Old Higher Lighthouse Stopes Cottage, PORTLAND BILL

Rated 4/50 by BlueHayward on 27th July 2019

"Just returned from a lovely week at the Old Higher Lighthouse. As a family we rented both the Stopes Cottage and Branscombe Lodge Cottage to celebrate a special birthday. Both cottages are quaint and having access to the lighthouse at any time was fabulous. Even though the final steps up to tower are steep, we still managed to spend evenings up there with a G&T enjoying the sunset. The location is very peaceful and the hosts welcoming. A lovely relaxing week!"

Rated 4/50 by 988sallyb on 14th November 2018

"We stayed here around bonfire night. The design of the cottage meant we could see signs of fireworks displays in many places, which really have an appreciation of how much coast we could see. The heaters worked well in the cottage, so we were able to earn up after a cold walk. There is some information hidden away about the geology in the area, and a good selection of books to read. "

Rated 5/50 by HD22 on 13th August 2018

"We stayed for a few days at the old lighthouse in May. Great cottage with everything we needed. Fantastic solar heated pool which we had use of, the kids swam every day! We loved being able to look around the old lighthouse and see the lovely views. "

Rated 3/50 by HappyGranny62 on 19th April 2018

Rated 3/50 by Kootenaylass on 15th October 2017

"Branscombe Cottage The positive side. A great location. Quiet and with everything you needed there . The decor downstairs is rather tired and the carpets dingy but actually everything was scrupulously clean. The whole house really needs a bit of modernising .The pillows were rather hard and the mattresses quite hard too. Lovely quiet spot. Great bird watching. Lovely walks The negative. Our host Les seriously need to learn to read his audience better. Having arrived after 3 hours drive. We wanted to settle in, have a pee, get some tea, unpack. Les arrived after 2 minutes and we are subjected to an unnecessarily long " tour" having the key to our rental deliberately "with held" until he had finished. This was accompanied by some aggressive and completely unprofessional comments such as " Come back here, I haven't told you you can go yet" and "stay here I haven't finished speaking to you". Quite frankly you should never talk to anyone like that. It is patronising, and offensive and made me and my daughter feel very uncomfortable. If we had been two men I wonder if he would have spoken to us like that. IF it was meant as a joke- it failed!!. I regret however much I liked the house, I wont be back for that reason alone."

Rated 5/50 by Kath P on 2nd June 2017

"My family and I have just returned from a weeks stay in the quaint and quirky Stopes cottage. When we arrived after a 6 hour journey we were greeted by Les who showed us round the property and filled us in on the history of the lighthouse. The cottage was incredibly clean and very well maintained. It had everything we needed including the little things that sometimes get forgotten by self catering owners...from dish cloths, salt and pepper, tea bags and milk (for that long awaited cuppa!) to blankets for those cold nights (not that we needed them!). The views were beautiful, i was able to sit in the kitchen with my morning cuppa and watch the boats go by! Bliss! The views from the lighthouse were absolutely stunning. We loved it up there. We can't wait to return. Thanks Fran and Les for a memorable holiday and for being wonderful hosts."

Rated 5/50 by Johnmcdonald97 on 2nd June 2016

Rated 5/50 by Mrmarkk on 9th March 2015

Rated 1/50 by DR N on 10th February 2014

"The property was too cold and the heat was only rationed by the owners. They had the heating on and off as it suited them. The owners had painted the property interior wood work with solvent based paint and had not ventilated the rooms. As a consequence we kept inhaling the chemicals to the point that one of us experienced burning sensation in the chest. We could not open the windows to ventilate as the gales were in the region of 80 miles per hour. The owners were aware of the weather warnings but were more interested in maintaining their booking. We had to leave earlier because of the cold, intrusive winds hammering against the windows all night long, extreme noise and the chemical inhalation. We feel very disappointed in the fact that the property owners showed such inflexibility and imposed such conditions to innocent holidays makers like us."

Rated 1/50 by DR N on 10th February 2014

"The property was too cold and the heat was only rationed by the owners. They had the heating on and off as it suited them. The owners had painted the property interior wood work with solvent based paint and had not ventilated the rooms. As a consequence we kept inhaling the chemicals to the point that one of us experienced burning sensation in the chest. We could not open the windows to ventilate as the gales were in the region of 80 miles per hour. The owners were aware of the weather warnings but were more interested in maintaining their booking. We had to leave earlier because of the cold, intrusive winds hammering against the windows all night long, extreme noise and the chemical inhalation. We feel very disappointed in the fact that the property owners showed such inflexibility and imposed such conditions to innocent holidays makers like us."