“It's a really lovely place to stay and we had a great holiday.”
The kitchen is big and well equipped with everything (except oven gloves and dustpan and brush, which were reported as missing by other guests but no action taken). Double bed mattress is comfy. Utility room is useful. Hand held shower is good pressure and lots of hot water. Garden is lovely. View of sea. Very close to Coop. The baby seagulls are entertaining and cute.
However basic maintenance isn't being done. On your arrival you have to get keys out from a box surrounded by cobwebs and spiders. There is an abandoned For Sale sign by the door. The rotting entrance hallway is in need of repair. I walked around to the John Bray office by Coop on Friday, Saturday, Wednesday and twice on Thursday to report the maintenance issues, but as no one ever seems to be in the office and Sykes idea of customer service is a phone line with long queues and torturous music, here is a list of the urgent maintenance that needs doing....
1. There is still no dustpan and brush, and we couldn't use the henry hoover because it smells of wet dog.
2. Cold tap in utility room is broken, a bit of metal sliced open my finger. We have made it safe with tape.
3. On our arrival the curtains in the living room were very damaged and hanging by a thread. The curtains in the dining area also hanging off, which I repaired. Shower curtain not hung properly which I fixed. Why does the cleaner not report this to John Bray?
4. Shocking lack of security. The lower rear bedroom window is broken and does not shut on latch. The bifold doors in the living room do not open or unlock. There is no curtain or privacy. Late at night the neighbours park facing the living room and the headlights light up the living room like a search light.
5. No fan. And it gets very hot in a heatwave.
6. Cupboards filled with broken lampshades and China. Guests need that space to unpack.
7. The state of the porch makes sense when you realise the house is up for sale and they intend to demolish it to build a side extension.
8. Warning to guests with low clearance on their van or car, we scraped the underside of our car driving over the hump on the driveway.
9. Only one set of keys provided which makes it impossible for people to go out on their own. The door locks behind on a latch so be careful in wind.
10. Upper window in master bedroom doesn't open.
11. There is a bizarre triangle of dirty woodchip wall paper hanging down in the corner of the kitchen just by the toaster.
12. Some chairs very wobbly.
13. Garden is not secure from stray neighbours dogs or for guests dogs. Needs side gate.
All these issues could be fixed in a day, please could the owners and Sykes and John Bray and the cleaners communicate with each other so issues like these don't build up. Please can I suggest the owners leave a guest book for reporting maintenance issues, and a packet of metal curtain hooks for guests to repair them as they fall off, as they tend to do.
It's such a nice house and place for a holiday, to see it neglected like this is a real shame.
Thank you kindly for taking the time to leave us your feedback.
We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed your stay here at Caelum and had the opportunity to enjoy the surrounding area. We also really appreciate you taking the time to raise these points with us.
With regard to the maintenance of the property, we have taken your comments on board as a priority and are committed to making improvements to the area. We will also discuss your suggestions with the owner to see how we can best implement them where possible.
Our Port Isaac and Rock office are open 9:00-5:30 Monday to Friday, with our Rock office open on a Saturday during these times for local discussion and assistance for all guests.
Thank you again for your valuable feedback. It is greatly appreciated and helps us to continually improve both the property and our guests’ experience. - John Bray Cornish Holidays on behalf of the owner.
Property Owner
