Holiday Cottages In West Wittering

Reviews

What our customers say about their holidays

• Patricia - Verified booking

  Battery House has excellent views and a great location, but unfortunately the property itself leaves a lot to be desired and was very disappointing.

  The overall condition was poor and in great need of maintenance. On Sykes website, Battery House has 4 ticks/stars (Excellent condition throughout ) however, this was definitely not the case. There was a lot of damp throughout the property, particularly in both main bedrooms on floors 1 and 2, leading to large areas of flaking plaster and paint. The floor tiles in the main ensuite on level 2 were broken and taped up with grey tape. The wind whistled through the windows even when they were fully closed. The roof terrace looked beautiful in the photos on the website, but in reality, consisted of shabby furniture and lots of dead pot plants. Some of the furniture in the lounge was frayed and shabby and even the dining table only seated 6 people, even though Battery House accommodated 8, which meant we could not eat together as a family. Early in the holiday, we were without water and electricity for several hours. I made numerous calls to the owner which were unanswered and in desperation phoned Sykes. They also tried to contact the owner and the Housekeeper but were unsuccessful initially. We searched the house for a Fuse Box/Consumer Unit but couldn’t find anything. Eventually, Sykes were successful in contacting the owner and we were told a handyman would come to sort out the problem. When he eventually arrived, he went into a cellar, situated in a locked room on the ground floor and informed us that the dishwasher had tripped the fuse and we should not use it for the rest of the holiday, which was very inconvenient and annoying! I did not expect to spend my holiday washing dishes for 8 people, after every meal time. I didn’t hear from the owner while all this was happening, but she eventually rang on the morning of our departure and did finally apologise and inform us that a new dishwasher would be fitted the following week. I was offered a drinks coaster for the inconvenience. This was in no way adequate compensation for such an imposition on holiday. I booked this property so that my family could be together, beside the sea, to celebrate my husband’s 70th birthday. It was very disappointing and definitely not worth the exorbitant cost. I have since read the reviews posted in July and know that the owner and Sykes must have been aware of these issues. We have stayed in Sykes properties for many years and always been very happy with the quality and standard of them, however Battery House fell woefully short. I am unable to recommend this property and find it very disappointing and misleading that Sykes continue to classify Battery House as 4 Star/Ticks. I took a lot of photos of all the issues before we left the property and have forwarded them to Sykes. Sykes have told me they have tried repeatedly to contact the owner and have failed to get a response and that they are no longer able to assist in the matter. I am appalled at their response as I booked with Sykes because I thought they were a reliable company that I could trust.. I would upload my photos, but unfortunately there isn't an option to do that.

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• Stephen - Verified booking

  The location and sea views are fantastic, which impressed our Australian relatives staying with us for the week.

  Equipment and facilities good and beds very comfy. Could do with some tlc, redecoration and tidying up in places, as mentioned in another review by Denise on the website. Very disappointed central heating wasn't working, with no heating at all for first 2 and a bit days, which made the property very cold and uncomfortable, especially as it was November. We appreciated owners phone calls to resolve this and the offer for us to buy some electric heaters, which we'd be reimbursed for, as owner couldn't get plumber out till the Monday. I did get my oil radiator from home in Emsworth which helped a bit. Not the experience you want when being on holiday. Plumber came on Monday and resolved part repair, so nice and warm living room/kitchen area and two bedrooms below. No heating on all the other floors for the whole week so 2 bedrooms very cold. Leaking windows need sorting, poorly sealed so very drafty and noisy from wind and rain, which we had on Saturday and Sunday. I slept back in Emsworth Sunday, as the wind through bedroom windows was very loud due to the the gaps in the seals. Unfortunately it was a very strong wind directly from the wall elevation. The sea spray was coming over the wall giving an indication how strong it was. Kind regards Steve & Linda.

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• Paul - Verified booking

  Hi Rupert and Helen, thank you for the use of your lovely holiday home.

  We loved the lovely spacious open and roomy areas. The WIFI worked well in all areas, hot water was plentiful, beds clean and very comfortable. Bathrooms, showers, all to a very high standard, appreciated by all. On the other hand. On arrival we found all the locks stiff and difficult to turn on entry. Plus key labelling could help. Dirty or poorly cleaned crockery, cookware and frying pan handle had to be put back on, on arrival. Third double bedroom would benefit from some noise attenuation to reduce boiler/water pipes/shower. It disturbed my sons sleep. Also outside seating cushions were wet, the cover not keeping the water out. We have left them dry and in the Games room under the Bar billiards table. Back to the positive, nice to have toys and books for our granddaughter we spent a thoroughly good time having our first family holiday for a long time. The games room was a big hit. We also experienced the aurora borealis during the night of the solar storm this made an extra special experience in the garden. Thank you once again for the welcoming beers. We would have no problem recommending your holiday home to our friends, thank you, Kind regards. Paul Betty and family.

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• Douglas - Verified booking

  The property itself was good, and useable but with a number of caveats which may or may not affect your confidence in booking it.

  The twin bedded bedroom can only be accessed by passing through the double bedroom with implications for privacy in the double bedroom and requires users of the twin bedded bedroom to access the lounge and kitchen via the outside of the property if they are needing to avoid disturbing the occupants of the double bedroom. There was a complete absence of joining instructions other than the keycode combination and inaccurate keysafe instructions in the lid of the keysafe. In the absence of such instructions I had problems operating the keysafe to access the property, a day without hot water pending the owner providing instructions as to how this should be turned on and problems finding the name and password for the wifi as the owner had not provided these or given instructions on which of the various electronic boxes was the router or its location. This meant that I had a day of hassle whilst I contacted Sykes and the owner to get these issues resolved.

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• Irene - Verified booking

  We were 8 adults (4 couples, retired) staying for a week at Battery House.

  We never tired of the fantastic view and the shipping activity that could be seen clearly from the top floor living area of the property and the terrace above...stunning! We didn't mind the stairs therefore.The location was superb. An easy flat walk to The Historic Dockyard, and in the opposite direction to Southsea. Two couples didn't use their cars at all as there is plenty to do and see in Portsmouth. Anna, the owner, provided us with 3 additional books of Parking Permits at £30 each for the whole week and we felt that this was good value. Be careful filling the permits in at first as it's easy to make a mistake. The car park is only a few paces away from the property and we were able to unload almost right outside. We were able to contact Anna easily on her mobile phone if we needed assistance etc, thank you Anna, for your help during our stay. We had a wonderful week. Irene and friends

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