Forge is an excellent choice for friend or family alike seeking a base for their adventures in the lakes. âą Delightful open plan living/dining/kitchen area, no one will miss out on the fun during mealtimes and evenings. âą Bedrooms look out across the forests and natural surroundings on the first floor, making immersing into relaxation all the easier during your stay.
The Graythwaite Home Farm Courtyard truly is the beating heart of the Estate â accessed via the iconic and enchanting trail bordered with cheery blossom trees, you are truly entering a very special place. âą Less than a mile from the shores of Lake Windermere where you can enjoy the peace and serenity of the lake without the hustle and bustle, or even book in an action-packed activity with the star-studded Graythwaite Adventure. âą Access to the communal heated swimming pool which can be booked in advance of your stay. âą Onsite Shop (Opening Times vary) Pre-order available. âą Communal games room âą Communal BBQ facilities âą Childrenâs play area
A great break away - such a lovely little cottage, so handy to the pool (literally right next door!) which we were able to book most days of our stay, and in a great location to explore all the Lakes has to offer.
Lovely kitchen, comfy sofas, very comfy beds and pillows, very clean bedding, plenty of hot water in shower, electric heating / storage heaters warmed up the bedrooms nicely, kitchen & lounge were cooler. A haven to return to after completing The Lap ultra marathon in September! The only disappointment was not being given advance warning that the Graythwaite farm shop on-site was closed. This resulted in a long car trip back beyond Newby Bridge to buy supplies.
Lovely property in lovely surroundings what with the bookable swimming pool & roaming pheasants to boot This was obviously a very expensive, top quality conversion into holiday accommodation when done, but the owners need to keep on top of maintenance & inspections of their properties as we found 24h after arriving that the fridge wasnât switched on , the drinks/bottle holder on the fridge door was missing as presumably broken, 2 of 6 ceiling kitchen lights not working green damp showing through on all 3 upstairs bedrooms plus i spent about 3 hours weeding a very overgrown path from back door to a lovely patio/bar b q area to take advantage of it ; as you would. Still recommend though
The location of the Graythwaite Estate is fantastic. It's a lovely estate, surrounded by nature and in close proximity to Lake Windermere. Upon arriving, we found a bag of goodies which was an unexpected delight. We had earlier enquired about body wash and shampoo, and were told it would be provided, so didn't bring our own. There was none at the cottage, and we were assured this would be provided later by Housekeeping when we raised this to the attention of the team. It was never provided, however, and it appeared that Housekeeping refilled the hand soap instead. By the end of our stay, we were down to the last squares of toilet tissue, which was never replenished. The kitchen floors had been swept, but really did need a scrub as it left our feet/socks grubby. The trail maps of the estate were missing from the cottage's folder (we suspected that probably a previous guest had removed for use) and were told to wait the next day to go get a copy from the onsite farm store. The Housekeeping Team really needs to be more on top of the turnover of the cottages, this is where the experience fails. If you can overlook these types of issues, then chances are you will have an enjoyable stay. Recommend with caveats.
A comfortable, warm cottage though in places is showing signs of wear ie sofa and chairs and carpet could do with a deep clean but we realise we are right at the end of the season. The outside areas for the cottages ie the tables, chairs etc could also do with some attention - they look a bit âtiredâ.
Tired, in need of some TLC and a proper deep clean
Letâs start with the positives, the location is lovely and itâs great that thereâs a swimming pool and kids playground on site. Other than that, the property fell a long way short of what Iâd expect of something advertised as luxury. No hand towels, no bath mat, hot water barely hot enough to do the washing up (luckily thereâs an electric shower), damp damage in two bedrooms from a leak round the chimney stack - not the sort of things that spoil the holiday particularly, but clearly not what Iâd expect from a âluxuryâ property. The biggest issue was probably the cleaning before our arrival - if youâre going to allow pets, you really need to make sure that you clean more thoroughly and treat for, e.g., fleas. More than one of us ended up with bites from sitting on the sofa. Needless to say, I donât expect to return.