Avis Detached House, private pool, in village 5 minutes from the sea and sandy beach

We felt very sad that you thought our holiday home was worth only 3 stars. We thought that you were lovely guests who would visit again. Maybe we were not what you were looking for. As the information says the house is traditional Bulgarian i.e. it has beautiful oak beams throughout the downstairs and for the bedrooms you go upstairs via an external staircase. Upstairs is light and airy (so light you requested additional blackout fabric as well as the lined curtains). The house is well furnished with everything and more not at all spartan (other guests have commented on how well equipped the house is) I'm not sure what was missing. There are twin beds in both bedrooms as the information states, this gives flexibility to all of our guests, some are friends who may not want to share a bed. We push the beds together for couples who prefer this. The house is in a prosperous village, not a town, with many shops, more than most villages in Bulgaria and the front is on a main road but not so busy that the goats use it every day. And dogs bark as they do in most countries, especially in the hot weather when they are outside. The back garden with the pool is very peaceful overlooking the countryside We were on site in a separate house, this was because we had been unable to travel back to the UK, we have a motor home which we could have used to give you more privacy but you said this wasn't necessary and even said it was ok to swim in the pool whilst you were using it. (we didnt of course as we respect the privacy of all of our guests). As we were on site we were able to babysit for your children at your request. giving you an evening out together. Your son was asleep and your daughter was an absolute joy. We were also on hand to give you advice on places to visit and local amenities Maybe this isn't the type of holiday that you are used to, however, we enjoyed your company and you were fantastic guests which makes it even more disappointing that you gave only 3 stars which will impact our average ratings and future bookings.

Dear Delphine, It was a pleasure to host you and your family and would be welcome back anytime! We are so glad you had a great time. We will ensure the cupboards get an extra clean, it has been difficult this year because of the virus, we have been unable to go ourselves to ensure everything was at its very best! We look forward to seeing you again. Kindest regards Debbie and Peter

Dear Jean, Thank you for your review! You are welcome to visit our home anytime, perhaps next time you can try the pool! When we visit in October we will ensure we install a coffee machine (even tho we are English and prefer tea!) so you will feel even more at home next time you visit! :)

Sorry that our village house wasn’t for you. We do make it clear in our description that the house is traditional and in a village. Bulgarian houses often have the stairs outside this is from years gone by when families kept their animal downstairs and lived upstairs, we wanted to keep this feature as feel it’s part of the traditional village style property. We have thought about having a mini fridge upstairs but most families, when we have asked about facilities, say that they don’t eat in the bedrooms and prefer to eat in the garden area or in the kitchen and discourage children from eating in their beds (which we agree with in terms of keeping our property clean). I know that you were very clean and tidy in the house and this wouldn’t have been an issue but families with younger children didn’t want this extra problem. We do need been around the property some of the time in order to maintain the garden and pool apart from this we keep ourselves to ourselves other than saying hello and asking how things are going when doing the maintenance. It’s a shame that you didn’t take the opportunity to explore the village especially as you say that you like to take walks. Theres’s countryside all around with wildlife and vegetation to see and exploring the village itself you would see many different shops, meet residents who are very friendly (many residents in Bulgaria speak English but their language is Bulgarian). You may see goats, chickens, ducks, geese and even the odd donkey in some of the residents’ gardens. Marinka is the most sort after village in the area but there are no modern restaurants or bright lights like a city this is why people love it so much. Theres a café and a pizza takeaway. As you found out there are lots of lovely places to see and restaurants to eat at if you go further afield. There are buses in the village as we said. Sadly, they change the timetable regularly and we advised that it wouldn’t be pleasant waiting for a bus in the hot sun. We made a genuine offer to take you in our car to different places as we have done for other guests who don’t hire a car. I’m glad you found Peyo to be great, we have known him for many years so more than happy to introduce his taxi service to our guests. I’m sorry that this sort of holiday wasn’t for you. I think maybe somewhere more touristy or a city would have suited you better. I’m glad you enjoyed the pool, everyone does, including us when we have no guests.