The Steading Holiday Cottage

The 4 STAR quality grading awarded by VisitScotland (formerly the Scottish Tourist Board) to this annually inspected property allows us officially to describe it as "Excellent" accommodation.
(Inspected and graded on 26/9/19, Steading Cottage scored 78%, which is within the 75 - 86% Quality Assurance range for 4 STAR Scottish Tourist Board accommodation).

Why our less mobile guests love Steading Cottage>>>

-Car parking right beside entry door.
-No steps at entry or on ground floor.
-Level wooden / tiled floors throughout.
-Though 2-storey, everything for the less-fit guest is on the ground floor
-Bathroom layout allows full turning circle for wheelchairs + flat access to power shower
-Grab rails beside shower, toilet and handbasin. Wheeled shower chair available.
-2 ground floor bedrooms with wheelchair access, one double, one single.
-Kingsize bed downstairs 30 cms from floor to slatted base; 56 cms from floor with mattress
-Single bed downstairs 37 cms from floor to slatted base;66 cms with mattress
-Tricky for a wheelchair to manoevre in kitchen area, hence Assisted Wheelchair grading
-Space in porch for mobility aids, hoist etc. if needed.
-Owner/ Manager "G" has completed VisitScotland's Accessible Tourism Customer Service Training.
-This is the cottage for those happy to be at the heart of the farm. Creatively transformed in 1998 from dereliction into a
wonderful home, it is white, light, spacious, inviting and warm with its multi-fuel stove and oil-fired central heating.

Set back from the main road with a small front garden, this detached cottage nestles right beside farm buildings and a field. The reduced rental reflects the possibility that despite thick walls and double glazing you may hear some road traffic, tractors, cattle or perhaps experience the odd farm whiff outside! Curiously enough this farm activity has proved to be somewhat of an attraction rather than a negative, especially to youngsters.

The property has entrance gates. This means that it can be totally enclosed if you have small children or pets.

Layout>>>>

Two storeys with an upstairs family bedroom but also ground floor accommodation, a double and single bedroom, equally suitable for the able-bodied, but also for disabled wheelchair users or those with mobility problems.

Entry is through a roomy porch/utility room. Large enough for all your fishing or golf gear, bicycles, or car-roof rack, or disability equipment, it's just as ideal as a temporary home for your dog for just a few hours as it can be shut off from the rest of the house.

To the left is an open plan lofty living/dining area with a granite-topped island unit dividing this area from the fully integrated, red alder kitchen, as shown in the photos within the Steading Gallery Page. A focal point at the far end of the living area is the multi-fuel stove for those who love the ambience of a real fire in addition to the oil-fired central heating. The other focal point adjacent to this is the 2011 upgrade to a 32" LED flatscreen TV.

To the right is a double bedroom with a kingsize bed, an ensuite shower & w.c. Beside this is a small single bedroom. Both have space for a cot. Opposite is a wheel-in shower-room. This bathroom with power shower, bath, W.C, basin and rail grabs is ideal for a wheelchair-bound guest. The floor is non-slip.

Wide stairs lead up to a small gallery, above the kitchen and overlooking the living area. Beyond, behind the door, is a spacious dormer/attic with two single beds and one double. A child's paradise with plenty of floor space to play on. And you can pop into an adjacent room with toilet and handbasin to spare nocturnal trips downstairs!

The good and the not-so-good about Steading Cottage>>>>

Steading Cottage lends itself particularly well to 2 couples sharing as the two double bedrooms are quite well apart, affording family privacy. And there is a single bedroom beside one and two singles in the family room upstairs.

As this is a detached cottage, with no neighbours except for cows, this is an ideal cottage for budding musicians, howling babies, and those who like their music at concert pitch! The roomy, quarry tiled, porch area is also particularly useful for storing all your fishing or golfing tackle or disability equipment including a hoist which can be hired in. It's also an ideal room for leaving your dog (s) for short periods as it is separated by a door from the main house.

The garden is on the small side and though screened by shrubs lacks privacy being bordered by the farm and the passing traffic. Not ideal for footballers for this reason but fine to sit out in.

However, a big bonus in 2015! A wonderful play area just a two-minute walk across the road to the woods behind Crosswoodhill farmhouse. A perfect setting for the garden playfort and slide, swings including a large family basket swing, sling and toddler swings, a trapeze bar and rings, a see-saw, sandpit and balancing logs. Whoops of delight confirm this robust equipment ( but we do ask for adult supervision, please ) was well worth the investment. This play area is large enough to be shared by more than one family and offers guests from Orlege, the Wing and Steading Cottage the possibility to meet up with other children staying at Crosswoodhill.

Other Information>>>>>

>Electricity as used (meter readings charged at cost, according to usage).WHY? Some owners prefer to offer an "all-in" rental but into that rental they have built in costs for those guests who use a lot of fuel and electricity. We prefer that guests who are economic or "green" in their usage should benefit, pay less and not subsidise more profligate users! This applies to the Wing, Steading Cottage and Orlege End, but not Craigengar Lodge where heating and electricity are included in the rental.
>Heating Oil charged at cost according to usage.
>Solid Fuel Supplies may be purchased at cost.

Pets by arrangement: £20 per dog per week / part week