Reviews

“This was our first trip to Somerset and it certainly won’t be our last! And we will be staying at The Oval next time too. Everything was so beautifully presented, comfortable and cosy that staying here felt more like being in a boutique hotel than self-catering! Unlike previous guests we didn’t get round to opening the toy chest – we were blessed with good weather so we were able to take advantage of all the sights around Dunster. Highlights included family-friendly walks to Bats Castle and Grabbist Hill (followed by tea at the Water Mill), and noodles by the sea at Porlock Weir. We would also recommend the Copper Kettle in Dulverton if you fancy venturing that far. Huge thanks to the team who have made us feel we were in the lap of luxury for the week. We will be back soon to carry on through the local ‘to do’ list including atrip on the train and a long stroll over Dunkery Hill. So not goodbye but ‘au revoir’.”
The Borrel family, October 2021

“Our fifth time at The Oval. Home-sweet-home! It’s been three years since we last visited The Oval. We spent our days exploring and our afternoons in Dunster at the park, then to the Chocolate Shop for sweets and ice cream. We visited Minehead several times, frequenting the arcade and won 2450 tokens!! These were exchanged for ‘tat’ (our kids’ favourite pass time!) We visited Dunster Castle, Porlock, Selworthy and Lynmouth, Selworthy has a wonderful thatched tea room where we had cake and tea and coffee. We took a Sunday stroll up Conygar Tower and came back through the woods where we came across some impressive stone archways. We also visited Dunster Beach for the first time which was lovely, and saw the steam train pass by. We had Sunday lunch in the Foresters Arms and said ‘hello’ to Nelson the swearing parrot. Thank you Lucy and team for making our stay special, best wishes team Rhead.”
Mandy, Jez, Ruby, Harry, Molly and Kinver the dog, October 2021

“What a fabulous week in an awesome house to celebrate my 60th birthday. Could not fault The Oval as it was equipped with everything we could need, and the bed was so comfy!! Dunster is beautiful and we loved the castle and especially the gardens which are so lovely with gorgeous views – and the watermill too. We enjoyed seeing the ponies up on Exmoor and we went to Lynmouth and Lynton which was well worth the visit. We ate in the Forresters Arms a couple of times, which offers tasty pub grub – loved the swearing parrot! The Stag was very good and recommend the ‘lamb lollipops’. Cobblestones and Lockes Victorian Tea Rooms are also good. The Luttrell Arms has a secret garden, perfect to enjoy a drink. Reeves restaurant on my birthday was five star – you must go! It’s been a wonderful birthday week. Thank you to The Oval team!”
Angela, Lynsey and Ollie the Westie, October 2021

“This was our first visit to Dunster and we loved it! The cottage is beautiful – spotlessly clean, well-equipped and very comfortable, especially with the log burner alight! The village is gorgeous and the people are very friendly and welcoming. We had a wonderful meal at Hathaways, followed by a night cap at The Stag – so convenient! Thanks for making our stay so comfortable – we’ll be back!”
Steve and Vanessa Head, October 2021

“We have had a wonderful week at this gorgeous cottage, which is a pleasure being clean, cosy and comfortable. The whole area has been welcoming and lovely to explore and is especially doggy friendly. Places we have loved include Blue Anchor Beach and breakfast at the Driftwood Café. Winnie our dog especially loved the beach. Had a wonderful meal at Hathaways, what a gem. Also, the Luttrell Arms and Cobblestones and for fish and chips the Alcombe Fish Bar. On our last day we went to Selworthy village, beautiful view and the Periwinkle Tearooms with delicious scones and a lovely little gift shop. A wonderful week, we will definitely be back, thank you!”
John, Sandra and Winne, September 2021

“What a fabulous cottage! From the moment we walked in we felt at home. It was spotless and has everything we needed and more (hot water bottles were a welcomed surprise!). We explored somewhere different every day: Blue Anchor Bay, Lynmouth, Dulverton, Tarr Steps, Stogumber on the steam train (lovely cream tea at the station there), Minehead, Horner Woods and Selworthy. Had a lovely lunch at Born Appetite in Dunster one day and finished the week with a ‘pub grub’ meal at the Forresters Arms. We are so impressed with all the information we received prior to the holiday and then all the information left in the cottage. We loved ‘The Little Book of Walks’ which was so useful, and the yummy chocolate cake! Thank you, Lucy and team.”
Netta, Sue and Lulu, September 2021

“We have had an enjoyable stay here at The Oval. A very well-equipped cottage, comfy beds, great kitchen, good Wi-Fi! We enjoyed several days on Minehead beach with lunches at Café Cream and some crazy golf at the Jubilee Café. We did the Dunster circular walk and saw ponies by Bats Castle up on the moor. Visiting Dunster Castle was very interesting with lovely gardens and the watermill was working. We ventured further afield to Withypool, Winsford and the river walk at Tarr Steps, capped off with dinner at Woods in Dulverton. We also recommend Hathaways and Reeves in Dunster as well as China Garden in Alcombe for takeaway. There are still lots of places to visit to visit in the area so maybe we will be back one day!”
The Barnes Family, August 2021

“What a wonderful place Dunster is, and The Oval sums it up perfectly – we love the history, and this is living history. The walking has been wonderful. We have visited the Lake District on many occasions and the walking here is on a par – with more variety in terms of woodland, water and open moorland all on the same walks, with views of the sea too. We loved Dunkery Beacon, the highest spot-on Exmoor, the ridge walk across the Quantocks and the truly beautiful Doone Valley. If you want a real challenge, try reading Lorna Doone while you are staying here! For an Indian takeaway, The Alcombe Tandoori is excellent, and Dana’s Fish & Chip Shop in Minehead is also good. We loved the whole experience here – oh and try the cider at Torre Farm!
James, Maryam, Freddie and Walter the dog, August 2021

“We enjoyed our two weeks stay in the stunning village of Dunster and were very comfortable in this beautiful cottage. We were very blessed with the weather and were able to enjoy lots of walks with our two dogs. The Little Book of Walks was very handy to have and we managed most of them! The people of Dunster were so friendly and welcoming and we enjoyed many cream teas in the village – Cobblestones was our favourite! We highly recommend Reeves restaurant for food. The staff were so accommodating – managing to fit six of us in there times! Thank you to Lucy and the team!”
Lesley, Kenny, Lorraine, Ricky, Sophie and Jenny plus Poppy and Lucy the dogs, July 2021

“We had a lovely stay. Walked to the Castle, visited the local pubs, strolled around the village. Ate at Reeves restaurant, a great meal! Love the house – very well-equipped, and the terrace – I NEED some of those lovely coloured chairs! See you again Dunster.”
Chris, Leigh, Sam and Paul, July 2021

“Although we’ve stayed here a number of times, I cannot seem to find any evidence of any Guest Book entries – so these comments are covering many years of coming to The Oval during 30 years of visiting West Somerset. Of all the places we’ve stayed since the late 1980s, The Oval is the one that offers the fullest Somerset flavour! It’s welcoming, comfortable, beautiful – and just ‘shabby chic’ enough to allow you to relax completely in any of the rooms! Seriously, The Oval is a complete delight in a stunning village in the most beautiful countryside in England. We will be back again, and again.
Phil, Rebecca, Tilly and Bailey, July 2021

“Great to be back in The Oval. It was as comfortable as ever. Dunster is a good location from which to explore the beautiful Exmoor countryside. The weather was hot and sunny, so we enjoyed the local walks between archery competitions, plus our geocaching trips. We had a lovely meal at Reeves on our last evening. Looking forward to returning again next year for the GWAS Dunster Archery Week. Thanks to Lucy and her management team for a great stay.”
Val, Dave and Andy, June 2021

“Another lovely stay at The Oval. A trip down memory lane for my husband and his parents who used to stay here when my mother-in-law’s cousin Claire Hoare ran this house as a B&B back in the late 70s and 80s. We had a great Sunday lunch at Reeves in the village and returned for a fabulous evening meal. Lovely cake at Tessa’s Tearoom. Brilliant walks from Gallox Bridge. For days out, go to Bossington and have the best coffee at Kitnors Tearoom. The kids loved Minehead. Dunster Castle is good, and the gardens are amazing. We love the deck at the top of the garden. It was nice to have such lovely weather to enjoy the sundowners! We forgot our dog’s food bowls, but no matter, as there were some here. Thank you.”
Kate, Jon, Alan, Mel, Daisy, Matilda and Margot the dog, June 2021

“What a wonderful week we have had. The whole place was completely catered for and nothing was needed at all! Thank you for a lovely stay, we will definitely come back for more rest and relaxation.”
Mark, Sam, and Fudge the dog, May 2021

“All credit to Lucy and her team, a wonderful place to stay with everything well thought-out. We used to visit Exmoor eight years ago or so, and this has just reminded us how much we love it.”
The Butler family, May 2021

“What a way to come out of lockdown – another holiday where we have made some amazing memories. Great walks with the boys and woofer to Hurlstone Point and Grabbist Hill, a night-time trip through the graveyard, duck racing and playing on the swings in the woods are just a few of the things we got up to. The terrace was beautiful in the evenings, wrapped up in blankets, drinking hot chocolate. We highly recommend Periwinkle Tearooms – after all our years staying here this was a new one for us. It’s a shame we were only here for five days instead of our planned two weeks, but we are already booked for next year and cannot wait to come back to the best cottage ever.”
Team Foster and Dunster the Dog, April 2021

“Thank you for the beautiful welcome cake – what a treat! As always, ‘The Oval’ was a delight to stay in, and even more beautiful at Christmas time. We are so fortunate to have moved our holiday from March to now – it has been a welcome break from the turbulent year we are all having. Fab weather, wonderful walks, roaring fires, good food, books, a little piece of heaven on earth – thank you to all the team for the incredible effort you have put in, we could not have felt more welcomed. May next year to be kinder to us all.”
The Strutts – Chris, Tina, Sue and Vicki and Poppy and Herbie the dogs, December 2020

“Gary and I were so pleased that we were able to spend three nights of our planned seven night stay here at our ‘second home’ as we call it for our pre-Christmas holiday. We did our bit and brought something in each shop to do our bit to help! Thank you again for letting us stay in your beautiful cottage.”
Kathy and Gary Woodruff, December 2020

 

Check the availability of each of our cottages and book online.