“We booked to stay at The Granary near St Brides Major back in November/December 2025 for a birthday treat.”
We were welcomed to the property to a lovely settling in package with fresh milk and mince pies which was a wonderful touch and very personable.
We organised for a food delivery from a local supermarket on our arrival date which worked out well. The driver stated they deliver locally to this location often and found the location easily. There are not local shops within walking distance to grab last minute bits so highly recommend to stock up whenever out or organise a delivery.
The ...
We were welcomed to the property to a lovely settling in package with fresh milk and mince pies which was a wonderful touch and very personable.
We organised for a food delivery from a local supermarket on our arrival date which worked out well. The driver stated they deliver locally to this location often and found the location easily. There are not local shops within walking distance to grab last minute bits so highly recommend to stock up whenever out or organise a delivery.
The property was highly organised, well stocked and had most, if not all amenities available to make you feel at home, down to the smaller touches such as special holiday tags for the dogs, cleaning products and hot tub essentials.
The communication with the owners were great, greeting us ahead of our arrival letting us know the property was ready to check in, saying hello whenever they were around the local farm and checking in throughout if we needed it. This was great as it made us feel welcomed and listened to. We raised a concern with the owners about one of the lights in the living room being faulty, and whilst unfortunately they weren’t able to fix this during our stay, they ensured our feedback was listened to and said they would organise a replacement for the next guest, so you can’t ask for more than that.
We visited lots of local towns/villages around to get used to the area, including beaches at Barry Island, Ogmore and Porthcawl. The owners gave us great recommendations for cafe and food establishments including Fablas Ice cream parlour who are well known locally. The local donut shop called ‘WhoCult coffee & Donuts’ was so good we went twice during our stay. Our stern favourites filings were the biscoff cheesecake, cinnamon french toast and kinder bueno!
Most of the local beach or villages such as Ogmore-on-sea were beautiful, with local attractions and nice walks such as the castle ruins. The property to these locations were anywhere between 15-40 minutes by car.
If you are looking for somewhere to stay in this area that is dog friendly, we would highly recommend this property. On arrival we were provided with a dog visitor pack which included waste bags, portable water bottle, treats and holiday dog tags with the property details and phone numbers - a very handy thing if you are visiting the area and for safety. The outside space, being so secure was great and we felt we could let the dogs out and not worry about them getting out or upsetting any other properties on the lot as you are not overlooked or have adjoining outdoor space.
The welcome booklet was very well written, including details for most appliances, local establishments (both dog friendly and non) contact details and addresses for local eateries, medical and vet locations, maps for local walks, takeaway leaflets and hot tub instructions. This was useful to go through at the start of our stay to help us settle in right away. Definitely take advantage of this and see all the leaflets for attractions or locations left by other guests too.
We tried two local takeout options - Roger’s Chinese and Lubnas Indian at Llantwit Major, very local to the property and a short drive for collection. Both were great, good value for money and the Indian especially was one of the nicest curry’s we’ve had in a long while. Difficult to know where to try if you’re not a local but would recommend these to try if you are looking to stay here.
Dine in options we enjoyed was the local Mediterranean restaurant called Mezze @ The Farmers arms and The Fox pub (bar side dog friendly, restaurant non dog friendly). Both close to the property at a short drive away. The parking at the pub was adjacent to the building on the opposite side of the road, slightly awkward location but was always fully packed which was good promotion for the quality of the food served.
Local shopping was great at Bridgend, having most local high street and supermarket options, drive thru food options as well as the designer outlet shopping centre, which had free parking and was dog friendly. We were able to enter nearly every shop at the outlet centre with the dog which was a great experience and something good to do on a bad weather day. The drive to the outlet shopping centre was around 20 minutes by car.
The local walks recommended in the owners packs were great, especially walking past the pigs towards the cliff edge and beach. Beautiful views and a quicker option through the fields. The owner explained that this walk especially was good for dogs as all the fields were secure and allowed for off leash walking.
Overall; we would highly recommend booking a stay at this property if you are wanting something that is homely, slightly remote, quiet and peaceful.
The amenities included were great, especially the kitchen utensil and cleaning supplies, welcome pack for both the humans and the dogs. The booking and communication process was straightforward and the ability for contactless checking in and checkout allowed you to feel at ease. The flexibility was great and we would definitely look to return and stay again. It was a wonderful option for us and our friends with our 2 dogs to stay, we were comfortable and felt right at home for our entire stay.
Our one and only negative (honestly just to be incredibly picky) would be that this specific property doesn’t have a downstairs toilet. This is not a deal breaker but would only enhance the space and use, especially for children.
Thank you very much for a wonderful stay & we hope to come back in the future!