The Blue Bell

Im writing to express my deep disappointment and frustration with my recent stay at The Bluebell for my 60th birthday celebration. I had carefully selected your venue as it seemed perfect for hosting my 33 guests. From the moment I booked, everything appeared to be wellorganized, and I even paid extra for the privilege of an early arrival and late checkout. Unfortunately, my experience was far from what I expected, and it caused significant stress during an event that should have been a joyous occasion. Upon arrival, we found the property cold, with no way to turn on the heaters. Despite making numerous calls and sending several texts, it took far too long to resolve this basic issue. Additionally, the entire place was in desperate need of a deep clean. We were shocked to find that cleaning supplies were unavailable, forcing us to go out and purchase our own mops and products to clean the property ourselves. Some of the rooms were in unacceptable condition Toilets had been used and not flushed. Floors were dirty, and cobwebs were all over the walls. The outside bin area was littered with black bags, which I refused to clean up. Several rooms had stained bedding, including one with a blood stain that we had to change ourselves. Worse, from rooms 1 to 4, none of the electrical sockets worked, and despite numerous attempts to contact you, this was never resolved. Room 12 had stained bedding with some sort of black ink. Its unbelievable that your housekeeper admitted to knowing about the stained sheets but put them on the beds regardless. The condition of the property was unacceptable and created a significant amount of stress. I did not receive the value I expected for the money I spent. My guests, while understanding, were understandably disturbed by the poor conditions, and this situation nearly ruined an event I had spent a year planning. Your housekeeper excused her inaction by saying she was on holiday, and your lack of response was equally frustrating. We have videos and photos documenting all the issues mentioned, and I am appalled that such basic standards of cleanliness and hospitality were not met.

We enjoyed our stay lots of things to do in the area within a drive away. We had 23 adults and 6 children under 10 so the space outside to run around in was great. Having paid over 11k for a week, I would expect more towels in rooms, kitchen spray to clean up and soap in communal areas. Facilities to keep the place clean were limited and we had to buy additional tea towels and oven gloves. Could do with a bit of TLC but everyone was generally happy.

Great place. Definitely looking forward to coming again!

Hi, the property was lovely. Just a few points as mentioned below The weather was hot and the AC in the conservatory wasn't working, and the conservatory windows wouldn't open the buttons provided did nothing. This was the only indoor space where we could all gather for some late night music and dance, and so was an inconvenience. There were a lot of flies in the kitchen from the very first day and throughout. The floor plans showed the bunk room was connected to the adjacent double room, but it wasn't. This meant the younger kids who were meant to be in there had to be moved, resulting in some last minute rearrangement of the room allocation. Apart from the above, we were all quite happy with the house. Thanks, Shyama

One dishwasher leaked so wasn't usable so we had to do a lot of hand washing A few of the en suite toilets didn't flush properly pool table cloth was ripped in patches so couldn't use it as we had wished The property could do with a deep clean, and a bit of a makeover looked very dated! Would have been nice and relatively inexpensive for the owner to have handwash soap and hand towels in the en suites

Overall we had a great holiday. The property had the facilities to keep 26 people ranging in age from 76 to under 1 well entertained despite a week of mixed weather. The kitchen was generously equipped and the beds were comfortable. The bar was a great place to congregate for predinner drinks. A real upside was that, unlike many houses we have visited, the layout here ensured that those playing pool, shuffle board and music until 3am did not disturb those who had retired to bed. In Olympic year the outside space was ideal for our own version of the Olympic Games and in the evening a few well placed accessories transformed the central atrium into a great space for a Greek themed banquet. The only downside was the night of a cloudburst when the atrium roof leaked in places and the ground outside flooded and we had to deal with a certain amount of water ingress under doors. Apart from some soggy towels, by morning you would never have known.

The property was amazing, just what you want for a stag do. Everyone had a great time and would definitely go back again

It was brilliant for the amount of people we had in our party, only one thing ... It was brilliant for the amount of people we had in our party, only one thing wrong it wasnt very clean down stairs needs a spring clean but apart from that would book again

Great property with lots of space and good choice of rooms. Lots of space to socialise. Garden is a great size. Nice places to walk from the house and the sea is a short drive away. Cleanliness could also be improved apon. I'd say it's to a venue standard of cleanliness but for a holiday home could be cleaned a bit more. Floors could do with a wash. This won't stop me from booking again though.