“The main issue as a driver was the location.”
The Ramblers is situated in a rural spot with access along quite narrow lanes at certain points where passing is only permissible at passing places. In that respect, as a driver, the location was challenging, and it wasn't pointed out in the listing. The ruralness of the property meant that, generally, it was reasonably quiet though sited on a small main road, there was noise from residents' traffic and working farmers. The property was, it seemed, under the flight path to Norwich Airport as there was quite a lot of aircraft noise, particularly in the early evening! There was noise from the owners' house, dogs barking, etc. but since the property was an annexe to the house this was inevitable though it didn't do anything to nurture the feeling of getting 'away from it all'.
The property itself was comfortable without being excessively so. The step up to the entrance didn't have those who are disabled - like my wife - in mind. On arrival, we were greeted by the owners' daughter, who was friendly, keen to help and explain what we needed to know. She was available if we needed help with anything. The facilities were OK. In the kitchen, all the necessary equipment was provided, the linen on the bed was clean and attractive (the bed was certainly comfortable) and the bathroom was, by comparison, with ours at home relatively spacious! We did have an issue with a dripping showerhead that we reported to Gemma. She said her mum had told her all we had to do was lift the showerhead higher, but that didn't work. The TV and, particularly, the availability of watching Sky was attractive for Mike as he is a sports fan! We would have liked to have used the DVD but only found this on the last morning, in a bedroom wardrobe. Diane in particular thought the information booklet would have benefitted from being updated. One section referred to a neighbour selling eggs. She hadn't for three years! There was a small selection of DVDs, none that we could see were particularly recent, though there was an interesting selection of books and quite a choice of games and jigsaws which was good. The fridge and deep freezer were in the entrance hall rather than the kitchen area but we didn't find that an issue. There was a large stain on the carpet leading from the entrance hall that could do with attention. The parking was on a gravel area alongside the family cars and we had to open and close double gates each time we left/arrived at the property to ensure the owners' dogs didn't stray onto the road. There were gardens with furniture in them we were told we could use but the summerhouse was full of equipment that meant we couldn't use that.
All in all, we enjoyed our stay and certainly were not offput by the Ramblers but we're unsure whether we would rush to return. Finally, and this is a little bugbear of ours, it would be nice to receive a welcome pack as part of the introduction to the property. There was tea, coffee, and a packet of biscuits and milk but we have been, perhaps treated too well, at other places in the past that provided other items such as eggs, butter and bread - and a few welcome choccies. Perhaps we're asking too much with that one!
We would like to respond to some of the points you have raised in your feedback. Unfortunately we are not responsible for the narrow roads or the flights from the local airport or local air bases - there is not a constant stream of flights over the property. The equipment in the summer house is the garden chairs and cushions which cannot be left out in the garden. The shower valve was replaced after you vacated the property and our daughter explained about the stain on the carpet. As we are open all year we will have to find a window of opportunity to replace the carpet when the annexe is free. As a gesture of goodwill we provide coffee, tea, sugar, milk and jams - the property is self catering and we are under no obligation to provide anything, especially foodstuffs due to potential allergies of the guests. On vacating the property you did not raise any of these concerns with our daughter in fact you stated to her that everything was fine.
Property Owner
