“Overall, The Lantern is a beautiful place.”
It’s well located for exploring the village and its many attractions. It’s not far from many other great locations. The home has been finished wonderfully, but there were a few niggles.
On arrival we were missing key elements for our stay, including wood and matches for the fire (given how cold it was during our stay, we’d hoped to use it regularly). Wood was shortly delivered but the store wasn’t filled, so we ended up getting more from the shop. The house guide wasn’t there for us, ...
It’s well located for exploring the village and its many attractions. It’s not far from many other great locations. The home has been finished wonderfully, but there were a few niggles.
On arrival we were missing key elements for our stay, including wood and matches for the fire (given how cold it was during our stay, we’d hoped to use it regularly). Wood was shortly delivered but the store wasn’t filled, so we ended up getting more from the shop. The house guide wasn’t there for us, so we didn’t have any information for the property (we found some pages on how to light the fire eventually but that was all). The WiFi was shared by the host. Our hosts were also away for the weekend, so on later discovering we also had no washing up liquid left (apart from one small squidgy in the bottle) and no dishwasher tablets, they weren’t able to assist so we brought our own. While I don’t expect to necessarily have all you need, it felt like it had been forgotten to be restocked. Especially as on a hunt to locate more we came across a cupboard that had more of all the things we didn’t need (coffee pods, ear buds, laundry detergent), but not those we did. We were only provided with one bin bag for a week with no others in the property to be found. Luckily on purchasing more wood, we ended up with several of those bags.
There was also a strong smell in the bathroom, so we had to have the window open for the entirety of our stay (during icy weather) in the hopes of dissipating it, but unfortunately it never went away. While the pressure of the ensuite shower was great, there were some mouldy residue patches, and the main washroom looks like it once homed a shower and seeing that reinstated would mean not having to awkwardly be in somebody else’s bedroom to change.
The one parking space with two double rooms seems like a misstep, there’s plenty of space to extend the driveway even by a couple of feet to allow for two cars comfortably. As the property seems more aimed at adults, it would make sense to allow for two cars, especially given how expensive the nearby parking is per day. With some will power and creative parking, we were able to just about fit two smaller cars in, but lack much space to get in/out comfortably (with the cars touching, as paying >=£10/day for a week was too much). Finally, adding a small side table in the living room would aid being able to put your drink somewhere more within easier reach to the armchair.
As I say, the location and property itself is lovely, as somebody who adores penguins I was delighted to be able to so easily visit the only Kings in England. It’s far enough from the bustle of the village that it is perfectly peaceful, while still all being walkable within the village. (If you’re planning a trip to the Mousetrap inn, you will struggle for parking!). We were provided pods for the coffee machine (luckily I knew how to use it, but there were no instructions for my fellow guest who did not, perhaps in the missing guide?) which often times you’re not. Once we had gathered the missing items (which I’m sure would have been provided by our hosts if they had not been away), we had a lovely stay.