Piggery Place, Old House Farm Cottages, Friden, Hartington, Derbyshire, SK17 0DY

We arrived at the cottage at 5 pm on Friday 28th June 2024. Following the owner's instructions, we called her and she informed us that the key was in the door. Unfortunately, she couldn't greet us in person as she was at the hairdresser's. I had previously informed her that this trip was a surprise for my mom's 60th birthday, hoping for a special touch, but there were no decorations or even a note to celebrate the occasion. Thankfully, I had brought birthday goodies with me to make the celebration special.

Upon arrival, we found no tea, coffee, or milk, which are typically provided at self-catering properties, at least a teabag and a splash of milk. Bearing in mind we are on a farm that keeps cows and calfs.

The website and the owner had indicated that the property had a washer-dryer, but we only found a washing machine with no drying facilities—not even a drying rack. The weather wasn't great so I couldn't hang the washing outside. All washing was placed on hangers inside the property. This was particularly inconvenient as I had brought laundry with me, expecting to be able to dry it fast. For families with children, this could be a significant issue. Additionally, despite what was mentioned on various websites, there are no cots available at the property. None that was inside anyway.

I took a shower on Saturday morning and although I put the bath mat down, I slipped on the floor grabbing a towel in the area the bath mat didn't reach. If this was my disabled mother, she would be in hospital right now. Fortunately, it's just a large bruise on me. Very dangerous.

The WiFi at the property went down at 6 am and wasn't turned back on till 5:30 pm. During this time I asked the owners to fix the problem, which they didn't. I was met with a slammed door, 'I don't know,' and 'it's EE's problem.' I was also advised to 'get some fresh air,' which was an insult as my mum is on crutches and needs a walking aid being disabled, and this was very apparent when the owner suggested this looking at her in the property. This made my mum upset and self conscious. This is a disabled friendly cottage. I had to console my disabled mum after the owner left her upset. On her birthday. This isn't fair.

We booked this property due to the cosiness and escape, to catch up and watch films, and have a girly evening. This wasn't met. We didn't want to go for fresh air as suggested. I had to work for a few hours in the morning online, which I wasn't able to, resulting in a financial loss for me. The location doesn't allow me to use mobile data.

At 5:30 pm, a younger lady came to see us and told us that all she needed to do was reboot the router. It took her five minutes. The Internet was fixed then. Too late for work and too late for leisure. The whole day was wasted, and it's such a disappointment. We have sat around waiting all day. It's my mum's 60th birthday and was supposed to be special, and I had so many things planned. Let me be clear, the router needed resetting after maybe an hour or two which I suggested this to be done. Not 9/10 hours. It's not acceptable. I paid for this feature and this wasn't met. Obviously the owner's have to refund me on this.

On Saturday evening, loud music was blasting from 9 PM until midnight. This noise disturbance severely affected our ability to relax, and more importantly, it prevented my mother from being able to sleep. We chose this property because it was advertised as a secluded and peaceful location, so we were quite shocked and disappointed by this incident.

Additionally, the noise from passing cars was also very disruptive. With the windows open, the sound was even more pronounced, making it difficult to enjoy the tranquility we had expected.