Aldrich Cottage

Very happy family stay over long weekend early July.

We had very pleasant, comfortable week in Aldrich Cottage.

The location is peaceful and ideal for visiting Bath (the Park and Ride is 15 minutes away), Wells, Cheddar Gorge, and Lacock.

It was very roomy and warm.

Plenty of room for eight people. Very quiet too. Lots of basics were provided such as tea coffee milk. They even left us a welcome bottle of wine. How lovely was that. I would just like to say that a new kettle is needed, the lid doesn’t close properly and therefore it leaks when you pour and could be a scalding hazard. We had a great stay and it was very near to all the places we wanted to visit.

The cottage was exactly what we needed for our little Christmas break.

The location was perfect, lovely walks. We were very impressed with the small details, Christmas tree with lights, decorations, wine, Christmas crackers, serviettes and tablecloths..... even some festive tea towels. All were very much appreciated, and we all had a great time, thank you.

Lovely sized cottage, perfect for a group of 6 but probably not for any more than that.

...we were 6 so it was spot on.....We had a problem with their being no hot water on one of the days, however on reporting the problem with the contact given this was all fixed and working again within half an hour so no complaints about that ( things do go wrong nothing you can do, but the speed at which it was resolved is the important thing). The property is very well equipped and although a little tired in places and possibly in need of a little bit of modernisation, it is still priced exceptionally reasonably (it is an old property and this should be borne in mind) Location is great if you love the outdoors, walks etc and the grounds are lovely with outdoor seating areas etc. The local pub ( the Jolliffe Arms ) is great and can be walked to in around 30 mins.

The cottage was excellent and suited our needs completely.

The cherry on the cake was the surroundings, the grounds were peaceful and beautifully cared for. Being interested in natural history the trees, plants and grounds generally were great, we even found some interesting plants and birds. We hope to return again next year.

We enjoyed a lovely weekend at Aldrich Cottage.

We were 6 adults, which was perfect. (8 might have been a bit of a squash, but 7 would have been fine too.) The bedrooms were large, clean and comfortable, all with en suites. The dining area and living room were not as small as we had expected, and suited our needs perfectly. There was an extra large fridge/freezer, in addition to the one in the kitchen, so there was plenty of space for our food. Yes, there was limited cupboard space in the kitchen, but there were shelves in the pantry available. The weather was miserable, unfortunately, so we weren't able to use the lovely outdoor seating area, but the cottage was warm and cosy. We did manage to get out for a walk in the local area, which would have been very pretty on a nice day. We found everything we needed except for kitchen scissors, and we were glad that we'd brought two extra large saucepans with us, as well as more tea towels. Otherwise, everything was provided. The welcome card, bottle of wine, and assortment of teas, coffees and biscuits were a great bonus. We are already talking about coming back!

There was a massive problem with flies.

We had in excess of 100 flies in the house. There were dead flies on all of the window sills. The kitchen sitting room was constantly full of flies. We tried to keep putting them out but they were instantly replaced by more. It was so unpleasant trying cook or eat and felt unclean all of the time. We did speak with reception but were told it was the country and to be expected. We live In rural Northumberland so very much the county side and have no such issues. There was clearly an infestation problem somewhere in the house. We had to resort to keeping the hoover out and hoovering them up constantly. The cottage is set in lovely grounds but staying there does not allow you access to walk the grounds. You can only walk down the drive to the country road with no paths. We would not stay again.

Property was as described.

Read some poor reviews but we had no issues. Property was clean and tidy. Location was beautiful and quiet. We were staying because we had a wedding to attend in Stanton Drew and needed downstairs accommodation for my elderly parents. Couldn’t have been better for them. Each bedroom had its own ensuing, fluffy towels and toilet paper! Apologies that we did not read the departure instructions as were in a rush on morning of leaving, so bed linen not removed from the beds. Would recommend

The sleeping arrangements were very good, although the light on the corridor didn't work.

The living area was just about adequate for four people, I shudder to think what it would be like with eight. The seating was very low, kitchen small with overflow space difficult to access due to vacuum cleaner. there was a lack of cooking essentials such as salt, pepper and kitchen paper with only one tea towel. The TV didn't work and we couldn't find instructions for the microwave oven and dish washer. We were disturbed by Ammerdown guests at one in the morning on two occasions and waste removal at 4.30am. We would not return to this cottage.

Property looked bigger in the photos.

But it was nice. It would have been good to have had a few kitchen basics in place like tea, salt, pepper, teapot…. The most disturbing thing was that the first thing we had to do on arrival was to clean up the bugs that were ALL OVER THE GROUND FLOOR! Dozens of them. Horrid. There is a vacuum cleaner, but could have done with a broom. Not a great start.

Great location and we loved the grand entrance arriving on the estate.

Comfy beds, quality linen and towels, but we would have liked another double/king size bed upstairs to suit our party instead of so many single beds. It was good having private en-suites to every bedroom and the showers were great too. Lighting could have been better in all rooms. We had enjoyable walks around the estate and into the countryside. The cottage was a little small in the living areas but we were out and about most days. Thank you for the wine and tea/coffee and biscuits. We would definitely stay again.

Had a lovely stay perfect location very peaceful was a beautiful experience close to shops and lovely pub would certainly stay again

Lovely cottage, plenty big enough for the 7 of us.

Well heated and all dishes, pans, tea towels we needed. Really clean. Easy with key safe access to 2 keys. Grand and spooky (in the dark!) drive to the manor house (and so to the cottage) was fun. Nice walks from cottage up to the monument etc. The Talbot Inn 10 mins away by car was great.

Had everything we needed.

Visiting family so the cottage was a great location for the local area. Will definitely come again.

I always try to give an honest opinion, unfortunately this property was not what I had come to expect from Sykes cottages.

On arrival there was no Key to get in with, then one bedroom had a dirty bath towel, where as two were short of bath towels. The photographs gave the impression of the cottage being a good size for 8 people but we were pushed to fit 6 in the lounge area, The kitchen was fitted into a very small space, each time you went to get crockery out of the cupboard the door hit the cooker extractor fan canopy, the glasses were tiny, there were no instructions on how to use anything, we had to buy tea towels and dishwasher tablets as none were provided. We were lucky that two of our group were children otherwise we would had to pull the dining table nearly up to the sink to fit everyone round it. We also found several dead beetles on the floor. We were invaded with wasps (on the last day we had 9 in the top bathroom).There was also a salt cellar left for guests to use but it had clogged salt in it that had started to go brown. The chest of drawers that was in the foyer (which we thought was for the use of the downstairs bedroom) was broken and couldn't be used, So I'm afraid this cottage was a big disappointment and in my opinion not what I've come to expect from Sykes.

There was a leak in one of the bathrooms.

They should at least offer an honorary discount or a small compensation on our payment as it was an inconvenience on our part. Nevertheless, it was still a good place to stay, clean and quiet. I love the welcome wine and chocolate though! Small personal touch. :)

A great cottage in very peaceful surroundings.

It had everything we needed for our stay and centrally placed for exploring the Somerset area including Bath and Bristol. Highly recommended!

Cottage was to our liking, used as a base for a 3 day break, was not disappointed.

Thank you Adrian Packham

The property was a pleasure to stay at.

Extremely clean and versatile. The instructions on how to access etc were very clea and it was also a very nice touch to provide us with a welcome pack of red wine, chocolates, milk and a few basics, this was appreciated as a nice guesture! We would certainly look to stay here again in the future.

We would have liked a folder of how things work (cooker, microwave, etc) and where things are (bins, etc) would have been useful.

This could also include details of local attractions and places to go. A map/plan if the park showing where we could go and where was private. The upstairs could do with a good clean and updating. The power showers in some of the bathrooms were too powerful for the drains and the water backed up in the shower tray. Some of the bedrooms had cigarette smoke impregnated in the furnishings which made the rooms smell. Refurbishing and making the rooms non-smoking would help. Seating in the lounge area was not practical or comfortable and would certainly not have accommodated 8 people should the cottage be full. Some warning about bin collections at 6.45am would be useful, especially when it is the recycling with bottles crashing!

We stayed at Aldrich Cottage the first week of September and found most the problems mentioned previously had been resolved.

The cottage sleeps 8 with 4 en-suite bathrooms (and also an additional bathroom off the hall), but we do agree that there is just enough room for 8 adults in the communal areas, 4 in each, though this can be seen from the photos. Also, there is no cupboard space for your own groceries. However, we didn’t stay in for lunch or dinner so that wasn’t a problem for us. The furry vinyl was - we guess - Flotex and was perfectly fine. We found the staff very helpful and willing to help you straight away if there are any issues with your stay. A lovely, quiet setting ideally situated for the tourist attractions of Wells, Cheddar Gorge, Wookey Hole, Glastonbury, Street, Bath, Bristol and more.

This is the most soulless holiday let I have ever had the misfortune to step into.

The private outdoor space is 4m x 4m yard which is accessible from the groundfloor bedroom. It has weeds growing between the cracks in the flags. No flowers and a basic, poorly maintained picnic table. Enclosed by three high walls, the fourth side is framed by railings. It's like a prison cell. No pictures of this space on the listing are there? Inside, stairs and upstairs carpets are grubby. Calling them carpets is doing carpet a disservice, as it is basically furry vinyl. All bedrooms are huge. Look closely at the photos of the bedrooms - Aldrich House was most likely not originally an independent holiday cottage. The photos show telephones and coffee trays on the desks. Most likely this place was part of the Ammerdown Retreat pre Covid. The telephones are still there, as were numbers on the bedroom doors. The indoor living accommodation is far too small to meet the needs of a family of five never mind the eight Sykes suggest it can accommodate. There was a horrible stain on the corner sofa. The TV is not much bigger than a computer monitor. The kitchen diner is probably just about big enough to serve four. There are conference type chairs dotted about the place. If the purpose of your stay is to use the facilities in the Retreat, then you'll most likely enjoy your stay as you will probably spend your days eating and socialising with other likeminded guests. If, on the other hand you think this is an ideal location to use as a base for a family holiday to explore the area, think again as you will be disappointed. We arrived at 5.30pm Friday, and had left by 2pm the next day luckily having found another holiday let. We'd have left sooner but had to go to Bath to charge the car

Aldrich cottage is lovely.

Set in beautiful settings and a pleasure to stay in. We had a very enjoyable and comfortable stay.

The lounge was too small for 8 people to sit and also to eat at dining table .

The toilet seat fell off on first day . Not correct toilet seats on toilets. The cottage felt damp and we think there was mice in the loft. We could here them and could the odd droppings in bedroom. The settee had a big stain on . Not up to our usual standards and have booked sykescottages several times and it was a lot of money . Not really a place for children. We came home a day early.

I think the cottage had a very strong damp smell especially in the bedrooms .

At night I found it difficult to breath as I'm very sensitive to damp and have allergies. I would like to definitely return as it's a beautiful cottage/ place but think this would need addressing before I considered it. The staff at ammerdown were lovely and provided me with extra heaters to keep me warm. On the last day the key safe wouldn't work so I had to leave a note with the key on the table. Overall a wonderful stay and wanted to book the following week as there was availability but again the damp smell put me off.

the cottage comes with access to the extensive manor gardens, which we were able to explore and enjoy for picnics.

We really enjoyed our stay in the cottage.

Two families of four. The second double bed wasn't very comfortable so we rearranged who was in which room which then worked out fine, As others have commented the living area is a little small for 8 people but we spent a lot of time outside. We coped with the fridge and dishwasher fine. The grounds are lovely and we had a really relaxing break. I would say it was ideal for two families.

This is a lovely house in extensive grounds and gardens belonging to the retreat centre on site.

It provides high quality beds, bedding and bathrooms but living space was tight for our party of 5 and you simply could not get 8 people into the living room. I struggled to get food for our small party for a weekend into the small fridge and the tiny dishwasher is probably only suitable for a couple. There is no space for your own provisions on a shelf or cupboard. If you plan only to make breakfast in the kitchen it would be fine but this lovely cottage is not suitable for fully catering for a party of 8. There were niggles that I put down to the impact of COVID 19- the phone number given to contact with queries is an office number with no-one in the office at weekends. I guess if the retreat is open there would be someone there. We needed to ask about the WiFi code but could’nt reach anyone. As there is no or poor phone signal this would have been very helpful. Just as we were leaving we found another typed slip with the correct code - ours had been mistyped!

Our stay in the cottage was lovely - it was very clean and comfortable in a beautiful setting.

Bedrooms and bathrooms were very spacious but the kitchen and downstairs space is tight for 8 people, although we just about managed (and we had read this in other reviews). Also, the kitchen wasn't very well supplied and luckily we had bought some of our own baking tins to use to cook a meal for 8. Plus normally when you stay in a cottage like this, you would expect basics like T-bags, coffee, washing up liquid, kitchen roll etc to be in place. We had to go and buy everything before our other guests arrived. I found it a little odd that we did have milk and fruit left for us but no T-bags! I would recommend it for a relaxing stay but it's definitely not ideal for cooking for 8 people. We also thought there would be some information on the local area in the cottage and there was nothing to help you explore.

Very spacious bedrooms.

The Living Area and Kitchen could be limited if you had 8 adults staying. On a commercially managed Conference Centre so Staff very helpful and reacted to any monor problems. it would have been helpful to have had some ideas of eateries and other venues from previous guests but you may have stopped this custom.

Having lived near London, what a peaceful and beautiful surroundings.

Will consider re visiting

We couldn’t arrive until after midnight so was great to be met by someone to let us in.

. thankyou, we all had a lovely stay at the cottage

Unfortunately the pool was out of use and would have been nice to have been pre informed

Aldrich Cottage is in a beautiful, peaceful setting.

The bedrooms are very comfortable though a small point to make is that there was only one lamp bright enough to read by, all the others could only be classed as a dim 'night light'. We couldn't find the DVD's and books which were in the listing, but I only say that to point out an inaccuracy in the listing. The staff at Ammerdown are so friendly and welcoming and the housekeeper is obvously very particular. My daughters were disappointed in the state of the pool, not very inviting. We would definately book this cottage again.

Listing did not make clear that pool is only open part of year.

Not open when we visited. Facilities in cottages very basic and requires more plates etc . Advertised as 8 people which is correct for beds but space limited downstairs. A major plus point is location with the lovely grounds to walk around.

Basic accomodation in beautiful grounds, easy travel to Bath, Frome, Bristol, Wells.

Comfortable and warm. Small but adequate kitchen - could have done with more crockery and pans. Ensuite rooms were excellent. Good local pub. We would recommend this cottage.

Could have had more utilities in the kitchen and more seating, other than that we were very happy

You have wonderful whimsical grounds, which allowed our difficult time to end in happy new memories.

We explored the grounds and my son experienced some foraging with his grandad. You made the booking so easy, and accommodated our little one with a cot, high chair and stairgates. The wine, milk, fruit and tea bags were such a wonderful touch and much needed. The beds were comfy, towels fluffy and kitchen had all the utensils we needed. It was a much needed family break. Thank you so much

Very clean; beautiful gardens & grounds; very quiet & peaceful.

The cottage was really lovely, exactly what we'd hoped for.

Very comfortable beds, all en-suites were good with good power-showers and it was great having milk, tea, coffee, biscuits, fruit bowl and wine left for our arrival- not expected but very much appreciated. Location was great for our needs too as we have family in Chilcompton. Will definitely return !!

All we hoped for and more.

.. the bowl of fruit and bottle of wine were much appreciated.