Brackenber House

Great space to spend weekend with a group of friends.

We were fortunate to have some glorious sunsets visible from the upstairs seating area. Set up well to cater for large groups with comfortable bedrooms and multiple bathrooms also. Would highly recommend, wish we were able to have stayed longer to enjoy the space more too!

Eleven family members ranging from 3 years to 71 years travelled from Norfolk, Suffolk & Durham for a brilliant week’s holiday in a lovely, comfortable, very well equipped house.

Lovely views across the 18 hole golf course which was used by the 18 year old and his dad in our party and received impressive feedback! Had some brilliant walks, some on the golf course in the evenings, some within a couple miles of the house, others slightly further afield. Easy access in the car to Ambleside with lovely lakes along the way. The only query we had about the house was why are there no recycling facilities?

This is a great property.

We had my parents golden wedding weekend here. The splitting bedrooms was great. Having some upstairs and downstairs. The house was immaculate. John was helpful beforehand around organising e car charging. There was also a lovely welcome pack. The house is geared for big groups with 2 microwaves, dishwasher etc and loads of cutlery and plates etc as well as well stocked cupboards with everything you could need. The garden is lovely. We particularly liked having lots of bathrooms. The upstairs living room had a great view of the moor. We really couldn’t fault it. We’ll definitely be back. Thanks

A lovely accommodation, had everything you needed for a large group of people.

Well equipped kitchen. Beautiful surroundings. This was our 2nd visit as a family and would definitely go back.

Towel radiators didn’t work the sliding door in the bathroom didn’t lock and in the other downstairs bedroom my elderly mum got locked in and couldn’t open the other sliding door.

Down stairs shower didn’t get hot near washing machine. We couldn’t sit up stairs in the evening as the sun was too bright through the glass etc Pictures of property on line didn’t show the surrounding properties etc

A wonderful property spacious and very clean.

Kitchen really well equipped with added bonus of lots of past times provided. Spectacular views

The house was well suited to an extended family group of 12 and worked particularly well for celebrating Christmas together.

The large dining table and generous lounge area comfortably accommodated our group, making it easy to spend time together. The location is lovely, and the property itself is very attractive. A few areas would benefit from attention. The upstairs carpets were visibly worn and stained and would benefit from replacement. The heated towel rail in the main bathroom was not operational during our stay. A number of mugs were chipped around the rim and could be replaced. The internet connection was also quite unreliable, with frequent buffering when streaming. Overall we really enjoyed our Christmas!

Lovely, large home with helpful owner.

Lovely location. Just disappointing that none of the towel rails in the house functioned. Sykes Cottages awful service, totally unavailable and added no value beyond taking the money.

Lovely spacious property with amazing views.

Plenty of dining and sitting space for a large party. 4 bedrooms on ground floor level (including the annexe). The remaining 2 bedrooms were upstairs and may not be suitable for anyone with mobility issues. We had a lovely time in a beautiful house with everything you need.

The views are brilliant and the house very comfortable and spacious.

Really enjoyed our time there

The property is beautiful.

Everyone are enjoying the day in this house. All of us are planning next time to come again. The host is a kind and good person. Thank you.

We had an absolutely amazing stay at this holiday house!

It’s incredibly spacious and easily accommodated our whole group. The location is stunning, with a beautiful view we loved waking up to every morning. All the rooms were large, clean, and well-equipped — from a comfy cot and changing mats to all the little touches that made our stay stress-free. The house had everything we could possibly need, so both adults and kids were entertained and comfortable without even leaving the property. Perfect for families or groups looking for a relaxing getaway — we can’t wait to come back!

This house was great for our large family, large dining room which seats 14 and large lounge with amazing views.

Plenty of room for all the family with a good outside space. The only thing missing was a BBQ but we knew that when we booked and took a portable BBQ with us so no problem there. The nearby village of Appleby had all the facilities we needed to complement the holiday including a good Fish & Chip shop and a good pub (Royal Oak) with excellent dining facilities. Overall, for a large family holiday in the Lake District, we could not have chosen better

A truly beautiful home we were so sad to leave.

The location is simply breathtaking, and I hope to return in future.

We had a lovely stay and weekend here.

Couldn’t have asked for a better property for our family weekend. Will definitely stay again and will 100% recommended to other family and friends. Thank you!

We’ve just had the most amazing holiday with the family – an unforgettable experience full of fun and laughter!

The kids had a blast playing games, especially Monopoly, and we all enjoyed exploring the great outdoors together. The views were absolutely stunning, with rolling hills, peaceful nature, and even a few curious sheep wandering by! Evenings were perfect – good food, cold beer, and plenty of family fun. Can’t wait to come back for more memories like this!

Brackenber house was a beautiful house.

It had fantastic views from the lounge area glass wall. There was plenty of room for the 4 families that got together from Bedford, Glasgow and London. 7 adults and 5 children didn't feel like a lot in Brackenber house as there was so much room. We almost had our own section of the house for sleeping and using the bathroom and met up in the very well equipped kitchen and spacious light filled dining room and lounge between times. The welcome gifts were a lovely touch. I found my memory foam bed particularly hard, but I know many people prefer a firm bed, so I won't mark don't for personal choice. The only real negative was no matter how long the oven was on for, it didn't go above 140⁰. Luckily this only affected one lunch time as the kitchen was so well equipped we could make lots of other dishes without it. The addition of the cots and highchair was very welcomed. And there was a huge selection of books, games, dvds and games for the Wii. Parking was ample. Surrounding areas were beautiful. And one of our group even got a quick game of golf in, and the rest of us waved at him from the lounge. Overall a lovely weekend away in a beautiful house. Thank you

Excellent stay here, we had a great time for a family birthday celebration with children and adults.

Only couple of things that might need attention….. a cap seems to be missing off the green (I think emergency light sensor ) and it made the downstairs bedroom with corner window so bright on a night with green light and the towel radiator in the annex would not work - we all tried and just never seemed to come on . very minor things ! Overall the place was fantastic and had everything you needed , very well equipped. We had a brilliant time thank you

We had a great stay at brackenber house, the property was clean and layout really worked for us as a group of 4 families.

The owner responded quickly to any queries we had.

We stayed from the 22nd to the 29th December, having never been away for Christmas, this was definitely a family Christmas to remember.

The house was beautiful, clean and well equipped with everything we could have needed. Even for the mammoth Christmas Dinner for 13 of us. It is located in such a beautiful place, we had many day trips out for walks suitable for all the family. The home was warm, with comfortable beds. The lovely gifts left for us by the owner was such a nice touch as well. We would absolutely recommend this property for large family get togethers.

Excellent property for our group of 13.

It was clear that a lot of thought had gone into furnishing and equipping. And many thanks to the owners for their speedy replies to our queries via the Sykes app. I think our only suggestion would be to have a few more drinking glasses available (notably wine glasses)

Wonderful property for 11 family members of various ages.

Plenty of crockery and kitchen items. The red squirrels were an added bonus, the large window upstairs was fantastic to sit and look out. The only fault/problem was the step into and out of the kitchen. Possibly could do with a different colour tile to distinguish step for older people.

The house overall was a little on the cool side and at least one bedroom had to be heated with the electric heaters stored under the stairs.

The underfloor heating is good but without supplementary heating maybe not ideal for a holiday cottage because of its inflexibility. You specifically say don't adjust the thermostats which is how the sysetm is designed to control the temperature. No one could make the heated towel rails work. We pressed buttons and made sure the outside switch was on but none got hot. There was only a very small cheese grater. Not adequate for a big propertry One of the kettles needs very careful placing on the base otherwise it does not work. Not sure there were any clear instructions for the induction hob for those not familiar with them; at least we did not find them. Despite these issues we had a great time and would recommend the property to others.

Great 3 night stay at Brackenber with family.

The house has a high spec, is very clean and nice and warm. The kitchen is very well equipped and we were able to feed 13 people for 3 days worth of meals. The utility room is great for storage and has a 2nd l fridge freezer. It is a great house for big groups, as unusually there is a bathroom for each bedroom (only 2/6 are not en-suite, but have sole use of a bathroom). The outside area is lovely and the garden is contained, which for us meant we could let the kids roam around freely, enjoying the apples from the trees and Red Squirrels running along the stone wall. The renovation of an old property is beautifully done and the placement of the large dual aspect window in the lounge gives a stunning view of the sunset across to the Lake District. The communications were good from the host and we met the owner by chance in Appleby. Lovely little town with a castle & great children’s play park to visit. Improvements- -Curtains in each room to be blackout- the master suite with large corner window was very bright in the mornings. -An additional hairdryer or two. There is 1 for the house across 6 bedrooms. -Salt, pepper & oil if possible as kitchen basics (We did bring our own salt and oil) We would definitely stay again as we all thoroughly enjoyed spending time here as a house, not just a place to sleep.

Brackenber house was a beautiful stay!

We came here 13th - 16th September for my partners 30th celebrations with family. The house was absolutely spotless and had everything and more that we needed. However, I would say that in the main bedroom upstairs (the king size) room was so uncomfortable- it was the worst nights sleep we have ever had due to the mattress being like a concrete slab. Both myself and my partner have come back with really bad backs due to the mattress in the main bedroom. That was the only thing that lets this house down was the comfort of the bed which is a huge thing when you want a good nights sleep. Overall we would come back but not stay in the main bedroom unless they changed the mattress as all the other beds were comfortable.

We had a lovely time at Brackenber house.

There was a total of 14 of us and we were all extremely comfortable and happy with the place. It very important to mention my sister who is very particular when it comes to cleanliness had zero complaints. We were very happy with the facilities, there was plenty of dishes and glasses/cutlery etc, we always had hot water even though there was 6 bathrooms, the house was nice and warm, the lounge is a lot bigger than the pics suggest and we all sat comfortably together in there, there was games and books which we used, the owners were very quick to respond when we struggled to find the baby cots (which we did find), all in all we were all really happy and comfortable and would recommend this place to anyone who is considering staying here! Thank you so much!

Overall we had a great stay at Brackenber.

The house is spacious and well equipped. We had a few niggles listed here but they are pretty minor. A couple of everyday items like cheese grater and regular baking trays were missing but every thing else you could ever imagine needing in a kitchen was there! We loved the location being so quiet overlooking the golf course full of sheep. The sofa with the big window was a lovely spot to watch the rain outside or the sun go down. The ev charger was a bonus. The decor is pretty basic but fine for a holiday rental and it was sparkling clean everywhere. A couple of the beds were rock solid so we had so sleep with spare duvets beneath us, and the end bedroom was so hot due to the glazing and its outside door being broken that it was unbearable so we sadly had to leave it vacant. There were lots of games and books to keep you occupied on a rainy day which was a nice touch.

Great house to stay!

Would highly recommend to anyone wanting to go to the Lake District as a holiday most things are with in an hour from the house which was perfect for us! The house overall was what we wanted and more! Very well equipped for the amount of people(10)

Absolutely stunning house, high specification and attention to detail throughout .

Beautiful location with amazing views. The property is immaculate, fantastic showers with quality furniture and bedding. Well stocked kitchen, plenty of utensils, cutlery, glass and tableware. Thanks for the best welcome gift ever, so generous. We were a party of 12 including young disabled adults who loved their stay. We will definitely be returning.

The property is in a wonderful location with plenty of space for our large party of 13.

The bedrooms are a good size and nearly all with en-suites.Even though we were at capacity for the numbers we did not feel cramped at all. The kitchen is very well stocked for a large group of people with plenty of plates, cutlery and serving dishes. Having two dishwashers is a genius idea ! The upstairs lounge with its fabulous views is very special and we all enjoyed chilling there. The owner is very attentive and friendly and answered any queries we had very promptly indeed. The whole setting, both inside the house and the location outside, made for a wonderful “special” birthday weekend for my husband surrounded by all his family. We will be back for my “special” birthday in 2 years time I hope !

Amazing property, tastefully renovated.

The windows from the first floor lounge gave fantastic views over the moors and the red squirrels that were playing in and around the gardens. The house provided excellent facilities, we couldn't have asked for anything more. The owner was very accommodating when I asked for a slightly later check out time and also gave a little history about the development of the house. A definite recommendation for anyone who wants to get away from it all.

The house is fabulous.

It is in a beautiful location, with loads of red squirrels running around. It has been renovated to a very high standard, and was lovely and warm over a very wintery weekend. The bedrooms are very generously sized and there is lots of communal space. The only complaint is the quality of the oven. It takes ages to warm up (about 40 minutes) and struggles to then maintain the temperature (particularly high temperatures). This was particularly frustrating as a big group cooking our meals in the house.

Lovely spacious house, a 15 minute drive from Appleby, on the edge of Appleby golf course.

The house was warm and the bedrooms and bathrooms well appointed, along with a great space with a huge table so the whole group could eat together, next to a well equipped kitchen. The view from the upstairs lounge is great, with the red squirrels providing entertainment. The lounge does however need more comfy seating, as there isn't enough for a group of 12.

Brackenber house has again been the prefect place for our autumn family get together.

Light, warm and spacious, it is a very comfortable place to relax with one another and "chill". The high standard of finish and furnishings in the bedrooms and bathrooms make for a great nights sleep, and the kitchen is so well equipped, catering for 12 was really stress free. We love the location, having distant views across to Lakeland and into the Pennines but with easy access and walking from the gate. Thank you for your welcome and use of the electric car charger. With so few public points locally, that was particularly appreciated. And a unanimous request for us to return again next year says it all really!

This is an absolutely beautiful property and the photos don’t do the surroundings justice.

It’s gorgeous! So many rooms and bathrooms and a very well stocked kitchen. It’s a beautifully renovated property. Lots of games, books, dvds, & wii. Excellent quality and perfect for a large family gathering. The cooker is an induction hob, the washing machine is a washer-dryer which is quite slow for drying, there was a travel cot and a buildable wooden cot too which was great. You are at the mercy of whatever guest washed the kitchen utensil last so there were quite a few dirty pans etc. Overall it was clean and tidy although there were quite a lot of dead bugs/flies/wasps/cobwebs, especially behind the tv. The linen and towels were good quality but smelled of smoke. We could have done with a few more comfy chairs in the living room to cater for everyone at the same time. It’s very easy to get to and the local town was lovely and the people were friendly. Loved the red squirrels providing entertainment everyone morning. Overall a fantastic property and we were very happy here. Thank you for sharing your family holiday home!

From our group point of view, provision of comfortable seating in the dining area could have facilitated quiet activity away from the TV (which was excellent,by the way).

A lovely house with excellent facilities generally.

Fabulous property.

Catered for everything so only went out for short walks from the house. Loved the modern refurb with attention to detail and keeping the Salt Box was fab. Dark skies and peace & quiet. Thank you for the goodies also!

Lovely cottage - was clean and tidy upon arrival.

We rented the house for a 70th birthday celebration.

We had family from Scotland, Hastings and Essex. We loved the peaceful location and the house was perfect for all our requirements. We had a wonderful weekend, visiting the Lake District and eating out around the Appleby area. The views from the first floor lounge were stunning and we were lucky enough to be able to watch the red squirrel running along the dry stone wall and the owl hunting each evening. We would not hesitate to recommend this property. The lack of good Wi-Fi connectivity was not an issue for us but we feel that maybe this could be mentioned in the property spec as some future visitors might possibly want to work during their visit.

Brackenber House is a superb property in a lovely location, all ten of us enjoyed a memorable week with everything of a high standard.

Very convenient as a walking base with no need to travel far for spectacular countryside and views. Ate at some nice pubs in the evenings, special mention to the food and staff at The Royal Oak, Appleby.

A beautiful property, above expectations, very well equipped with everything we needed for all 13 of us!

We had a fabulous weekend!

Just arrived back from a fantastic stay at Brackenber house.

The house was the a perfect place to celebrate my husbands 40th birthday with family. We couldn’t off asked for anything better ! The house is fully equipped with everything and so much more! The cleanliness is a 10/10. The views and quietness of the small village was just perfect! Would 100% recommend!

We have just returned from a lovely bank holiday weekend away with friends (8 adults and 5 children) at Brackenber House.

Directions were spot on and the place was easy to find. The house was exactly as described and the surrounding area is lovely - the views are stunning. The house had everything we needed and the dining/living space was brilliant for us all to eat/sit/socialise together. A superb place for a relaxing weekend away in the countryside.

Had a wonderful weekend at Brackenber with family and friends 17th to 19th March.

There were 8 adults and 5 children in the group and there was plenty of space for all of us. The house is beautifully decorated. We really enjoyed the games in the property and the facilities were great. We had everything we needed. It was a lovely relaxed getaway to celebrate my 50th where we could catch up, have a laugh and make nice meals together. Just what we all needed. Thank you.

What a lovely place to stay!

John was amazingly helpful and the cottage is superbly well-appointed. Very comfy beds, super views, immaculately clean and it was nice and warm despite the wind and snow outside. We had a great time!

Lovely spacious cottage.

It was great with kids and in a lovely location with so many places to visit close by. The host was very helpful and responsive. Highly recommend the Brackenber House.

Brackenber house was a perfect place to stay for our extended family holiday.

The house has excellent facilities, is very clean and really well equipped for catering for a large number of people. The design of the house, the decor and furnishings are all to a very high quality and made our stay really comfortable. We loved having an extensive view across the Eden valley from the lounge and our grandchildren also loved the Wii! We all appreciated the quiet location with immediate access to open land across the golf course for walks and runs.

House & grounds were stunning!

! John the owner was so nice and helpful. I would definitely return in the future :)

We absolutely loved Brackenber House.

It was perfect for our large family group. Plenty of room, comfortable beds, loads of kitchen and dining essentials, spotlessly clean and a fabulous large corner window overlooking the most beautiful countryside. Such a feeling of calm inside and out. A great base to explore the area. We could easily have stayed longer. Thank you for the excellent communication from the owner too. Can highly recommend.

Loved the cottage and annexe.

Clean and spacious with great bathrooms Would benefit from tea, coffee, salt, pepper and oil being left. Also no recycling is a major shame

Lovely property very well equipped to house 13 guests without a problem.

Perfect location peaceful friendly & helpful neighbours my 3 children & 10 family adults loved it plenty to explore in & around the area. Will definitely be visiting again. Owner of property was lovely with helping us find places to explore around the area one of the reasons we will be back again hopefully this time not driving to the MOD shooting range.

Fantastic stay in a brilliant location, the house was perfect for our needs and would not hesitate to stay again.

Everything was very clear and explained to us beforehand.

Beautiful house - clean , spacious and well equipped

Superb house, stayed here over Christmas for 7 days, 11 adults.

Great location for exploring the area. The house is very welcoming and cosy, the kitchen, lounge, dining area, bedrooms and bathrooms are perfect for a long stay with so many people. Ample parking. Highly recommended