Robin View Lodge

Robin View Lodge is a hot-tub lodge on a hillside holiday park in Troutbeck, a couple of miles north of Windermere village. For a dog it has two genuine advantages: the park's bar keeps a designated dog area, so you are not stuck outside with a wet spaniel in November, and there is a dog-friendly pub within walking distance as well. Up to two pets are accepted.

Inside, the lodge is warm and set up for a self-catering week, with a kitchen that has everything you would actually cook with plus a hairdryer, iron and hoover. The hot tub draws consistent praise and is the reason most people book.

The caveats are real and worth reading before you commit with a dog. The side decking that appears in the listing photographs has been replaced by a set of open steps that are slippery in the wet and that the door swings out onto, which is awkward with a dog on a lead and worse for anyone unsteady on their feet. Guests who booked expecting an enclosed deck to give their dog somewhere safe have arrived to find it gone, so confirm what outdoor space the lodge actually has before you travel. Changeover cleaning is the other weak point: dog hair left on floors and sofas has been reported more than once, and the sofas themselves are tired enough that guests mention them unprompted. A few fittings, including the patio door lock and a wardrobe runner, have also been flagged as needing attention.

Its 3.8/5 paw rating reflects that split. The hot tub, the dog-friendly bar and the setting are good; the fabric of the lodge and the standard of the changeover let it down.

Best suited to owners of one or two easy-going dogs who mainly want the hot tub and the park, will check the outdoor access before booking, and can shrug off tired furniture. If genuinely enclosed outside space is the thing you need, this is not the lodge for it.