Craig Tara Holiday Park - Ayrshire, Scotland

Name: Craig Tara Holiday Park
Location: Dunure Road, Ayr, KA7 4LB

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Paddling on the beach at Craig Tara

Website:http://www.haven.com/parks/scotland/craig-tara/
Duration of stay: 7 nights
Darcys Comments: I have never stayed in a caravan before but it seemed nice enough. Every one had their own bedroom at night and I got the whole living room to myself. We were only a short walk from the beach which I got to walk along every morning before breakfast and I could watch the golfers playing on the course from our window.
Darcys Mums Comments: We were allocated a caravan on the edge of the golf course and not too far from the beach, all good for dog walking. It is a big holiday park with plenty of facilities including childrens play areas and indoor swimming pool amoungst others. There is also a small on site mini market, handy for the provisions required when self catering. We ate at the onsite pub/restaurant The Mash and Barrell on more than one occasion and the food was always hot and filling. However Darcy wasn't allowed inside so we ate on the terrace, which was relatively sheltered. There is a regular bus service to the nearest town (Ayr) and the staff were always helpful. On the negative side we really didn't use much of the facilities on the park, mainly because we spent so much time exploring the surrounding area but also because there were so many children (not all of which were well behaved) which could be noisy and disruptive for anyone looking for a quiet relaxing time. On another unfortunate note Darcy managed to cut her nose on some broken glass on the parks private beach. However it was early in the morning so the litter pickers had probably not had the chance to clean up folowing the previous day/night, but it was still a little concerning.
Overall we had a nice holiday in Scotland although we would probably not choose to return to the same park again as it is primarily aimed at families with young children but also because we have already explored many of the attractions in the area.
Darcys Rating:

Stonecross Manor Hotel

Name: Stonecross Manor Hotel - Kendal, Cumbria

Location: Milnthorpe Road, Kendal, Cumbria, LA9 5HP

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Duration of stay: 1 night
Darcys comments: We had a nice little room with plenty of space for everyone. The staff were very nice to me and let me sit with mum and everyone else whilst they had their dinner in the bar. They even made up a special table so I could sit with them for breakfast as well.
Darcys Mums comments: A nice little hotel on the outskirts of Kendal where we stayed for one night on our way up to cotland. The staff were all very friendly although the receptionist seemed a little unsure as to where we could and could not take Darcy. We put this down to inexperience rather than anything else though as other members of staff were able give us the appropriate information. The food was lovely and the room was clean and tidy. The hotel also has a swimming pool which was small but not busy. it was a shame we weren' t staying for longer, will definately consider staying here again if we are in the area.
Darcys rating:

Ancol Peak Superquilt Coat

Name: Peak Superquilt Coat
Make: Ancol
Description: Amazing all weather coats constructed from heavy weight woven nylon with velcro spine fastening for easy fitting. Fully elasticated chest area and leg cuffs for comfort. (Ancol website description)
Where purchased: Amazon
Price Paid: Unknown. Christmas present (2011) however current price approx £18
Darcys Comments: This coat is comfy and keeps me warm and dry. It was a bit awkward learning I had to lift my feet up to put it on but after the first few goes I got the hang of it.
Darcys Mum Says: The coat is an unusual style with the Velcro running along the back but it is very effective at keeping her warm, dry and mostly mud free. The Velcro along the top is very strong, to the point that it was actually quite annoying because it was always catching my gloves, scarf or anything else vaguely woolly I was wearing. Also due to the strength of the Velcro (the half with the hooks) it has actually damaged the other half of the Velcro at the neck which means it now keeps flapping open, however this last development came about only over the last few weeks after being used since Christmas 2011. The only other issue we have was that some of the stitching to create the quilting effect came out within a couple of weeks of use, however the integrity of the coat wasn't compromised so we decided not to bother sending it back for a replacement. On the positive side the coat washes very well in the machine and has been through numerous times to remove all the mud Darcy likes to accumulate.
Overall I realise I have made it sound like it was not a good coat, however I do think it is a good design, its just the quality of the components that may not be quite up to scratch. I do intend to keep using the coat but will have to make some adjustments to the neck to stop it flapping open due to the failed Velcro. My only other comment on the coat would be that it is a shame it doesn't come in a wider variety of colours, including something femine, although this doesn't necessarily mean pink!
Darcy Rating:

Great style of coat and is a good fit for Darcy, extending right along her back (covering the top of her tail) and along her abdomen finishing just in front of her hind legs. Unusually she needed an XL (although I would not describe her as a XL size dog so other larger breeds may struggle with the fit) after following the Ancol Website measurement guide. I should point out that although this coat fits Darcy well, if she had been a boy it would have been too long on the belly.



You can see the neck portion of the coat flapping open as the Velcro has failed.