Frequently Asked Questions.

If you are booking more than a month ahead, a £100 deposit will secure your holiday.  The balance is due four weeks before your arrival.  For bookings within 45 days of your arrival then the full amount is payable immediately. 

The cottage is not set up for small children/toddlers. I do not have cots, junior cutlery or crockery.  There are no child locks on the cupboards.  The cottage is a one bedroom cottage with a double bed in the bedroom.  There is a very comfortable IKEA chair bed in the living room that folds out to a good single bed.  However, as it is in the livingroom it does mean that everyone has to go to bed at the same time so is best suited to an additional adult or teenager.  The Wifi is excellent so should satisfy teens!

Please contact me using the enquiries & booking tab on the left and I will get back to you as soon as i can.  You can also phone me but email is better as if I am out I cannot always get a signal.  Because a lot of my guests like to discuss options before booking, I do not have online booking as it is best to have the personal touch to make sure that the cottage is going to be perfect for you and your needs.

No, dogs are welcome, there are no additional charges for dogs

Hospitality packs are provided for full week stays. There will be a pint of milk, butter, local cheese either  from the dairy at Ardersier or made by Tain Cheeses, a bagette, and, if my hens are laying a few eggs. In the cupboards, there is tea, coffee and sugar.  There are two very good shops in Ardersier from which you can buy essentials. 

If you are bringing a dog, there will be a toy, chew, poo bags.  Dog bowls and towel are provided for use whilst staying.  I also have a large dog crate if you wish to save space whilst travelling.  Please let me know if you want the crate as it is big so I usually leave it at home.

The cottage has a step to get to the back door, then another step to get into the house.  Once you are in then everything is on one floor with no further steps.  There is a grab rail over the bath and the bathroom sink has lever taps. Ardersier itself is quite flat with good pavements and a decent path along the seashore to Fort George and well made up paths including boardwalk in Ardersier Common.  There are benches at regular intervals along the shore path so you can take a break and enjoy the views.

Dolphin View Cottage has one bedroom with a double bed.  In the living room there is an IKEA chairbed which folds out very quickly to become a comfortable 188cm x 60cm single bed.  This bed is suitable for a teenager or adult. All linen is provided.  The cottage is best suited to two people but has a maximum sleeping capacity of three.

Talk to me to discuss, I have had four dogs staying but by the time you have four large dog beds or cages in the living room there is not a lot of room left, in the case of the 4 dogs the chair bed had to be removed and taken home for a week to make enough space. generally two large or three smaller dogs is fine.

4 night short breaks are possible between November through to the end of February, £300 for 4 nights or £325 for 5 nights.

Also on offer in the quieter months from 1st November to 20th December inclusive and January 3rd until 20th February inclusive are longer breaks of 9 nights for the price of 7.  Please contact me if interested.

No, linen and electricity are included in the tariff.

Dolphin View Cottage is on the East coast and close to the sea.  Midges larvae live in peaty bog ground and the adults tend to hide in the birch bark during the day coming out when the wind drops and they are hungry!  As Ardersier lacks the peaty ground and suitable habitat it is pretty much midge free so you can sit outside in peace at Dolphin View Cottage. If you are going inland or over to the west coast then take some repellant, Smidge, Avon Skin so Soft or Deet is good.  

Please give me as much notice as possible if you have to cancel.  I strongly recommend that you take out holiday insurance when booking to cover cancellations. This advice is on all invoices sent to you. If the cancellation is within 6 weeks of your arrival date and you have already paid the balance I will readvertise and if I can get the cottage rebooked I will refund your money at the price I managed to relet (sometimes the relet price may be lower if I have to reduce the price to get a late availability booking). 

The cottage has wall heaters in the living room, bedroom and the hall, these all have thermostats on so they can be turned up or off as you wish.  The bathroom and kitchen also have wall heaters.  There is a log burning stove in the living room, the first pack of firewood is included in the rental.  The Moray Firth has a very mild climate and frequently has better weather than nearby Inverness.  You are at sea level so not likely to be snowed in at Ardersier.

Glad you asked that question, there is a lot of scam holiday properties out there and you do hear horror stories about people paying their money to turn up and find the property does not exist.  You need to check thoroughly, always look at reviews and make sure they are genuine,  my Trip Advisor reviews go back to 2012.  Also check to see if the property is listed on the relevant Tourist Information Board site, Visit England for English properties, Visit Scotland for Scottish properties, you can then if you wish book via the local tourist board website as booking direct does not cost either party any extra. Here is the Dolphin View Cottage entry on the Visit Scotland website. https://www.visitscotland.com/info/accommodation/dolphin-view-cottage-ardersier-p951931?prodtypes=acco&loc=ardersier&locplace=&locprox=0&stay=&endDate=&r1a=2&r1children=0&r1infants=0&r1c=0&avail=off prodtypes=acco&loc=ardersier&locplace=&locprox=0&stay=&endDate=&r1a=2&r1children=0&r1infants=0&r1c=0&avail=off  Properties are only listed on the Tourist Information Board sites once they have been visited by a Tourist Board official.  it is not possible to add a property yourself, you can only update the information on the authorised listing.

Book with Confidence. From 1st October 2023 there is a new Scottish Licencing Scheme in place.  Until a property has passed all safety measures and conditions set out in the Civic Govenment (Scotland) Act and has been authorised to operate as a short term let holiday property, it will now be illegal to let out a property.  Dolphin View Cottage applied early and has now been authorised to operate as a short term let holiday cottage.  SHORT TERM LET LICENCE NO: HI-610006-F issued by the Highland Council on 6th April 2023 (three year licence). EPC E.

No.  When I purchased the cottage in 2011 it was with a big agency, the agency charged the owner 24% commission on bookings and also charged the person booking a commission fee.  Obviously they have advertising fees to pay along with offices and staff costs to cover.  I removed the cottage from the agency and was therefore able to reduce my costs and thereby the prices for renting the cottage.  You can easily book direct through this website or through Visit Scotland as mentioned in the previous question, that way I can keep my prices low.

During the 2020 Coronavirus shutdown, despite my Business Insurance policy failing to pay out on claims made under the business interruption clause, I did reimburse guests who were unable to come due to the lockdown, I also offered to transfer guests dates to the following year with no loss of monies paid. I would offer this again if CV19 causes a new lockdown.