The Barn

18 Customer Reviews

• "The Barn exceeded our expectations."

  The directions to find the property were really clear and comprehensive. The property was absolutely immaculate throughout and the homemade scones and jam were wonderful on arrival. I would note two things, in case these are a concern for you; the owners live on site but for us this meant that then we had a question about the recycling and wifi, they were on hand to help out. Also, for The Barn, there is no private outdoor space, it's all shared with other guests and the family. There is a lot of space to explore, however, which we enjoyed. Our daughter loved our time there and we made sure to say goodbye to the sheep before we left.

  Reviewed by Philippa5.0★Aug 2023

• "The Barn is fantastically located with all the best beaches circa a 20 minute drive away, we didn’t really know the area before but pleasantly surprised by how well this property is located."

  The owners who live on-site were warm and welcoming, easy to talk to and happy to help. A few minor maintenance issues with the property but nothing that was an issue and was raised with the owners. The property itself is a fantastic space, incredibly generous, and the wider setting of the farm has lots of local walks. Would definitely recommend and would happily stay there again!

  Reviewed by James4.1★Sep 2022

• "The property is in a peaceful location and fairly easy to find."

  Lovely large space upstairs but a little cramped in the smaller bedroom. The shower over the bath gave us problems because the shower head needs replacing . I was disappointed to see there was no welcome pack and this is a small issue but it really helps especially when you haven't picked up some milk on the way after a long drive. This is the first holiday let i have been to where i didn't find one. No biggie but it does have that personal touch.

  Thank you for taking the time to leave feedback, we have found your comments helpful. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Heather3.4★Jun 2022

• "Great stay at barn it was perfect for little families break in Devon."

  Really nice place, fitted out very well and had everything we needed. We would definitely recommend

  Reviewed by Lee4.7★Jun 2022

• "An excellent country stay."

  Very beautiful and peaceful setting along a good country lane. Spring flowers magnificent. Very comfortable flat with fully equipped kitchen, very pleasing unfussy modern decor, topped off with great hot water. Fresh farm eggs and a big bunch of daffodils completed the wonderful friendly welcome. Thank you.

  Reviewed by Wendy5.0★Mar 2022

• "While there was a fault with the heating timer, Nick replaced this promptly and Nick and Jo were very friendly and helpful in every way."

  This is such and lovely welcoming place to hide away for a week and enjoy the wonderful South Devon coastline.

  Reviewed by Alfred Jeremy5.0★Feb 2022

• "This was my second stay of 4 weeks at these cottages and again enjoyed the peaceful environment there - perfect base to explore amazing walks and locations but also a lovely place to chill out & relax."

  Jo & Nick as so friendly & helpful but also unobtrusive. Really enjoyed my 8 weeks there .

  Reviewed by Andie5.0★Jan 2022

• "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.

  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

  Reviewed by Stephen3.8★Sep 2021

• "This is a lovely property, very quiet and secluded and exactly as described."

  The owners, who live on site, could not be nicer or more helpful. The layout of the accommodation means that it gets quite warm upstairs in hot weather but the bedrooms downstairs stay reasonably cool. Conversely, however, when the weather is less clement, the en suite bathrooms cause the bedrooms to feel a bit clammy and damp, and we felt that heated towel rails would have been an improvement. The water pressure in at least one of the showers was very poor and it made taking a shower very tricky. A few more saucepans and frying pans in the kitchen would have been helpful, and we felt we wanted some drinks mats to protect the surfaces too.

  Thanks for the comment.  Sorry about this, sometimes the heating settings are not quite right at the start of the 'heating season' and need tweaking.  We'll now make an adjustment to the relative heat on the two floors.   All radiators in the building have their own thermostat controls, so guests can adjust the relative temperature of each space.  Both bathrooms have a 'towel radiator' for drying towels.   We'll pop some extra saucepans and drinks mats in - good idea.  Property Owner

  Reviewed by Penelope4.7★Sep 2021

• "The website accurately depicted the barn and the booking experience was good."

  Lovely location, grounds and property. The owners sent lots of helpful information and were nice to talk to. Two criticisms: the windows are small and the bedrooms are downstairs, so towels didn't dry very well. The matresses are medium to firm (we have soft ones at home), so we slept on top of the duvets!

  Reviewed by Sav4.7★Jul 2021

• "Main bedroom bed to hard."

  Reviewed by Jennifer4.7★May 2021

• "The Barn was much larger than expected but very cosy which was appreciated as the weather was very disappointing during our week."

  Because of this we were not able to enjoy the outside spaces which looked very inviting. Nick dealt with a couple of very minor problems straight away. A lovely property and although rural we were not far from Kingsbridge which has all amenities.

  Reviewed by Beverley5.0★May 2021

• "Rated as 5 star however the sofas were extremely uncomfortable and need to be replaced."

  Bed was only satisfactory. Both of the above do not deserve a 5 star rating for the cottage not even a 4 star rating.

  Thank you for taking the time to leave your review. Your feedback is important to us: based on this comment, we've replaced all the sofa cushions in The Barn.  The master-bed has a super-kingsize sleepheaven platinum comfort mattress, which the manufacturers describe as 'medium-firm'.  Comfort depends on individual taste of course; we've had plenty of guests remark on how comfy they find it, too! Property Owner

  Reviewed by Ian2.2★Oct 2020

• "The barn is very stylish ,well equipped and comfortable."

  Although we had a power cut of approx 5 hrs on our second day due to a storm the barn was the perfect place to be, with the aid of plenty of candles and the wood burning stove .The location is great for visiting the beautiful coast and countryside that Devon has to offer. Would definitely stay again if visiting this area.

  Reviewed by Marion5.0★Nov 2019

• "The Barn, its Courtyard and surrounding gardens where we were free to roam were beautiful."

  We enjoyed are stay so much and would love to return sometime. Delighted to find Gerry Mile's book of the South Hams in the Barn and recommend it for great walks in the area. Thank you for being perfect hosts. Val robinson

  Reviewed by Valerie5.0★May 2019

• "The only issue we have is the drive to the complex would be unsuitable for vehicles with sports suspension which we were not made aware off until the booking was completed."

  Thank you very much for your feedback, we're thrilled to hear that you had a great holiday and enjoyed the property so much. The track to the property is easily passable for the majority of vehicles, however we would agree that it is rough in places (making it difficult for a low slung sports car) and that it is therefore important to take the track with care. Should any guests require any further information please don't hesitate to ask us. We look forward to seeing you again soon! Property Owner

  Reviewed by Jean5.0★Jun 2018

• "We really enjoyed our stay at the Barn, and found it was very child friendly which made our stay that more enjoyable."

  One point to mention was that we found getting to the cottage from the south via Aveton Gifford, as opposed to the instructions provided from the north as the roads were very narrow and being 3+miles were a bit difficult after a 5 hr drive from Kent.

  Reviewed by Paul5.0★Jun 2018

• "We enjoyed our holiday very much and found the Barn at Chantry just as delightful as our previous visit many years ago."

  The owners were very friendly and eager for us to see their newborn lambs, and the area is beautiful with many lovely walks. Although the weather was wet on several days, the Barn was always a warm and welcoming place to return to, spotlessly clean, well-equipped and peaceful, with the added bonus of chattering sparrows in the courtyard. The Devon lanes were full of primroses and wild garlic, and we were lucky enough to encounter (hear and see) Cirl buntings on our walk at Prawle Point. We made the most of our one sunny day with a walk around the estuary starting out from the free Aveton Gifford car park, through Stadbury and around to Bantham, crossing the creek by ferry and then walking back to base via Bigbury through lovely farmland and lanes on the other side.

  Reviewed by Susan5.0★Apr 2018

• There are no reviews featuring this term Show all reviews