New Forest Cottage with Wood Burner, Redlynch

This cottage sits on Forest Road in Redlynch, on the western edge of the New Forest, and its best feature for a dog owner is the one thing you cannot add later: cross the road and you are walking. Guests travelling with dogs describe stepping straight out for a morning walk without getting in the car, and open forest on the doorstep is the reason to choose here over a cottage in a town.

Inside it is a small, well-kept cottage with a wood burner, and the standard of cleaning comes up again and again. That is a genuine point in its favour when you are bringing a dog into someone else's soft furnishings, and the wood burner earns its keep after a wet forest walk. The cottage is one of a small group of lets on the same site, which several guests found reassuring rather than intrusive, particularly those staying on their own.

The caveat dog owners need before booking is the garden: it is not enclosed to a standard that will hold a dog. There is no gate, so the outside space is somewhere to sit rather than somewhere to let a dog out unsupervised, and anyone with a bolter or a young dog will be clipping the lead on at the door. That is a real limitation on an otherwise well-suited property, and it is the main thing keeping this page short of a top rating.

A few smaller things also come up: some fittings are showing their age, and departure comes with a list of tasks that not every guest appreciates finding at the end of a holiday. No pet terms are published on the property's booking listing either, so confirm dog numbers and any charge directly.

For a couple with a steady, lead-walking dog who want a wood burner, forest at the door and somewhere genuinely clean, this cottage is a good fit and earns a 4.3/5 paw rating. Owners who need to open a back door and let the dog out will want to check the boundary first.