Kate & Matthew, Kato Cottages

A small collection of holiday cottages, chosen because we’d want to stay in them ourselves. We look after them personally - picking cleaners we trust, testing the boiler every autumn, keeping a proper eye on the roof.

Why do it like this?

Big rental platforms are efficient at booking and payment; less good at the bit between arrival and departure. That’s where we come in. Each cottage has its own guide, how the shower works, when the bins go out, where the good coffee is, written by us because we know each place. You shouldn’t need to phone anyone to find out how to switch on the heating.

What we care about

• Clean beds, working showers, decent kettles.
• Straight answers when things go wrong.
• Places worth going to, not tourist traps.
• Being honest about the quirks, the door that sticks, the lane the sat nav gets wrong.

What we don’t do

We’re not a chain. We don’t have a call centre. If it’s a genuine emergency, please ring us straight away - the number’s in every guide. For everything else, the guide is genuinely faster.