Barforth Hall Lodge, Yorkshire

This is a lovely bungalow in a very quiet location literally miles from anywhere. Calling it Gainford is wrong. It is on the South bank of the river Tees opposite Gainford a 6 mile drive away. It is not that far from any of the places and attractions to be visited in the area. The Oriental Museum at Durham University is noteworthy among these. We had no serious niggles with the property although the showers are a pain. It would be a bit cramped if there were 12 guests but super for the 6 of us. Our cooks managed well in the kitchen despite the awkward layout. The Four Alls pub in Ovington served us super meals on two occasions and the fish and chip shop in Gainford also did us proud. Would we stay at The Lodge again? I think so, there is still plenty to do in the area.

I was apprehensive after reading the previous reviews, but they were over critical! The property was very clean when we arrived. The owner made himself aware and he is very pleasant. Yes, it's 2 properties knocked into 1 but it works, with a large living room and a large dining room. The WiFi was not the best in the east wing but the 4G coverage is excellent throughout. There is a marble chopping board, loads of drinking glasses and crockery etc. The TV's have no issues. There are 2 big fridgefreezers for lots of food and a dish washer. We did not use the hot tub due to the weather but the owner assured us there would be ample fuel available if we were to use it. You can cross the train bridge to the local village and pub but it's not suitable for the very young and very old to cross. The local recycling is just past the Lidl in Barnard Castle. All the 5 bathrooms have locks and there was ample hot water for the 10 of us staying. You do need to bring your own towels but the bedding is provided. There were no problems with the showers. The walk in shower, if the pressure wasn't good enough, turn on the sink taps for 2 seconds and it then works! There is a squeegee for the walk in shower floor too. It is a unique place to go on holiday, nestled in a hidden corner of County Durham. I'm glad we came here and we will most probably return again too!

We had a great holiday. The area was lovely and remote but still easy to get to local villages or Barnard Castle. The owners dogs made the holiday for the children. They absolutely adored them. Very calm and friendly dogs. The hot tub was also great addition.

Positive points peaceful location, owners responded to my emails promptly and visited quickly. Unfortunately showers were not good, fluctuating temperatures from cold to boiling hot, water pressure poor. Even after a new tap was replaced. Floor in property was sticky and dirty. The property looked like two houses had been knocked into one, however all that was done, was a doorway being created between the two which meant there were two separate parts to the kitchen, no thought given to how the space would work best, layout was very odd and wasn't a nice space to cook in. WiFi only works on one side of the house well. Some of our mobiles could just about get reception in the lounge, others couldn't. Some basic equipment not provided such chopping board, kitchen scissors, drinking glasses although plenty of pint glasses available, not enough bowls for a 6 bedroom property. Whilst there many tv's in the property we didn't use ones in the bedrooms, the main one in the lounge is of poor quality. Lots of info provided regarding hot tub but none on essentials like where the switch for cooker is, or booster needs to be switched on for shower. Leaflet on local walks provided gave inaccurate information, we only found this out after attempting to do the walks. Owner then told us not to use the info they provided. Why not just take them out of the folder? In summary, it feels like the minimum effort was put into this holiday let, no care or thought given to customers, did not meet basic requirements, overpriced rental. Not a comfortable stay. I did take the time to email the owner to give feedback on our return, the reply was very disappointing, no apology given, no acknowledgement of poor quality provided, no reassurance that improvements will be made for future customers, just a very short 'thank you for the feedback'.

Stayed over Easter 8 adults 3 children 2 dogs The house was lovely and comfortable and great for a relaxing holiday,hot tub was amazing owners kept us supplied with lots of logs when requested more. Only downside was the hot water not hot when needed had to wait until the booster kicked in. was told at the last minute to bring our own towels which should have been provided for in the price

Our Barforth Hall Lodge review: 4 families met and enjoyed a fabulous weekend. The dining table sat everyone around which I was concerned about but we all ate together. The owner couldn't have been more friendly when I contacted her. The hot tub takes a while to heat but that was clearly outlined. The rooms were clean and suited our demands. Everything was ideal really. Follow the owners directions as the SatNav wants to take you a different route. We played board games and had a casino evening on the Saturday night. The cooker was bigger enough to cook easily for 12 people. All in all a really nice location and nice house to stay in ideal for families meeting up to stay together.

The lodge was an absolute treat for me and my family. We were very worried about a few reviews before making way to Barforth however I would like to point out, there must have been many improvements made regarding the previous complaints. The lodge was very spacious, cleaned thoroughly and a delight to spend a getaway trip at. There was farm animals with beautiful scenery at the door step giving you a tremendous country side vibe. All kitchen appliances needed were at your disposal, water pressure was completely fine and water pumps are installed to provide hot water whenever needed. We couldn't have been happier with how everything turned out. We will most definitely be coming back. Thank you and Happy New Year.

Great place, my only complaint would be the lack of hot water and power from the showers.

Despite the later check in time, it was clear that a Covid deep clean had not been carried out. The place was not clean, with cobwebs everywhere, dirty dishes, and a filthy table. We did a lot of cleaning the first day. The hot water system was not great either. Constantly using the boost was the only way to get any, and even then you only get it in one half of the house. Despite there being lots of toilets, only one had an unbroken toilet seat. There were only a couple of them with locks though, and in one bathroom, as the Smiths song goes, there's a light that never goes out. We didn't try the log burner. Broken glass, and parts crumbling away did not give us any confidence. We didn't try the hottub, but next door did, sending smoke and a smell of rotten eggs our way. Also there was a whole folder full of what to do with the hot tub, and including two defunct walks, but no other information. There was nowhere for rubbish, seemingly no food waste area, and local bottle banks appeared to all be removed. Despite this we had a great time, because it's the people not the place. But even though the house is in a wonderful location, we wouldn't go back. It is in dire need of some TLC, and a new cleaning team who understand how to clean. This may be a more affordable option given how astronomical Sykes property prices are going, but it's still very overpriced. This was our third trip with Sykes, and if this passes their quality control, it definitely puts us off going through them again.

The owners were very friendly and helpful. The cottage was generally OK, however there were a few things that required attention. At least two of the beds had broken supports and were being propped up on plastic boxes owners would have been aware when cleaning . The hot water pressure for the showers and bath were poor. The information pack showed a walk to local village across a nearby bridge which when tried to access, had been closed for a long time. Dishwasher was out of saltfinisher so had not been maintained, and did not work or clean even when refilled. Also timer was broken , ran for longer than stated but still didn't clean. As a party of 12, this was inconvinient. The information pack did not make it clear that the cottage had two 'boosts' for hot water, obviously from when it was separate cottages. Each boost worked independently.