Blog

Should I haggle over the price of my holiday?

A popular conception is that holiday accommodation is overpriced and that it's worth haggling to get a hefty discount. While it is possible to bag a bargain in the current market (and who could blame anyone for trying), this makes it harder and harder for owners to provide a good service and still make a decent profit for their efforts. Of course, you get what you pay for, and that is a valid choi...[More]

Why are short break prices higher per night than weekly bookings?

Many guests expect a 'pro-rata' rate for short breaks, that is, a nightly rate that is one seventh of the weekly rate. For us this would mean a winter nightly rate of £50. Our minimum price would therefore be £100 for 2 nights, with a 7 night booking being £350. For every booking, we have fixed overheads - cleaning and laundry fees, bin collection and window cleaner. We also have the costs of ongo...[More]

Why do our prices go up in the summer and school holidays?

We are often asked why prices go up in the summer and in school holidays. We would love to be able to offer a fair and consistent price year round, but it just wouldn’t be viable. We are at rock bottom prices all winter, that we barely make a profit on, and even then we are empty for most of the winter months. We still have all the maintenance costs, upgrades and associated effort of running our h...[More]

A little bit more about us...

We don’t normally post photos of ourselves on our website but we just wanted to let everyone know that we are genuine independent owners who love and regularly enjoy Seashells ourselves, as well as letting it out to our lovely guests. We know how lucky we are and work hard to make the apartment the best it can be, keep our prices reasonable and be as flexible as we can with our guests. We much p...[More]

Afraid of fraud? How to keep yourself safe when booking a holiday

Sadly fraud happens (although relatively rarely), whether you book through an Online Travel Agent like Owners Direct or TripAdvisor, or directly with the owner.  Anyone can set up a listing on Airbnb, Owners Direct, Tripadvisor and other sites in minutes, with no checks whatsoever, or set up a basic website.  Although the perception is often that you are safer booking through an online travel agen...[More]