What items to take when booking stay at holiday cottage

[Jedimastermama]

Sorry if this is wrong Section.

But we are going away Christmas and decided to book a cottage over Christmas period.

They have high chair and cot at cottage. Sorry if I’m being dim, but is that an actual cot or will it be travel cot? We have our own travel cot which my LO isn’t keen on.

In terms of kitchen bits, do I need to take pots and pans, cups etc....
OH making Christmas dinner, so I want everything to go smoothly so as I can enjoy day off cooking! Yep he doesn’t cook much during the year.

I’d appreciate any suggestions on what items to take, I’ve started to make my own list. We plan to do a big food shop on day we arrive.

Thank you 😊

The house will have pots, pans, crockery and cutlery. But the variety of kitchen equipment can vary massively. I've stayed in places where they only had one 'sharp' knife (which was actually blunt) but I've also stayed in places where if I had decided that I wanted to bake a cake, everything that I would have needed would have been available.

The cot might be a travel cot or an 'actual' cot; again, I've seen both.

If you're hoping to cook Christmas Dinner it might be worth just emailing the owner and asking what is actually there and what you'll need to bring.

In my experience if a cottage comes with a cot it's a travel cot and depending on the age of your child maybe too small. We have always taken our own.

The kitchen should be fully stocked for the number of people that the cottage holds, depending on how much you want to cook for one meal you may need extra equipment. Often the cottage companies have a list of what's included on their website.

Check with the owners if the cot is a travel one - it probably is as people without babies don’t want a full cot cluttering up a bedroom.

Yes there should be a fully equipped kitchen but we always take foil, cling film, extra tea towels and washing up gloves as often you don’t get those things and I like having them. Might only be limited loo roll so you might need that.

I would take knives, big foil trays for potatoes, turkey etc, decent peeler, gravy jug, chopping boards (I hate glass ones with a passion so take my own). Foil, cling film, decent salt & pepper.

I have rarely stayed anywhere well enough equipped to pull off a Christmas dinner, at least with ease. If you get there and there's only one baking sheet and no trays it's going to be difficult!

I agree, email the owner to check on the equipment. I've had s/c accommodation varying from truly amazing - it was a proper middle class family home by the seaside, Farrow and Ball, De Longhi toaster and kettle etc, through to one saucepan, one wooden spoon, and some bits of crockery and cutlery. That was it. The only thing I could have 'cooked' would have been something in a tin like ravioli in tomato sauce.

I always take my own sharp knives and a washing up kit whatever.

Oh and if you're taking a turkey make sure the oven is big enough to accommodate it!

As previous posters have said, it can vary hugely depending on the cottage. At some it's literally a saucepan, a frying pan, 4 places settings of cutlery and crockery, a wooden spoon and a sharp(ish) knife. At others, it looks like the entire contents of my grandmother's kitchen cupboard and every pan she's bought since 1965 are stuffed away (and some not particularly clean).
It's not common to find decent knifes (that would be the single thing I always take, even for a short stay), kitchen scales, baking tins for cakes, foil, baking paper etc. And usually you only get one or two tea-towels - you might need more for Xmas dinner.
Take / buy oils and spices / herbs etc - I never fancy the ones that are there as you don't know how long they've beeen sitting there.
As for the cot, I would say a travel cot is much more common, and no, they're not very comfortable.

Thank you for all your replies. I’m glad I posted on here now, your replies have been very helpful and got me thinking and adding to my list.

As others have said - ask the owners. We have a holiday cottage in Brittany, and I send out a full inventory of everything in the kitchen with every booking. I've also sent out photographs of baby gear we have over the years, I don't mind a bit - I'd much prefer parents knew what was here and were less stressed about it!