“Whilst the description of the house and facilities is generally accurate, there were a few drawbacks which detracted from the overall experience.”
The photographs shown on the website weren't entirely accurate or representative. For example:
Photo 1- the property itself, this is taken from 2 doors away and barely shows the property. It just confirms that that it is peach in colour. It does not show the steep and uneven steps that lead up to the front door.
Photo's 2&3 - the lounge, these show clean covers over the settee's which hide some stains and would go some way to reducing the smell of dogs when you sat on them. There were no covers present when we stayed.
Photo 4 - dining room, was ok apart from the main window which we couldn't get to shut fully & lock.
Photo 5 - kitchen, was ok apart from no tea towel provided, we couldn't find a fish slice, colander, or cheese grater. The wooden spatula's were heavily stained yellow, from cooking curry. The frying pan however, was in excellent condition!
Photo 6&7 - bedrooms, were ok apart from not having any wardrobes to hang clothes up. This wasn't a huge problem as there were only two of us so we could use the second bedroom for storage.
Photo 8 - bathroom, there was no toilet roll when we arrived (would have expected one at least!). The bath is raised a few inches above floor level so it's slightly awkward to get out of.
Photo's 9,10& 12 - views of Whitby are not views from the property itself.
Photo 11 - view from the property, is taken at an angle towards the town and does not show the enormous tarpaulin covered structure in the boatyard directly in front of the property which dominates the view from all but the top floor of the property. This alone would have caused us to choose somewhere else to stay.
Other issues:
Parking was not just limited, it was a nightmare, and Green Lane is very steep especially if you are parked at the top.
Strangely, this is the first place we've stayed where there was no visitor book?? Perhaps we now know why?
Lastly, Sykes Cottages need to seriously review their policy regarding e-mails. We were bombarded with e-mails offering discounts and various holiday cottage offers both before and during our stay in Whitby, to the point I would describe as a nuisance!
We enjoyed our stay in Whitby and found plenty to do, but without the above mentioned issues it could have been a lot better.