Accommodation | Room and Roof Southampton

We recently visited Paulton's Park to explore Peppa Pig World. Due to how far away the park is from where we live we decided to make the most of the journey and enjoy a full week away. We prefer to stay in apartments rather than hotels as having Coeliac disease can make it hard to eat out so having private catering facilities makes things easier and often cheaper. We choose Room and Roof Apartments for our stay. We stayed Monday to Friday in a one bedroom apartment. 

Firstly if you're looking for holiday accommodation that is close to Paulton's Park then these apartments are in a fantastic location. They are situated around twenty minutes drive to the theme park and only a ten minute drive into the centre of Southampton, which has an abundance of shops, restaurants and entertainment as well as the docks. There is a large Asda superstore a 5 minute drive away and although the apartments are close to a main roundabout, the fact that they are slightly tucked back from the road down a long private drive means you don't really get any road noise. There is ample parking on site, with each apartment having it's own allocated slot. Finding the apartments was a little difficult as we thought the signage could have been a bit clearer but the accommodation providers did text with details about finding the apartments so it was more our weariness from the long drive rather than their instructions.

Accessing the property was entirely contact free. You are emailed/text a code for the key pad. After inputting the code, your key will be released. There is a key for your apartment as well as a key to the communal door. The apartments are housed in a large building so I would imagine there are lots of apartments. We were situated on the top level. There is no lift to access the top floors so this place would not be suitable for those with mobility issues unless the owners could guarantee ground floor accommodation. We hauled our luggage up 3 flights of stairs. The stair well left a lot to be desired. It had a rather damp smell and there were lots of spider webs. Granted, the ceilings were very high but an extendable duster would have reached and made a better first impression. Also the sky light windows were constantly open meaning the rain comes in. Overall the first impression wasn't amazing. 

Onto the apartment itself. Upon our initial inspection we noticed that a few things weren't quite up to standard. There were pronounced marks on the kitchen worktops, scuffs along the walls and the second sofa was completely broken- the seating part no longer being attached to the back rest. 

We'd also asked for an extra bed to be put up for our four year old, we expected a camp bed as detailed on the accommodation description. What we actually got was a travel cot, which was completely useless. We could have all slept in the king size bed but because Daddy is such a star he took the sofa bed and let me and Iris sleep in the main bed. The sofa bed was very rackety and felt on the verge of breaking. There was an extra quilt and pillows supplied in a utility cupboard but no extra bedding. The main bed was quite comfortable though the pillows were very flat.

So there were many things that needed a little attention and it is such as shame about these things as the apartment could be made lovely. It was really spacious and light and the kitchen was modern and well equipped. The owners may not been on top of maintenance but the cleaners had done a marvellous job. Every where was amazingly clean, all around the sink and taps and the fridge was sparking. These things matter a lot to me so I was pleased to see they'd made the effort. I'd rather have a clean apartment with a few broken things than a dirty apartment where everything works. The cooking facilities such as the hob and the microwave were also spotless and in full working order. It was nice that washing up liquid, sponge and tea towel had been provided. The apartment was also equipped with a washing machine but we didn't need to use it.

Moving onto the bathroom which again, could have been so nice if the owners had just put more effort in. Design wise it was modern and bright but the glass shower screen was missing and the toilet seat did that annoying thing where it slides to the side whenever you sit on it. Ordinarily I'd just tighten the screws but there was no way I was putting my hand underneath a strangers toilet. It was a bit of a pain having to have a bath every morning rather than a shower but on the other hand it's much easier to get Iris in a bath than shower. It would have been nice to choose between bath and shower but without the shower screen it would have just soaked the bathroom. The towels provided were really big and fluffy and there were plenty of them. There was also ample toilet roll and toiletries- something that's not always provided in self catering accommodation. 

I always research accommodation before I book it and the reviews of this place were glowing and it had received 8 out of 10 on booking.com. I do wonder if we just had an unlucky experience and perhaps the other apartments were in better condition. Whatever the reason we won't be staying here again. It served it's purpose as a place to sleep after being out all day but it wasn't the type of experience I've come to expect and when you've paid £365 for a four night stay I think it should be comparable to other similar properties we've stayed at within that price range but sadly this one just didn't make the grade.  

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