Cottages That Sleep 8 In Yorkshire

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Nigel - Verified booking

  Seven of us have just stayed here for a week and had a wonderful time.

  It is nice and secluded, though the owners live in the attached annex and were very quick to fix some of the teething problems we found. The house is beautifully appointed with good quality soft furnishings and tasteful decorations. The grounds are extensive and well manicured, with a huge lawn at the back just perfect for the roaming wildlife (deer, squirrels, peacocks....) to make an appearance. The nearby brand-new holiday park has a lovely bar which is just a couple of hundred yards stroll away. They will also be opening a shop soon. The kitchen is particularly well stocked, the mattresses and pillows are very comfortable and the bathrooms have lovely, large fluffy towels. There is plenty of private parking right at the front door, and the drive to Scarborough seafront is less than 10 minutes. We would highly recommend Raincliffe Manor to anyone considering renting it. I realise that this was the first year of letting Raincliffe Manor by the new owners, so I offer constructive criticism regarding some of the minor teething problems we observed: * we struggled to get the heated towel rail in the master bedroom and the radiators throughout the house to come on when we needed them. After numerous complaints, we were eventually told that they are specifically set to not be on all the time - which would explain our frustrations with them. It would be better if the occupants were told this up front, or even better had control of the timers for this. Also, once the aforementioned heated towel rail DID come on, it was impossible to turn it off - because the knob became incredibly hot as it was very smooth metal and required numerous turns. It needs a heat-resistant coating (or a glove nearby) and markings so that you can tell when you are turning it. * the gas fire in the lounge is lovely, but when it gets hot and you need to turn down the control you have to remove the very hot metal front cover! Again, a glove would help. * we reported a massive leak of water in the rear porch during heavy rain - the owners strangely did not respond. * we reported the kitchen being dark over the sink area due to 2 bulbs being out - the owners did not respond (though, to be fair, they did about another dead bulb). * people have lots of chargers and power cords these days and so need lots of power sockets. We reported this to the owners and suggested that a few extension strips would have helped....but there was no response. Converting the numrous single sockets to doubles would be a more permanent solution. * the downstairs toilet is right beside the kitchen and could use an automatic door closer to stop smells travelling in there (I did suggest a room spray, which was brought round immediately). * the parking area and front stairs were pitch black and thus dangerous when we returned one evening. We mentioned this to the owners and they very quickly got electricians in to fix a non-working outside light. Sadly, this had a mind of its own and was not always on when needed, and we were not told how to control it. * the no-shoes policy which greeted us was not unreasonable, given the excellent state of the light-coloured carpets, but I don't recall receiving advance warning of this to prompt everyone to bring slippers (apologies if I missed this in the numerous emails sent by Sykes). * the 'welcome basket' in the kitchen was a very decorative touch but, after a long journey, some basics like tea; coffee; milk; bread & butter would have been more appreciated than a watermelon ;) We had to make a trip to the supermarket before we could make a brew. * we would have liked to try some of the walks in the massive nearby woods - some guidance on that would have been appreciated, as locals surely know the best options. * the shower in the master bathroom was quite complex (though nice) - some instructions would have helped. * the bath in the family bathroom had just a handheld shower - it would be so much more useful with somewhere to hold that on the wall plus a curtain (to save the floor getting wet). * a brush for scrubbing the dishes in the kitchen sink would be useful (and a rectangular bowl would be so much better than the round one).

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• Olga - Verified booking

  The property itself was lovely, however, ten minutes before leaving we were contacted by Mark (the owner) claiming we had damaged the hot tub two nights previously.

  It was not clear to us why Mark did not discuss this directly with us at the time. Mark claimed that we had broken a piece off the hot tub and that this would cost £500 but that he was willing to reduce this to £250. I discussed with the group who confirmed they had not broken the hot tub piece and we were luckily able to provide time-stamped photos showing that this piece was missing on our arrival. We assumed this would be the end of it, however, Mark refused to accept these photos and over the next few days, we were contacted repeatedly by Mark over the phone, at 10pm at night as he continued to push his narrative that this was our fault and try to get us to accept the blame and pay the fee (despite the photos). Mark suggested the only solution was to go to court if we did not pay the money and he suggested we could not leave a negative review in light of the fact the property was clean. In addition to the above, we were told we would be charged for four broken glasses in the property itself (which would be covered under ordinary wear and tear in all other properties we have stayed in - of which there have been many). It's a shame as the property itself was lovely, however, we would not stay at the Retreat or any other property owned by Mark again.

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• Diana - Verified booking

  To The Manor Born!

  If you fancy playing at Lord and Lady of the Manor, then this is the place for you. Relax on the rear terrace and survey your manicured grounds in peace and tranquility. The garden is just amazing. Enjoy the squirrels scampering across the grass, the little moorhen pottering about. Listen to the wonderful birdsong with the occasional bray from Dotty the donkey. Wander through the magical paths of your private woods to discover the sheep. And last but not least, marvel at the colours, splendour and magnificence of the resident peacock. The owners genuinely want you to enjoy your surroundings and be happy. They are generous, funny and very thoughtful. "Make yourself at home." They are there if you need them but in no way intrusive. The manor has every gadget you would need; it's very clean, comfortable and luxurious. Top quality bedding and furniture. Netflix, table football and lots of games in case it rains. Fantastic location to explore Scarborough, Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay, etc. but to be honest, I just wanted to stay in the gardens and woods all day. Major fault with the holiday though was that we had to leave! Ha, ha. Book it. You won't be disappointed.

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• Mr Marsden - Verified booking

  This is a great house in a lovely part of Whitby. The tall terraced house has lots of room spread over four floors. We particularly liked the lounge with its views over Whitby and the kitchen which is well laid out for a group of friends to cook together and chat. We also used the front terrace a lot and enjoyed the steam train going by a few times a day. The house is close enough to town to pop in to get provisions and is no more than 15 minutes walk to one of the best beaches in the U.K. Railway chippy did excellent fish and chips. The Cod Roe is an excellent local fishmonger just a few minutes walk away. The local cycling is excellent. Hilly but roads in good condition. The cinder track to Scarborough is great and is quite flat and ideal for a mountain or gravel bike. Would also recommend the Bull Inn in Ugthorpe and any of the Esk Valley villages of Egton, Grosmont, Goathland, Lealholm, Sleights, Ruswarp (good garden centre and cafe) etc. Coastal villages of Staithes, Sandsend and Robins Hood Bay are great but loads of others to visit.

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• Nathan - Verified booking

  Stunning property, Mark and Joanne the owners we're equally helpful and always there if we needed anything.

  We hire group houses pretty much every year over the new year period, honestly the best one yet. Truly beautiful property in beautiful surroundings. Really close to Hebden Bridge, bus stop literally right at the end of the driveway with hourly busses right into the village so highly recommend doing that if you want a drink, the other way goes into Keighley which we only went to to do a food shop but apparently there's load to do there too. Internet and mobile service weren't super fast, but we had no problem streaming films/TV so long as everyone else wasn't on the wifi. Most of the houses we've stayed at have the same problem when theres load of us all on the internet at once though so it's not anything we were fussed about to be honest. Bond was also returned in full on the same day so no issues there. Mark may aswell have kept hold of the deposit because we'll deffo be back..!

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