Haul y Bore

The beds were very comfortable, and we couldn't fault the place. Our group of 6 adults and a chilled boxer rented haul y bore over Christmas. The kitchen was great and fully equipped for making our festive food, and the hot tub was a welcome bonus, though its area could have been made more of a feature. It exceeded our expectations, and we all agreed we'd visit again. An absolute gem.

The location worked well for local attractions, and the heating was excellent everywhere except the lounge. It's a warm, roomy house with a large driveway and beds for 11 across 5 bedrooms, plus 4 bathrooms. But the dining table only seats 8 and the lounge fits 6 or 7. The soft beds squeak, though there are plenty of them. The huge hot tub stays at 40 degrees and you can't adjust it. It's covered, but getting to it means crossing muddy paving and concrete with leaves on it, with no deck or mats. Bring sliders or flip-flops, since dirty feet can leave bits in the water. There's no hall doormat either, so leave shoes outside. The garden has a building site next door, so kids shouldn't play unsupervised. There's also a stream at the bottom, which needs supervising too. There were plenty of bath towels but no hand towels. Soap, shower gel and washing-up liquid were supplied, but only 2 dishwasher tablets, one tea towel and no washing machine detergent, so bring those. The kitchen was otherwise good, though it needs a chopping board, baking trays, new cutlery, a draining rack and more glasses. Don't wait for a message with the key safe code, they don't send one. The key is left under a plant pot. Check-in at 4pm and checkout at 10am seems extreme, though it is a big house to clean and the hot tub needs cleaning, refilling and heating each time.

DO NOT BOOK!! We wanted a last-minute break at haul y bore for peace, quiet and a hot tub with a view. Two days before we arrived, we called and were quoted £120 a night, not the advertised £110. We thought that was reasonable for the hot tub and swim spa, so we paid and booked. We'd seen the reviews but assumed people mostly write to complain. We learned the hard way. As instructed, we called at midday before setting off on our 3-hour drive, and were told everything was fine. We were told to collect the keys at the four seasons Hotel. When we arrived, Mr Davies, wearing a dirty jumper with what looked like food on it, was completely unprofessional. He said there was a booking problem and he'd tried to call that morning. That's odd, since we'd called at midday and heard no mention of a problem. He offered a luxury 5-star apartment instead. We said we had booked a quiet hot tub break, not an apartment in town. He assured us it had a private hot tub. In the back office, I heard him and another lady saying, "we can put them there, we can shove them in there and we can change them to there" while pointing at the diary. We went to look at the apartments. They were modern inside, but nothing like what we'd booked, and right on the front. When I asked where the hot tub was, he pointed through the window to a fenced-off area at the end of the car park. We'd have had to walk there in swimwear, with the surrounding apartments and buildings looking on. I asked if it was private. He said yes, then admitted other guests might use it, but might not. We left and requested a refund. We booked at the hotel across the road, whose staff said this was notorious. They said the owners have four properties there, including the four seasons, and that they regularly get guests whose rooms are bad, who didn't get what they booked, or who are told there's no record of their booking and turned away. They told us an elderly couple in their 80s had once been turfed out in tears and left stranded. DO NOT BOOK HERE, con artists, this should not be allowed.

AVOID!! We booked this cottage months in advance for New Year's Eve for me and the mrs, choosing it specifically for the hot tub. When I booked, I checked that it worked and was told it was fine. There was no word from the property beforehand, so the day before I called to ask about the keys and confirm everything. It all seemed okay. The place was a 3-hour drive away. Just as we were about to leave, we got a call saying there was a leak and we couldn't stay. This was only 2 hours before check-in on New Year's Eve. I offered to wait an hour before setting off, giving them 4 hours to fix it, but they insisted we couldn't stay and offered a hotel room, which we declined. Why wait until so close to check-in, and on New Year's Eve, to tell us about a leak? The service was really poor throughout. I'd advise people to avoid it and the owners to get their act together, as I've now seen similar reviews.