Sawday's Reviews 

Very special country location, welcoming host, delicious breakfast, nothing too much trouble, really comfortable accommodation! Will have to return!

(Updated with new information)

We stayed at a property advertised by Sawday’s. The quality was really poor. Apparently it used to be good, but a change in personal circumstances of the owner had led to a dramatic decline.

A few examples of the many problems – no curtains at a full height bedroom window overlooking a public right of way, failure to respond for a day and a half to messages about lack of hot water, sound of rats (presumably) running between the floors at night, acquaintances of the owner bursting into one of the bedrooms because they had not been told the property was now occupied.

I sent constructive feedback. The owner didn’t deny any of the problems I described, but made it clear he couldn't care less. Sawday's were rudely dismissive.

A more serious problem is that dangerous building work had been done at the property. The owner claimed the work had building regulations approval, but was unable to produce any evidence. When Sawday’s took no action, I contacted the local council planning department. They were so concerned that they visited the site without delay, and confirmed that the dangerous building work does not conform to building regulations.

The planning department was keen to talk to Sawday’s, but Sawday’s refused. They said “we have to trust that [owners] are telling us the truth because we don’t check on those things ourselves.” The property is still being advertised on Sawday’s website.

Safety has always been an important part of my work, and as an occasional mountaineer a safety mind-set is obviously vital in that context as well. Therefore I simply cannot understand Sawday’s casual attitude to safety in this case.

I persisted in trying to get a genuine response from Sawday's, both about the safety issue and the poor quality of the accommodation. Each time, I received a brief paragraph of generic, copy and paste text. For example, they said it was “a shame” that our holiday had “gone awry”, as though it were my own fault. They never engaged with the evidence, never responded to any specific point. For the record, the only thing that was wrong with our holiday was that we were staying in unpleasant, unsafe accommodation. Everything else was fine.

I discovered a post by Sawday’s on another website, which says that they have “decided not to publish negative feedback” on their own website. The obvious problem with this approach is that unscrupulous owners have no incentive to provide a good service. The owner of the property in this case clearly couldn’t care less.

Sawday’s used to be good. But the policy of never publishing negative feedback seems to have led to a culture of complacency. They appear to have got into the habit of brushing off negative feedback without giving it any consideration. Sawday’s are absolutely determined to keep advertising this property, come what may. It seems that profit is much more important than customer safety or customer satisfaction in their world. That is why I can no longer trust Sawday’s.

We recently spent a week in this lovely villa and would thoroughly recommend it to anyone looking for somewhere to stay in this region. The villa itself was spotless, the garden and pool excellent, and our hosts Annette and Mark went the extra mile in making us comfortable. A wonderful place to stay.

We didn’t know what to expect never having gone for self catering before, but we needn’t have worried as this stay was just a delight and the hosts were the same!!
I would return to Barton Bank any time and thank Graham and Christine for their kind words and helpful advice?

Extremely Tasteful apartment set in a cobbled lane 50 metres from the canal in the characterful area known as The shore with great restaurants and bars . Also a couple of hundred metres from the very pleasant Leith water walk which takes you into Edinburgh Stockbridge etc, approx 40 mins.
Lynda is a helpful landlady, the apartment was spotless and comfortable . I recommend it.
Thank you Lynda
Sandra Mccall Cornwall

I’ve got a great place which was formerly a well respected hotel/ restaurant until i bough it and renovated it. Then i contacted Sawdays and they immediately replied to me with “no thanks” but …we can’t say why!

We've been staying at Sawdays places for years and Stamford Hall in Warwickshire is the best of the lot. Alice welcomes you with tea in lovely silver guilt pots with freshly baked cake and the house is full of James' fabulous art work and fascinating family memorabilia.

The rooms are large but cosy with comfortable beds and luxurious cotton sheets and views of the gorgeous countryside.

Breakfasts are made to order with local fresh produce and topped off with Alice's homemade jams and marmalade.

Apart from the proximity to Stratford, lots of National Trust places and the amazing Compton Verney, if you want to stay in an unpretentious but authentic English country house, this is it. An absolute gem.

We stayed one night at villa Andrea in Ramatuelle south of France. The room was a shoe box and despite having a garden to walk out into, there was very little light. The shower has no curtain, so health and safety danger as we could easily slip and fall. The breakfast was lack lustre, supermarket ham and cheese, tasteless tomato and only 2 thin slices and the waitress was so busy, she did not have time to look after all of her customers with the care that was needed. The coffee despite coming out of an espresso machine was poorly made because she was the only person on duty. Location average, for 300 Euros a night we would have expected more. We often use Alisdair Sawday, in Spain, France and Italy and lately our choices have been met with disappointment. Not sure if I’d use Sawday again.

We stayed at The Old Mission House on the Isle of Lewis in August 2021. This place is sublime; the house is first rate, fabulously kitted out and the view is just awesome. Jackie was enormously helpful both before and during our stay. Do not miss an opportunity to stay here if you are visiting Lewis.

Johnby Hall - visited 31/7/21
Walks from the door” are far from “sublime” as you describe them - indeed we could barely reach the door for brambles and ivy; the grounds are overgrown and neglected.
Breakfast was rather more haphazard than “sturdy” as in your guide.
We are not often disappointed by Sawday; we were here . It’s characterful but not special - and overpriced. I suggest a revisit.

This town house in central Chichester is very well equipped, tastefully decorated, and convenient for the town amenities. it can be thoroughly recommended for a city break.
Parking is in town car parks, very close by , but has to be paid for.

We just had a fabulous, relaxing week (June 2021)self-catering in the "Birdhouse" in Culduie, near Applecross, Torridon. One of those special places where the reality proves to be even better than the website. It does everything it said on the tin, and then some more.
Our hostess, the owner, was very friendly and helpful but not in any way intrusive.
The location on the Applecross peninsula is spectacular as was the journey to get there.
Highly recommended.

Contacted two of their places in Tuscany for availability, no answer. Contacted the company itself on Instagram twice, no answer.
Extremely poor credibility and responsiveness

This is a great setting and the hosts Kim and Gerry exceptionally assiduous. One of the nicest UK places we have stayed and easily the best breakfast!
Jean stayed end May 2021

This is my go to website for special places to stay. Unfortunately recently I have found the information relating to properties inaccurate. Please update your website! It wastes every ones time!

We booked a September holiday using Sawdays website. We arrived to find the original cottage was occupied by another family who directed us to the next door cottage. This cottage felt damp and the disparity we found between the Sawday website photos and the reality was shocking: wheelie instead of views, rubble instead of gravelled courtyard. On trying to discuss this with the owner we were dismissed and told to ‘leave’. Sawdays were sympathetic verbally but told us they were not a booking website and had been happy with an earlier inspection. The owner effectively cancelled the holiday we had booked as the original cottage was not available. Sawdays suggested a negative review from us would serve only to ‘blight’ a holiday rental owner. There ended their involvement in a ruined holiday concluding with a 400 mile journey back the same night (having no alternative accommodation locally due to lockdown and having a dog to consider). Had we known Sawdays was more a marketing company than a booking agent we would not have trusted their glossy photos knowing they did not take full responsibility for inaccurate images. We are still owed £150 which the owner refuses to reimburse despite the fact that she was the one to instruct us to leave her property.
Please note that the reply below from Sawdays does not address the issue of our original cottage not being available on arrival. It does not address the issue of why wet weather should make the inside of a properly heated cottage feel damp. Most importantly, the photos on the website were not an accurate representation of what we found when we arrived eg not a croquet lawn but lichened wooden chairs facing wheelie bins.

We booked with Canopy & Stars but due to Government tiers our 3rd stay at Hestleyside Huts was cancelled within minutes - we were asked if we were happy to loose 25% - but we did not cancel - we said we would re-book and the lies from Sawadays were they were fully booked so we visited the owners site it was free but they now want 3 days so our request was declined by Sawadays #Covidprofiteers avoid both - and you cannot call them just leave a voice mail and two days later a message at 16:58 (before they close)

We booked a short break with Canopy & Stars, (owned by Sawday's) to stay in the Ferry Waiting Room located at Mohr Hotel, Scotland. We experienced difficulty getting the wood stove to light when we arrived which was frustrating as we told it would be lit upon arrival. Over the course of the next 24 hours the weather worsened and we need to warm the children up & dry wet clothes. We asked for assistance as the wood provided was damp & treated posts etc from the estate which is unsafe to burn in a wood stove. No help was given. Soon, black suffocating smoke began billowing into the bothy, setting the carbon monoxide detector off. Despite asking for assistance, none was given and over an hour later, the alarm was still going and we worried about our children’s well-being with the intensity of it all. With night falling soon we decided to pack up and leave for safety. C&S put the responsibility back with the hotel and there has been no support for a refund or compensation for our damaged clothing and belongings. They seemed more offended we’d complained than concerned about safety. Only positive reviews ever posted on their own site and a wider search on trust pilot etc shows a brand leaving customers out of pocket for high end glamping experiences. Avoid at all costs.

We had a wonderful week staying at the Old Watch House in Lyme Regis. The flat is perfect, wonderful, interesting view over looking the harbour. We walked miles along the coast and did not move our car once. Thank you Sarah for making it so comfortable and safe through Coronavirus. Helen Sept 2020

Dreadful unethical company during covid 19!
People have lost jobs and struggling for money. Yet not only does this company grab ur money and run , they charge you additional costs to transfer your holiday that they cancelled.
I don't know how they sleep at night!
Disgracefu!
I cannot believe your betant dishonest response!
Canopy and Stars a booking website is part of Sawdays. The following was on your website........
'Canopy & Stars began in 2010 as part of Sawday's, a travel company founded in 1994 with a commitment to finding special spaces and working in a socially and environmentally responsible way. Founder Alastair Sawday wanted Sawday’s, '.