We chose to book with Canopy & Stars because we understood that all of the accommodation was of a really high standard and would be something special. This was our first time staying having looked at accommodation with them before but it is on the pricier side so we were waiting for a treat. How disappointed we were. The cabin had cobwebs all over the walls, the light fixtures were thick with dust, the appliances were dirty. Whilst this was rather unpleasant the day to day items such as bedding seemed clean and the owners were on site and whilst the website does say to try and raise issues during your stay, who feels comfortable raising that with their host on the same site? I would love to know what exactly would have been done during in a 2 day stay, we would have had to leave whilst they cleaned? How awkward. So we waited and emailed immediately upon departure. We did received a swift response and they raised it with the host but we were told that cobwebs can accumulate quickly in a countryside setting, as though we can't tell the difference between those and cobwebs literally dropping off the walls they are so thick. We weren't happy but the host said because we hadn't raised it during the stay they would not offer a refund, despite the point I had made about not feeling comfortable to do that. C&S offered a £50 gesture of goodwill voucher. Again we weren't happy but all the other reviews seemed positive for the place so I left my review and let it go. However when I went on to check my review had been published, low and behold the review just before ours had then been published, raising the exact same issues! C&S let us book this place in full knowledge issues had been raised by the previous guest, and rather than take our concerns seriously as the second guest with issues, seemed to think it was ok the host did not offer a refund. I was shocked by this and emailed again to express my disappointment that we had basically been gaslit into thinking we were a random exception with too high standards. They even admitted in the response that they had been aware of this and the owner is addressing the issues, but still no further offer of a refund. In reality a £50 gift card when you feel you have lost several hundred pounds on a 'special' booking just doesn't cut it and I am extremely unlikely to spend further money with this company. I will simply use it as a search tool perhaps and then find the place direct, vet direct reviews rather than C&S and book direct. A lot of the places do seem to be on other sites also. The vetting they think they do is just not up to standard.
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We inspect and select the most inspiring places to stay in the great outdoors; treehouses, cabins, yurts and more. For those in search of a life more wild.
