Frome, Somerset Cottage Retreat - nära Longleat / Bath / Cheddar / Stonehenge

Ample parking- could probably get 4 cars on the drive (depending on how wide your car is). The reason for the low rating is that the entire house stunk of damp. During the day I left my pyjama top on the bedroom floor (carpeted) and when I came to put it on at the end of the day, the entire top was damp. We tried to air out the property a bit on Friday afternoon but it was a persistent odour we couldn’t get rid of which made our entire stay in the house rather unpleasant.

Great stay, very spacious. Dogs loved it. The garden wraps around the property.

Our stay and checkin process was fine. When we left my son accidentally took a charger out of the power strip that was not ours (he was 12) and we headed to the airport back to the US. We were 3 hours into our trip east to heathrow and the manager called demanding that we stole the security system...she was taking info from the cleaning team and we finally figured out that it was the power block that a blink camera was plugged into. I offered to ship a new power block but we were leaving for the US and couldn't turn around for a 7 pound item..it was an honest mistake that we would gladly send a new one or money. The manager then started texting that we stole a thermostat off the wall and all these other things. We did not such thing and when I pushed back and kept calling she stopped answering and I never heard back. If you look at the fine print on this booking they charge a 100 pound refundable deposit which we then never got back and it was almost like they accused you of all that to keep the money. The inside was nice and pretty clean but the outside yard was so overgrown and unkept.

Whilst the advert said it had recently been refurbished, it has been, but to a basic standard. Only drawer space in 1 out of 4 bedrooms, very wobbly hanging clothes racks. No bedside lamps in 1 of bedroom as there was only 1 electrical socket on the opposite side of the room. The one and only wardrobe was smashed in and broken. The bedrooms had no chairs or hooks to put anything on. Poor quality dining furniture with very flimsy chairs and if 8 people were staying in the accomodation there would not be enough seating area. Kitchen utensils cheap and flimsy so hard to use and no scissors. There were a few safety issues; in the storage cupboard there was an isolator socket with tape on it and in one of the bedrooms a double lamp was broken and had no bulb in it but had live wires exposed. No towel rails in the bathrooms. The kitchen or somewhere else appropriate could do with coathooks to hang up wet coats. A welcome book would have been useful on how to use the cooker/stove/heating etc as well as to where the nearest doctor/hospital/nearest local shops could be located. Recommended places to visit/eat is always helpful. Although a large garden, it was much nicer once it had been cut, the rest of the outside of the house was very disappointing, and unkempt. Weeds in the drive and in borders as well as very dirty windows. In fact when we arrived we thought we had been scammed. What looked good on the site did not live up to expectations. A VERY narrow entrance to the drive.

Just what we needed for a family visit to Plympton