点评:Very disappointing. On arrival, I parked the car and took my dog for a wander to try to find The Dipping Shed. We were then met by a woman on a horse with two dogs off lead that ran up to my on-lead service dog barking at us. The woman on the horse couldn't recall her dogs yet stayed on the horse and we had a standoff that lasted almost 10 minutes until she finally got off the horse to round up her dogs, announcing "THEY ARE TERRITORIAL - THEY LIVE HERE". Well, assuming she was the owner of the place, if you're unable to recall your dogs, perhaps you shouldn't let them harass visitors and make them feel unwelcome?
I found The Dipping Shed which was in no where near as remote as the website implied - a 38 second walk from the main path and communal carpark, and right next to a field in which the owner kept her horses. There were two dead bats on the doorstep which a cleaner must've noticed when they put the key in the door ahead of my arrival - i love wildlife and I dont understand why they couldnt have just been moved out the way. The actual Dipping Shed itself was beautiful and the kind of place I would love to live in, however, it wasn't remote as I later discovered - during my 3 night stay, I was disturbed 3 times by other guests wandering past my window looking in, during late afternoon and evening. I had emphasised when enquiring that I wanted complete peace and to be "away from it all" - I don't consider a 38 second walk from the car remote, especially when other guests can wander past freely. Maybe a "Guests of The Dipping Shed Only" sign may deter people?
The Dipping Shed was beautiful but not £200 a night beautiful. It was more in line with other cabins I've stayed in around £100-120 a night. For £200 a night, you could have at least left a pint of milk or a small welcome pack as many places do. My dog and I went exploring and were disgusted to find dog poo all over the site. It was every few meters around the paths. It really spoilt the surroundings having to watch my step. The arboretum was very disappointing too. When I was emailing Walcot Hall prior to booking, I had been hoping to not need to leave the site all three days and just enjoy the surroundings but straight away I realised we would have to leave the site if we were to enjoy some nice walks.
That evening I went back to the cabin, to cook supper, and found plates and utensils that were dirty. Its all very well leaving a sign asking guests to leave the place tidy for the next guests, but you need to check they have actually done that and correct it if they haven't. I couldn't find any cleaning supplies to wipe down the sides and in the end abandoned cooking because I felt I would have to clean the area and cooking equipment first which put me off, as I hadn't bought cleaning supplies with me, assuming that there would be basics there.
The bathroom facilities were good but there was no shower - the shower curtain in the pictures implied there would be a hook for the shower hose, but no. The antiques around the cabin were beautiful and interesting but it was style over substance as few of the lights worked and every single chair wasn't that comfy. I ended up laying on the bed to read rather than the sofa or chairs, all of which were in dire need of being re-sprung or having new cushions/seat padding. The place wasn't dusty as can often be the case with cabins full of antiques, but the kitchen cleanliness was poor and I couldn't find any cleaning supplies other than a sponge and washing up liquid, which was rationed in a tiny pot. Why can't you provide a bottle of washing up liquid?!
We ventured to Bury Ditches the next morning and got chatting to a couple, one of whom said she used to work at Walcot Hall. I said how disappointed I was at the dog poo everywhere and she told me that one of her reasons for leaving her job there was she was fed up of the owner acting like her dogs could do no wrong. The next day we went to Long Mynd and met a family who said they come to the area twice a year but would never return to Walcot Hall. When we popped into Bishops Castle and got chatting to locals, it was clear there was something of a reputation because I was asked things like "was it what you expected?" And "is there still dog poo everywhere or does she bother to clean up now?". My dog and I loved exploring Shropshire and the area around Walcot Hall, but the actual estate was a huge let down. Between the old cars decaying around the site, dog poo everywhere and a miserable welcome, we chose to stay away from the site as much as possible, which was the opposite of our intention.
If the cabin was around £100 a night, I would consider tolerating the lack of cleanliness, lack of seclusion and badly maintained grounds and just use it as a base, but the whole point of this weekend away was to relax somewhere remote without having to use the car.
On our final day, we had pre-booked lunch at The Powis Arms. We walked there and found there were more staff than punters and when I was given the menu, the only veggie option was a mushroom wellington which, when I booked, I specifically said the only thing I didn't like was mushrooms. I was told I didn't have to pre-order a specific meal and was assured there would be options but the only veggie option was based on mushrooms. The waitress offered to make me a salad, but I asked what would be in it and she said she didn't know, it would just be whatever they had in the fridge, which didn't feel appetising for a Sunday lunch I'd been looking forward to. I paid £2.80 for a flat half-pint of orange juice and lemonade and left. The menu was very poor and unimaginative and considering I'd phoned and emailed ahead, this was the final straw.
If the owner controlled her dogs, if the cabin had been clean and actually remote, and if the grounds were pleasant and paths were poo-free, this could've been a lovely place, but it really fell short on the expectations from the website. The cleverly photographed site fails to show decaying cars, dog poo, and actually how close all the accommodation options are to each other. At £600 for 3 nights, they must be raking it in, so where are they investing this money to make the holiday experience nice for guests? A few simple touches and attention to detail would have changed this whole experience, but we will not be returning nor would we recommend this estate for a holiday. Such a pity as I was testing the place put for a 10 day group holiday in September and I certainly won't be suggesting that my friends and I return here.
翻译:非常失望。到达后,我把车停好,带着我的狗四处游荡,试图找到 The Dipping Shed。然后我们遇到了一个骑着马的女人,她带着两只狗跑到我的领头服务犬对我们吠叫。骑在马上的女人不记得她的狗了,但仍留在马上,我们的对峙持续了将近 10 分钟,直到她终于下马围捕她的狗,宣布“他们是领土 - 他们住在这里”。好吧,假设她是这个地方的主人,如果你不记得你的狗,也许你不应该让他们骚扰游客并让他们感到不受欢迎?
我找到了 The Dipping Shed,它并不像网站暗示的那样偏远 - 从主路和公共停车场步行 38 秒,就在业主饲养马匹的田地旁边。门口有两只死蝙蝠,清洁工在我到达之前把钥匙放在门上时一定注意到了 - 我喜欢野生动物,但我不明白为什么不能把它们搬走。实际的 Dipping Shed 本身很漂亮,是我喜欢居住的地方,但是,它并不像我后来发现的那样偏远 - 在我的 3 晚住宿期间,我被其他客人徘徊 3 次打扰在,在下午晚些时候和晚上。我在询问时曾强调过我想要完全的平静并“远离一切”——我不认为从汽车遥控器步行 38 秒,尤其是当其他客人可以自由漫步时。也许“The Dipping Shed Only 的客人”标志可能会阻止人们?
Dipping Shed 很漂亮,但不是每晚 200 英镑的美丽。它更符合我住过的其他小屋,每晚大约 100-120 英镑。只需 200 英镑一晚,您就可以像许多地方一样至少留下一品脱牛奶或一个小的迎宾礼包。我和我的狗去探索,很反感地发现到处都是狗屎。路径周围每隔几米就有一次。不得不注意我的脚步真的破坏了周围的环境。植物园也很令人失望。当我在预订前给 Walcot Hall 发电子邮件时,我一直希望三天都不需要离开这个网站,只是享受周围的环境,但我马上意识到,如果我们想享受一些愉快的散步,我们就必须离开这个网站。
那天晚上我回到小屋做晚饭,发现盘子和餐具很脏。这一切都很好,留下一个标志,要求客人为下一位客人留下整洁的地方,但你需要检查他们是否真的这样做了,如果没有,就更正。我找不到任何清洁用品来擦拭侧面,最后放弃了做饭,因为我觉得我必须先清洁该区域和烹饪设备,这让我很反感,因为我没有买清洁用品,假设那里会有基础知识。
浴室设施很好,但没有淋浴——图片中的浴帘暗示淋浴软管会有一个挂钩,但没有。小木屋周围的古董既漂亮又有趣,但它的风格大于实质,因为很少有灯亮着,而且每把椅子都不是那么舒服。我最终躺在床上看书,而不是躺在沙发或椅子上,所有这些都迫切需要重新弹跳或使用新的垫子/座垫。这个地方不像满是古董的小木屋那样满是灰尘,但厨房的清洁度很差,除了海绵和洗洁精外,我找不到任何清洁用品,这些都是在一个小锅里配给的。为什么不能提供一瓶洗洁精?!
第二天早上我们冒险去了 Bury Ditches,和一对夫妇聊天,其中一个说她曾经在 Walcot Hall 工作。我说我对到处都是狗屎感到多么失望,她告诉我她离开那里的原因之一是她受够了主人表现得好像她的狗不会犯错。第二天,我们去了 Long Mynd,遇到了一个家庭,他们说他们每年来该地区两次,但永远不会回到 Walcot Hall。当我们突然进入主教城堡并与当地人聊天时,很明显这里有某种声誉,因为有人问我“这是你所期望的吗?”之类的问题。还有“现在到处都是狗屎还是她懒得清理了?”。我和我的狗喜欢探索什罗普郡和 Walcot Hall 周围的地区,但实际的庄园让人大失所望。在现场周围腐烂的旧车、到处都是狗屎和悲惨的欢迎之间,我们选择尽可能远离现场,这与我们的意图相反。
如果小木屋每晚大约 100 英镑,我会考虑容忍缺乏清洁、缺乏隐蔽和维护不善的场地,只是将其用作基地,但这个周末的全部目的是在一个偏远的地方放松,而不必去使用汽车。
在我们的最后一天,我们在 The Powis Arms 预订了午餐。 我们走到那里,发现那里的工作人员比下注者多,当我拿到菜单时,唯一的素食选择是蘑菇威灵顿,当我预订时,我特别说我唯一不喜欢的是蘑菇。有人告诉我,我不必预先订购特定的餐点,并向我保证会有选择,但唯一的素食选择是基于蘑菇。女服务员提议给我做一份沙拉,但我问里面有什么,她说她不知道,只要他们冰箱里有的就可以了,这对我周日的午餐来说没有胃口一直期待。我花了 2.80 英镑买了半品脱的橙汁和柠檬水,然后就离开了。菜单很差而且缺乏想象力,考虑到我已经提前打电话和发电子邮件,这是最后一根稻草。
如果主人控制住她的狗,如果小屋干净而且实际上很偏僻,如果地面宜人且路径没有便便,这可能是一个可爱的地方,但它确实没有达到网站上的期望.巧妙拍摄的网站未能显示腐烂的汽车、狗屎,以及实际上所有住宿选择之间的距离。 3 晚 600 英镑,他们一定是在赚大钱,那么他们把这笔钱投资到哪里来让客人享受美好的假期呢?一些简单的接触和对细节的关注会改变整个体验,但我们不会回来,也不会推荐这个庄园度假。真可惜,因为我正在测试 9 月份 10 天团体假期的地方,我当然不会建议我和我的朋友回到这里。