CLICK HERE: Extra properties, FAQ, self-catering tips

EXTRA UK,FRANCE, SPAIN and PORTUGAL PROPERTIES

In addition to the properties listed on this website, you can see additional properties from France, the UK, Spain and Portugal on our companion website

http://www.cottages4you.co.uk/sites/cottages4you/pages/home.aspx

This website contains all the descriptions, numerous photos and price/availability of all the properties shown; more than 3000 in total. Brochures are not available for these programs.

Please copy the link below above and paste it into your browser address bar to reach the Cottages and Castles/Cottages4You homepage and then choose the country you are interested in.

If you would like to proceed with a booking please contact us for the Australian dollar prices and the relevant forms.

Please note: Our apologies but this site is not compatible with Mac computers.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
This is in 3 sections: Pricing, Bookings, Properties

Properties
1. What does Cottages and Castles do? Cottages and Castles are the booking agent for a number of individual owners, and for UK, French and Italian holiday accommodation companies who pull together a large number of properties, owned individually, into holiday accommodation programs. These companies are the Suppliers of our properties. We have chosen to represent these Suppliers based on their worldwide reputation for excellent standards and customer care (Holiday Cottages Group and Hoseasons).

2. Where do you source your properties? Our properties come from 2 sources: (a) individual owners with properties to let who we have had a personal and business relationship with for many years, and other owners recommended to us by clients, (b) the majority come from a property supplier company in the UK, which is a large multinational company that owns many smaller companies who bring together collections of properties in different countries and offer them as accommodation rental, and (c) a few smaller supplier companies.

3. Do you communicate with owners directly? Yes and No. We do communicate directly with individual owners who let through us. For properties let through our Suppliers, we have no communication with the owners – all communication, payment, booking processes is conducted between us and the Supplier.

4. Do you inspect the properties? We offer over 3000 properties, and as much as we would like to it is not possible to inspect them all. We do collect feedback from clients and this is carefully evaluated when making decisions to continue to let a property. Properties with negative feedback are not offered to clients. In addition, our Property Supplier(s) have legal contracts with all owners and these contracts require properties to be of a certain standard. All properties are inspected by the Property Supplier(s) at intervals set by their internal policy.

Pricing
1. What currency is shown on the website? All prices are in Australian dollars on our website.

2. What do the prices represent? Prices are set by the owner or Supplier of each property. Almost every property has a different price for each week of the year, and thus the prices on the website are only a guide as to where the price will probably fall in the shoulder season of May.

3. Do prices change throughout the year? Yes. In the high season months of July and August the price can be almost double that of May. June and September will also be higher than May. However, September can be substantially cheaper than August.

4. Do prices change based on the exchange rate? Yes. Prices set by the owner or Supplier for a given calendar year generally do not change, however our prices change based on fluctuations in the exchange rate.

5. Are quotes fixed? No. At present prices are revised at the beginning of every day by Cottages and Castles and may change at that time to incorporate large movement in the exchange rate. Quotes are based on the exchange rate of the day and we reserve the right to alter a quote to allow for large exchange rate fluctuations. In addition, although quotes are accurate to the best of our knowledge, prices are subject to change at any time without notice by the UK suppliers and in this event quotes will be adjusted accordingly.

6. Are prices for confirmed bookings fixed? Yes. Prices for already confirmed bookings will never change.

7. Are there cancellation charges? Yes. Please see the booking terms and conditions sent out with the quote.

Bookings - length, start days, booking process
1. How long is a weekly booking? 7 nights, but see start day restrictions.

2. How long can we book for? For the UK: Almost all properties offer weekly (i.e., 7 night) bookings and 3 or 4 night short stays. For Europe, most properties offer weekly (i.e., 7 night) bookings only, with a growing number also offering 4 night short stays. Short stays are not possible during Easter, Christmas or New Years. There are restrictions on which day a holiday can start – see 2 below. The maximum length of holiday is 17 weeks, subject to owner approval. Longer stays are possible for a handful of properties in France; please enquire.

3. What day can I arrive on - what is the start day? Each property will have a particular start day(s) for weekly bookings – this start day is not flexible. It is listed in the web description of each property. Please note that from mid-July through all of August all properties only offer Saturday-Saturday bookings, regardless of their start day at other times of the year.

Weekly bookings UK: the start day is usually Saturday (only) or Friday (only), although a few properties have a start day of Sunday (only). There are no properties with Mon, Tues, Wed or Thurs start days in the UK.

Weekly bookings Europe: the start day is usually Saturday only (a very few have a Friday start day only). However, many properties now offer Monday or Thursday start days in addition to their usual start day (shown as Mon/Thurs/Sat).

Short stays UK: 3 night stays must be from Friday-Monday and 4 nights must be from Monday-Friday.

Short stays Europe: 4 night short stays only, must start on a Thursday.
10 or 11 nights, Europe only: properties that offer short stays offer 10 nights starting on a Monday only or 11 nights starting on a Thursday only. Not offered in July and August.

4. What are the arrival and departure times? Arrival in Europe is generally between 5 and 8 pm. For the UK arrival is usually between 4 and 8 pm. Early arrival is generally not possible as owners require time to clean and prepare properties. Late arrival can be organized subject to owner agreement. Departure is 9-10 am depending on the property. Again, late departure is not possible for cleaning reasons.

5. Can we arrive or leave a day earlier or later than our start day? Subject to owner/keyholder availability (to let you in, collect/return deposit) you can arrive on a later day or leave earlier, but the price remains the same and the dates booked remain the same. So if you have a Sat-Sat booking and you arrive on Monday, you still must leave when your booking finishes on the Sat. You cannot arrive earlier than your start day.

6. Can we book an extra night/s? No.

7. How can we pay? You may pay by direct deposit over the internet or at your bank branch, by cheque, or by MasterCard/Visa (1.5% surcharge).

8. What is the deposit and when is the balance due? Deposit is 50% and the balance is due 10 weeks before the start of the holiday.

9. When is the booking confirmed? Once we receive both the deposit and a signed booking form we will request confirmation from the owner/Supplier.

10. How long does confirmation take? Usually overnight. For some properties the owner also accepts bookings from other sources, and thus we can only confirm the booking once the owner has been contacted and they accept the booking. Confirmation may take a few days longer in this instance.

11. Can you hold a property for me? Usually we can hold a property for 5 business days, although this is not always possible in July and August. In addition, we are unable to hold properties where the owner also accepts bookings from other sources (“request” properties). For these properties we cannot guarantee availability until the owner has been contacted and they accept the booking.

12. When will I receive my arrival directions and documents? Assuming final payment has been made, you will receive the address and directions to the property, contact details of the keyholder and accommodation voucher 1 month before you depart Australia or earlier if we receive them.

Property descriptions, photos, extra charges
1. Is there any extra information about the property? The web description will list all appliances, facilities and room layout available at the property, so if it is not listed then it isn’t there. Please read descriptions carefully to avoid disappointment.
If you have a question about the property please ask us and we will contact the UK office for clarification

2. Are there more photos? No, we do not have access to extra photos as we do not deal with the owners directly. The Supplier asks owners to provide what they feel is necessary to sell their property and that is what is on the website.

3. Is parking available? Parking is usually listed in the description, but not always, so please ask us and we will find out.

4. Is heating extra? Heating is listed in the description. Heating is almost always included in the UK and almost always extra in Europe. It will either be charged based on a meter reading (then payable in euro in cash upon departure), OR there will be a set price per week if used (15-100 euro per week depending on the size of the property, payable in euro in cash upon departure). It is listed in the description as “CH inc” (included in price), “CH (payable locally)” as per above, or just as “CH” (this means CH exists in the house but in Italy it is illegal to use CH outside of set months (which differ for each region). So while CH may be there, you may not be able to use it. Usually additional portable electric heating is provided, payable as extra). Heating is expensive in Europe so please budget for it.

5. Is linen provided? Linen (bed linen and towels) is always provided in Italy. In France and the UK it is either provided or else available for hire at about 16 euro per person or 2-3 pounds per person (towels only; bed linen in UK always provided).

6. Do we have to pay for power and fuel? Generally no, unless otherwise specified.

7. What will the kitchen contain? As a minimum all kitchens, whether listed as “basic kitchen”, “kitchen” or “well-equipped kitchen” will contain a stove top and oven (“no oven” will be listed as such), fridge, crockery and cutlery for the maximum number of guests, and basic pots and pans (lids are not always used in Europe so not always included). All appliances will be listed. Kettles, toasters, coffee makers are not standard items and are usually not supplied. Basic supplies will usually not be provided; it depends on the owner.

8. Do I need a car? Yes. It is assumed that you will have a car and properties are rented based on this understanding. We are unable to provide information about public transport near or to any given property, and we cannot provide compensation if a holiday is ruined by lack of public transport.

9. Will the pool be fenced? No, unless specifically stated otherwise. Most pools will have an alarm that goes off when someone falls in or a pool cover.

10.Will the pool be available? Pools are avaialable generally May to September inclusive, unless otherwise specified. They are not heated.

TIPS FOR SELF-CATERING IN EUROPE
Self-catering properties are people’s homes/cottages/apartments or investment properties, and as such are painted, furnished and decorated in each owners individual style and taste. This may differ from yours.

The standard of mattresses and kitchen equipment may be different to what we expect here. Mattresses are usually thinner and harder, as are pillows and towels. Kitchens are less equipped and usually do not have a kettle, toaster or coffee maker, as traditionally Europeans do not use these. Having said that, more and more owners are now catering specifically for overseas holiday clients, and so more of the items and standards we are used to are being seen. Whether this now detracts from being able to experience how other cultures and peoples live is an interesting question.

Heating is expensive - the colder it gets the more expensive it gets. Always allow for heating in your budget of around 15 euro to 100 euro per week.

A few owners live there in the winter months, so some small personal effects may be around. Some properties will share a garden or pool or internal wall with the owner.

Owners or key-holders are ordinary people with ordinary jobs and lives, so they are not available 24/7 like hotel concierges. Of course they are available as required and will solve any issues you may have in a timely manner.

Unlike hotel staff, some owners or key-holders may not speak a second language, such as English, so please take this into account when trying to communicate. Most do speak at least a little of our language.