Port Donnel Cottage

26 Customer Reviews

• "Ideal location for a lovely Georgian property tastefully decorated and furnished ⁰"

  Thanks for the kind words about the property. We’re glad you enjoyed the location and hope it provided a great base for your stay. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Paul5.0★Apr 2025

• "A wonderfully warm, quiet and comfortable house in a lovely spot."

  I left a note with some observations (not niggles), which hopefully were helpful. We really enjoyed our stay - the sound of curlews and oystercatchers was special.

  Reviewed by Philip5.0★Oct 2024

• "A lovely cottage with the most amazing views out to sea and the nearby islands."

  Having such close proximity to our very own little beach, was truly heavenly. We were very lucky as the sun shone all week, and we were reading on the beach, and eating outside all week. Wonderful coastal walks on the doorstep. A very attractively furnished cottage. Kitchen was excellent. We swam every day in high tide. Such a special place - our three adult sons and my husband and I loved it. Thank-you for such a uniquely located cottage and on our arrival, everything so clean and tidy, and the tray of teas/coffees much appreciated.

  Thank you so much for the lovely review. We are very lucky at NTS to have cottages in such beautiful landscapes and also in castles. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Kathryn5.0★Sep 2024

• "Absolutely lovely cottage, great location."

  Views are spectacular. Only slight issue was the 'dog' smell, but when you rent a pet friendly property it's to be expected and almost impossible to avoid. Next time I would look for 1 small dog or cat only properties as 2 large dogs feels very different.

  Reviewed by Hazel3.8★Aug 2024

• "The cottage is beautifully decorated and situated ideally for privacy."

  The views across the estuary are superb and ideal for any bird enthusiast. The walks are ideal and you can have a lovely stroll on the beach. The refuse collection needs to be addressed as the general waste bins were full when we arrived (wed)they should have been emptied Tues the day before. This was the only downside and we all had a wonderful time here. Many thanks.

  Reviewed by Tracy4.4★Aug 2024

• "We spent two wonderful weeks in the vacation home."

  The house is beautiful, the location right by the sea fantastic, especially the short distance to the beach. There are also various hiking trails right on the doorstep (the screel hill is particularly worth a visit). The vacation home is well equipped overall. However, it would be nice if there were more things in the kitchen. There are only a few dishes, so sometimes dishes had to be washed by hand in between. It would also be helpful if there were a few more kitchen appliances (e.g. a mixer). It would also be nice if the NT welcome folder contained a bit more information about possible excursion destinations. In between there was some confusion regarding service clean. We may have overlooked the information, but apparently you have to contact the NT directly in advance if you want a service clean to be carried out for a stay of more than a week. A friendly gentleman from the NT was still able to hand us five towels spontaneously. Overall, we really enjoyed our stay and can only recommend the vacation home.

  Many thanks for your feedback and lovely to read you enjoyed your stay. We will ensure the team for Port Donnell check the kitchen inventory and ensure that the linen change does happen for a 2 week stay. All businesses are encouraged to use less paper and an internet search provides lots of ideas for day out and current opening times. We would recommend looking at Visitscotland.com for info on the region. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Tim Clemens4.4★Jul 2024

• "I last stayed in Port Donnell Cottage in 1988!"

  It hasn’t really changed apart from the kitchen extension. Its secluded location is beautiful and Rockcliffe is still very special. The well stocked shop at Colvend is handy, otherwise Castle Douglas has adequate shops inc CoOp. I do hope the exterior will be painted soon as it’s looking rather grey and forlorn. Also, on a sunny day it would be nice to have a bench or garden chairs to sit comfortably outside? There used to be a bench! The interior is comfortable and warm and welcoming. The kitchen is well stocked. If I could ask one thing - could the oven be kept switched on for new arrivals as it’s a trial to look at instructions for setting the clock so the oven works, after a long journey! We had a happy stay and it was lovely to return after 36 years!!

  Many thanks for your feedback, Port Donnel Cottage did have a refurbishment this year with new curtains, new artwork, new Denby crockery and kitchen inventory, a new fridge/freezer, carpets and bathroom upgrade. We will ask the team to look at providing some garden furniture. We have noted your comment about the exterior. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Rosie4.4★May 2024

• "The accommodation was excellent & everything was catered for our holiday."

  Along with immediate access to a little beach what more could you ask for. Rockcliffe is stunningly beautiful with lots of breathtaking walks. So clean as well. Make sure you come equipped with groceries etc as there is no shop or pub in the village.

  Reviewed by Nicky5.0★Apr 2024

• "The cottage is really lovely."

  The situation is perfect with parking garden and own beach. The house was cosy and homely and we soon settled in. The location of Rockcliffe is so peaceful and relaxing with lots of walks in the woods and on the shore and cliff path. Our dogs loved it too. We have booked it again for next year

  Thank you very much for the lovely feedback, we are glad that you appreciated the refurbishment we have carried out and that you felt it was homely. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Jill4.7★Mar 2024

• "Cottage was very clean and had everything included to allow a comfortable stay ; a real home from home."

  All facilities were great ( other than the lounge chairs , see below). We visited in Winter and the cottage was very cosy. Well appointed and the situation of the cottage made an ideal base for walking and exploring the local area. Local shop had a good selection of goods. We would definitely recommend the cottage stay and would return in the future. One minor piece of feedback : all the legs of the chairs in the lounge have been fitted incorrectly and one of the legs is broken in one of the chairs . This made us very wary to sit on any of the chairs - easily resolved if the legs were fitted correctly.

  Thank you for your feedback and we have asked the team based at Threave to check the chairs and have them repaired. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Louise4.7★Feb 2024

• "Fantastic stay at Port Donnell."

  The location is what attracted us and we were not disappointed. The view is amazing. We love the sea and it was so quiet and relaxing. The property was spotless and well stocked. We will hopefully be back.

  Thank you so much for the lovely comments and we hope to welcome you back to the National Trust for Scotland. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Sheila5.0★Jan 2024

• "One of the best properties we have stayed in."

  Very clean with good quality facilities. Perfect location for a peaceful break. Wonderful views and very private without being isolated. Will definitely return.

  Thank you for the lovely comments. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Carol5.0★Oct 2023

• "Port Donnell cottage was absolutely perfect."

  A wonderful location right by the sea, glorious views, quiet and all rooms were beautifully decorated. Lovely walks from the door and handy for visiting Kirkudbright, Threave House and other delights. We did not want to leave.

  Reviewed by S5.0★Oct 2023

• "Rockcliffe an amazing place, we swam in the sea, walked across to Rough Island then to causeway to the Anchor and then over the cliff home."

  The most fantastic week we have had, we loved the kitchen and all the Denbyware. Prefect position, hoping to visit again.

  Reviewed by Jenniferj5.0★Sep 2023

• "Had a wonderful time."

  The cottage was lovely and clean and felt very private. We had our own entrance to the beach and as the cottage was on the end of the road we didn’t have people walking past so it was very quiet. It was so peaceful and we would definitely return. The picnic bench in the garden was a nice touch that we used a lot to eat our evening meals at to take advantage of the nice weather. Also the cottage had everything we needed such as hair dryers, dishwasher and even washing up liquid and tea towels provided! 5 stars we loved it

  Thank you so much for the lovely feedback and we look forward to welcoming you back. We also have a new cottage for 4 people at Rockcliffe called Saltflats which opens on 15th July. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Gwenda5.0★Jun 2023

• "This place is fabulous."

  Peaceful location and stunning views. We loved it.

  Reviewed by Carolyn5.0★Jun 2023

• "Cottage was delightful."

  No negative comments!

  Reviewed by Alan5.0★May 2023

• "A really lovely cottage in a stunning spot."

  Very well equipped kitchen wise.I was hoping the fire would be laid on arrival but took some logs with us along with kindling and firelighters.The shop in Colvend is very good though and they sell logs.If I had to make a few points in making this cottage better then one would certainly be a bath mat as the bath is so slippy if you follow on from someone else.The settee and double bed are not the best.We did also come back to find a local with his dog off the lead just coming back through the grounds even though we closed the gate behind us.He said it was a public footpath and when I asked the NT for clarification they never got back to me.All in all a lovely week though and would definitely return.

  Reviewed by Mark4.1★Apr 2023

• "Only thing missing was an antslip mat for the bath"

  Reviewed by Gary5.0★Mar 2023

• "This is our second visit to Port Donnel."

  We absolutely love the house and the beautiful location. However, we were disappointed to encounter the same problem as last year: the house had not been cleaned and we had no bed linen. Sykes and the local National Trust of Scotland contact dealt with this quickly and we had a brilliant holiday in spite of some rough weather. We fully support the work of the National Trust of Scotland but issues about cleaning have been raised before and it would be good to know that communications will work better in the future.

  Thank you very much for the feedback and we apologise for the property not being prepared for you. We have passed on the feedback to the team at Threave. Port Donnel is currently off line undergoing a refurbishment and we hope to welcome you back in the future. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Chrissie3.1★Jan 2023

• "We had a fabulous stay over Xmas."

  A tree had been put up at our request, the property was warm and we had everything we needed. The property was spacious and ample gardens and a step and you are on your own private beach. Our only feedback would be that the furniture in the living room needs an update as it was slightly uncomfortable, the dining room window and front door were leaking in high winds and rain, paint peeling in places, damp in the bathroom. We were advised to take the bins out on bin day which we did. But they were not collected (perhaps as it was Xmas), but it was already full on our arrival so we could only fit a small amount in. Again this wasn't an issue for our family. Perhaps a larger double bed for longer people! Our feet sticking over the end. Perhaps some shoe storage near the back door may help. We had a thoroughly fantastic stay and would definitely return if a general refurbishment had taken place. Thank you very much.

  Reviewed by Josephine3.8★Dec 2022

• "Although this property is sited in a wonderful location, we found that it lacked maintenance, was dirty, uncomfortable & with facilities that did not work."

  In particular, the lounge furniture was tatty & uncomfortable; the TV had no reception (the roof aerial appears to have broken from its mounting & is resting on the roof slates); the shower only worked intermittently as the on/off switch seemed to be faulty; the oven was filthy & the sight of it made my wife nauseous & the markings for the control dials were obliterated so it was difficult to ascertain functionality; the entire property had not been properly cleaned for a long time as evidenced by the large number of residents (spiders) & most surfaces were coated in accumulated dust; the dustbins had not been collected & one was overflowing with waste. In our opinion, the property is in urgent need of refurbishment because, at the moment the condition of the property & its fittings & furniture do not justify the excessive rental charges.....in short, a rip-off!

  We are very sorry that our cottage at Port Donnel wasn’t prepared to the standards that yourselves and ourselves expect for a holiday cottage. We have increased the number of cleaning staff that are going to service Port Donnel leading up to November and reiterated that there must be attention to detail when preparing the house. Then in November we have booked a maintenance week where we plan to replace the dining room carpet, paint the kitchen cupboards and carry out snagging of all the maintenance in the property. In 2023 we are hoping to fit a new bathroom, replace furniture and paint internally and externally. Thanks for taking the time to bring this to our attention. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Roger2.2★Sep 2022

• "I have raised a complaint that the level of cleanliness was unacceptable and ..."

  I have raised a complaint that the level of cleanliness was unacceptable and wear and tear of the property was very disappointing

  Thank you for your feedback which we received via Sykes. We have responded to you directly re your comments. We do apologise that the cleanliness was not to the standards we expect and acknowledge that there were issues on the day of arrival. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Sandra1.9★Aug 2022

• "A lovely cottage in a lovely peaceful and scenic location."

  We would recommend this cottage and are looking to book for next year.

  Thank you very much for your kind words, Port Donnel is one of our most popular NTs cottages. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Carole4.4★Apr 2022

• "Lovely cottage"

  Thank you very much for your feedback. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Gary5.0★Mar 2022

• "Great cottage in wonderful location we enjoyed every minute of our stay there and would love to go again at some point in the future, the only negative was the cleanliness of the cottage, although the bedding and towels were lovely and clean the cottage itself could be improved there were swathes of cobwebs above the dresser in the dining room and in the fireplace as well as the lounge, the cupboard under the sink was dirty as was the oven and when i went to plump up one of the yellow cushions in the lounge a plume of dust came off it."

  Only mentioning as if people are being paid to clean this they are not doing a great job. However this did not detract from a lovely stay and would definitely return

  Thank you very much for your feedback, we take all comments very seriously and have noted your comments in regard to the cleanliness. Property Owner

  Reviewed by Amanda4.4★Oct 2021

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