Reviewed by
Lisa
6th October 2026
Apparently our expectations were far too high
When we raised our concerns about Mario House, the owner described it as the property having not lived up to our expectations.
That wording really didnt sit well with us, because I dont believe our expectations were particularly high or unreasonable. We expected a holiday property to be clean, proRead moreperly maintained and ready for paying guests. Looking back at the photographs we sent, I honestly dont think the condition we found would meet many peoples normal expectations.
The issues included:
* A very noticeable musty/mildewy smell when entering the property.
* Dirty and tired carpets and paintwork.
* An en-suite shower that we simply did not feel comfortable using. The shower head itself was stained and dirty, and part of the shower fitting/connection came away, revealing a significant amount of rust underneath. The entrance and surrounding area of the shower were also visibly dirty.
* A damaged/broken mirror.
* Dust and cobwebs in various areas.
* Dirty fans.
* Skirting boards that were visibly dirty, with a considerable amount of hair and debris along some of them.
* Dirty slats around and behind the headboard.
* Blankets and soft furnishings that did not appear particularly fresh.
* A black fingernail left behind, which I initially thought was a beetle because of the colour. Once I realised what it actually was, it unfortunately rather summed up the standard of cleaning for us.
* A freezer that was heavily iced up.
* Very steep stairs, including a section without a handrail.
* A key safe that was extremely difficult to use.
* Parking approximately a 20-minute walk away and uphill, with additional concerns raised locally about where we had been advised to leave the car.
The stairs became more of an issue because, as we werent prepared to use the upstairs shower, every time we wanted to use the downstairs bathroom we had to negotiate two flights of stairs.
The property information does make reference to the stairs in relation to people with mobility issues, which is fair enough. I dont have mobility problems, but I can honestly say I felt as though I had developed some by the time I had carefully made my way down them.
They are steep, and in my opinion some form of handhold would make a huge difference for anybody using them, not just someone with a recognised mobility issue. It wouldnt even need to detract from the character of the house something as simple as a thick coastal-style rope handrail could be completely in keeping with the property while giving guests some reassurance that they have something to grab if they lose their footing.
The kitchen itself looked nice and appeared to be well equipped. Unfortunately, because of the musty smell and the overall standard of cleanliness elsewhere in the property, we simply didnt feel comfortable preparing or eating food there.
Once you start questioning whether areas have been cleaned properly, that doubt tends to spread to everything else. We didnt cook breakfast, lunch or dinner in the property during our stay because, quite simply, we didnt feel we wanted to eat there.
There was also an odd contrast before we had even arrived. I received a phone call from the owner before he went on holiday which, if Im honest, felt a little more like a lecture than a welcome.
He was particularly concerned about my paddleboard and where we intended to store it, and also made a point of asking that if we used any of the items kept under the stairs, we looked after them and put them back properly.
We were also informed before arrival that there was a broken blind and were asked to make sure we opened the bathroom window because the room gets steamed up.
Again, I completely understand an owner passing on useful information about a property. But when you are being given instructions about broken blinds, bathroom ventilation, where your paddleboard can go and how carefully inexpensive items under the stairs need to be treated, it does rather create the impression that a lot of thought is being given to how guests should look after the house.
Ironically, the under-stairs area was also where the strongest musty/fusty smell seemed to be coming from.
I completely understand wanting guests to look after your belongings of course they should. But in hindsight, the level of concern shown over things such as a relatively inexpensive bodyboard did feel rather ironic when compared with the standard of cleanliness and maintenance we actually encountered in the property itself.
Perhaps the priorities were simply rather different from ours.
The owner offered us 100 compensation and also offered to have the shower repaired during our stay.
We declined the 100. It wasnt that we were looking for more money; it simply didnt reflect the overall situation we found ourselves in or the experience we had paid for.
At that point, we also made it clear that we didnt want to enter into any further back-and-forth correspondence about it. We had raised the issues, supplied photographs and explained how we felt, and we really didnt want the situation descending into a tit-for-tat exchange.
Despite that, we then received another message detailing some of the costs involved in running the property, including things such as linen and other expenses.
Im afraid I wasnt really sure what that had to do with the concerns we had raised. The cost of operating a holiday let is naturally a matter for the owner. We were simply explaining the condition and level of cleanliness we experienced as paying guests.
As for having the shower repaired while we were there, that wasnt particularly practical either. We were on holiday and didnt want to be woken at around 8.30am to let somebody in, nor did we feel comfortable having someone we didnt know entering the property while we were out with all of our belongings there.
More importantly, repairing the broken fitting wouldnt actually have solved the main problem for us. The shower head was stained and dirty, the entrance and surrounding area were not clean, and when part of the fitting came away it exposed a considerable amount of rust underneath. By that point, we simply didnt feel comfortable using the shower at all.
The owner later told us that he and his wife were changing their plans to visit the property personally, inspect the issues we had raised, arrange a deep clean and carpet clean, review the shower, speak to the cleaner and make any necessary repairs.
It would have been nice, after that visit, to have received some sort of update saying what they had actually found.
We had supplied photographs showing exactly what we were talking about, so the fact that we heard nothing further did leave us wondering whether the condition we found was considered acceptable by the owners.
The owner also told us how much they love their little holiday home, and that is absolutely fine. But loving your own property and viewing it through an owners eyes is very different from arriving as a paying guest.
Perhaps Mario House, in the condition we found it, meets their own personal standards. It certainly did not meet what we would consider a normal acceptable standard of cleanliness for holiday accommodation, and I would be very surprised if many guests looking at the photographs felt differently.
We were also told that Mario House had been booked back-to-back from mid-June throughout the summer.
Im genuinely pleased they had such a successful season, but unfortunately it very much felt as though the people staying at the beginning of that season and the people staying towards the end may have been receiving two very different versions of the same property.
Surely, if a property is being booked continuously, cleaning, checking and maintenance between guests become even more important not less.
We have stayed in holiday cottages many times over the years and have never experienced anything quite like this.
We have even stayed in properties that accepted our Great Dane, who we sadly lost this year, and despite those properties regularly accommodating dogs, their cleanliness was substantially higher.
We completely understand that things break. We understand that older properties have their quirks. We understand that a busy summer can take its toll.
But this wasnt one isolated issue.
It was the accumulation of cleanliness and maintenance problems, combined with the suggestion that perhaps the problem was simply that the property hadnt met our expectations.
Our expectations werent luxury.
They were simply that the property should be clean, properly maintained and safe and comfortable to use.
Apparently, that may have been expecting rather too much.
Would I recommend Mario House?
Perhaps if you are visiting at the beginning of the season, when everything has hopefully been freshly prepared, checked and ready for guests.
But based on the condition we found it in after a summer of back-to-back bookings, I certainly would not want to be one of the last guests going in at the end of the season again.
It genuinely felt as though the property had reached the point where it needed a proper stop, deep clean and maintenance check before another paying guest walked through the door.
So, would we return? No.
Would we recommend Mario House based on the experience we had? Unfortunately not! Photos supplied to anyone wanting them Hide