The View, St Ives

The View earns its name. The apartment sits above St Ives with a wide panorama over the bay, and dog owners who stay here tend to come away with the same two impressions: the outlook is genuinely special, and the dog rules are tighter than the dog-friendly label suggests. Both are worth knowing before you book.

Inside it is a comfortable, well-equipped base - a good bed, generous bedding and a kitchen stocked for a proper self-catering week. One small, well-behaved dog is welcome, with a small extra charge for them. The limits are the catch: guests travelling with dogs report that dogs are kept off the furniture and out of the bedroom, so a dog used to settling on the sofa in the evening or sleeping alongside you will find this a stricter household than most self-catering lets in Cornwall.

The communal garden is the point to check directly. The property's own terms say dogs must be kept on a lead there, but guests who stayed with dogs have described finding a sign indicating dogs were not allowed on the garden at all. If outdoor space is part of your plan, confirm the current position with the owner rather than going by the listing photographs.

Access deserves the same forethought. Reaching the apartment involves steep steps that dog owners found awkward after dark, with no handrail or lighting on part of the route - a real consideration for late-night toilet trips, for older or less surefooted dogs, and for anyone who may need to carry a dog down. The allocated parking space sits on a steep incline and is tight to manoeuvre into.

Best suited to a couple with one small, settled dog who want the view above all else and are content to work within the house rules and the steps. Dog owners who want their dog to have the run of the place, or a secure patch of garden to open the door onto, will be better served elsewhere in St Ives.