Our host Ciara was extremely welcoming, friendly and generous in terms of giving us access to her home for washing clothes and WiFi (no working WiFi in barn which we were warned about). She also provided delicious baked goods and a cooked meal on arrival.
The Oak Barn is a lovely location/retreat but it is only for 2/3people, despite what was advertised. There was a camp bed set up in the kitchen, which was totally inappropriate, making access to the toilet at night totally impossible as it would have woken up the entire household. The crockery and cutlery were of very poor quality, we operated on 3 China plates and one plastic one until we requested more. There was no oven but there was a dishwasher, which was a strange use of space. The towels were almost threadbare. There was very little hanging and drawer space. There were no protectors on mattresses nor pillows…
The ethos of ‘The Oak Barn’ was all about being eco but there was only one black bin for glass (that we managed to fill happily!), but how else could we separate the recycling, the bins weren’t there. We asked for a broom to sweep out the grass cuttings downstairs and were supplied with what looked like a child’s broom.
We paid a LOT of money for these 10 days - it was not value for money at all.
It’s such a shame, especially as Ciara and the location were so lovely. Unfortunately our much anticipated, longed for, family reunion was hugely marred by our experience.