
+6
Stayed in The Lodge for 3 nights and the best way I can describe it is, it's nice but not for this price.
At £175 a night, it's hard to justify that price when you look at some of the properties on websites you can rent for £175 a night.
Some niggles we encountered during our stay:
•The place is pretty small. We weren't expecting big, but this place is small. The Lodge is advertised as suitable for 4 people but there is zero privacy between the bed and the living room.
•The bed and fold out sofa and incredibly small and super uncomfortable. It was like sleeping on an old ironing board.
•As soon as we walked in, our little one almost got cup up on a rusty part of the fireplace that had been pulled away from the main body.
•The hot tub filter wasn't fitted correctly, so by day 1 the hot tub turned slimey. Staff did respond super quick and sorted it first thing in the morning.
•There was a scum ring where the old toilet seat used to sit that had not been cleaned and the shower had no door, so you had to mop the toilet and floor after a shower and the exposed boiler really killed the spirit in the room.
•The sauna is a one person sauna and when you put water on the stones, your legs get peppered with scalding water. 2 people can fit in with a squeeze but person 2 is literally sitting over the fire and will get a steam volcano up the pooper when the water hits those stones.
•The constant background noise of the M58 and local factories really took you away from the seclusion the place is trying to convey.
•The decking between the hot tub and Swedish bucket was always wet and slippery with slime. It was wet when we arrived and wet when we left, even when the surrounding area had dried out.
•People were constantly working and walking up and down the path next to The Lodge from as early as 08:30.
Who blows leaves at 08:30 in a secluded getaway spot?!
•The is a little grass patch with park right outside the front door of The Lodge that people played on. Again, not really a relaxing secret getaway when it's Dads V Lads Friday 4 meters away.
•You can see into the other huts from your garden spot and the fence is full of holes and gaps. Bit is a pervs hot spot considering anyone can walk over the fields at any time due to having no real barriers.
Lots of little niggles that really took away from that £175 a night, Secret Garden feel. I kind of feel like The Lodge was attempt number 2 after The Getaway and the other rooms may have just been better, with improvements upon improvements as the place had more practice.
On a positive note though, this place is family run and has only been going for 2 years and they've nailed some areas.
•We booked maybe a year before we actually stayed and the communication throughout has been amazing, second to none.
•The welcome book they send out before you arrive is the best I've ever seen and that includes some of the so called premier hotels and businesses.
•You can tell that this place is being built by people that care, as there is a lot of ambience being poured into the place in spots dotted about the place. It's just ruined when the magically fairy tree all lit up has an old hot tub leaned up against it or the bin under the palm trees has the back end burned out of it.
Plenty of 5 star reviews and happy customers, so make your own judgement. My expectations may have been too high after waiting a year to actually experience it myself.
Try one of the other rooms, rather than The Lodge.