We're thrilled that you're considering a stay at Cats Abbey in the heart of the Cotswolds. We've carefully renovated this 175 year old property to blend the comforts of modern living with the timeless character of a traditional Cotswold barn. To preserve the unique charm of this beautiful property for you and future guests, we've outlined a few guidelines for you to read before finalising your booking.
What’s included
Included in the rental price are electricity, bottled gas for the gas hob and the barbecue, logs for the wood-burning stove, use of sheets and towels, kitchen crockery and utensils and a small supply of basic kitchen essentials.
VAT is included in all domestic bookings, but additional for corporate bookings, which are quoted on a VAT exclusive basis.
Arrival and Departure times
The Barn can be booked for weekends starting on a Friday and ending on a Monday (although in practice most of our guests leave on the Sunday evening). The Studio and Cottage are only available when booking the Barn, and cannot be rented separately.
If desired, and there is availability, we will try to accommodate requests to substitute a Thursday for the Friday and Sunday for Monday.
Check-in is from 4.00pm onwards and check out time is 10.00am or sooner. However, we endeavour to be as flexible as possible depending on availability and the time needed to prepare the Barn for the next guests. Arrangements can be made upon request.
One of our team will meet you at the Barn on your day of arrival to give you access to the property and show you around to ensure you have everything to enjoy your stay.
Minimum Lets
Our weekend rate is the same for either 2 or 3 nights and midweek bookings can be arranged to suit your requirements.
The minimum let for Easter is 3 nights; for Christmas 7 nights and for New Year 4 nights.
Deposit and Confirmation
A deposit of one third of the rental cost of the Barn is required to reserve a booking, with the balance for the Barn and any additional space payable 6 weeks before arrival date. Any booking made less than 6 weeks ahead will require the full rental paid to secure the booking. On receipt of the deposit we will confirm the booking and send out some pre-arrival information. Payment is to be made by bank transfer.
Cancellations
All cancellations must be in writing and confirmed by email.
Upon a cancellation we will always try to re-let the Barn and refund the client, and where we can’t, we very much hope you will have put in place suitable insurance to fall back on.
With the above in mind it is important to note that most of our weekend bookings are made well in advance, and it may therefore be more difficult for us to secure another booking as the period gets shorter.
The client therefore remains liable for the full rental subject to the following:
If we can re-let the Barn, for the whole period, for the same rental price as paid by you, we will credit back the re-let rental fee less a £50 admin fee.
If we can re-let the Barn but at a reduced rate, or for part of the period originally booked for, we would credit you with the amount agreed on the re-let, leaving you still liable for any balance payable plus a £50 admin fee, subject to your agreement.
If we are unable to re-let, you will remain liable for the full rental.
Unfortunately we can not accept any liability for any cancellation due to adverse weather conditions.
Eligibility
Due to the nature of some Stag and Hen parties, we reserve the right to refuse single sex groups. It’s not a given, so please ask. However, for Stag and Hen Parties and the like, we may ask for a surcharge to cover cleaning etc, as well as a housekeeping deposit.
Number of guests
The number of guests using Cats Abbey is limited to those who are staying, unless we've made prior arrangements for additional visitors. This is especially important for events like weddings. Renting the Barn does not permit bringing the entire wedding party back for a post-event celebration. This also applies to larger groups, where some are staying in other properties locally, and wish to join for dinner.
We will need to discuss arrangements in advance, as any additional usage may incur an extra charge. We also need to be made aware of any guests leaving and others arriving so we can supply fresh bedding, for which there will be a small charge to cover the extra laundry.
Parties
As mentioned above, the use of Cats Abbey is limited to the number of people in the original booking. However, if you'd like to host a gathering and invite extra guests, this can be agreed by prior arrangement. It's important to note that there's a significant difference between hosting a large family gathering and a full-scale party with around 50 attendees. The latter typically requires more maintenance and cleanup. For events like parties, large dinner gatherings, BBQs, or receptions that involve more guests than those booked for accommodation, we do charge an additional fee. In some cases, a refundable deposit may be required, depending on the nature of the event and the number of guests.
Pets
A maximum of two well behaved pets are welcome, subject to agreement.
Please explain to your dogs that sofas and bedrooms are not their territory. Furthermore if they are wet and smelly please put them on the terrace. If the home becomes uninhabitable due to pet odours, we won’t be able to accommodate our next guests without a major clean-up, and we will have to send you the bill. Lastly please clear up any mess they leave, inside or out.
Guests with allergies should be aware that pets will probably have been in the Barn at some point.
Smoking
Smoking is not allowed in any of the internal spaces, including the terrace (because it get into the family room and laundry, and can set off the terrace smoke alarm)
If this is not adhered to, we will need to arrange for the place to be cleaned before the next guests arrive. Since this can be both costly and challenging to do on short notice, we will need to charge you for the extra cleaning services.
Catering
This is primarily a self catering holiday let; however we like to have a good selection of basics on hand including salt, pepper, washing up liquid, tea-towels, cleaning materials and tablets for the two dishwashers to get you started. Occasionally guests leave a few surplus items so that we keep up a comprehensive stock. Try not to be the one in a hundred who packs everything (theirs and ours!) and takes it all home! The idea is that you bring the food and things you need.
There are various catering options ranging from a prepared meal that can be collected from the local village shop on arrival to a country cook, as well as supermarket deliveries, all subject to prior arrangement.
Care of the Property
Please treat the Barn as you would your own home. Kicking a football around the flower beds would not be appreciated. If you break or damage anything, please let us know so we can replace it. We may not charge you, but we reserve the right to do so if we think it’s appropriate.
Housekeeping
We present the Barn in top class condition, and our prices are on the basis that self catering implies self cleaning, so we ask guests to leave the barn as found. If you move any furniture around, please return it to how you found it and if you want to know what to do with the beds, there is no need to strip them as it is easier for our team to do this!
Turnaround times can be quite short, and the housekeeper may not have 4 hours extra to clean the cooker, ovens, fridges, and scour saucepans and roasting tins.
However, you are on holiday, and we totally understand if you don’t want to clean up. Just tell us in advance and we will lay on the extra staff to get it all done for you. We will charge you, but it won’t cost much, and you can relax in peace. We only ever charge for additional labour, not the entire cleaning job. It would typically be £100 - £150 depending on the condition and assuming there are no major disasters.
Also, you can have someone in during your stay to make beds, wash up, prepare a meal (all subject to availability), just ask. We would need to know at the time of booking which option you prefer - if you choose to self clean, and then decide not to, do expect an invoice to cover the cost of extra staff at short notice.
Recycling
There are plenty of boxes in the recycling store just outside the kitchen side door. We suggest you choose one box for bottles, one for washed cans. They also take plastic bottles, cardboard, and newspaper. Other rubbish just goes in bin bags and placed in the two black bins by the recycling store.
Please note, we do not have the facilities to dispose of larger items, such as wedding props, so please take these home with you.
Environmental Considerations
We are proud to have made a big effort in this area by recently removing our oil tank so that all the hot water and heating is now provided via heat pumps, solar panels, underfloor heating and rainwater harvesting. To ensure a constant supply of hot water we ask that you don't all use the shower facilities at the same time and you are as conservationist as possible with its use.
Please join us in our conservation efforts, and turn off lights not in use. Likewise it will not help the environment, or our fuel bills, to have all the thermostats set at 30 and all the windows open.
We also have an electric charging point for EV’s.
Privacy
Our policy is to leave you in peace to enjoy your stay. Apart from welcoming you we will make an effort to stay out of your way, but we reserve the right to enter the property if we think it absolutely necessary. Having said that, if you want to talk to us, or need help with anything, you only have to ask. Bridget is on 07886 514186 and Jonathan on 07973 759733.
On our booking form we ask for the name and address of the lead guest, their credit card details, and particulars of any special needs. We undertake not to divulge such data to other parties.
Internet
We provide an excellent fast fibre optic wi-fi internet connection for your laptop or PDA.
The wi-fi network is “Cats Abbey guest” and the password is “catsabbey”.
Booking Form
When booking we ask for details of your party and an address and credit card number for the party leader.
Credit Card charges
Unlike many holiday lets, we don’t take a housekeeping deposit (except for parties; see above), but by agreeing to a booking, you also agree for us to bill your card for any additional costs incurred. These might include catering, wine, breakages (exceeding the usual couple of wine glasses or what we consider reasonable), and excessive cleaning (typically oven or cooker, or wine stains). If you do not agree to this clause, please tell us, and we will agree a housekeeping deposit.
Liabilities
We have proper insurance as you would expect and we take our liabilities seriously. However Cats Abbey has as many risks as has your own home added to which it will be entirely unfamiliar to guests and children alike. This, in itself, is a risk. We would ask you, therefore, to take special care of vulnerable relatives, friends and offspring.
If you have young children, special needs, or frail elderly in your group, we would like to discuss with you anything we need to do to make their and your stay as safe as possible. Thus we would appreciate having this conversation at the time of booking. Please discuss!
Please also ensure that if you leave the party unattended during your stay (particularly to wedding groups) that you ensure someone takes responsibility for ensuring all doors are locked, windows closed and property secure. We do not take any responsibility for lost or stolen items, so please make sure the property is secure before departing.
If for some unforeseen reason, Cats Abbey becomes unavailable between booking and arrival, our obligation will be limited to using all reasonable endeavours to find another property (but not necessarily at the same cost), or refunding all monies paid.
Plain Language
We have tried to write our Terms and Conditions in plain English. If you have any queries please ask.
And Finally
We have spent many years putting together a holiday home that should surprise and delight you and where you should find all that you need. We sincerely hope you have a wonderful stay.