The Doll's House | Harlech | Cefnfilltir | Self Catering Holiday Cottage

Customer rating

4.1★

4 Guests
2 Bedrooms
1 Bathroom
Pets No
Show on map

Features

Open fire
Pub/shop < 1 mile

Reviews & Ratings

Accuracy of the listing

Cleanliness

Comfort

Facilities and Maintenance

* Based on a combined average customer score

27 Customer Review(s)

Mike
June 2025

“We love the Dolls House, so much so, this is our third year staying at this quirky little place.”

The cottage is well equipped, designed and generally clean & cared for. It is close to the town and castle and ideal as a base to explore the Snowdonia National Park. Sadly, I’m going to be really honest now and state some of things that require dedicated attention in the cottage. The downstairs bedrooms, particularly the double room, have a serious mould/damp issue. An attempt to remedy this with hanging dehumidifier bags in the wardrobes has been made, (& worked last year) but when we ...

The cottage is well equipped, designed and generally clean & cared for. It is close to the town and castle and ideal as a base to explore the Snowdonia National Park. Sadly, I’m going to be really honest now and state some of things that require dedicated attention in the cottage. The downstairs bedrooms, particularly the double room, have a serious mould/damp issue. An attempt to remedy this with hanging dehumidifier bags in the wardrobes has been made, (& worked last year) but when we arrived this time, these bags were filled to overflowing with water, so much so that they themselves had mould in them. As a result of them not being replaced regularly enough, the far wardrobe in the double room, had black mould spores all down the external wall, so we couldn’t hang our clothes in there this time. We understand that these bedrooms have a wall below ground level & that ventilation etc. is difficult, but keeping on top of the mould with regular replacement of dehumidifier type products, is essential. The bed mattresses could also do with being replaced, as they sag and are very uncomfortable to sleep on. Both my husband and I had backache at the end of the week, as a result of sleeping on the double bed. Our child, sleeping in the twin room, said the same about the thin, cheap mattresses in there. He ended up sleeping on the sofa upstairs. We had one occasion where we required an clothes iron this year and when we found it in the wardrobes in the twin room, not only did it not work, the twisted, gnarled cord had frayed in a few places, exposing the inner wiring casing. My husband is an electrical engineer and said this item would fail EET testing and when working, posed a serious electrocution risk with a flex so frayed. In fact, none of the electrical items in the house appeared to have been EET tested (electrical equipment tested) as they displayed no dated, testing stickers on them. In the case of a fire, house insurance is negated without certification of these yearly safety tests. As I stated at the beginning, we do love the Dolls House and the points mentioned are easily remedied. We are aware that the house has just been sold & really hope the new owners take on board these issues.

- Mike, June 2025
Alun March 2025

“Very comfortable, clean and well equipped cottage.”

Paddle stairs a bit tricky but once you remember which is your right foot its easy enough. Panel heaters had quite small displays and quite complicated to work out how to get them going but once on they were very cosy. Harlech was nice although probably better visiting when the spring season starts and nothing really open in the evenings until early April food wise, although the local Chinese Golden Inn was good takeaway food. Overall would recommend if you can cope with the paddle stairs but location, cleanliness and its ideal size for 2 people.

- Alun, March 2025
Brian May 2024

“This was the second time we've stayed at the Doll's House.”

A lovely place, comfortable and peaceful place to stay. We had everything we needed in a wonderful town. So peaceful. We look forward to booking the cottage again in the future.

- Brian, May 2024
Deborah October 2023

“Beautiful accommodation and immaculate.”

Location great for amenities and ample parking. Would recommend a hand rail for stairs and maybe a advice caution for families visiting with small children. Staircase is aesthetically stunning but need to watchful of navigating. Lots of info within cottage for surrounding area great place to stay.

- Deborah, October 2023
Ben September 2023

“In an absolutely brilliant location.”

The Dolls House was great for a week long stay. It is well situated in the uphill area of Harlech - we arrived by public transport and spent the whole week doing things on foot. The fire in the living room makes the place a very cosy space in the evening. We bought food from the local shops and cooked most evenings. The kitchen is well equipped, the only thing we could have done with was a bread knife for cutting the excellent bread from the local deli. It was cool in the bedrooms, but the heater and electric blanket are more than ample to make you comfortable.

- Ben, September 2023
Hannah August 2023

“A lovely stay which included everything that we needed.”

- Hannah, August 2023
Judith July 2023

“A beautiful cottage in a great location for exploring North Wales.”

- Judith, July 2023
Joanne December 2022

“Beautiful, Quirky cottage.”

We spent Christnas there and it was perfect. Has everything you need and more. Excellent location.

- Joanne, December 2022
Rachael October 2022

“An amazing cottage in a lovely spot we certainly fell in love with Harlech.”

It was a complete home from home with everything you need to make the stay comfortable. Would highly recommend to anyone we certainly will be back. Our one bit of feedback is that the photographs of the views on the description do not do the amazing views from the cottage justice.

- Rachael, October 2022
Ai Pheng August 2022

“The house is lovely and clean.”

It’s also well located. I think description can be more accurate. Towels are provided but hairdryer is not and these were not stated on the description, I had to call and ask. Even so, they did not know initially and had to get back to me. There’s almost everything you need in the kitchen. We enjoyed staying in the house. But there is a major issue of damp in the house, especially the double bed room. The smell of damp was so bad we couldn’t sleep in that room as it was pretty suffocating. There were three of us so two slept in the other room and one more had to sleep on the couch. If not for the damp, we would come back. But the damp issue is really bad, it has ma de the stay uncomfortable when it’s time to sleep.

- Ai Pheng, August 2022
David August 2022

“A lovely cottage that is clean, modern and comfortable.”

In a great location too.

- David, August 2022
Sam July 2022

“Beautifully little cottage.”

Clean tidy and well equipped for a great stay. Downstairs bedrooms were comfortable. Even thought the cottage is small it's ideal for a family of 3/4.

- Sam, July 2022
Celeste July 2022

“Lovely little cottage exactly as described , beautifully clean and tidy , ...”

Lovely little cottage exactly as described , beautifully clean and tidy , excellently kitted out, ideal for a couple, great location for Snowdonia and North Wales and Harlech is a quaint little town and has what is required - views are amazing and beach is fantastic

- Celeste, July 2022
Toni June 2022

“This is a lovely little place to stay, very clean, quiet and comfortable with nice view of the castle.”

Would happily stay here again

- Toni, June 2022
Hajnal June 2022

“Absolutely brilliant little cottage, can't recommend enough!”

Clean, up to date with a little touch of history downstairs, comfy, parking space at the entrance (so you don't have to tote your bottles, bits and bobs for yards)... Harlech is also an amazing place to visit and stay for a few days or weeks if you can, the sea was clear and surprisingly pleasant, the Castle is stunning, the views of the Snowdon are jawdropping.

- Hajnal, June 2022
Gill May 2022

“Terribly difficult to find the cottage as a car was parked outside blocking the house sign, which was also impossible to read from a car.”

Cottage was very clean but very tiny and duvets and pillows not great. Staff who helped up find the property on the phone were very kind and patient. The stairs were far too steep for my friend who fortunately had some friends’ house to stay in.

- Gill, May 2022
Rhodri April 2022

“We had a wonderful time here but were a little unsure if we would be able to get in.”

After making the booking I was contacted by the owner who gave me their housekeeper's phone number and asked me to call to make sure they knew we were staying. Only after putting the phone down did this strike me as odd - why are you asking the customer to do this? One wouldn't go to a hotel and expect to have to find a member of housekeeping to make sure the room is tidy, but I digress. Two failed calls (with voicemail messages left) to the housekeeper later and I informed the owner via SMS that I had tried but not heard anything. We never heard anything more and so were a little unsure everything was in place. Sykes had taken our money and so we travelled anyway; thankfully everything was as it should be. We also felt that the information provided in the blue folder in the house was a bit out of date, particularly around bin collection. These small communication hiccups are the only thing preventing us from giving a perfect score. The house is very impressive for its size and the pictures do not accurately show how small it is. Despite its size it is very well appointed and nothing feels cramped or claustrophobic. It's perfect for a couple but not sure I would want to stay here with others. I also feel the need to mention the damp smell in the bedrooms which lots of other reviews have mentioned. Despite the owner's assertion that it has been addressed it is still noticable although is not unberarable like some other reviews claim. When you consider however that the bedrooms are built below ground level I think it reasonable to expect a somewhat damp smell so I do not feel this can be held against the owners, particularly when they have taken steps to mitigate by providing dehumidifiers.

- Rhodri, April 2022
Trevor October 2021

“What a lovely little place we stayed in very small but cosy we had 3 nights and 4 days village was nice couldn’t find the spar which said was walking distance then we went passed it which was closed down.”

The nearest pub we found was 3 mile away called victora inn which was lovely. Down side was the damp downstairs in the bedrooms if I would of looked at the reviews before I wouldn’t have booked the damp smell was really bad that bad we slept up in the living area as breathing that in all night can’t be healthy for anyone the bedding smelt of damp and our clothes started to small of the damp also. Is there a law of renting something with that much damp ??? With out the damp and all sleeping up stairs it would of been a lovely little place.

- Trevor, October 2021

Thank you for your feedback We have now newly insulated the downstairs and done maintenance work to rectify these problems. Property Owner
Marta September 2021

“The cottage is lovely and clean; we were welcomed with cakes and milk in the fridge, as well as some beverage sachets.”

The town is beautiful, the people are very friendly and it’s close to many different sightseeing destinations. Even though some places were closed due to the virus, we’ve had a lovely holiday. Thank you!

- Marta, September 2021
Hannah August 2021

“E Dolls House was a small cottage of much potential.”

.it had a lovely upstairs and could be lovely downstairs if only the damp problem was resolved.. appreciate it is an old cottage with underground accommodation but there are ways to solve the damp issues.

- Hannah, August 2021

The down stairs has been newly insulated and had maintenance work done to resolved these issues. Property Owner
Adam August 2021

“Such a lovely little cottage.”

Perfect location in the town, everything within easy walking distance (including the beach). All the facilities in the cottage were of an excellent standard and quality. The only downside was the damp in the bedrooms. The horrible smell in the master bedroom made for unpleasant nights.

- Adam, August 2021
Graham July 2021

“Totally loved the Dolls House , but the Damp problem especially in the bedrooms having to run dehumidifiers 24-7 with air fresheners trying to Disguise the mouldy smell and noticeably damp damage led to uncomfortable nights sleeping, physically waking up chesty.”

It’s a real shame because everything else was 1st class , loved the welcome pack , the well equipped kitchen, lovely bathroom, lounge area an so on.

- Graham, July 2021
Keir June 2021

“The presentation and cleanliness of the property was beyond reproach but several aspects proved a disappointment.”

1. The dampness of the bedrooms even in summer made for uncomfortable sleeping arrangements. 2. Arrangements for waste and recycling are chaotic. Suitable bins are not available, and those at the property are broken. Hence there is an accumulation of uncollected recycling materials. 3. The inclusion in the property description of the "garden" as an attraction is bizarre. It is extremely small and half is taken for bin storage. It is, effectively, unusable. A holiday property with no garden would not appeal to us, had we known.

- Keir, June 2021
Elena October 2019

“The house is perfect.”

The location is perfect. It was a very nice holiday and the kids lived it too. Thank you!

- Elena, October 2019
Faye August 2019

“The location was perfect and better than the website description suggested in some ways: a fun walk to the sand dunes and beach (20min though steep on the way back!”

) and with easy parking (the free car park is just a few steps away though hidden behind a large stone wall). Despite being right in town, the house was also extremely quiet - silent at night - and felt very private as the houses around it face the other way. The stairs are very unusual but we had no problems, even with our youngest aged 7.

- Faye, August 2019
Jo July 2019

“A very comfy, cosy place to unwind and relax.”

We all felt at home very quickly and thoroughly enjoyed our stay.

- Jo, July 2019
Catherine May 2019

“The information we were given re key safe was incorrect.”

Had to call for advice. The information the parking permits which we were given was incorrect. Has to call for advice. The cottage had not been cleaned and there were hairs in the bath and bed linen. Had to call and wait for cleaners to come at 1900 hrs. The cleaners did not have any bed linen with them so had to use linen of the spare bed and that was then left in made for the duration of the holiday. The sky light window was very dirty/marked which was unsightly and did not allow views of the sky! There was limited information on how to work cooker. And instruction booklet would have been useful. The TV had very poor reception and could not be used on many attempts. Despite all these issues we did have a good holiday and when we did call the company our issues were dealt with promptly and we are awaiting further correspondence re compensation.

- Catherine, May 2019

Show less

Summary

Two bedrooms: 1 x double, 2 single beds Bathroom with bath, shower over, WC and basin
Open plan kitchen, seating and dining area with open fire.
Electric heating with open fire
Electic oven with induction hob, fridge with ice box, microwave
TV with build in DVD player
Parking in nearby car park with a pass provided by the owner
Pubs, shops and restaurants 0.1 miles
NOTE: The stairs are ladder style with alternating treads known as "Paddle and Oar" and must take care when going up and down please see picture 8. Note: This cottage does NOT have WiFi and phone signal can be intermittent, guests are advised to check with their provider before traveling
There is a good housekeeping bond of £250.

The property

"The aptly named Doll's House is a tiny treasure!

Cleverly designed and centrally located in Harlech town with its magnificent Castle." that overlooks the magnificent Royal St David's golf club, a renown links championship course. This comfortable and cosy holiday cottage, known locally as The Doll's House due to it's small but perfectly formed size!

Recently renovated the owners have maximised light and space with it's upside down layout.

A small double room and a second bedroom with 2 singles.

The property has recently had added insulation downstairs. Situated in the heart of Harlech where there is an assortment of small shops, cafes, restaurants, and within easy walking distance of the impressive Castle. Harlech is a great location to begin to explore the beautiful Snowdonia National Park which offers the best of sea, sand, ancient woodlands, waterfalls, lakes and mountains all so easily accessible.

There is a good housekeeping bond of £250 on this property.

Note: Guests are advised that the bedrooms are accessed by a steep staircase which has alternating treads known as "paddle and oar" and will not be suitable for the elderly. Young children should be able to use them safely with supervision.
Note: Second bedroom now has 2 singles not a double and bunk above.
Note: There is a good house keeping bond in place of £250.
Please Note: Minimum three nights

Note: This property has a refundable Good Housekeeping bond of £250.

View on map

About the location

HARLECH

Barmouth 11 miles; Porthmadog 10 miles.

Situated in a magnificent position between the mountains and the sea, the delightful small town of Harlech is dominated by its majestic 13th century castle. Harlech Castle is recognised as the most impressive of all those built in North Wales by Edward I and has World Heritage status. The town is very popular with golfers, who come to enjoy the famous Royal St. Davids course, whilst the beautiful sandy beach is wonderful for family fun and long walks. Harlech offers an excellent variety of amenities including some good quality restaurants, whilst the whole of the Snowdonia National Park, together with the sandy beaches of Cardigan Bay, are all within easy reach.

Note: Guests are advised that the bedrooms are accessed by a steep staircase which has alternating treads known as "paddle and oar" and will not be suitable for the elderly. Young children should be able to use them safely with supervision.
Note: Second bedroom now has 2 singles not a double and bunk above.
Note: This cottage does NOT have WiFi and phone signal can be intermittent, guests are advised to check with their provider before traveling.
Note: There is a good house keeping bond in place of £250.

This property offers the following short breaks:

Winter
Off-season
Last minute

Your selection:

Features

Reviews & Ratings

“We love the Dolls House, so much so, this is our third year staying at this quirky little place.”

“Very comfortable, clean and well equipped cottage.”

“This was the second time we've stayed at the Doll's House.”

“Beautiful accommodation and immaculate.”

“In an absolutely brilliant location.”

“A lovely stay which included everything that we needed.”

“A beautiful cottage in a great location for exploring North Wales.”

“Beautiful, Quirky cottage.”

“An amazing cottage in a lovely spot we certainly fell in love with Harlech.”

“The house is lovely and clean.”

“A lovely cottage that is clean, modern and comfortable.”

“Beautifully little cottage.”

“Lovely little cottage exactly as described , beautifully clean and tidy , ...”

“This is a lovely little place to stay, very clean, quiet and comfortable with nice view of the castle.”

“Absolutely brilliant little cottage, can't recommend enough!”

“Terribly difficult to find the cottage as a car was parked outside blocking the house sign, which was also impossible to read from a car.”

“We had a wonderful time here but were a little unsure if we would be able to get in.”

“What a lovely little place we stayed in very small but cosy we had 3 nights and 4 days village was nice couldn’t find the spar which said was walking distance then we went passed it which was closed down.”

“The cottage is lovely and clean; we were welcomed with cakes and milk in the fridge, as well as some beverage sachets.”

“E Dolls House was a small cottage of much potential.”

“Such a lovely little cottage.”

“Totally loved the Dolls House , but the Damp problem especially in the bedrooms having to run dehumidifiers 24-7 with air fresheners trying to Disguise the mouldy smell and noticeably damp damage led to uncomfortable nights sleeping, physically waking up chesty.”

“The presentation and cleanliness of the property was beyond reproach but several aspects proved a disappointment.”

“The house is perfect.”

“The location was perfect and better than the website description suggested in some ways: a fun walk to the sand dunes and beach (20min though steep on the way back!”

“A very comfy, cosy place to unwind and relax.”

“The information we were given re key safe was incorrect.”

Summary

The property

View on map

About the location

HARLECH