Wood Farm Holiday Park — Hotel in Great Britain

This is a long read, but our experience and treatment has compelled me to warn others... you can't always trust the good reviews. On reading them all I feel other people have had similar experiences.||We are regular caravan holiday guests and this has been like no other, we have never needed to complain and I don't write this with malice.||On our arrival we were an hour early so went to the cafe for a drink. Whilst using the toilet at the leisure facilities there was excrement all over the floor, this was also the changing rooms for the pool. Not a great 1st impression! I informed who I later found out was Alistair (site manager) who told me it was the life guards job to clean that area? ||When we got to our caravan ( a pet caravan) we found every single window opened as wide as possible... This was not reassuring! ||On entry the patio doors were covered in dog slather, you couldn't see out of them. ||The floor was unfortunately carpeted in the living area and was dirty, ( the only tool provided was a soft sweep brush) There was toothpaste in the main bathroom sink and all over the back splash and excrement left in the extra toilet. We paid for an early check in and felt like any clean had been rushed. I myself spent an hour or so cleaning it. When we came to make dinner there was no baking trays or frying pan. I called reception at 4.50pm and was told some would be sent, 1 hour 10 mins later my partner walked to reception as we were still waiting, finally someone came with a disgusting dirty pan (we didn't use but kept to show the reception) and no trays... None were available... It's an ongoing situation ....apparently.||The next day when we woke up there was a strong overpowering smell of wet dog in the single bedrooms, corridor and living space. Obviously we had put the windows on the latch at night so the smell was stronger and explains the wide open windows on arrival.||I went to the reception 1st thing on day 2 and listed all the problems, I was told no manager was on site, but all details would be emailed to the reception manager, they took the pan and apologised agreeing they would not cook for their family with it.||As the weather got warmer that day the smell got worse!||First thing day 3 I went to reception and was met by the manager who had no idea about my complaint and told me the WiFi wasn't very good so that was why ( lies).||I again listed the problems. I asked if I could be moved and was told there was no other available accommodation, I also asked regarding a sister site as we were willing to travel and was told that also had no availability. With apologies they offered us a meal in the cafe that wasn't open until the next day and to send the cleaners back in also a refund of my early check in of £25, because I had spent the exta time trying to clean it.||The owner of the cleaning company came with Beth and as soon as she walked in she said verbatim "it stinks" she smelt the mattresses and said they needed changing and complained to me that the site will not provide mattress and pillow protectors. She also agreed the cleaning was definitely not up to her standard and the carpet and seating was dirty. She apologised and said she would try to make it better. She spayed the matress with disinfectant and said they would put new bedding on with double sheets. She also stated that if dog urine had soaked into the matress it would only mask the smell for so long and it would be better if they were changed. ||We went out whilst they 'cleaned'||On return the caravan smelt a little better, the mattresses were not changed, but as the evening went on the smell started to come back.||Fed up on day 4 we decided to cut our losses and go home, it was the children's rooms that smelt the worst and all of us were unhappy and didn't want to continue staying there.||I went to reception and informed Beth and asked about compensation for the terrible experience we had which literally left us with no option but to leave. She said that my complaint would be sent to head office and they would email me. I explained to her how upsetting it was for a family to pay £750 for 4 nights and it be ruined by the accommodation. She apologised. On exit I saw Alistair ( site manager) sat as his desk I took the opportunity to explain the situation, He told me they would be the only ones to deal with compensation and it would go round in circles if sent to park holidays customers services, so it would be better if they sorted it there, in house. I went back in to Beth and Alistair followed. He asked me what I wanted and I said compensation for our experience and lack of cleanliness in the accomodation. They said they could look at paying a couple of nights back but would have to discuss it, I told both of them there and then that when I left they would try and back out of it, they said they didn't operate like that and to give them the opportunity to make it right. I was polite when I spoke to them and also praised the actual site grounds.||They asked me to call them later that day for resolution. I trusted their word.||Later when I called I was told that the caravan didn't smell and they would only offere £30 for my dog fee. ( It was not my poor dog that smelled or caused any problem) I did not agree to this or accept this as any compensation for our experience. They forcefully told me that park holidays would not do anything to help me and they had the final decision, I felt this was misleading and a tactic for me to agree. I informed them I would contact park holidays anyway. On putting the phone down £30 was put straight in my bank account without my authorisation, and an email was sent to them straight away confirming this. ||They admitted the accommodation was not good enough, and our experience was unacceptable. I have a copy of the signed complaint form by them which lists the problems we had and supports their liability.||Overall we are devastated by the way we were treated, it didnt have to end lin this way, we would have been happy to reach a mutual resolution and work with them, but as soon as we drove away they simply didn't care, and I knew that when I stood in front of them. Overall they should treat people better and realise that people work hard for these holidays. I hope they have cameras in the office and can watch back my conversations with them and...

Very mixed feelings about our stay here. ||The location is excellent. Just off a roundabout on the main road between Charmouth and Lyme Regis and barely any traffic noise heard by us. ||The site is situated on a hill which drops down to the lake and amenities at the bottom and is very well kept and picturesque. It is also very quiet. ||Customer service was excellent. We received a helpful telephone call from them the day before our stay just to provide some information for us. I think they do this with all guests prior to their stay which is a nice touch. ||They even found us a caravan which was in the quieter section of vans due to one of our party being autistic which was really appreciated. ||The main issues were with the van. We booked a 'Platinum' model. The van we got clearly did not live up to this description. It was small, cramped and tired in places, including a huge stain on the settee. ||This is not a 'platinum' van and I believe customers are being misled with this description which requires further investigation. We were not happy with the van but were told in advance that the park was booked and we would not be able to move vans if there were any issues. ||The double bed was small as was the bedroom. The single bedrooms were so tiny, as were the beds and I ended up sleeping on the sofa all week as the single beds were not fit for adults to sleep on which left me exhausted and with a bad back and exacerbated my disabilities. ||This ruined my holiday. ||There were two bin bags full of rotting refuse by the side of our caravan which we only thought to check the contents of two days later as they started to smell. To be fair to the park, someone did remove them when we reported this. ||Our caravan was situated at the bottom of a slope which was not ideal with two of us disabled and we could not park the car next to the van which made it worse. When the van was allocated, we were told it was a 2-3 minute walk from the main car park to the van but we were not asked if any of us had a disability or that the 2-3 minute walk involved climbing a steepish slope up to to the car park. ||The onsite shop was appalling and doesn't even sell butter. Only synthetic carcinogenic margerine. The basics are not even sold here and it is card payment only which is a breach of the Equality Act 2010 as people with impairments who cannot pay by card due to those impairments are not able to purchase goods in the same way that people without impairments who can use card payments only would. ||We didn't use the cafe or swimming pool. ||Overall the location is fantastic, the site is quiet and very well kept and the customer service is excellent and everyone is friendly and very helpful but we did not receive a 'platinum' van and there were some issues with cleanliness and housekeeping. ||We would stay here again definitely if they had more spacious lodges with beds suitable for grown adults as it is a...

We had a lovely holiday at Wood Farm, it is very picturesque and in a great location to visit the surrounding towns of Lyme Regis, West Bay, Weymouth etc. Before booking though, please make sure that you are fully aware that Wood Farm is quite literally built into a hill. A steep hill! We use a campervan and a folding caravan with awning when on holiday, my wife called in advance to confim this would be fine as she is disabled and has a blue badge. Our camper has a bed specifically for her/us. Unfortunately the pitches are set up with a level concrete pad for the caravan and quite a sharp patch of stones/"all weather pitch" (for drainage) for the awning that isn't "that level" everything kind of pitches backward down the hill. Our camper ended up (even on chocks) pitched at about 25 degrees. We spoke to the management team and they were very helpful and so very kindly gave us the pitch next to ours to put the van on, without which we would not have been able to stay. The facilities were very clean and the staff were all very helpful and friendly. The cafe/bar is useful and located next to the swimming pool, but expect to pay a premium for spirits - JD& coke and G&T worked out expensive whilst watching the ladies Euro Cup Final (GO LIONESSES!!). There is no formal entertainment on site, so be prepared to entertain yourselves and little ones with games and swingball or whatnot. The nearest large supermarket is Tesco, which we used a few times. There is nothing that the site or management can do about the road noise though, at certain points, especially late at night, the main roads next to the site are used by various groups of folk as a racetrack or simply a useful place to "open up" their vehicles at full tilt. It can get "Donington Park" loud at times. Just be aware if you have young children or are nervous of sudden loud motor noise, you WILL be disturbed, your calm will be shaken Ha ha!. Water points were very handy and the power outlets were very well positioned. My only minor gripe that the management let down, was the lack of hand soap/sanitizer in the toilets and especially the ELSAN point. This wasn't a one off, and my wife found only one sink had hand soap in the ladies, for pretty much the whole week. I am not being overly critical, honestly, and would definitely recommend Wood Farm for families looking for a base to holiday from. The views down and across the hills...