Ben Lomond Cottage

Great location for exploring both Loch Lomond and Long Loch. Useful to have the little 'shop' in the pub carpark next door and the pub food itself was pretty good (except the overdone veg!). Overall the property was a good size, ample off road parking, decking area to the rear (although we never got to sit outside thanks to the intermittent rain). Nice to have tea/coffee and some baguettes provided. Plenty of crockery, mugs and glassware. Beds and sofa/armchairs were comfy and a proper dining table in the kitchen area. Liked the open-plan layout of the living/kitchen/dining area as it made it feel more sociable. Selection of books and games, and access to streaming services on the TV was also helpful for evening entertainment.

The kitchen lacked any decent sized saucepans, dishes or a steamer (for veg), and was missing some basic utensils like wooden spoons and a decent sharp knife, which made cooking a bit of a challenge for the 4 of us. (I can't imagine trying to cook enough rice or pasta for 6 people in the small pans.) There also was only just enough cutlery, so again given it is meant to be a property for 6 people it really needs more. (The dishwasher wasn't working either which was a bit disappointing.) The bathrooms were probably the biggest disappointment: both are in need of new flooring, which is a common comment made in other reviews going back a while. The slate tiles aren't nice under bare feet and the grouting is almost non existent in places so all manner of dirt must be in between them. The en-suite shower drains painfully slowly. The separate bathroom has the most unfortunately positioned full length mirror right opposite the toilet!! No-one needs that view... The radiator in here is also rusty and needs either repainting or replacing. There weren't really enough places to hang towels after using them, although there were some clothes airers that did the job ok. Probably because of the location and general climate, the cottage felt a little bit damp (for example, towels didn't dry well.) The Nest heating system could have done with some instructions (I had to Google how to work it as I haven't come across it before) but setting that helped a bit with the damp air. Mixed messages re single use plastic as individual milk cartons and jam pots (like you get in a hotel room/breakfast buffet) were provided yet the reason for having bottles of shower gel and hand wash provided in the bathrooms was to try and reduce this!

The property was exceptionally well appointed. The bedrooms and bathrooms were clean and very comfortable. The sitting room was very homely and well laid out. We loved the kitchen - it had everything we needed for preparing packed lunches to making a full roast dinner. We especially liked that the mugs were sturdy and held a full cuppa, and the glasses were a sensible size! Added extras such as a wide variety of books, DVDs a CD player and games were welcome, and the great pile of books about the local areas and local maps to use was brilliant. Loads of hot water and a welcome tray were also great bonuses. It was great to have a washing machine and towels provided - saved on space for us travelling up. The wi-fi was perfectly OK - it wasn't as fast as the kids would have liked, but this suited the grown ups absolutely fine!!