“Nick and Jo are very pleasant hosts and The Barn is in a beautiful remote country setting.”
However, in our experience of Sykes Cottages, this property falls well short of the usual 5 tick standard. Inside is very ordinary and uninspiring; dated rather than rustic. A few chipped glasses and crockery, and a broken cupboard door, along with a partially blocked sink suggested a lack of attention. An upside down property usually promises views from the living area but, in this case, just more frequent stair climbs, not welcome after the approx. 50 yard walk with bags from the car park. The 6pm check in and 9am checkout also came as a shock and we were grateful to Nick for allowing us in from 5pm. However, even with Covid, I question the need for those timings, especially when guests are expected to take rubbish and recycling about 500 yards (yes, five hundred) to the bins the night before departure and bag up all the laundry before leaving. Overall a disappointing experience and money poorly spent, which has somewhat dented my faith in Sykes. And that's before mentioning the dead mouse under the oven which, as Nick said, can happen in rural locations.
- Stephen, September 2021
Thank you for your feedback. The Barn is as described, albeit was redecorated upstairs last winter, together with new curtains. The kitchen and bathrooms have recently been rebuilt. The most recent change is the addition of a portfolio of original photographs of rural Devon from the 1980s by local photographer, Ski Harrison. There is a new smart TV. So, your comment has surprised the owners, nonetheless they are sad that they haven't got it right and will redouble their attention to make sure the Barn is as good as possible.
We do understand that the dead mouse would have indeed marred your trip, and the owners are dreadfully sorry that this happened, albeit had they known earlier, they would have removed it sooner (it was at the back of a cupboard, so virtually impossible to have been missed by the cleaners at changeover). It is reasonably rare but not an unpredictable possibility that we get an occasional unwanted little visitor at this time of year in the countryside, but most unfortunate that it wasn't detected.
The owners found one wineglass with a crack but haven't managed to find the chipped crockery. The owner was aware of a loose cupboard handle which needed replacing and is sourcing a new fixing. There was no sign of any blockage in any of the sinks. The owners regularly check the traps, and their cleaners notify them with anything like that during the changeovers.
The Check in and Check out times have been amended, with a slightly earlier check in and slightly later check out time. These times reflect the ongoing need to carry out a Covid clean, which is more time consuming than in the past but one which the housekeepers are now more adapted to.
The owners ask guests to drop their waste at the end of the driveway, to ensure regular collection as per the new recycling system in the South Hams. Most guests drop it off on their way out for any excursions on a Thursday, or on the Friday morning when vacating the property.
Property Owner
