after we’d left, there was still no refund. When I contacted her again, she said the pool table had been graffitied and she’d tell me what happened if it didn’t come off. I was shocked, since we’d left the place cleaner than we found it, and it had taken 16-17 days to mention the alleged damage. I sent photos of how we left the house, including one of the pool table. The owner sent back pictures of marks that looked like chalk, which weren’t visible in my photo. She dismissed what I said and ignored messages from me and my sister-in-law. I emailed again and eventually heard that she couldn’t talk on the phone but I could call her brother. He didn’t answer either. We got the deposit back almost three weeks after the stay, minus £75 for damage we hadn’t caused. I hope that money goes towards a professional clean for the next guests. If you do stay, take photos before, during and after. And be ready to clean. Happy holidays, and expect to feel dirty by the end.

We spent the first part of our holiday cleaning the whole place so we could feel settled, even though we’d been told it was cleaned before arrival. After a six hour drive, that wasn’t a great start. There was mould on the wall by a bunk bed where children were sleeping, so we scrubbed it off. We also found boxed dead animals, including bats, in a dining area cupboard, cigarette packets in bedroom drawers, smelly bedding, and a soaked mat with a horrible odour. The lounge ceiling leaked and dripped on you. Kitchen appliances and cutlery were dirty, and we had to wash them again. There was even a mouldy teabag in the complimentary biscuit jar. The hot tub smelled awful and musty as soon as we lifted the lid, so I wouldn’t advise using it. We put up with the problems and carried on with the holiday. The pool table already had writing on it when we arrived, but we ignored it. Later, the owner tried to withhold our deposit, saying the cleaner had found the marks after we left. Our photo of the table showed only old looking chalk marks. After the dispute, we got the deposit back but £75 was kept. I hope they spend it wisely. If you decide to stay, take plenty of photos and bring cleaning products. My advice to the owner is to rethink the cleaner.