I am sharing a long review as we had a long (3 week) visit to Sarah's home. As described by her in the listing, this is a lived-in family home. So if you are looking for a hotel-like experience this may not be for you. We, however, loved it. The house feels like a happy home and is more like visiting your favorite fun aunt's place than staying in a hotel.
The house itself is very large. Deceptively so. Plenty of space for a large family. In our case it was a small family, with a few family visitors along the way. We did not use all the space available to us. The design is quirky, charming and has lots of character. Lots of color, fun objects to discover and filled with suspected stories of travel and adventure. You will never get bored looking around as there is no end of fun art, games and curious artifacts. Bright colors surround you and each room is designed with imagination and whimsy. You feel like you know the family living there as you get to know each room.
The house is well used and lived-in so there can be glitches along the way. From a broken washing machine to a new leak springing open, things can go wrong and things can get dusty - as they do in any home. That said, Sarah was extremely communicative and helpful in addressing any issues. She did what she could immediately. When the washer broke, she arranged immediately for our laundry to be picked up by the housekeeper and cleaned and dropped back the next day (nicely folded too!). She had a repair person onsite within a few days (and as quickly as she could). A small leak in one of the showers was fixed the same day. And her housekeeper Anna was kind and helpful. She also answered a multitude of texts the first few days with our endless questions. The only big glitch was that after nearly a week of trying to befriend the adorable and sweet cat (who we agreed to feed while there), we finally gave up and suggested to Sarah that maybe the cat would be happier elsewhere until the family was back home. Sarah made alternate arrangements within an hour.
Before we arrived Sarah actually had all the common spaces re-painted and the stairs and hallways re-carpeted. So many parts of the house look like new. In rooms where the cupboards were full there were wardrobe racks placed that were large enough to solve any storage problem. And there is a second fridge that was completely empty for our use. She went above and beyond to ensure we had a nice stay. She even offered to buy a few things we might need.
The house was well equipped for cooking, entertaining, lounging, BBQs and more. Not all rooms had a bathroom so a full house can work with family and close friends. The best part was feeling at home and knowing my toddler was welcome to be a toddler! It is a home that feels partially designed by kids and as such, it was easy to feel relaxed as the little one explored. While we did our best to put everything back in its place, after three weeks there were a few items that we could not remember moving in the first place. But it felt as if Sarah would not be upset by a misplaced item as long as it turned up somewhere!.
The home has a truly wonderful backyard and outdoor space. One of the best and largest I have seen in London. Complete with a trampoline and boxing bags (that my little one loved), BBQ area and large table as well as lovely flowers and swings and art pieces hidden in the greenery. There is an indoor pool which is housed in the back in a separate building. It was clean and warm. We lucked out with good weather and enjoyed being outside a lot of the time.
The location is Ealing was perfect for us. A very short walk to Ealing Broadway tube/train stations and shops and restaurants. It is also serviced by deliveries for take-away food and even groceries delivered from Waitrose.
We were happy with our "home away from home" and any little glitches were addressed quickly so did not bother us. We would be very happy to stay here again and hopefully will!