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Bickleigh EX16 8RW England
Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
789 reviews
Getting there
Somewhat walkable
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Nestled by the river, Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns offers a picturesque setting that is frequently lauded by guests. While the atmosphere is often described as cozy and welcoming, and the staff is praised for their friendliness, there are mixed reviews about the rooms; some find them clean and comfortable, yet others call for refurbishment and a more thorough clean.
Despite the charming location, reviewers warn that the value proposition is diminished by what they perceive to be overpriced food and services. Additionally, while the amenities contribute to the hotel's idyllic charm, there's a consensus that some areas could benefit from modernization and enhanced cleanliness.
Location
Picturesque
Atmosphere
Welcoming
Rooms
Shabby
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Mixed
Service
Inconsistent
Amenities
Satisfactory
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This pub is in a beautiful location and will, of course, attract many passing visitors. Lots of parking. Main building well maintained and welcoming. However....understaffed. Supposed to wait at reception do be shown to a table for our meal. Only on first night was there anyone there. Every other time we had to go and look for someone. Breakfast buffet deserted and I had to find someone to ask for bowls, plates, bread etc. Sliced bread brought out in it's packet and put in basket as was. Gravy sign from Sunday carvery left out and splattered with dried gravy. As we were staying for 3 nights it was more convenient to eat dinner in however service was terribly slow. 30mins to get 2 drinks brought to our table. Food was ok when it arrived and the lady serving apologetic for our wait. 3 staff in the kitchen...is that adequate? The last evening we had not booked an evening meal but decided we were too tired to go anywhere else. Sat at a small table for two in sight of the bar as other tables hadn't been cleared. Had to wipe it down first as it was wet and sticky. All so disappointing. Accommodation. As a previous reviewer has said the exterior of the lodge where our room was situated was very rundown with paint peeling from the outside door. Inside was well decorated and warm, as was our bedroom. It was neat clean and spacious with patio doors to a private terrace with seating area...that was a surprise! However...it is a double room so why is there only one chair? A simple desk and 2 bedside cabinets and no drawers at all. The bathroom was spotlessly clean but the bath panel had chunks of paint missing, the door wouldn't latch, the hot tap cap was just resting on the top, a miss matched plug was on a loose bit of chain, and the plunger on the loo cistern wobbling as if it were going to come apart. It just reminded me of some ordinary old wayside Motel. The experience could have been so much better.
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Date of stay: September 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Pub Owner, General Manager at Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
Responded 21 Sept 2024
Hi Relax36031679951, we appreciate your honest review. We set a high standard for ourselves, so we are disappointed to hear that your experience with us was not a positive one.
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We always stay here when we are passing eg ; North Devon , Cornwall and have always had a terrific stay, the car park is enormous with plenty of places to park, okay it’s a little bit warm but considering it’s size I’m not surprised, we are always greeted warmly and treated by the staff as friends the building is in good condition considering it age. The food is traditional good quality pub grub it’s worth booking a table ahead as it gets really busy with the locals. The breakfast is substantial in peaceful surroundings. The rooms and beds are of high quality and the sound of the river is blissful. We can’t wait to go back again.
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Date of stay: March 2023Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Book ahead for table reservation
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Warm welcome from the guy on reception when we arrived. Our room was upgraded due my partners birthday and the view from our room was lovely overlooking the stone bridge.
Had dinner in the bar on the first night and sat next to the fire, nice surroundings and good choice of drinks, nice relaxing atmosphere. Food, fish and chips was large and very good, chicken and chorizo kebab was very small and just ok, only few chips served with it though. On the Saturday night, just a little disappointed that the bar ran out of Sauvignon, would have thought it would have been stocked up being the weekend.
Breakfast was fab, excellent value as we had cooked breakfasts which also included continental plus coffees juice etc. was very nice and we were very well looked after by Lil, the waitress. She was rushed off her feet and by herself but couldn’t do anymore for us! Made us feel really welcome
Nice little weekend break away.
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Date of stay: January 2025Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Pub Owner, General Manager at Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
Responded 2 weeks ago
Thank you again for taking the time to let us know how we did. We hope you have a great day! Thank you, and have a fantastic day!
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We recently ate and stayed in Fishermans Cot and the experience was so awful I feel the need to warn others. I have stayed at many hotels in my lifetime and this was the worse by far.
We booked 2 separate bedrooms for the night and were given our keys and told to head towards the ‘chalet’ through the car park.
Upon entering the chalet, the entrance was in a very poor state of repair, a very strong smell of damp, the carpet was filthy, cleaning products left in the hallway and we discovered the front door had a broken lock. One of the lower rooms looked like it had blood or excrement on the doors. We proceeded to our rooms and found the doors wide open with more cleaning fluids left in the middle of the room. In both rooms, there was a very strong smell of damp, the window ledges were black with mould and again, the carpet was filthy and in one of the rooms the toilet seat was hanging off.
We were also kept awake all night due to the noise of the bedroom downstairs, the noise was so loud and at one point heard a lady screaming so we went down to check and discovered one bedroom and 8 people inside!
We ate in the restaurant and had a 1.5 hour wait for our food, despite having our young son with us and asking if his food could be bought out earlier. As we were waiting many other tables were complaining about the food and walking out – I guess due to the long wait as well as the awful food.
This is honestly one of the worse places I have stayed, all the images on the website are false advertising as they are nothing like the actual rooms.
Despite calling the hotel to complain, no one has bothered to call me back within the last 2 weeks so clearly their customer services isn’t up to much either.
Being in such a beaufiul part of the country, I am sure there are many other places to stay, please do not stay here. You will be very disappointed.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Took my mum and partner out for a local dinner last night, decided on fisherman’s cot as only 10 minutes away. Looked on website to book and very pleased to see a30% off voucher. However, after the meal we all agreed that even with the discount it wasn’t good value at all!! Two of us had steak & ale pie with chips & veggies. Portion sizes good, pie not hot, not chunky meat like a usual pie. Just seemed like a cheap pie. (Usual price £15.79) Partner had hunters chicken. (Usual price £15.99) Small, and came with just a small portion of chips and lettuce- a tiny drop of salad dressing, but literally just dry lettuce!! Partner had a crumble for pudding. Tiny portion for £7.29. Ordered a takeaway watermelon & feta salad for my son- £15.79….what a joke!!! No idea how they could call it a main meal!! Zero salad dressing- dry rocket & lettuce with a few pieces of watermelon & feta, and some pumpkin seeds. All in all felt very disappointed with the poor quality meal … only upside was at least we had a discount- though still made each main around £11 and they didn’t seem worth even that especially the salad! Staff were lovely & friendly but did need to keep asking for attention rather than have one person attend the table, it seemed a bit disorganised. Eat here occasionally in a Sunday, the carvery is always great.
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Date of stay: September 2024
Value
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Pub Owner, General Manager at Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
Responded 11 Sept 2024
Libelulaluz, thank you for leaving us feedback. We are disappointed to hear that your experience was not a positive one. Here at Fisherman's Cot by Marston's Inns, we are always looking for ways to improve; we appreciate your input. If you would be willing, we would like to have you contact our manager at 01902 916907 to discuss ways we can better serve you in the future.
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Gluten Free breakfast option is very poor. Fisherman's Cot is in a beautiful setting next to the river and the staff are polite and friendly. However, the building is a bit tired and in need of some attention, the bathroom in our room being particularly poor. Such as a wobbly towel rail, mould / dirt on bath panel and shower surround. We paid for a continental breakfast and before booking, we phoned to check that gluten free for coeliacs could be catered for and we were advised it was. We added a note to that effect on our Internet booking and also phoned again four days before our stay and we were reassured that gluten free was no problem. The first morning at breakfast we enquired what the gluten free options were, to then be informed it was GF bread as none of the cereals or pastries were GF. There were no other options within the continental breakfast. The staff eventually offered bacon and egg with toasted GF bread. We had to settle for that both mornings for breakfast. This is very disappointing to say the least, especially as we had gone to so much trouble checking that GF was an option for breakfast. Overall we feel the cost of our stay was very expensive for the quality and level of service offered.
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Date of stay: August 2024Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Pub Owner, General Manager at Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
Responded 18 Aug 2024
Mike_j_atkinson, thank you for leaving us feedback. We are disappointed to hear that your experience was not a positive one. Please reach out to us so we can work towards a resolution. Thanks again for bringing this to our attention. We hope to hear from you soon. All the best, Fisherman's Cot by Marston's Inns 01902 916907
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Hi, we ha e visited this pub on a number of occasions and always found it to be a good place to go. So this is not a random review. However this time having booked for last Sunday evening we were left feeling very frustrated and let down. We ordered a starter of olives to share which was delivered with not cocktail sticks or cutlery. I asked the waiter who seemed shocked we would ask but he certainly made us feel uncomfortable for asking. We ate our starter and then waited for 55 minutes with an uncleared table for our mains. Eventually we asked if we had been forgotten only to have the waitress complain about her colleague not having cleared our table. If we hadn't paid at that point I would have complained or even left without waiting. The food itself was fine but not an enjoyable experience. Come on fisherman's cot put your customers first.
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Date of stay: September 2022Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Marston's Inns, Revenue Management at Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
Responded 6 Oct 2022
Missmouse24, thank you for leaving us feedback. We are disappointed to hear that your experience was not a positive one. Please reach out to us at your earliest convenience so we may further assist you in working towards a resolution. Fishermans Cot - Hotel 01884 855237
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Not given to bad reviews but although the setting of this place is what made us stop for impromptu lunch we lived to regret it. The chaps that welcomed and seated us were great but from there it went downhill. Waitress service was impersonal and made you feel like she was doing you a favour but the biggest let down was the food. Buttermilk chicken burger - tough and tasteless, skinny fries ?? Well when they were thumped in front of me I was told ‘we have run out of skinny fries I forgot to say! Added to this a very tired looking coleslaw for which I was thankful was half empty and a toasted bun that had been well and truly toasted all the way to black. Hubby had scampi and to be fair there was plenty but I think the peas were on ration and dished up with a teaspoon (just one scoop) as were his chunky chips - all in all £45 wasted on a plus they sell Guinness zero but avoid the Pinot blush
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Date of stay: January 2025Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Maybe try the sandwiches or Sunday carvery?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Pub Owner, General Manager at Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
Responded 2 weeks ago
Hi Melanie T, we appreciate your honest review. We set a high standard for ourselves, so we are disappointed to hear that your experience with us was not a positive one.
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Booked lunch at this pub/restaurant for 6 of us as meeting my sister whilst we were in Devon. Lunch was booked for 1pm and fortunately they were early but we got held up and arrived at 1.30. Shown to our table by a very friendly waitress. Table was very sticky but didn't worry too much about that and kept arms off.
Ordered our food around 1.45 along with drinks. Nothing fancy, just fish & chips, pie and soup. Few extras such as garlic bread and onion rings. The we waited. Drinks came relatively quickly but by 3pm we still didn't have food. We were apologised to and told ours was next from the kitchen. When it did turn up about 10 mins later, it was a huge disappointment. Fish & chips were pretty dire (we were staying in Sidmouth and had far, far better from the takeaways). Garlic bread was just a soft bread roll with some garlic butter smeared on top. My daughter said the tomato soup was even pretty tasteless.
Felt the time pressure by the time we'd finished eating as hadn't expected to wait so long for our food and my sister had to get home for her dogs.
Had a dessert of apple and cherry pie with ice cream. It was ridiculously small, and the taste was completely overwhelmed by cinnamon (I think). None of the food was 'cheap' and we'd probably have had better quality and cheaper priced in a major chain pub!
Extremely disappointed all round and would not come here again to eat.
Setting outside by weir lovely but we were in restaurant so didn't experience that.
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Date of stay: August 2024Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Avoid the food and grab a drink outside by the weir
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Pub Owner, General Manager at Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
Responded 19 Aug 2024
Hi Kazgodders thank you for taking the time to leave us your honest feedback. we regret your most recent visit with us was not up to the standards we strive for.
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My wife and I booked up for a Friday evening, 20th August along with family but unfortunately due to Covid they couldn’t make it so was just my wife and I. We had a lovely welcome on our arrival and we’re seated promptly in the upper section as my wife is in a wheelchair. Our table was well located with a view looking over the river and weir. The restaurant seemed quite busy but was very organised and service was delivered by friendly attentive waiting staff. The lady waiting on our table was extremely polite, personable and knowledgeable of the menu and alerted us to a main dish they had run out of. Drinks were ordered, and when brought to our table we ordered our starter and mains. All the food was brought to us in a timely manner, hot and all was well cooked. The dishes were simple, to the point and all tasted delicious. We both particularly loved the sharing starter of whole baked Camembert. My wife had the fish and chips and I had the rib eye steak. (The lady serving us also recommended how I should have my steak cooked) We finished off with a trio of mini desserts to share. All were amazing though I am struggling to see how they were “mini” lol. Our evening was finished off with a couple of drinks outside on the river. Our server very kindly showed us the way to access the outside seating area via a wheelchair friendly route and even brought our drinks out to us. My wife and I had a wonderful evening in a beautifully located restaurant, with a very relaxed and welcoming ambience, tasty well cooked food and friendly attentive waiting staff. Worth a note, as my wife is disabled is that the toilet facilities were suitable in size and location within the restaurant. I can’t really fault our evening on any front, but if I had to make one small gripe it would be that we were unable to contact the restaurant to alert them that the other half of our party could not make it. We tried for two days over the phone but no one was picking up. Thank you all at the Fisherman’s Cot, we will be back.
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Date of stay: August 2021Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Juanita Kirk, General Manager at Fisherman's Cot By Marston's Inns
Responded 22 Oct 2021
Dear U351BUmartinp, Thank you for taking the time to leave this absolutely amazing & well detailed review! My team & I appreciate everything you've shared & it honestly made us feel like you got us in one :-) We look forward to welcoming you & your wife back anytime....the next time, we hope your family can make it too. Kindest regards Juanita & our Cot family x
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Exeter, United Kingdom12 contributions1 helpful vote
Hello,
We do not have any inter-connecting rooms unfortunately, our family rooms in the second lodge (Rooms 17 and 20) are very spacious, with a king size bed and two single beds in each.
Kindest regards,
Annabel Edmonds
Exeter, United Kingdom12 contributions1 helpful vote
Hello,
We do have some rooms in the lodges that have patio doors that open, the rooms upstairs have little windows that open partly, what name was the room booked under?
Kindest regards,
Annabel Edmonds
Yes the pub is dog friendly, they even have a 'doggy bar' where there's water and they have treats on the bar, but the ROOMS are not dog friendly, only for guide dogs. Thought it was misleading that it says pet friendly on the property amenities part here.
There are more places to choose from in the Bickleigh area.
PRICE RANGE
£39 - £64 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
the fisherman`s cot hotel bickleigh
LOCATION
United KingdomEnglandDevonBickleigh
NUMBER OF ROOMS
19
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