Dolphins

3.7★

8 Guests
4 Bedrooms
4 Bathrooms
Pets No
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Features

Off road parking
Garden / Patio
Pub/shop < 1 mile
Dishwasher
Seaside
Broadband / WiFi

Reviews & Ratings

Accuracy of the listing

Cleanliness

Comfort

Facilities and Maintenance

* Based on a combined average customer score

23 Customer Review(s)

Susan
August 2024

“We have stayed here for quite a few times over the years it has a lovely setting close to South Sands beach ideal for the children to play and paddle board.”

The property itself is generally ok . The only criticism I can make is that the mattresses need replacing they are very uncomfortable on all the single beds . There is a new bed in one room which is fine.The cleaners haven’t swept under sofa as we dropped some puzzle and looked there was quite dirty . All in all an enjoyable week with good weather.

The property itself is generally ok . The only criticism I can make is that the mattresses need replacing they are very uncomfortable on all the single beds . There is a new bed in one room which is fine.The cleaners haven’t swept under sofa as we dropped some puzzle and looked there was quite dirty . All in all an enjoyable week with good weather.

- Susan, August 2024

All matresses and Three Divans are due for on-going replacement October 2024 Property Owner
Simon July 2024

“It maybe a bit old round the edges (like me!”

) but Dolphins is a lovely, charming and very homely place to have a holiday. It has everything you need and more with a quiet terrace to enjoy a coffee or drink in peace. We have been coming to Salcombe for many years and thought we would try Dolphins at South Sands - and for us this has been the best holiday house by far. If you want Surrey by the Sea in the hub of Salcombe then go to Allenheyes, Devon, Coronation etc. If you want somewhere quieter, charming and homely then book Dolphins. We can’t recommend it too highly.

- Simon, July 2024
Matt May 2024

“Lovely location, great views, good sized house, well equipped.”

Few minor gripes: Beds were a little uncomfortable and all but one room had single beds - including in the master bedroom. Garden very overgrown - we were warned about this after booking, but it obviously hasn't been tended to for some time now which meant it wasn't accessible for our children to play in. There was also an infestation of fruit flies throughout the house - not sure if there's anything you can do about that, but it was a bit unpleasant. None of this detracted hugely from a nice week, but given the price of the property, should perhaps be addressed.

- Matt, May 2024
Lucy March 2024

“We absolutely loved the house, the views are spectacular and for a family with 4 16 year olds and 2 older( not so) children in their early 20's, the bedrooms and bathrooms are perfect.”

Our issue is with the agent, Sykes, and not for the first time. Following a fairly significant mouse issue, we continually chased Sykes for action, to discover none had been taken until over 3 hours later, when we asked to move out. The pest control company were unable to come by the time anyone contacted them, and we were offered several very sub standard properties, without the view or proximity to the sea, which was what we went away for, or the bed set up for our party, yet Sykes ( see James' response on Trustpilot) still insist they offered us 'several alternatives'. In all the review responses, Sykes very unhelpfully point out that they are merely the agent. We are well aware of that. Our issue is not with the owner, as we feel were we able to deal with them directly, we could have had a proper conversation rather than call centres in Chester, and infuriating scripts. Having said that, the issue is clearly well known to the owner, as there were traps with dead mice under the kitchen cupboards and the dishwasher cable was chewed through causing a substantial leak in a kitchen cupboard, leading to further loss of food. The fact mice were getting into the kitchen cupboards and had eaten our bread, was really not pleasant, and shows there must be quite a significant problem, and the house should not have been available for a holiday let in that state. In short, with a more robust solution to the mouse problem, we would love to stay there again, but not while Sykes are the agent. We will never use them again. Once spoken to, the owner has offered a refund for the stress and inconvinience the incident caused. I hope the owner is now challenging Sykes' appalling lack of action and robot-like service, as I feel confident they are charging them a fortune. We felt they would happily have left us waiting for someone to come out, without any reassurance of when, any ability to escalate issues away from people who can only quote scripts, and anyone who cares enough to take timely action to resolve an issue. This was our holiday, we don't go away a lot and this was a treat for my husband's 50th. It's amazing what a difference good or bad customer service can make and Sykes have a long way to go to address their customer service.

- Lucy, March 2024

Thank you for your feedback. We are truly sorry for the situation that occurred during your stay at Dolphins. We pride ourselves on great customer service, we can only apologise that you feel we have fallen short on this occasion. We tried hard to get pest control to you as soon as possible, however due to it being the Easter weekend this proved quite difficult. We managed to secure a visit the next morning followed by housekeeping to clean the area. We offered you a re-house, which you understandably declined as it was not within the area of South Sands. The owner was very apologetic and offered you are refund, which we are pleased you accepted. We appreciate this is not something that you should have to deal with on holiday. Unfortunately this was a situation out of our control and we felt we acted as quickly and professionally as we could given it being Easter weekend and the circumstance we were faced with. We cannot apologise enough that you were unhappy with our service and can only hope you still managed to enjoy your holiday. Property Owner
Sarah September 2023

“We absolutely loved our stay- really comfy, plenty of space and great views!”

Also the little cove was great for paddle boarding and catching the ferry.

- Sarah, September 2023

delighted your holiday was enjoyable at Dolphins Property Owner
Iain July 2023

“FYI. One of the “rocking” chairs is breaking and 2 of the handles on the kitchen cupboards are not secure”

- Iain, July 2023

will rectify -thank you for pointing this out Property Owner
Sep 2022

“A glorious stay in a beautiful, secluded location with everything we needed.”

The house is spacious, clean and airy, with a huge living room area with gorgeous views over South Sands. The beds are comfortable. We noted some comments from recent guests and we thought we should add our update, having very recently stayed for a week: • A tile on the bathroom floor in the ensuite off the back bedroom was cracked and was being repaired. • While there were a couple of accessories that need to be replaced, the fridges were sparkling clean and had plenty of storage for a party of 8. • The patio area offers plenty of space for living and outside eating. • Parking space is more than adequate • We found the house very clean and cosy.

- , Sep 2022
Lisa July 2022

“After 7yrs of the Dolphins being our home from home I didn’t think I would be writing a review like the below but I feel after the way our complaints have been handled its a justified one to inform future all customers.”

Our most recent stay this year confirmed in our view that the prices have risen but the standards have fallen. On previous years we have politely informed Coast and Country that the small fridge in the kitchen was not closing properly, and therefore not keeping temp and that there were no shelves due to them presumably being broken. This was again not rectified and to make matters worse the additional fridge in the pantry also had shelves missing / broken. Not a deal breaker but when a party of 7 are staying it doesn’t leave much option for the storage of open milk etc. A review of this issues was left by us back in 2020! Our main issue however was the condition of one of the en suite bathrooms. On arrival I noticed that grout was missing around a number of tiles on the floor and one of the tiles had cracked in many places & was sticking up, upon walking on the floor there was excessive movement on the floor and mould behind the toilet. From a health and safety point of view and with young children we chose not to use this bathroom during our stay. During the day when we were out of the house and we returned, walking into the bedroom there was a strong smell of ammonia, much like walking into a public urinal. This in my view is unacceptable and should have been picked up on the clean along with the subsiding floor, with Coast and Country informing me before our stay with a plan on how it was to be resolved. We took the decision to wait until our departure day before informing Coast and Country as we had a lot planned for the week and with young children didn’t want to be hanging around the property waiting on someone coming to inspect. In our view the bathroom floor needs replacing and this would not be a five min job whilst the house had occupants. There were other issues that I can concur with on the below reviews, cleanliness is not great, the bottom room is completely out of bounds due to smelling so bad, bins not being emptied on arrival. Today we received an update from Sykes/coast & country on our complaint, I am FUMING with the response and utterly gobsmacked in the lack of customer service. I paid the £2700 for a week and I expect a lot more. To be told that nothing will be done because we didn’t inform them to the issues during our stay is a joke. No phone call reply to discuss, just a couple of paragraphs basically sweeping it under the carpet. It’s not for me or the other members of our party to keep Coast and Country etc informed of maintenance issues, this job sits with Coast and Country and not the customer and reading most of the below reviews it seems all customers are being dealt with the same treatment, nothing being done! This will be our last time staying at this property, it’s a shame as we have enjoyed our times over the years. If only those who take your money took onboard the feedback below we would be going again next year! Another note to the owner .. You pay a fee to coast and country to clean your property between stays. This clearly isn’t happening with all the reviews stating the same, maybe don’t pay them? And for our inconveniences, refund customers a small amount?? I barely ever complain & I wouldn’t be writing this review if you actually took the complaint seriously. The toilet was complained about previously back in Feb 2022 & nothing been done???

- Lisa, July 2022

Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback. Given the number of years you have spent taking holidays at Dolphins, it upsets both us and the owners that your recent experience fell short of expectations due, in part, to a shortfall in your perception of the customer service attention you experienced in connection with your visit. This has lead to a situation that is completely at odds with our efforts to provide customers with the holiday experience they require. For that we must apologise. We also regret that you did not contact our office direct at the time any issues surfaced. We feel that the majority of your complaints could have been dealt with as soon as we had been notified and we regret that we did not have the chance to do that. We hope you will return to Salcombe again, hopefully putting this one-off experience behind you. Property Owner
Robert July 2022

“We were very disappointed.”

Our first choice was turned down as unsduitable for children. In our opinion this property this property was most unsuitable. The garden was at 45 degrees so they could not use it. The games room was inaccessable despite being advertised and we broke a key trying to access Our main concern was access by car. Approaching from South Sands it was difficult/impossible to turn into the drive without wheel spin. We had to drive further up the road,reverse and approach from Coombe side. We also found the property grubby. Not our best holiday

- Robert, July 2022

Many thanks for leaving your feedback. We have looked carefully at the listing on the website for Dolphins to address the points you have raised. On the warning notes it does say that children need to be supervised while using the garden due to its slope in nature and also mentions the narrow access to the property. We are sorry that you felt these were not sufficient enough to give to you a proper understanding of the area. Please know that if you made us aware of any cleanliness issue while you were art the property we would have rectified them immediately. We hope you enjoyed some of your holiday and all Salcombe has to offer. Property Owner
Bernadette July 2022

“Too much dog hair on sofas rugs and blankets.”

Seems a contradiction when it is described as not allowing pets. Mattresses really in need of being changed.

- Bernadette, July 2022
David June 2022

“This is an excellent property with a fabulous location and is an extremely ...”

This is an excellent property with a fabulous location and is an extremely spacious well appointed holiday let The only downside is the accessibility of the house If you approach the house via south sands you cannot make the sharp right turn up to the house in one go and in reality need to go up the hill towards sharpitor turn and go down the hill and access that way Once at the house you cannot make a left turn up the extremely steep driveway and again need to go beyond the driveway turn and come in that way The steps to the property are extremely steep and narrow and unloading food and bags is difficult The easy way to access the property is via the small lane road through Rew and Marlborough This house is fabulous once you are in but is totally unsuitable for young children older adults and anyone with access issues If you are looking for a holiday where you don’t want to move once settled this is a fantastic house

- David, June 2022
Simon February 2022

“4 couples on a walking weekend arrived on the Friday and found the property was in a wonderful location with fantastic views.”

It seemed well equipped with plenty of crockery, glassware, cutlery etc. On unpacking we found the cleanliness to be well under par for this type of property, i have worked in hospitality for over 20 years and there are many simple things that can be done to improve this property, the wall behind the toilet in one room was mouldy and the mattress protectors and quilts were stained and in fact smelt musty. The general cleanliness was far from acceptable, i could have rung and complained however then having to wait around for someone to come would have taken up too much of our time. Things like crumbs in the cutlery drawers, oven trays unclean etc is just not acceptable. Sending people in to check after a complaint means nothing, this should be checked before people are due in. Another of my issues was the fact that there was no recycling, we had to take our own bottles with us and had this been mentioned in the website i would have been prepared for this but to arrrive and find a notice telling us it would cost £50 if we left it behind just didnt sit well. As for the games room the less said the better, we opened the door and it smelt so bad we locked it up and never used it. For the price of this property things should be perfect and unfortunately they were not. It was such a shame however we had an enjoyable weekend walking but it felt like we were not supposed to.

- Simon, February 2022
Rebecca October 2021

“We stayed at Dolphins as a group of 7 ladies on a friend's group walking weekend in October.”

Not many properties of this size have 7 separate beds so this was a bonus for us and the house suited our needs perfectly. The kitchen was well equipped with everything we needed, there was enough seating for everyone and the newly fitted bathrooms were very clean and spacious. The views from the lounge and most bedrooms were really stunning. We could drink our morning coffee watching boats and paddle boarders. The view of South Sands beach and surrounding estuary made it easy to relax and unwind. We highly recommend The South Sands ferry to Salcombe (which was still running every 30 minutes in October when we visited), coastal path walks to the village of Outer Hope (an 11 mile round route), Hotel cocktails on the beach and water sport activities. The previous reviews mentioned cleanliness was an issue so we were a little apprehensive on arrival but we experienced a very clean house with recycling facilities now in place and had no concerns with this aspect at all. The games room below was not in use and the bedrooms are a little dated but having double duvets on the single beds helped us get a comfortable nights sleep in this beautiful location. Thank you for helping us having a very chilled weekend away.

- Rebecca, October 2021

Wow! – It is lovely to read about your wonderful holiday! Thank you for taking the time to leave us this feedback. We are so pleased that Dolphins was able to accommodate and meet the needs of your party satisfactorily. We have passed onto the housekeeping team that the property was left sparkling upon your arrival and know, they are very appreciative. We hope to welcome you ladies back to Salcombe sometime soon! Property Owner
Penny September 2021

“Stained bedding toilet brushes covered in faeces”

- Penny, September 2021

Many thanks for leaving us your feedback. We are so sorry to read that the cleanliness of the property upon your arrival was not of satisfaction. We have alerted the housekeeping team to these issues immediately and would like to re – iterate that this is not of standard, we can only apologise. Please be assured that should our Salcombe office had been made aware of these issues upon arrival then it would have been rectified. Again, please accept our apologies, we can only hope that your holiday here in Salcombe was still enjoyable. Property Owner
William August 2021

“The house could do with some upgrade not.”

a lot but the cutlery cou be better organised and chairs outside upgrading but we enjoyed our time at the house

- William, August 2021
Annabel July 2021

“Dolphins is in the most wonderful location which cannot be recommended more highly.”

Stunning views. The house is a little dated but was more than adequate. Cleanliness wasn’t the best but didn’t warrant making a fuss. Disappointed not to have a mid stay clean or sheet change. The garden was obviously once much loved but could do with a some tlc. It was disappointing that the building works nearby were continuing and woke us early every morning - despite having been assured that the works were complete by the owner beforehand. We did have problems with electrics and it took a day to remedy this. However this was resolved by the owner.

- Annabel, July 2021
Kathleen May 2021

“Had an issue with duvet & this was replaced the next day, but a couple of the other duvets need looking at - rather lumpy!”

We had to clean food off oven shelves, oven needed a deep clean. General cleanliness was v good. Other issues were dealt with promptly and courteously - excellent agents

- Kathleen, May 2021
Susan July 2020

“Dolphins is situated in a great position near the beach for the children.”

It has been improved since my last visit with nice new showers and toilets , new carpets in all bedrooms. The only thing I think they could improve is now to upgrade the beds and bedroom furniture,they are ok but would finish it off perfectly. We had a problem with the built in fridge it wouldn’t work either there is a problem with the door no shutting properly or else there is a fault on it. However , we have rebooked for next year as we love it and the area .

- Susan, July 2020
Wendy July 2020

“The House was in a Beautiful location, I expected the house to be cleaner than it was due to Covid.”

The basic cleanliness Bathrooms, Kitchen, were clean however there were lots of cobwebs around and the baking trays and oven were very dirty with food debri still on them. The soft furnishings were tired and all of the mattress protectors on the beds were stained as were a lot of the pillows( we know this as we had to strip all the beds on departing) the bedding did not feel fresh like they had been freshly laundered and in fact 1 of the single beds appeared to have sand in it .!!!!!The Games room was totally unusable we opened the door and the smell of damp was unbelievable you could not stand in there for more than a few minutes this was only any good for storing purposes so if you were relying on this space you would have been very disappointed, this is a big issue that I feel the owners need to address. The Barbecue was very dirty we had to clean it before using it. If the owners address the problems as it is an expensive property to rent I would stay there again.

- Wendy, July 2020

Thank you for your feedback on your recent holiday. I’m sorry to hear that there were some cleanliness issues on your arrival, we would have welcomed the opportunity to address these during your stay if we had been aware of these; but your comments have been passed onto the housekeeping team for their attention. Please be assured that all of the beds were made on the day of your arrival with fresh bedding. The baking trays will be replaced so thank you for bringing this to our attention. As you are aware, the games room is underneath the house and therefore does have limited ventilation. The owner of the property was in just prior to your visit and didn’t find any issues with damp; they are constantly improving this room and is in communications with the builder on how to better the air flow through the area going forward. Thank you again for your comments and we hope to welcome you back to the area soon. Property Owner
Helen August 2019

“The cleanliness of the property left a lot to be desired.”

There needs to be recycling bins - it is unbelievable that in todays world there are no recycling bins/bags at the property. The additional room downstairs - is very damp and not usable for anything other than a storage area.

- Helen, August 2019

Thank you for taking the time to provide us with feedback about your stay at Dolphins. Your comments regarding the downstairs games room, and recycling have been passed on for the Owner's consideration. We were sorry to hear that the property was not presented satisfactorily on your arrival, should you have contacted the office during your stay we could have rectified any issues you may have had. Following your comments the Owner as well as a member of the housekeeping team have investigated and no cleanliness issues were identified. We do hope that we can welcome you back to the area soon. Property Owner
William August 2019

“The house was great the view beautiful and the whole set up is very good .”

Unfortunately the fridge which was part of fridge freezer did not work at all.I object to the threat to charge you if you don’t remove the bottles and newspaper the local authorities should provide a service for recycling.

- William, August 2019

Thank you for your feedback and we are very glad that you enjoyed the property. We apologise that the fridge was not functional, we will pass these comments onto the property owner. Unfortunately the council do not offer a collection service for glass recycling in the area, and we have updated instructions for recycling other waste in the property. We hope to see you again in the future. Property Owner
Oct 2016

“Good”

- , Oct 2016

Thank you for rating your holiday experience overall as 4 star. We do hope you had an enjoyable stay at Dolphins in Salcombe and look forward to welcoming back again soon. Property Owner
Aug 2014

“Fantastic house with stunning view.”

Will probably rent again at some time and would certainly recommend it to friends

- , Aug 2014

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Summary

Four bedrooms: 3 x twin (two have their own en suite shower rooms)
1 x Double
Family bathroom with shower over bath, w.c and basin
Shower room with shower, w.c and basin
Open plan kitchen/dining room
Utility room
Lounge
Oil central heating and hot water
Fridge/freezer, washing machine, oven, hob, dishwasher, tumble dryer, microwave, toaster, kettle and a Nescafe Dolce Gusto coffee machine (pods not provided). TV with Freeview, iPod docking station, radio/stereo WiFi available
Off road parking on private drive for up to four cars
Large terrace to the side of the property with table and chairs
To the rear is over an acre of private grounds
All bed linen, towels, bath mats and tea towels are provided
Please bring your own beach towels
Strictly No Smoking

The property

Dolphins is in a glorious position on the south side of the Combe Valley, just 200 yards or so from the sandy beach at South Sands which offers a full range of watersports facilities during the summer season as well as a snacks/coffee venue in the Old Lifeboat building.

The South Sands Hotel also has an impressive bar area and offers top class dining year round.

A water ferry service links South Sands to Salcombe town every 30 minutes throughout the Season.

Dolphins lies half a mile from the South West coastal path and is walking distance to Sharpitor. The open plan living accommodation features a modern kitchen with cream fitted units and a dining area with an extending oak table with eight chairs, with wonderful estuary views and a large sliding door to the terrace.

Meanwhile the adjacent utility room houses the fridge/freezer and microwave.

For extra convenience there is also a washing machine and tumble dryer.

The lounge/kitchen area has all the required facilities as well as an Alexa speaker and a Nescafe Dolce Gusto coffee machine.

Three bedrooms are twin bedded (3ft), two of which are en-suite.

There is a large terrace with outdoor furniture to seat eight and over an acre of gardens, plus off-road parking for up to four cars.

Note: This property has a Good Housekeeping bond of £200.

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About the location

SALCOMBE

Kingsbridge 7 miles; Dartmouth 21 miles; Plymouth 24 miles; Paignton 26 miles.

Salcombe is a popular destination for walkers and families looking for a holiday by the sea and was once a major port. There are two pretty beaches within a short distance, North Sands and South Sands and further on is the National Trust property Overbeck’s where you can wander through the subtropical gardens. Why not have a more adventurous day and try out the watersports available on the estuary including surfing, kayaking or a more leisurely boat trip? Whilst staying in Salcombe you must take advantage of the locally sourced seafood which is served in many of the restaurants, pubs, cafés and delicatessens. The southern tip of Devon provides some spectacular scenery and picturesque vistas with a number of sandy beaches, lovely villages with thatched cottages and some fantastic opportunities for walking, including the South West Coast path.

Children must be supervised in garden due to sloping nature. Gardeners will attend the property on a weekday during the summer - this may change depending on the weather - please contact the local office for details.

Steep steps up to property from parking area.

Please note the Games room will not be available after the 2021 season.

Please note the road to get to the property is a country lane and is very narrow in places.

Please be aware, due to the nature of the town, several of our properties are situated up hills. Please contact our reservations team if you would like more information about the location of this property.

From the 4th March - 8th April, please be aware that there is ongoing tree felling taking place.

Strictly No Smoking

This property offers the following short breaks:

Winter
Off-season
Last minute
Christmas

Dolphins

Salcombe, Devon (Ref. 995389)

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Features

Reviews & Ratings

“We have stayed here for quite a few times over the years it has a lovely setting close to South Sands beach ideal for the children to play and paddle board.”

“It maybe a bit old round the edges (like me!”

“Lovely location, great views, good sized house, well equipped.”

“We absolutely loved the house, the views are spectacular and for a family with 4 16 year olds and 2 older( not so) children in their early 20's, the bedrooms and bathrooms are perfect.”

“We absolutely loved our stay- really comfy, plenty of space and great views!”

“FYI. One of the “rocking” chairs is breaking and 2 of the handles on the kitchen cupboards are not secure”

“A glorious stay in a beautiful, secluded location with everything we needed.”

“After 7yrs of the Dolphins being our home from home I didn’t think I would be writing a review like the below but I feel after the way our complaints have been handled its a justified one to inform future all customers.”

“We were very disappointed.”

“Too much dog hair on sofas rugs and blankets.”

“This is an excellent property with a fabulous location and is an extremely ...”

“4 couples on a walking weekend arrived on the Friday and found the property was in a wonderful location with fantastic views.”

“We stayed at Dolphins as a group of 7 ladies on a friend's group walking weekend in October.”

“Stained bedding toilet brushes covered in faeces”

“The house could do with some upgrade not.”

“Dolphins is in the most wonderful location which cannot be recommended more highly.”

“Had an issue with duvet & this was replaced the next day, but a couple of the other duvets need looking at - rather lumpy!”

“Dolphins is situated in a great position near the beach for the children.”

“The House was in a Beautiful location, I expected the house to be cleaner than it was due to Covid.”

“The cleanliness of the property left a lot to be desired.”

“The house was great the view beautiful and the whole set up is very good .”

“Good”

“Fantastic house with stunning view.”

Summary

The property

View on map

About the location

SALCOMBE