Host & Stay - Middle Farmhouse

53 reviews

• P

  Pippa

  GB · extended_group · Oct 2026

  1/10

  Started poorly and just became worse. House needs a thorough clean and new mattresses

  Sadly there was very little to recommend our stay although the village of Lythe had a great community shop which is well worth a visit . The view from the windows showed a broken garden fence surrounding an ill kept lawn looking out onto a back yard of other cottages. Host and stay provided out of date instructions on where to find the property citing the local pub , the Red Lion as a reference point. The Red Lion pub was renamed The Stiddie before Covid 2020. Every member of our group encountered some issue finding the place . A simple sign in the hedge would have made the experience a lot easier. The booking in time of 4pm was quite late although we were offered an earlier option for a fee and the option of extending the leaving time again for a further fee. This information was offered quite close to our booking when arrangements had already been made although I paid an additional £40 so we could leave later than 10am on our day of departure. Despite this I received an email at 7am on our departure day reminding me to leave by 10am as the housekeeping team would be arriving. When I replied stating I had paid extra to extend our departure I received another reply saying the email was automated . Host & stay have been poor with communication after I submitted a complaint , at one point ghosting me completely and only the threat of legal action prompted them to then reply . They claim to have investigated my complaints , well exceeding their time frame of 7 to 10 days and in admission of guilt have offered 15% off a future stay at a property managed by them. Given my experience I would not want to use them for any future trips . Please read all the issues we encountered and look at the photos of the filthy mattresses and stained pillows

  On arrival I noticed a large stain on the carpet in the living room. The log burner had a broken brick and only one light in the kitchen was working properly. I reported this immediately to Host & Stay , who replied asking if we required a maintenance team to fix the light. Given we were staying over a weekend I wonder whether anyone would have turned up but I replied saying it would be ok . The cottage was initially very cold but the central heating fired up and it was warm. The towel rails in the bathrooms become dangerously hot and we discovered the oven was not working properly. We tried to access the digital handbook sent by Host and Stay to switch off the towel rails but the tabs would not open and give any access to any information. An old fashioned folder with instructions for the appliances would have been much better. The dishwasher was so worn it was hard to tell which buttons were which to start that. The kitchen was poorly stocked with utensils, we were not able to cook a Sunday lunch and only one tea towel had been provided. Prior to departure we stripped the beds , horrified to find no mattress covers on the single mattresses . This mattresses were badly stained with what looked like blood on one and a huge stain on the other which looked like someone had wet the bed at some point. The mattress in the master bedroom was filthy full of popcorn and crumbs under the sheet. The pillows in this room were also old and stained. I immediately rang Host & Stay and sent photographic evidence . The communications I have received since have come from a different person every time , and the company is trying to wriggle out of their responsibilities under the consumer act of 2015. I am not generally given to complaining , a weed ridden garden and lack of tea towels would not be of issue but the filthy beds along with what I consider to be a health and safety and welfare concern of the unadjustable boiling hot towel rails are major issues.

• J

  Julie

  GB · family_with_children · Sep 2026

  8/10

  An enjoyable 2 night stay with family.

  It’s a lovely old building and very quiet surroundings. It has lots of character. A good base to see Whitby, sandsend, runswick bay. Plenty of room for everyone.

  It’s always quite cool downstairs. Radiators don’t seem to come on even if the thermostat temperature is increased. The garden could be made lovely. It’s very overgrown with the grass needing cut and trees, all needing pruned. Lots of weeds.

• H

  helen

  GB · solo_traveller · Aug 2026

  9/10

  We were really pleased with our stay. I was a little concerned after reading some of the reviews, but the owners must have acted on them as everything was really lovely. The place was definitely clean enough, the sofas were comfy and the little homie touches had been added such as washing up stuff / tea bags / coffee pods / washing machine tabs. The house itself was just perfect for us and the garden space was really nice too. Location wise also great and the bus service down the hill is reliable to avoid parking issues on busy days. We will definitely return!

  We would have liked an earlier check in option

• J

  James

  GB · extended_group · Aug 2026

  8/10

  Thanks for the great stay

  Great cottage , everything that was needed was there thank you . The cottage was fine in a lovely location with bedding changed and fresh towels etc . The kitchen area and living room was great with nice addition of board games for the kids to enjoy and a large TV for relaxing in the evening . The overall cottage was today and clean but I feel it would benefit from a deeper clean at times to ensure areas in bathroom / skirting boards and mirrors / cobwebs on lights etc are cleaned. This is by no means a negative but just what was seen in on our stay Overall I would recommend this cottage to anyone as it’s a great space in a lovely village and close the the beaches and nearby towns . Thanks

  Good cottage .

• H

  Helen

  GB · solo_traveller · Aug 2026

  7/10

  Beds soft but comfy Facilities all good Nice house and size

  Needed better cleaning Garden brambles overgrown Garden needs attention Alarms going off through night .. smoke ?? But no smoke