Brilliant, sparkling clean, fantastic space. No damp or mustiness like many English homes. Richard and Fiona were very kind and open and inviting with us, and were pretty much invisible (which we wanted!) but also made it well known that they were easily contacted, and they were! Best hosts ever.
The room had just enough space for two women to get along and move around and live together for a week. Oven, electric induction stove, fridge, and microwave made it very easy for us to cook all our own food (which is perfect for me, having food allergies.) We also found it stocked with all dishes, cutlery, cleaning supplies, paper towel, coffee, tea, condiments, baking sheets, french press coffee maker, kettle, extra towels and sheets, soap, shampoo, and even a jug of milk and orange juice in the fridge, and a full sized Toblerone and bag of chips! We were absolutely thrilled with all of the special, thoughtful touches.
The home was easy to find, although we had a little trouble figuring out the lock on the door, but later realized that they had actually mentioned how to do it in a previous message, so that was our fault. (It was a long flight, okay?:P) I would also warn future guests not to trip on the metal gate locks in the front drive. I did almost every day, even though I knew they were there, so maybe I'm just extra clumsy!
Located in a very decent neighbourhood, which two young women felt quite safe in walking at night. The houses and buildings nearby seemed well-kept and clean, barring one or two on the main street, but that's London.
Very close (3-5mins walk) to plenty of different grocery stores, convenience stores, coffee shops, bars and restaurants, and some other shopping like clothes, shoes, and discount stores (Poundland and Poundworld, etc). No grocery stores open 24/7 that we saw, but the Sainsbury's was open til 11pm, which was late enough for us. 10-12mins walk to two different train stations with plenty of connections to tube. 3-5mins walk to bus and coach stops, and the Gatwick airport coach stops right there too!
All in all, this place was 10x better than any hotel I've been to in London, and half the price! 11/10, would book again in a heartbeat. Thank you so much, Richard and Fiona, for your excellent hospitality.