Host & Stay - Cattersty Hideaway

Well equipped kitchen

The original advertisement that we found stated there was a washing machine and dryer, but no washer or dryer were in the property.

easy to find due to the instructions given, I had no problem getting access to the property, I liked how detailed pre check in instructions were which made it easy to follow their instructions and easy to gain access.

On arrival the only thing I can think of is the outside of the property could do some some tlc, it didn't look as inviting as it could have but with some basic touch ups it wouldn't be an issue

Apartment itself once inside was very well presented, clean and pleasure to stay. However the hallway and stairwell leading up could do with some light renovation/ freshening up. Worried I was in the wrong place at first.

Flat was lovely. Close to town and short walk to beach

Garden path has overgrown bushes one side and lots of wheelie bins on the other which restricts the access a bit. The entrance hallway looked terrible with bits of paint flaking off the ceiling, plaster bulging off of walls. A severe crack in tiles on entrance floor. It was really shabby. My partner nearly refused to stay as the first impressions of hallway was so bad. There are two flights of steep stairs to reach the flat and the flat door is right on them. Windows open all the way and have no restriction.

The apartment was very nice. Clean. Convenient for the town centre and walks. Saltburn is a gorgeous place

All the stairs. 3 flights to carry bags up and down. Hard work when on my own. Massive problem on second morning. 6am I went in the shower. The shower overflowed over the top of the tray..it wasn’t draining away. Then the tap..which had been a bit loose..the hot tap wouldnt turn off. Turned out something had snapped inside it. Contacted Booking.com and had messages from host and stay. I was messaging telling them I needed a plumber asap. I was also ringing the host and stay number which was based in Liverpool..other side of the country! Luckily someone I know came and managed to turn the tap off. He said something had snapped inside. I had to go to work. I left the door unlocked to let the plumber get in. When I arrived back the plumber had still not arrived. He did come eventually and had to replace the whole tap unit. He knew nothing about the shower. He did sort it out. It was blocked with hair and gunge..should this not be checked as a matter of routine? When the bathroom initially flooded, I requested some towels from host and stay as I had used all the ones I had to mop up the floor, but never ever received them. I ended up going myself to the host and stay unit in Skelton, Cleveland to pick some up myself. Not a great time

Everything

Entrance to communal stairs was shabby giving bad first impression

The flat at Catterstay Hideaway is a very nicely finished and well appointed accommodation. It was very comfortable and clean inside and we had no complaints about the flat itself.

Like other guests, we were uncomfortable about the front door remaining open/unlocked to anybody who chose to enter off the street. The front door and main thoroughfare was also very dirty and dated. We feel we should issue a warning to other potential guests considering booking this accommodation. Having made the booking we then had to pay a mandatory £250 damage insurance which I’ve never been asked to do before for holiday accommodation. I chose to make payment at the last minute not wanting to end up being left £250 in credit on my credit card. when we were eventually refunded. When I paid this fee I was horrified to find, that I was then charged a further £10 for processing the mandatory £250 insurance fee. We felt that we were held over a barrel as we had booked and paid for the accommodation before we realised any of this. The £10 fee was not advertised on the Booking.com accommodation profile and as a result is a breach of The Unfair Contract Terms Act. I raised this with Booking.com who said the hosts were not entitled to charge it, but as they’ve got your payment card details you have no control over what they charge. They returned the £250 ten days after we vacated the property. I don’t like this tactic it is underhand and legally and ethically wrong. My daughter had an online meeting at 4pm and we asked if we could enter 10 minutes earlier (due to having a 4 hour journey) but they refused. On top of this, we felt we were harassed with constant messages before and during our stay at the property both on booking.com and via text message. They were messaging us about departure on day 2 of our stay. My daughter responded and asked them to leave us alone. She said she felt they were breathing down her neck.

Good central location near all amenities other than beach, but that's always the case in Saltburn

There was still crumbs on the floor and settee, plus the inside of the coffee table ( which was available for storage) hadn't been cleaned for some time. Stairs and entrance hall smelt of damp and was dirty. Furniture very uncomfortable.