Royal Spring Cottage, Vention Lane, Lower Lydbrook, Gloucestershire, GL17 9RL

We, 2 adults, stayed for 4 nights. We had a great time as all was satisfactory, nothing to complain about.

We even liked the two cocks. Great location from where to explore the Forest of Dean, The Wye Valley, all the way to Hay on Wye, Tintern Abbey and the Brecon Beacons.

Nice cottage to look at from the outside although inside was a bit of a surprise. The rooms were clean as in surfaces were clean floors and scurting boards but I don't think they looked any higher than eye level as the amount of cobwebs in the place was awful. That bad I felt the need to clean them before unpacking. The house itself is nice an comfortable and has everything you need. Although the one night I woke up to find I was being dripped on from the light fitting which was leaking from the toilet above. The owners soon fixed it once we reported it though. The pub next door was lovely and the meals were simpley gorgeous. This place could be so great with a few little touches and getting rid of the rubbish out the front like the broken tv. I wouldn't want to put people off as I had a great time away and hope that I have given constructive comments for the owners who are great people.

We spent 3 nights in this cottage and had a wonderful time. The location is great - village about 20 minutes walk and a short drive to the forest and other attractions.

The cottage was just what we wanted; a kitchen with table and chairs and a smallish sitting room with a sofa bed. To the front is a small terrace with lovely views. A good size double, a decent twin room and bathroom. We really liked having the pub next door - it is very friendly and they bought food over for us to have on the terrace. The landlady, who owns the cottage is lovely and made us feel very welcome.

We were four adults, two babies and a toddler. A bit of a squash, but we managed and were really happy with the value for money. It would be perfect for a family of four.

I'm not sure why the other reviews were so harsh. We really haven't got a anything bad to say about it. I would definately recommend it and will be going back in the summer.

Where do I start. Compliments first I suppose. May the landlady of the property is a lovely woman, and gave us 3 guys a warm welcome. The pub right on the doorstep and I mean on the doorstep (about 3 yards from front door to the smokers area) was reasonably priced for drinks, pool table and food which was all at a satisfactory level, other members of staff and the locals were all very friendly also. We were 3 guys that were in the pub till it closed anyway but I can imagine the smokers area would be a real issue for a family with noise until 1.00am with a bedroom window only feet away then at 4.30am the resident Cockerel wakes you back up again. Now the negative. We were there for walking Offa's Dyke and basically all we wanted was a clean bed and a roof over our head (no hairs and graces) If we had gone with our families we would have had the problem of our wives and children demanding we leave and look for alternative lodgings. This gets a 3 key rating I would begrudge giving them 1 star. Place was clean enough but very shabby, damp in places, dirty wallpaper, wallpaper hanging off in places and the smell of drains in the bathroom had us all gagging and was completely overpowering. I cannot put into words the level of smell which was bordering on toxic. It appeared to be coming from around the radiator region and was stronger when the heating was on. After reporting it the landlord mentioned he could not smell anything so we suspect he went in when the heating was off. So nothing was done. We were there 2 nights and we ended up buying toilet duck, airfreshener etc just to mask the smell. Book this at your peril. We are 3 hardened walkers usually used to camping in all conditions and this beat us. I've never wrote a review before but this needed saying. In one word. 'Minging'!!!!!

In a word, disappointing. On arrival you will notice a dehumidifier - move it into the lounge where the sofa will be damp. There is a stream that runs against the back wall of the cottage hence dampness throughout. Then you need to get cleaning. We found spiders and cobwebs in all rooms, snail trails on the lounge rug EVERY morning and over the chopping board once - yuck!

The cottage is smaller than the pictures suggest and the lounge seating is only comfortable for 3. There is VERY limited storage so don't pack much! Sadly the handiness of the nice pub is ruined by the late boozers in the beer garden under your bedroom window. Since there is no double glazing you can hear every word until they leave. Once you get to sleep be prepared to be woken early by a rooster - on and on and on - torture. We averaged 4 hours sleep per night.

Lovely area spoilt by grubby, damp accommodation. We intend to re-visit this lovely part of Gloucestershire (excellent petrol station and corner store nearby) but would not dream of returning to this cottage.