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Fenside

Fenside

4.7
out of 5
Ratings from 10 reviews
90% of guests
recommend
Cleanliness
4.4
Comfort
4.8
Condition
4.5
Location
5.0
Value
4.5
Customer
Service
4.7

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  • Sleeps up to 10 in 4 bedrooms
  • Welcomes unlimited dogs for free
  • Ideal for REACTIVE dogs
  • HUGE secure, wild flower garden
  • 5-6ft fencing all round and 5 bar gate at the top and bottom of the garden
  • Barton Broad is at the bottom of the garden with mooring
  • Boat hire available locally - dogs welcome
  • EV Charger
  • Unlimited WiFi
  • All on one level
  • Off road secure parking for up to 5 cars
  • Fire pit, table tennis, Wendy house, inset trampoline and basketball net for fun

Not suitable for Reactive dogs as advertised

Review submitted on Sun, 12 Nov 2023
3.8
out of 5
Guest doesn't recommend this property
Cleanliness
4.0
Comfort
4.0
Condition
4.0
Location
5.0
Value
3.0
Customer
Service
3.0
Bin men and post have access to the enclosed garden and let themselves in. Not suitable for our stay.

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Ok for dogs.

How likely are you to return?
Not again (but do please let us know why)





Sue Allen - East Ruston Cottages replied 166 days ago
Hi Avkar and thank you so much for leaving the review. I would very much like to address all these points and we have emailed your separately to offer a partial refund for the problems. The bin men entering the property is something that we have no control over unfortunately as they have to turn round as the house is at the end of a single track road. We do highlight this on the website and in the digital guide so that people can see this information before they book and again before they arrive. The date of the bin collection is included in the house guide. The postman very rarely delivers anything to the house as the mail has all been redirected but the owners will be ensuring that there is a post box on the outer gate in case of any other deliveries from them. We are saddened by your 3/5 score for service. At East Ruston Cottages we communicated everything in the way we normally do - plenty of emails to confirm the booking and payments, the digital guide was sent, the pre arrival and post departure emails were also sent and we have no record of anything else being requested from you. We are aware that the Fire Risk Assessment work that was done on the day of arrival resulted in the fire being out of action for your stay but we do know that the owner got in touch immediately about this and was available for you to contact all through your stay. The value score of 3/5 we would like to address by pointing out that the house sleeps 10 and is priced to sleep 10. The rate charged for the week would work out at less than £24/person/night with a full house of 10 guests. If a guest chooses to come to a large property with just 2 people then of course that rate per night will work out higher but the choice is that of the guest to pay that rate. I hope this helps and I hope we can have you stay with us again. You have also been offered a 10% discount for your next stay and I am always very happy to have a conversation about the suitability of any of our properties. Sue

An oasis of calm and peace

Review submitted on Sun, 06 Aug 2023
4.7
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
4.0
Comfort
5.0
Condition
4.0
Location
5.0
Value
5.0
Customer
Service
5.0
Stayed at Fenside for one week in July/August - multiple people and dogs.
From the dogs perspective first - what a place! So much freedom and space to sniff around but really secure - there are some places where the fencing may not be escape proof for really little dogs that have a tendency to want to run off but generally we were really confident that the dogs wouldn't want to or try and get through. Great to have a mud daddy on hand as I would say if you were there during a rainy week, there most certainly would be some happy muddy dogs :-)
For the people - lots of space in the house, the terrace is fabulous and the different areas in the gardens to sit and chill are just wonderful. For those that want to fish, you've only got to walk to the bottom of the garden and through a gate and you're all set - our best day yielded 36 fish - and yes - they were all returned to the water.
Butterflies, kingfishers, an otter and a wide variety of birds were all spotted and this is a testament to the work the owner has been doing allowing certain areas of the gardens to be more natural.
Every cooking implement you could want is available in the very spacious kitchen and the big table made it easy to sit together and enjoy time together over meals.
I do think Fenside is a place you book to actually stay in and use rather than a base to go out in a car each day - we only went out in the car 2 days out of the 7 - but it really is an oasis of calm, nature and peace.

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Never been anywhere so dog welcoming before!

How likely are you to return?
Would love to come back!



Wonderfully peaceful location

Review submitted on Sat, 08 Jul 2023
4.2
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
4.0
Comfort
4.0
Condition
4.0
Location
5.0
Value
4.0
Customer
Service
4.0
Had a fantastic week here with our dogs and paddle boards. Incredibly peaceful, private and quiet and the mooring is a couple of paddles and then into the open broad. Garden is huge, lovely and heaving with insects. A few minor flaws about the house that could be improved but nothing that will stop us rebooking.

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Great for dogs!

How likely are you to return?
Would love to come back!





Fantastic Fenside!

Review submitted on Sat, 24 Jun 2023
4.7
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
4.0
Comfort
5.0
Condition
4.0
Location
5.0
Value
5.0
Customer
Service
5.0
We absolutely loved Fenside! The rural location was so peaceful & quiet apart from the beautiful birdsong. We were lucky to watch the barn owl hunting most evenings & we've never seen so many dragonflies! The huge garden was enough for our older dogs to potter about in - we 'lost' them several times but weren't worried as the whole perimeter (2+ acres) is secured by a 6ft solid fence. My husband spent most days fishing at the bottom of the garden & was regularly visited by the resident kingfisher!
The house itself is not show home perfect, it's loved & lived-in & we felt like we'd moved in with a friend for a week! We've never been anywhere that is so well equipped - the kitchen is brimming with so much crockery, cutlery & gadgets & plenty of storage. The beds were really comfortable & the showers were great. We've had a lovely relaxing week at Fenside & would love to come back.

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Never been anywhere so dog welcoming before!

How likely are you to return?
Would love to come back!



Doggy heaven.

Review submitted on Sat, 20 May 2023
4.8
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
4.0
Comfort
5.0
Condition
5.0
Location
5.0
Value
5.0
Customer
Service
5.0
The best by far we have ever stayed in. The outside space is amazing from the garden space to the fire pit where we cooked breakfast and toasted marshmallows. Completely safe for dogs and a peaceful haven for all. Inside is beautiful too. The mud daddy was especially useful. Very helpful owner when we had an issue . Quickly resolved. We will return .

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Never been anywhere so dog welcoming before!

How likely are you to return?
Would love to come back!





Amazing dog friendly stay!

Review submitted on Tue, 02 May 2023
5.0
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
5.0
Comfort
5.0
Condition
5.0
Location
5.0
Value
5.0
Customer
Service
5.0
Just come back from a long weekend at Fenside and what an amazing time we had! The house is the perfect size for 2 busy kids and a nervous dog.

The garden was the best thing! Simba was exhausted every day and was so happy with the amount of exploring he could do and safely! I was so at ease that he couldn’t escape and there was no other people or dogs nearby. We were all sad to leave!

Thank you for creating somewhere safe for dogs, we had searched for months and had so many issues with gardens. Either weren’t fully secure or dog friendly at all.

Will definitely recommend to anyone taking their dogs on holiday!

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Never been anywhere so dog welcoming before!

How likely are you to return?
Would love to come back!



Fantastic week at Fenside

Review submitted on Mon, 17 Apr 2023
4.8
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
5.0
Comfort
5.0
Condition
4.0
Location
5.0
Value
5.0
Customer
Service
5.0
Fenside is fantastic holiday house. Very well equipped. Spacious garden and the dogs had a great time as did my grandson. Lovely rural location, very private but in good proximity to beaches, restaurants etc. We all had a great holiday and would love to return to Fenside.

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Never been anywhere so dog welcoming before!

How likely are you to return?
Would love to come back!





Rural Paradise

Review submitted on Sat, 18 Mar 2023
4.7
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
4.0
Comfort
5.0
Condition
5.0
Location
5.0
Value
4.0
Customer
Service
5.0
Fenside was a great property, very warm and comfortable and well equipped. The approach road is a little bumpy but this is described before booking and really wasn't a problem.

The property is at the very end of the lane, so if you are looking for somewhere very peaceful and quiet then this is ideal. The weather wasn't great whilst we were there so we didn't make use of the lovely decked area, I really wanted to do some star gazing but as it mostly rained I didn't manage to do that.

The garden is HUGE, it wraps around the house and once you've shut the gate it's very secure and well fenced. Having owned a reactive dog in the past, this would be absolutely ideal as there is no one passing the property and the garden is more than big enough for them to charge about.

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Great for dogs!

How likely are you to return?
Would love to come back!



Holiday at fenside catfield Norfolk

Review submitted on Sat, 19 Nov 2022
5.0
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
5.0
Comfort
5.0
Condition
5.0
Location
5.0
Value
5.0
Customer
Service
5.0
Would have given 10 stars for everything! Beautiful place with a massive secure garden. Relaxing and worry free holiday with our 8 dogs. The service from East Ruston Cottages was fantastic - they loaned us 2 crates and a. Doggy Push Chair for our disabled member of the pack. We enjoyed playing out on the garden just as much as the dogs did and then relaxing in front of the telly during the evening. We picked Fenside to get away from bonfire night - didn't hear a thing at all.
Would describe this place as heaven for our week's stay.

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Never been anywhere so dog welcoming before!

How likely are you to return?
Would love to come back!



Short break

Review submitted on Mon, 03 Oct 2022
4.8
out of 5
Guest recommends this property
Cleanliness
5.0
Comfort
5.0
Condition
5.0
Location
5.0
Value
4.0
Customer
Service
5.0
Perfect location for us with multiple dogs and very easy for my disabled mother to get around. Home very comfortable and showers were awesome as was the size.
Downside- no welcome pack (the only east Rushdon house that nothing was left) so no milk for the morning etc after a late arrival. Property not secure for dogs at all- 5 of ours escaped and one ended up in the broads at bottom of the garden- luckily one that could swim but they could be left outside without someone with them.
The bin collectors just drive straight onto the property - not good when you have dogs out as gates were left open. Also sales people came up to the house- if reactive dogs had been out then they probably would’ve been bitten. Access to property needs to be more secure.
No dog crates or bedding supplied so make sure you bring your own.
Wasps were awful- massive nest right outside house and all in the grass at the front- the dogs got stung loads- luckily there was vinegar to treat in the cupboards and no harm done it’s nature. Would we come again? Absolutely but no what to expect now and hopefully the security will be improved for next time

How dog friendly was this property for you?
Ok for dogs.

How likely are you to return?
Certainly will consider it.



Sue Allen - East Ruston Cottages replied 321 days ago
Hi Nikki. Thank you so much for your review and apologies for taking so long to get back to you. Some great points raised there and many have been addressed now. We do normally provide a welcome pack - I think there had been a bit of a glitch with the arrangements when you came but all guests do now get a welcome pack of local goodies, milk and some dog biscuits too. The gate at the bottom of the garden has been more securely backed with mesh now. We can't ever guarantee that anywhere is 100% dog secure BUT steps have been taken to improve it. Dog bedding - there is no mention of the provision of dog bedding on the website and given that the owners live away and have to rely on their local cleaning team, it is tricky to ensure that the beds are always cleaned so we don't supply them for that reason. We do supply throws for the sofas and dog towels though and these are mentioned on the website. Crates - you can add 3 different sizes of crates to your booking at any time (dog buggies too) and they will be taken to the house and left for your arrival. There are now 2 large and 2 medium crates in situ at Fenside too (details on the website). Sales people and refuse collection. Given the location, right at the end of an unmade road at the back of a very rural Broads village, there aren't too many sales people visiting but to ensure that no-one enters the property the owners have put a sign at the gate. The refuse collection unfortunately does have to enter the premises - they can't turn round anywhere else. We do make that clear on the website, in the digital guide and there is a specific day for collection. I hope this has addressed some of the points so that others wanting to book our lovely Fenside will be reassured. Sue