About self catering holidays in the country - FAQ

Lots of people have never tried self catering holidays - some think that it might be a lot of work and not a real holiday if they have to cook, wash up and clean as they would at home. That does not have to be entirely true although self catering does entail more effort than a hotel stay but it also has a number of good points.

A room in a hotel is just a room to sleep in, little more. Renting a self catering cottage in the country provides a large amount of space, a complete suite of rooms in a self contained cottages with your own front door. There is much more privacy and scope for doing things that you could not do during a hotel stay.

For example, you could:

• have a barbeque in the garden
• sunbathe in privacy
• have your own kitchen and fridge for snacks and drinks when you feel like it. A cottage in the country may have an Aga to cook on, although there are plenty of rural holiday lets that have a conventional gas or electric cooker instead. Read about holiday cottages with an Aga and other facilities
• Have a bowl of fruit on the table
• buy in wines or champagne at supermarket prices and not pay for corkage
• have space to spread yourselves out
• wash your clothes during your holiday if you wish instead of using an expensive laundry service

Essentially, self catering offers very good value. You can still go out to eat if you wish, buy in read-made meals or salads from M&S to make life easy.

Each self catering cottage, log cabin or farmhouse will come with associated terms and conditions of self catering. The general rule is that the property is left in a tidy condition before departure. Cleaners will come in and clean after you have gone but you will need to read the terms and do what they ask. Most requests are sensible, such as emptying rubbish bins, not leaving dirty crockery in the sink and generally making it easy for cleaners to come in and get on with the job efficiently without having to pick up litter.

Do check the terms and conditions, also the refundable damage deposit terms. Some self catering owners will deduct money from your deposit for red wine stains on carpets. The best attitude to have is to treat your holiday rental with respect and if you spill red wine or other staining drinks, wipe them up immediately. Most self catering holidays go well with no aftershocks. Each owner of self catering holiday accommodation would like you to return and will not act in a way to prevent that. A refundable damage deposit is simply a deterrent.

Because you have a booked a self catering holiday, do not expect to find any food, other than tea, coffee and perhaps biscuits. There should be some toilet paper in the bathrooms. Almost all self catering properties are equipped with towels, tea towels. The days of people arriving with their own bed linen are long gone. Self catering is Britain is more like a hotel stay without the meals and more space.

The more expensive your self catering holiday, the more you may find on arrival. Some cottage owners welcome guests with wine or champagne, chocolates and welcome hampers. Sometimes these are used to attract guests during the low season outside school holiday periods.

Luxury self catering may include the provision of bath robes, toiletries, fresh flowers and more.

Owners of self catering accommodation want you to have a good time and to come back at a future date. they will want to make your stay as enjoyable as possible.

Payment for your self catering holiday in the UK can be made by cheque (at time of writing), bank transfer and for larger self catering establishments by card or PayPal.

You will have to pay a deposit to book your country cottage or log cabin then pay a balance about 6 weeks prior to arrival.

Last minute booking require instant payment.

Occasionally, cottage owners will agree to cash payable on arrival, especially for last minute bookings.

You should obtain acknowledgement or a receipt for each payment.

Do check cancellation clauses because these vary immensely and take out suitable insurance in case of being unable to take up the holiday. This is especially important for family self-catering holidays because most families have a higher risk of not being able to take up a holiday because of more family members who could be sick or suffer an accident. This would wipe out most families holiday money for that year. Find out more about family self catering cottages.

Country cottages and log cabins can be rented using websites, from independent owners, through agencies (booking fees may be applicable) and through cottage brochures available by post or in travel agencies.