Grattons Cedar Lodges, Ilfracombe

We stayed here during February half term with our 4 and 2 year old children and the family labrador. There weren't many details on Hoseasons website and I feared the worst as I had read some pretty grotty reviews on other websites of damp buildings and dirty cutlery. We stayed in a 4 berth 'log cabin' - I say log cabin, it was pretty much a prefab chalet type building with wood ratted to the outside of the building. I was hoping for an authentic wood-smelling cabin, but I must say the children weren't bothered in the slightest and still talk about our holiday in our log cabin months on as they loved it. Yes it was a bit damp and smelly, particuarly in the kids' bedroom where the damp had repeatedly been painted over, but we weren't there to spend loads of time inside, despite it being February. The views out the front were spectacular, and with a small playground on site the kids were kept entertained when we were around. The whole place felt safe and friendly, and the owners left us alone which we liked. There was a TV with Freeview channels which meant we could put CBeebies on for the kids when it was lashing down outside, and a DVD player so they had other stuff to watch too. Hoseasons provided a couple electric panel heaters which I don't really like, but we used to heat the building up of an evening and switched them off before we went to bed. Obviously this wouldn't be an issue in the summer. There is also a laundry on site which we didn't use, but can see the benefits when travelling with young children! We made use of the local beaches for wrapped-up dog walks. In the local village there is a little post-office/village store which is excellent and well stocked, and the staff very friendly. There was a child's playground signposted in the village but with lots of driving around we never found it and think some new houses have been built where it once stood. For more family entertainment you're best off driving into Ilfracombe. There are also days out locally such as Exmoor Zoo and The Big Sheep, so there's plenty to do nearby. I'd imagine this place is much better during high season when the weather is warmer and there are more attractions open, but it was a good break for the kids who had a ball.

This was our first visit to Devon & grattons cedar lodges was idyllic. The lodges were clean, bright & well maintained. It was an ideal location for our daily visits to the beaches & Exmoor. We would certainly reccommend it to our friends & we have already booked for next year!

We stayed in “Seagull” lodge at Grattons, Berrynarbor, Devon on 29 May 2010 and it was old, dirty , mouldy and uncomfortable. The odd thing had been cleaned ie the inside of the fridge ( but not the outside of the door which was thick with grease and dust. The cooker had also been cleaned and the beds changed but that was it. There was a thick layer of dust on some items and dog hairs on the sofa the worst was the shower area, which was mouldy. It took two of us to scrub the thick mould of the shower head before we were able to use it. In the living area ( which supposedly accommodates 4 to 6 people) was a very small sofa and 1 chair both of which were rock hard and very uncomfortable. Some of the crockery was chipped and cracked and the cutlery was all odds and sods!. As we arrived late in the day and all the other lodges were full we just decided to clean as best we could and get on with our holiday. These lodges were built in the 60s/70s and nothing much has been changed since inside or out! In the end we left a day early as had had enough and went to reception to hand in our key and explain why. However there was no-one at home, even though the details stated reception was open at that time and there were envelopes taped to the door with the keys for the new arrivals that day which we could not quite believe. Our lodge was not beside the car park and it was a steep climb to get to it and this was tricky with all our belongings and was slippery when it rained. It was a lovely area and central for attractions , just don't stay at this place!

WE TOOK OUR 2 KIDS TO GRATTONS IN AUGUST 2009 WE ALL HAD A FANTASTIC TIME. THE SITE WAS GREAT THE TIMBER LODGES WERE JUST LIKE CABINS IN THE WOODS, WITH OWLS HOOTING AT NIGHT AND BUZZARDS SOARING IN THE SKY BY DAY.FANTASTIC!!!