Giddy Goose, 20 Birch Street, Windermere, Cumbria, LA23 1EG

A family Christmas holiday for 6 adults . Very comfortable warm accommodation and very well presented . Arriving very late at night , initial parking was difficult with other cars parked outside their properties and needed to reverse in from the lane . Large fully equipped kitchen. Large fridge freezer , microwave, electric oven ( temperamental and hopefully fixed for January stays) Large dinning room and very accommodating . 3 comfortable settees, lounge again very well decorated with flat screen tv and a variety of board games.Front glass conservatory ( used to store beers and wine) Four large bedrooms ( 3 double beds, one two singles ) main bedroom has en-suite . All very comfy stay and bedding and towels provided. House located in quiet location with small park area to one side. Short walking distance to a variety of local supermarkets and eateries and best pub was craft baa , tiny query great atmosphere and small bites.

The excellent bits: overall great condition fully equipped and luxurious feel . Large bedrooms , great showers. Great location easy short trips to Kendal and Ambleside and Bowness on windermere.

Not so great: parking was an issue although permit supplied for local car parks short distance away . The actual space to the rear of the property is tricky to Everdeen into with other residents parking outside their properties but was achievable . There was an issue with the temperamental cooker that spoiled Christmas dinner and the ground floor power tripped . Access to the fuse box ( located in the cellar) was difficult as wrong code for padlock was supplied but again hope that has been rectified if future issues arise. After discussion with local reps post visit a reimbursement was agreed for the issues . Would we book it again? Yes ! Great accommodation , very homely and spacious and in a very enviable position in Windermere. I would think parking in the summer months would be a possible issue. We booked several pubs for dinners prior to going and was definitely required in Bowness . Visited Arai waterfall local caves .. awesome scenery.

The house has a perfect location, right in the heart of Windermere, close to shops including a Coop and Sainsburys. If you have more than one car you will have to pay for parking in a nearby car park - there is a parking permit but we didn't find a single on-road space to use. Unfortunately the state of the house inside was appalling. All of the carpets in all rooms, including bedrooms, were full of grit and fluff, showing that it is seldom properly vacuumed. The last thing you want in a rental property is to feel that you're sitting amongst other people's dirt and dust. There was broken glass under a sofa, the window sills and wooden floors dusty; there was a hair stuck to a bathroom wall and the shower drain was blocked with thick hair, there was a two-foot smear of mud on the carpet in one bedroom. The facilities are OK but we had to request some standard things you'd expect to be there such as an airer, a washing basket, a new vacuum bag (the vacuum, when we tried to do our own cleaning, made the house smell revolting), a cafetiere and spare toilet rolls. Of these things we were only given a cafetiere and an airer. Sykes did offer to send a cleaner round but we didn't want to vacate the house on our first morning there so we did the cleaning ourselves, and the owner refused to offer any compensation for what we thought was a fundamental problem: the house was dirty. The living room is very comfortable and we enjoyed some of the board games and the TV. Unfortunately we would not want to go back unless they could guarantee basic cleanliness and better customer care.