Pinewood Cottages — Hotel in Kawartha Lakes

It was a 4 day long HORRIBLE STRUGGLE getting my deposit back. This is a long review but it's important to read if you are looking to stay here.

I will start this review by saying I have never left a negative review for a company before. I am a small business owner and I'm doing this so no one in the future has to deal with what I went through. I booked this cottage based on location as i was working in the area. I paid $169.50 (that includes tax) and a $200.00 deposit to secure this cottage. Please be aware that the good reviews are from when the previous owners were managing the property. We checked in on a Saturday, checking out Sunday afternoon. I met the owner Carole upon arrival. The cottage was clean and looked like the images online. Sunday morning I left early for work and left my co-guest to clean and check out. We were quiet, clean and kept to ourselves all weekend. Carole let my co-guest know that I would receive my $200.00 deposit between 3 pm and 12 am that evening (Sunday) via e-transfer. Later that evening I still hadn't received the deposit so I emailed her to follow up. No response. Monday I called multiple times and sent an email again even offering to drive 2 hours back to her and get the deposit in cash if that worked best. No response. Tuesday morning I called around 9 am, she answered. We had a brief and unpleasant conversation. She was rude and unapologetic the entire time. She refereed me to her website that claims there is a 12-24 hour period in which I would receive the deposit upon check out, told me if i'd get off the phone she would send it to me and proceeded to hang up on me while I was speaking. I found this puzzling since it was her choice to tell us she would get the money to us by Sunday evening. She knew her policy but chose to say that. I work in the service industry so I kept calm and tried to be understanding with her since I know what it's like dealing with customer service. That got me no where. Now, just so we are on the same page here, Monday at 3 pm would have been the 24 hour mark since our check out and well over the 12 hour mark. She clearly does not follow her own policy, DO NOT trust what her website says. I sent a follow up email letting her know I was disappointed with how she handled the call and letting her know I would continue to touch base with her until I had received my deposit. Fast forward a few hours, I am at work, still waiting for the money. I called her with no response once again. At this point I was convinced she was withholding my money. At 2 pm Tuesday I received an email saying she sent the deposit. I waited all day and evening with no money transfer in my email. Wednesday morning while at work I had to call her AGAIN. She answered and when I let her know I still hadn't received the deposit she replied with a groan and told me she would call me back. I let her know that we needed to handle this and I wanted to stay on the phone until she did so. She then proceeded to put me on hold for 15 minutes. Just as I was giving up I heard a bing from my phone with the money transfer in my email. I hung up and have not spoken with her since.

I hate to think what would have happened if I hadn't been so resilient. Carole treated me like I was someone who was a bad guest. She treated me with the ultimate disrespect and obviously does not follow her own deposit return policy and certainly does not keep her word. I knew booking with her the cottage was overpriced at $169.50 but that was my choice. I never expected to have this much issue getting $200.00 back from someone who is new to owning this business. Book at your own risk but know that it is 1) It's over priced 2) Carole's customer service is terrible 3) She does not care about getting your money back to you, following her policy or keeping her word.

I will NEVER book again under her ownership. It's unfortunate for her since she should really be working on treating good guests well so they'll recommend and come back. If it were my choice this would be a zero...

It was a 4 day long HORRIBLE STRUGGLE getting my deposit back. This is a long review but it's important to read if you are looking to stay here.||||I will start this review by saying I have never left a negative review for a company before. I am a small business owner and I'm doing this so no one in the future has to deal with what I went through. I booked this cottage based on location as i was working in the area. I paid $169.50 (that includes tax) and a $200.00 deposit to secure this cottage. Please be aware that the good reviews are from when the previous owners were managing the property. We checked in on a Saturday, checking out Sunday afternoon. I met the owner Carole upon arrival. The cottage was clean and looked like the images online. Sunday morning I left early for work and left my co-guest to clean and check out. We were quiet, clean and kept to ourselves all weekend. Carole let my co-guest know that I would receive my $200.00 deposit between 3 pm and 12 am that evening (Sunday) via e-transfer. Later that evening I still hadn't received the deposit so I emailed her to follow up. No response. Monday I called multiple times and sent an email again even offering to drive 2 hours back to her and get the deposit in cash if that worked best. No response. Tuesday morning I called around 9 am, she answered. We had a brief and unpleasant conversation. She was rude and unapologetic the entire time. She refereed me to her website hat claims there is a 12-24 hour period when I were I would receive the deposit upon check out, told me if i'd get off the phone she would send it to me and proceeded to hang up on me while I was speaking. I found this puzzling since it was her choice to tell us she would get the money to us by Sunday evening. She knew her policy but chose to say that. I work in the service industry so I kept calm and tried to be understanding with her since I know what it's like dealing with customer service. That got me no where. Now just so we are on the same page here, Monday at 3 pm would have been the 24 hour mark since our check out and well over the 12 hour mark. She clearly does not follow her own policy, DO NOT trust what her website says. I sent a follow up email letting her know I was disappointed with how she handled the call and letting her know I would continue to touch base with her until I had received my deposit. Fast forward a few hours, I am at work, still waiting for the money. I called her with no response once again. At this point I was convinced she was withholding my money. At 2 pm Tuesday I received an email saying she sent the deposit. I waited all day and evening with no money transfer in my email. Wednesday morning while at work I had to call her AGAIN. She answered and when I let her know I still hadn't received the deposit she replied with a groan and told me she would call me back. I let her know that we needed to handle this and I wanted to stay on the phone until she did so. She then proceeded to put me on hold for 15 minutes. Just as I was giving up I heard a bing from my phone with the money transfer in my email. I hung up and have not spoken with her since.||||I hate to think what would have happened if I hadn't been so resilient. Carole treated me like I was someone who was a bad guest. She treated me with the ultimate disrespect and obviously does not follow her own deposit return policy and certainly does not keep her word. I knew booking with her the cottage was overpriced at $169.50 but that was my choice. I never expected to have this much issue getting $200.00 back from someone who is new to owning this business. Book at your own risk but know that it is 1) over priced 2) Carole's customer service is terrible 3) She does not care about getting your money back to you, following her policy or keeping her word.||||I will NEVER book again under her ownership. It's unfortunate for her since she should really be working on treating good guests well so they'll recommend...

I would like to send a heartfelt thank you out to Carole at Pinewood Cottages. Carole accommodated my son last minute when his accommodations for school didn't work out. We couldn't have been luckier that those arrangements fell through and he ended up staying at Pinewood instead. The cabins are well equipped, with fridge, stove, and all kitchen amentities. Cabins are comfortable, bathrooms are clean, grounds are beautiful, and proximity to the beach is perfect. I'm so jealous that my son got to enjoy such a fantastic space while he was away for college. Beach, fishing, bon fires... that's a decent COVID college experience. 😃 Thank you so much for your warm hospitality and wonderful venue. I would highly recommend a...