Host & Stay - The Duck Pond

Clean, excellent facilities, kitchen perfect and seated area very relaxing . Loved it. The bedrooms were warm, comfortable and superbly maintained.

Nothing

It's a huge house!

The Duck Pond was very comfortable, spacious and convenient. Mark our host was friendly and very welcoming. The skylights made the living area very light and with the view of trees and wildlife it was a lovely place to sit with a cup of tea or to read a book.

As an Australian, I would always choose a top sheet and blanket option over a sheet covered doona but this was a problem everywhere we stayed and more a comment on current trends than the Duck Pond.

Fantastic location and lovely quirky flat - great space and amazing light (bifold doors 😊)

The modern bright setup in an old building. Soundproof windows on a busy road.

Nothing. Maybe the price

Great accommodation

Lovely flat, three big double bedrooms, very clean and a great open plan kitchen/ lounge with high ceilings and plenty of windows - ideal for us as a party of adults. Check-in instructions were really clear. There was a separate small dining room which we didn't use and apparently garden access (though the downstairs garage). Loved the location - slightly up out of town but a nice 15 minute walk down into central Durham (which is obviously hilly). There is a handy Sainsbury Local 5 mins away on foot and the fabulous Lebaneats for takeaways. We travelled by train and it's only 5 mins in an uber or a 25 minute walk. There seemed to be two parking spaces shared with the barber shop below (also owned by the flat landlord). He popped out of the barbers to say hi when we were passing and is very friendly & helpful even letting us leave our bags after checkout with him for an hour before we got our train home which was appreciated. The heating is very generous - not always the case these days!

The flat is managed by a property company and there is a proper damage waiver to pay on top of rental fees. It is stated in the advert but not very clearly (IMO!). It will cost you an additional £10 as a minimum. I was also uncomfortable when asked via booking.com to click on a link to an external document that asked for payment details (given booking.com themselves urge caution when using external links), the property company did try to reassure me when I contacted them about it. You have the option of paying a flat £25 for damage waiver insurance or having a charge on you credit card for about £250 up to 10 days post your stay (and therefore outside of the booking.com review period?). Assuming no problems this is then refunded with a £10 admin fee deducted. It's a shame that they feel they have to use damage waiver insurance but I felt irritated by the extra "admin fee" - why not just include this in the property rental price?

The location and space of the property. Well decorated for the festive season. Easy parking. Relaxing and secure.

I would not say it was a dislike but the loft conversion room at the top i would say is better suited to smaller middle age or younger people, due to the slopping roof and different level flooring could be a trip hazard for elderly or less mobile people.

Was a really good location, lovely home & helpful host.

Easy walking distance from city centre, with all of the sights and amenities we needed. Spacious apartment. Lovely and warm, and well-equipped.