We have had many guests since we started letting in 2006 and some have kindly taken the trouble to review the cottage on sites such as slowtrav.com (now closed down) vrbo and Trip Advisor so you can read comments on the web. I intend (when I have time- I have been meaning to get down to this for years now!) to add the lovely comments our guests have made in our in house Visitor's book or guests themselves may make comments directly on this website.
Other reviews may be found here:
- and also reviews of my Dublin apartment here on a this site Houfy.com which is also good for searching in the US if you want to avoid paying service fees to the big sites as it does not charge extra fees. You can pay with a credit card booking through there also.
This cottage was everything we hoped for and more! Felicity and Tony greeted us the first day and welcomed us with fresh bread, fresh picked raspberries, homemade raspberry jam and delicious cookies. There was also a bottle of champagne in the refrigerator. The cottage was lovely and the pictures were a true representation. Cozy living room, great bedrooms and a lovely and functional kitchen with a small but beautiful patio garden. My husband and I loved our stay and Felicity could not have been a more gracious hostess - making sure we were comfortable but never intruding on our privacy. Also a great location from which to explore the Cotswolds and the Howard Arms was a first rate pub to unwind at after a day of exploring.
This was such a lovely cottage in a quiet and peaceful Cotswold village. We arrived to freshly made bread and flapjacks and homemade jam and fresh flowers from the garden - a wonderful welcome. The cottage is filled with useful information and if you can't find it in the cottage - Felicity and Tony will gladly offer their local expert knowledge. The beds were comfy and the downstairs shower was a dream. Lovely farmhouse kitchen fully kitted out with everything you could want and a lovely open fireplace in the lounge. F& T have thought of everything. We would definitely return. Also great pub (The Howard Arms) within walking distance.
I would highly recommend this cottage to anyone! I visited here with my partner and had an exceptional experience. If you're after an escape to the country this is the place for you! The host Felicity, had thought of everything to ensure our stay was perfect. Upon arrival there was warm freshly homemade bread and Flapjacks (a recipe i'm trying to re-create) along side a full afternoon tea set up to enjoy on our first day. Felicity had thought of everything and all the touches around the house (guide books, evening chocolates, makeup face flannels for the ladies etc) made this cottage a stand alone property. The beautiful quintessential English cottage is set in a stunning Cotswolds town - with a delightful pub/restaurant called The Howard Arms (well worth a visit!). The property was spotless and was a real home from home. The beds and sofas are exceptionally comfortable - perfect for sinking into with a book by the open log fire. Experience was absolutely faultless - a must visit for those looking to visit the Cotswolds!!
This is a very special place and we feel so fortunate to have found you at very short notice. We, like everyone, had to radically change our holiday plans this summer and we could not be more over-joyed at having a week here at Sansome Cottage and enjoying the beautiful village of Ilmington. It has been a lovely restful break before we head back to Surrey - work - school and college.
Your hospitality is just fabulous and the extra gifts of fruit, bread and jam make it even better.
Thank you very much. We envy your tranquil house and idyllic lifestyle.
Love, the Northams
Dear Felicity and Anthony, thank you for providing us with such a charming and peaceful base for our holiday.
The measures you are taking in terms of the coronavirus reassured us as did your clear and helpful communication on the matter.
The cottage had everything we needed and more including the essential comfy mattress and wi-fi but our greatest pleasure was in the pretty private garden, a perfect spot just to sit and watch the birds.
Thank you also for the little touches - the flowers, fruit, jam and wine etc were enjoyed and appreciated. Ilmington is a very picturesque village and a great location, we made use of the community shop and enjoyed a meal at The Howard Arms.
The highlight of the week was the Falconry Centre at Batsford, astonishing to be able to get so close to those amazing birds. It was such good value that we stayed for all three displays. We also enjoyed the Arboretum, Sezincote and Hidcote Gardens and had a walk up Belas Knap which affords a fine view.
We look forward to a return visit at some point, it’s a lovely part of the world.
Thank you so much for helping make our stay at Sansome Cottage so wonderful. The accommodation was as good as, if not better than, what we had read in the on-line reviews. You have clearly gone to great lengths to provide guests with everything required during their stay including freshly baked bread, homemade jam, flapjacks, visitor guides, local information and other essential items. From our arrival in Ilmington, your warm welcome, festive decorations and surprise Christmas gifts ensured we had a Christmas time which will be fondly remembered by us both. We hope to make a return visit very soon.
We have once more reached the sad time to say farewell to the lovely Sansome Cottage we have come to love over the years. This is our sixth stay at Sansome and, as usual, everything was absolutely perfect. As a writer, the ambiance of the cottage and all of the Cotswold beauty bring the words flowing and tumbling over one another as I sit and let the wonder of this jewel of a past time seep into my very soul. Sansome Cottage is the absolute epitome of romance, history, and wonder. Along with the quiet relaxation of having everything you want or need at your fingertips, the practical aspects to the retreat include a lovely fully equipped kitchen, dishwasher, clothes washer/dryer, and more. The bedrooms are true retreats with beds you sink into and are asleep in moments. Two full bathrooms include a long bathtub to relax in or the very latest in a glass-enclosed rain shower. A cozy room with the TV, fireplace, many, many books and even games for the children adds to the family feel. I can add nothing more to explain the hold Sansome Cottage has, but once you visit…you will understand, and…you will return!
We spent a wonderful month from mid-September to mid-October, 2018 in this wonderfully restored cottage. During our stay, we had guests from time to time, all of whom were quite impressed. We can’t say enough good things about our stay, from the beautiful flower arrangements Felicity provided to the lovely private garden. The lounge is comfortable and especially cozy with the wood-burning fireplace. The bedrooms are roomy and comfortable. The large kitchen/dining area is wonderful for cooking if you are interested.
Ilmington is a small village but is within miles from larger market villages and other attractions. It has a well supplied village store and lovely tea room as well as 2 wonderful pubs. We highly recommend The Howard Arms.
We hope to be able to return.
We had such an enjoyable and relaxing week at Sansome Cottage that we are also planning how to arrange another visit to Ilmington. As many other guests have said, this is a home not just a holiday let. Apart from the unexpected extras and treats so kindly provided by our hosts, the basics were also just right - comfortable, spacious beds, well-equipped, bright, roomy kitchen and a lovely, private garden to unwind in.
The village itself is very attractive and there is plenty to see and do in the wider area, whatever your interests.
Highly recommended.
Thank you Felicity and Tony for making our three week stay at Sansome Cottage perfect! We loved everything about the cottage from the bread, butter and jam to the beautiful fresh flowers in every room and of course our own garden and patio. It was complete with everything you could possible need. It also has plenty of books and DVD's which we used. Felicity also got the last season of Downton for us to view! She is such a thoughtful hostess. The village is lovely, the people are friendly and we had some great walks here as well. We loved watching the spring lambs and watching them grow.
Our three weeks here were wonderful and I would love to do it again. Sansome Cottage felt like home and we miss being there!
A friend and I spent a delightful week in Sansome House Cottage. The cottage is tastefully decorated, thoughtfully designed and outfitted to meet most every need. Felicity is a warm, welcoming and helpful hostess. We were met with fresh flowers in every room, homemade bread and jam, and a bottle of champagne! The cottage is centrally located for visiting a variety of historic homes and gorgeous gardens. Especially recommended: Hidcote Garden, Kiftsgate Garden, Kelmscott Manor (William Morris's home). I wish we could have stayed longer. We would highly recommend this property.
We have recently returned from Sansome Cottage where we enjoyed celebrating New Year with friends. All of us are full of praise for Felicity and her husband Tony. Their cottage must rank among the best accommodation for up to four adults. Felicity's attention to detail is evident everywhere in the cottage ranging from a wonderful welcome pack to many homely touches. One feels one is borrowing the use of a friends house for a few days - this is a genuine home from home! Ilmington is a lovely Cotswolds village with a good pub for eating only a few minutes walk from Sansome Cottage. There are many walks locally and the scenery is excellent. Currently (January 2015) there is no village shop but there is talk of a community enterprise which would provide the daily basics of papers, milk, bread etc. We have rented cottages and apartments for many years and this one is in the top three. So we have no problem in recommending this property to the discerning cottage renters!
This cottage was perfect! Very comfortable and still a "cottage" with all the charm and warmth of being in the English countryside. We traveled all over the the area and thoroughly enjoyed it. I highly recommend this cottage for a wonderful vacation/holiday.
Wonderful. Also for dutch visitors. We hardly saw any dutch entries in the guestbook. We had a great time in england, visiting London, Stratford, Oxford, Watford (Warner Bros studio) and Warwick. And every time coming back to the nice and "gezellige" cottage (gezellig is one dutch word for a combination of comfortable, nice, homely, warm, peaceful).
I'll try to keep this review brief. We stayed at Sansome House Cottage for one week in August, travelling with my husband and two daughters (7 & 9). The cottage itself is so lovely and quintessentially English country - I never realised places like this still existed so it was so exciting to enter and explore all the lovely rooms which smelt so gorgeous and the sweet smelling garden with its abundance of flowers and shrubs with welcoming table and chairs. Felicity, the owner had left fresh flowers, bread and jam together with a bottle of wine chilling in the fridge. This was a lovely welcome after our long 5 hour journey and it didn't take long for us to 'tuck in'.
Ilmington itself is a lovely village and the people we encountered along our evening strolls were incredibly friendly, chatting to the children - handing out bread to feed animals etc.
We visited both pubs, both of which are very different but both of which had their own charm.
The cottage and village is so different from what we are used to so it was such a lovely change and we really felt as though we were in a different world. Unfortunately we were only there for a week and having two children who liked to be out doing things took its toll and we never did manage to de-stress! We have booked again for next April and this time we will take things much easier.
What a wonderful, comfortable cottage you've created here! We loved our two week stay at Sansome Cottage in July 2012 and I'm already dreaming about coming back. The cottage is very well equipped, comfortable, and has every amenity one could want. The kitchen is large, light-filled, and perfect for cooks. We loved the outdoor sitting area and private garden, when we could use it... The weather didn't exactly cooperate during our stay but that's OK, we still had great meals at both pubs in Ilmington, Ebrington (our favorite!!) took walks and drives everywhere, and explored many of the villages. Felicity and Tony were gracious hosts and Felicity gave much-appreciated advice and guidance. Highly recommended...
A truly special place, great hospitality and friendship. We've had a marvelous stay in your very comfortable cottage enjoying your warm hospitality, lovely spacious rooms and garden and good advice about the area. Would come again and again & tell all our friends. Thank you Tony & Felicity :)
Jana, Stefan, Siglinde & Angelika aus Thüringen in Deutschland
