To ask you how you go about choosing a holiday cottage?

[Movinghouseatlast]

My disclaimer is that I am setting one up! It is an annexe attached to my house.

There seems to be so much choice of area I don't know how anyone makes a decision!

So do you pick a general area, or a specific place? Eg Cornwall, or a specific village.

In terms of cottage companies, do you stick with one and look at every suitable property? Or look at loads of companies?

Is price most important? Or a view? Or the interior?

Mine is very high end (luxury dare I say) inside, big log burner, massive furnished terrace but we don't have a sea view. Next door has a sea view, but is very basic (but lovely) inside. We are more expensive as I have compared our house with nearby ones with similar interiors and facilities.

Is it important to you to be able to walk to a village/pub/beach? You can from ours, but some of the most popular cottages in my area are a drive from anywhere at all. Yet they are expensive and booked all year round- and don't have additional facilities to mine.

I am.just trying to get my head round it all. I want to get my pricing right and give people a fab experience.

Thanks.

We used Sykes last time ( as a family) and I would use them again. We were looking for Cornwall and because it was school hols couldn’t get into a fishing village and liked the idea of Bodmin Moor. It was great.

Interior, tasteful and not too shabby (check out North Norfolk cottages), no leather sofas (personal hatred). Parking is a must, and that is has broadband and and a decent sized Smart TV so we can log into Netflix. Good Reviews and if it takes dogs it’s a plus. We tend to use Sykes for cottages.

I use home away (owners direct) in preference to airbab. It has better search function as my minimums are king bed, dishwasher and parking. I then discount usually by a quick look at pics. Home away gives me the final price, whereas airbab add cleaning and other fees on top of initial estimate.

Don't be stingy with towels etc.
Wi-Fi is a must these days
Enough loo roll, dishwasher tabs, bin bags all helps

would you have your own website.fb page for property op?

Things that put me off are stupidly high deposits - trust me, Airbnb stupid service %, and advertising available £150 and when you out dates in it comes up more like £300!!

I use several different companies such as Sykes, Northumbrian Cottages and Gorgeous Cottages. Definitely use Air Bnb too, I wouldn’t specifically think of it as the bargain option.

I look for location primarily then look for the most luxurious and comfortable looking, based on photos and reviews.

I agree it’s so helpful when it is obvious what has been provided so I don’t end up bringing unnecessary stuff from home.

Also as a pp said Saturday to Saturday lettings. Friday to Friday is so irritating when you work Monday to Friday.

I look for a specific area and then narrow the search by:

Numbers of bedrooms
Child and dog friendly (really friendly, none of this "You must confine your dog to the kitchen" nonsense)
Decor and facilities - how good the kitchen / bathrooms etc look
Close to beach
Garden
Parking
Privacy
Sea view - am willing to pay more for this
Wi-fi
Good reviews

I have booked through agencies but if I see a cottage I like I always check whether the owner has a website or is on cottageguide.com or similar so I can book direct and not pay the agency booking fee. I saved £50 last year by booking direct. I've also saved money by owners kindly giving me a preferential rate for making a repeat booking directly with them.

We've stayed in a few with friends, both UK and in France...

What we look for:

• Two double bedrooms (or ones where twin beds can zip together)
• King size beds ideally
• Little extras are nice (a good number of dishwasher tablets, bin bag roll, plenty of towels, clean tea towels, cleaning clothes and spray etc). We like to clean up after ourselves but don't really want to bring our whole kitchen cupboard with us.
• Enclosed garden
• Parking for two cars
• Clean BBQ
• Dishwasher
• Enough chairs (around a table and in the lounge)
• We prefer an open plan kitchen and lounge as one of us loves to cook while the rest of us sit around :)

What would be helpful:

• Honesty tin for extra logs maybe with a suggested donation
• Washing machine
• A folder with appliance instructions in, bus info, local parking spots, places to visit and up-to-date takeaway (or local pub) menus.
• Clean baby stuff (if you're supplying it)
• A decent mattress in a travel cot, no baby likes to spend a week sleeping on a cardboard base.
• If you offer baby stuff and we request it, please supply it (we had this once and we were a cot short with no stair gate).
• Info about what can/can't be recycled in your area. We like to recycle fully and it's useful to know what is possible. Also to have somewhere we can put recycling in the property.

We have stayed in a property that was next to the owner's farm. We could look out one side and see their house. It was totally fine. Handy to have them close in case of issues but we didn't see them apart from key collection. They said hi, let us in and left us to it. Just waved in the direction of their house if we needed anything that wasn't in their info folder.

Oh and decent wifi. We prefer a smart TV so we can watch Netflix/NowTV providing the internet is good enough. At the very least we like to check online for attractions etc.

Oh and I forgot the number one thing for us. Large comfortable beds, no crappy hard mattresses, something medium and if there is a mattress topper, I’ll be back! We had the worst stay once because the owner who had the most lovely cottage had scrimped on the mattresses.

I choose a location first, e.g. Whitby. Then narrow down by how many people are going.

Then search for (my) essentials:
Parking
Wi-Fi
Dishwasher
Washing machine
TV & DVD player
Easy to clean floors (so I'm not stressing about the kids dropping food on cream carpets or something)
A garden or outside space is nice but not essential
Wouldn't want to be next to a busy road or stay anywhere with a pond (due to young kids)

I also tend to avoid places that look kind of fussy/old-people-ish in decor, but that's a personal thing.

I don't think the annexe thing would put me off but I would advertise as semi detached cottage.
I think you need to be clear about whether you will allow dogs or not. I think not allowing dogs will narrow your potential customers (in a dog friendly county like Cornwall by around half), but may also put non dog lovers off. I would rather pay a bit extra to take a dog and know that it would be put towards a more thorough clean. I would also like it to be clean when I article with my dog.
Other than that for me it would be walking distance to a pub/ shop cafe, nice walks nearby and then driving distance to the coast and other tourist attractions. I would love a nice view but would prob expect to pay at least £100 pw extra for that.

Minimum requirements:
Outside space
Parking
WiFi
My final list is more likely to have:
Outdoor play equipment
Netflix
Hot tub
Blackout curtains
Coffee machine

I wouldn't come back if:
Dirty
Insufficient towels
Lack of privacy

I wouldn't book anywhere where the reviews said that they couldn't have the heating on when they wanted, or if people had "loved meeting the owner's friendly dog"

Dog friendly with ample, secure garden. Often looking to bring multiple dogs as am holidaying with friends who also have one.

Enough double bedrooms for all guests and often enough bathrooms too. Again, as sharing with friends it can make it easier if everyone has their own bathroom.

Private parking.

Good WiFi.

Clean, modern decor. Anything that looks outdated gets rejected.

I would also be put off by owners next door but would also be very upset not to be told about it and then find out part way through the holiday.

What would bring me back again would be finding it clean and well stocked. My holiday being quiet, peaceful. Finding the appliances were all good quality, worked and were easy to operate. Including good entertainment options is a plus - Netflix, Apple TV, prime, sky - that kind of thing (not all of them). Beds and sofas being comfortable. Check in and out being easy. Feeling really welcome - so minimal 'rules'.

No dogs allowed (allergies), it's surprisingly difficult, narrows things down a lot!!

No footboard on the bed (we're tall)

I wouldn't mind being attached to the owners if there was somewhere my kids were free to play/make noise without me having to shush them.

Good luck!

We often use Sykes and search for pets not allowed (as I'm allergic) ...however they do allow guide dogs in ALL properties so we have to contact the owners to check whether any have ever stayed in their property.
Last place we booked had two double beds for up to 4 adults. The kitchen table only fit 2 people. It was perfect location though and never had dogs there. There wasn't any cupboard space for our food, and the oven stopped working after three days...
In a self-catering cottage there needs to be cupboard space..and a working oven!
Another place we stayed that wasn't booked through Sykes had a gas leak, and the parking space required a 24-point turn to get into!
Our priorities are definitely pet-free, parking space, kitchen cupboard space, and having a bath and shower.
I've just booked an apartment in a city and priorty for that was walking distance to supermarket and train station, as we won't have car, but do have tiny child. It's luckily 100% pet-free.

I look at a particular area. Needs to be walking distance to a dog and family friendly pub. The cottage must be dog friendly with enclosed outside space. Pref access to public transport. My DH travels a lot with work so we like to not use the car. Parking

We generally have a sea view

Comfortable large sofas. Good smart tv and WiFi. Good kitchen with full oven. with lots of pots and pans. Washing machine

In autumn/winter we like log burner as were used to one at home.

King size bed and single room for DS.

Good quality decor. Think John Lewis rather than Argos.

I look at a particular area. Needs to be walking distance to a dog and family friendly pub. The cottage must be dog friendly with enclosed outside space. Pref access to public transport. My DH travels a lot with work so we like to not use the car. Parking

We generally have a sea view

Comfortable large sofas. Good smart tv and WiFi. Good kitchen with full oven. with lots of pots and pans. Washing machine

In autumn/winter we like log burner as were used to one at home.

King size bed and single room for DS.

Good quality decor. Think John Lewis rather than Argos.

We have a holiday cottage attached to our farmhouse.

We don't allow dogs in a very touristy area that everyone says 'must allow dogs if you want bookings'

We are fully booked most of the year - mostly with return visitors, or via recommendation from previous guests these days.

The point I am making is you just have to work with what you have and what you are comfortable with and try and make it the best experience for people staying as you can.

Everyone wants something different, you just have to find your niche in the market.

I would strongly advise going with a proper letting company whilst you are getting established though. Have a look at ones operating in your area and get an idea of if you were booking a holiday which one would appeal to you and then go and talk to them. Yes they take their slice of the profit but they can often offer a really valuable service.

An almost identical property nearby to us does it themselves and doesn't get anywhere near the same number of bookings (we know them well and they are fine with this for personal circumstances - they need the flexibility).

Oh and we’ve stayed in an annexe before. If there’s a connecting door cover it with apiece of furniture. Otherwise fine.

Different people want different things, the most important thing is that when you arrive, the cottage is what you expected in terms of location, local amenities, decor etc so I would say that the more detail and information you can provide then the bigger the chance that those who visit will feel satisfied rather than disappointed

Ensure all photos are representative rather than misleading

Give exact and accurate distances to the nearest beach/shop/pub etc

No problem with an annexe, not bothered about high end, feel like you pay more for someone else’s idea of luxury! Important to us are:

WiFi
A large comfy sofa ( too many places have small uncomfortable ones)
It must be warm. Will now not book anywhere with only a log burner for heat as we cannot seem to keep them alight. Last place we froze, was awful!
Comfy bed in separate room as if all open plan guaranteed the fridge will keep us awake!
Not bothered re sea view.

I decide on area then search by keywords such as white company bedding. Not because I’m only wedded to that brand but because I figure if someone cares enough to have and list white company bedding they probably care about the same things I do and the place will have good beds, good bed linen, nice toiletries, useful kitchen equipment (like a tea pot and good coffee maker) - mind you I still always bring a sharp knife, good pan and cork screw with me anyway.

After that I look for a dishwasher, decent cooker, proper table and space to eat for everyone. Parking. WiFi. No unnecessary crap decor that could easily be broken by my kids accidentally. Good photos which look tasteful and like the place is nicer than home. I would rather stay at home than pay to stay somewhere less good...

I look for:

• high speed WiFi
• spotlessly clean and uncluttered
• parking
• v modern kitchen and bathroom
• no direct neighbours (so being next to your home would be a non starter for me)
• close to amenities such as little shop, pub and possibly railway station incase DH has to nip back to London for work during our stay, sometimes he only makes it for part of the week
• lovely scenery
• no busy roads
• walkable distance to beach (2 miles max) ideally but I'd settle for a 10-15 min drive in reality as long as there's parking!
• importantly, I read reviews v carefully and they always influence my decision
• price, I wouldn't book a cottage if it was more expensive than a 3 bed centre parcs lodge unless it meets and exceeds all the above

Can I tell you what not to have? Sorry to do it that way round but we have had lots of experience

Don’t have cream carpets in the bathroom

Don’t have an axe above the fireplace
Don’t have a glass coffee table
Don’t have a kitchen with nowhere to put actual food
Don’t have a glass chopping board
Don’t have upstairs windows at toddler height with no lock
Don’t have horizontal bannisters so that ridiculous toddlers can climb over them (vertical bars please)
Make sure the single beds are as comfortable as the double (king size I hope) bed- adults may well need to sleep in them!
Don’t put one dishwasher tab under the sink.
Don’t have carpets! No really.
Don’t expect people to clean enough so you don’t need a cleaner !
Put some basic like salt and pepper and vinegar in the cupboards.

If there’s room put a truckle bed or zed bed under one of the beds. We have three kids and this is a few hundred pounds different if we have a 2 bed or 3 bed if one can sleep in our room.

My favourite holiday cottage had a Flash Gordon pinball machine in the games room - beat that