The cottage is sat within beautiful rolling hills, with a view of Criffel (mountain) from the gardens. The gardens were secure (for my older dogs - your milage may vary with escape artists and take heed time of year re: if there is livestock in the surrounding fields) and enclose the property on all sides, enveloped in swathes of forest, with maintained but not ornamental grounds - amazing for wildlife and birds. The views were better than I expected and simply stunning: we arrived late at night in the rain and the next morning it was the most amazing feeling, opening the blinds are seeing mountains, valleys and hills on our doorstep! It truly took my breath away when the morning fog cleared and we could see out to sea and mountain from the grounds. The stone fireplace commanded attention as a focal point of the room, helping keep the living room cooler on the warm days and functionally surrounding the wood stove on the chilly evenings. The cottage was roomy and we didn't feel cramped at all. The kitchen storage was well stocked with cleaning products and anything you'd need from hoover bags to matches to floor polish. It's just genuinely a beautiful, maintained cottage that immediately felt like home. We were very disappointed to come back to Yorkshire :) It is in a great spot, being about half way between Dumfries and the coast, and there are many activities and locations in the surrounding area, within a 25-35 minute drive as well as further afield. We felt we had a great balance between coastal walks and forested/mountainous walks. Our Renault kangoo did struggle a little bit with the dirt track up to the property, just being a vehicle that is lower to the ground due to the ramp on the back, but managed find and took no damage. We took the more off the beaten track roads slowly as they were bumpy but is to be expected with rural driving :) I really liked the little touches wt the provided heavy duty dog waste bags, dog whistle and treats!

The only real issue we had was that the bed was not the most comfortable. I am short and a bit underweight and my partner is tall and a bit overweight and we both found the bed a bit of an issue. If I were to sleep in that bed again, I would fetch a memory foam mattress topper to use. One of the sofas in the living room was a little bit hard too. When you have spent the day hiking and walking, you definitely want a really comfy sofa or bed to rest on when you get back! It wasn't horrendous and may be fine for most, I have joint issues/scoliosis, so more sensitive than others possibly :)

Lovely cottage in beautiful surroundings. Kitchen well equipped with everything you would need for a self catering holiday. Beautiful secure gardens but a little bit overgrown. We were very lucky with the weather as the sunny days made it even more attractive.

Bed squeaky and not very comfortable. One of the settees was also a bit hard but wasn't a big problem.

Location

Presence of a gardener during our stay. Could have been done when the property was empty

We really liked the location and the views over the countryside which were stunning. The cottage was well equipped and we also liked the outside garden area with the table and chairs.

Each time the shower was turned on it went very cold then very hot before settling at the chosen temperature. The double bed was creaky and we saw 2 sheets of wood had been put under the mattress.