I was lucky enough to have an unexpected holiday at Ellwood Cottages, Dorset when a friend kindly thought of me when she was unable to go. Wow! Ellwood Cottages is a disabled person’s dream holiday! The owners Carolyn and Koos (until 2024) have thought of everything. The new owners (from 2024) Clare and Darren are amazing too.

Disabled Accessible Holiday Cottages

Ellwood Cottages has three disabled accessible cottages that can be rented out for self-catering holidays. I stayed in Barnes cottage which sleeps 4 people. There is also Blyton cottage which sleeps 4-6 people and Hardy cottage which sleeps 3 people.

The Cottages

The three cottages are wheelchair accessible and consist of a level access front door leading into a lounge. Off the lounge there is two bedrooms, a wet room and a kitchen. All the light switches and electric sockets are a suitable height for wheelchair users.

The Lounge

It is a big room with a sofa, dining room table, coffee table, nest of tables, lamps and lights. There is plenty of space for a manual or powerchair user to get around. The only slight downside for me was I could not get under the dining room table (a problem I suffer with a lot-not helped by being so tall) in either my manual wheelchair or powerchair. A table that is either height adjustable or has a central pole would have been easier. (This is something the owners are going to look at.) I can confirm they have changed the table to a central pole style table which has made a huge difference-thank you.

Bedroom 1

This had two single beds in it, a wardrobe and bedside cabinet. One of the beds is an electric adjustable bed. (There is one electric adjustable bed in each cottage). They also now have one air flow mattress for those that have higher pressure relieving needs. This made a huge difference as normally we have to hire an electric adjustable bed and air mattress in which is normally an extra £400-£500 a week on top of the holiday. At Ellwood this is not an extra and included in the price which is great. I as a powerchair user could not get around both sides of the bed but a manual wheelchair user maybe able to and a carer or PA (personal assistant) could. However, I could easily access my bed in my powerchair. In Hardy cottage this bedroom just has one bed in it, the electric adjustable bed.

Wetroom

The wetroom has a toilet, lowered wheelchair user’s height basin and shower area. In Blyton cottage there are two wetrooms, a ensuite to each bedroom.

Bedroom 2

It has two zip and link beds so can either be used as a twin-bedded room or a king-size bed. There are also bedside cabinets, a wardrobe and dressing table in the room. In Blyton cottage there are also bunkbeds in the bedroom if you wanted to accommodate at the full capacity of six people.

Kitchen

It has all the standard appliances of an oven, hob, microwave, fridge, freezer, kettle and toaster. The kitchen itself is wheelchair accessible. The sink unit and ceramic hob unit are on lowered worktops with no cupboards underneath so suitable for wheelchair users to be able to access the kitchen and cook. The oven is a good height to be accessible for a wheelchair user.

Cottage Features 

The holiday cottages are an old beautifully restored barn and feature vaulted ceilings and timber beams.

Grounds and Facilities

The Courtyard

The cottages front on to a lovely courtyard. Most of the courtyard is gravel to which I thought: ‘Gravel is not wheelchair friendly!’ However, to my surprise it was only shallow gravel with a firm base underneath, so it was fine. Furthermore, if you didn’t want to or couldn’t travel across the gravel there are concrete paths around the outside edge so you access your cottage and all areas.

Splash Pool

Across the courtyard there is a wonderful splash pool. It has a stepped access with metal rails on both sides and a metal rail the entire way round the pool. This is particularly useful for holding onto or doing exercises in the pool. For the less able there is an Oxford dipper hoist. You need to bring your own hoist sling to use on this.

There were shower chairs and swivel stools in the large, accessible changing rooms and wetrooms with toilets, next to the pool. I particularly enjoyed the splash pool especially as due to Covid-19 I have not had access to hydrotherapy or swimming for over five months. It was so good to stretch out and have a swim. There were also woggles to help with exercises and beach balls and inflatable rings for some fun. The owners were careful allowing one family in a day and deep cleaning in between.

Recreation Room

On the other side of the courtyard there was a recreation room. A place with magazines, games including wooden skittles, toys, a piano and local information. There were things for all ages and it was also nice to have another area to go.

Garden

There is a covered walkway from the courtyard which leads to the garden. Several lawn areas and a pagoda with trailing roses and then a breathtaking view of rolling hills with a few sheep and horses nearby and cows in the distance. There isn’t a house in sight. There are several seating areas which are very peaceful and ideal to sit and relax in the sunshine. A barbecue for guests to use.

I particularly liked that they had even thought of the bench! There should be more inclusive benches like this around.

Parking

Through the covered walkway you can also access the parking area. The parking area is also undercover. On arrival and departure you are allowed to drive into the courtyard and park outside your cottage for unpacking and packing up.

Equipment Hire

As well as the electric adjustable bed in each cottage you can borrow other equipment and aids including a: fixed arm, reclining or tilt-in-space shower chair, toilet seat raiser, perching stool, electric rise and recline chair, high-back chair with arms and mobile hoist etc. They also have a children’s high-chair and travel cot available if necessary. Furthermore, there is no extra cost for borrowing this equipment. On top of this it may mean that you actually can fit some clothes in your packing now! If you are anything like me the equipment takes up virtually all the room in the vehicle (even taking two vehicles) so having a lot of equipment available to borrow makes a huge difference. Both in making it easier to get away and the price tag.

It Doesn’t Look Like a Cottage for the Disabled 

I really liked the fact that the equipment doesn’t look disabling or clinical, it looks homely and modern. Some examples include the leather riser-recliner that just looked like a leather arm chair, the electric adjustable beds that just looked like a standard wooden bed with smart silver side rails (cots sides) or the silver modern looking grab handles in the wet room.

Extra Information

Hamper

On arrival we received a beautiful hamper with delicious homemade bread and jam, milk, butter, local wine, a soft drink, crackers, cookies and a bar of chocolate.

Not forgetting the gorgeous sunflowers that light up the room.

WiFi and Signal 

There is WiFi in the cottages which is really helpful as there is virtually no signal at the cottages and I had no 3G or 4G connection. We managed to contact people if necessary, via WhatsApp call.

If There Is Something Missing

If there is something missing the owners are very accommodating and value suggestions, trying to make it the very best it can be.

The Stable and the Old Stable

These are one bedroom bed and breakfast style rooms. That can either be rented out individually or in conjunction with a cottage for additional accommodation for a personal assistant (PA), friends or relatives. Please note they are not wheelchair accessible, but a good idea.

Area and Local Attractions

Ellwood Cottages are in Woolland. The closest town of about 10 miles in distance is Blandford Forum, Dorset. It is lovely place, but very rural. There are quite a few miles of narrow country lanes to access the cottages. You definitely need a car and I would recommend arriving before dark!

The Fox Inn, Ansty

The Fox Inn is a large wheelchair accessible pub, in Ansty, a few miles from Woolland. They have a small metal ramp that can be put down so you can access the pub. There is also a large wheelchair accessible toilet inside. There is a large outdoor area at the front and plenty of parking. Good food too, so definitely worth a visit.

There are many large towns in a reasonable proximity from Dorchester, Salisbury, Weymouth, Lyme Regis and Swanage.

Swanage and Chococo, Swanage

We drove to Swanage one day. On route we drove through many quaint villages. It was lovely to see the sea. We walked along the front and down the high street which was all fairly flat. It was my first trip to a high street and I found it quite alarming, trying to dodge people was quite difficult. Everyone was acting like nothing was going on and making the most of their summer holiday. We had one place in mind apart from seeing the sea and town, a hot chocolate in Chococo! Chococo had a ramp which is always a positive. Chococo is hidden away down a little side street. This was good as there were less people. We enjoyed our favourite venezuela hot chocolate and sweet treat. It is definitely a chocolate lover’s paradise!

Lyme Regis

It is lovely for a walk along the seafront seeing the sea and Jurassic coast along the lower promenade which is very accessible. However, the high street is a no no. There are steps everywhere, steep hills, narrow pavements, steps into pretty much every shop and dangerous steep drops at the edge of some pavements.

Other places to visit

Check my blog posts out:

5 Wheelchair Accessible Things To Do In Weymouth, Dorset

5 Wheelchair Accessible Things To Do In Swanage

Overall, it is a lovely area and Ellwood Cottages is superb for both accommodation and facilities. I would definitely recommend it and go back myself. In fact, we have already booked to go back next year!

Check out my video of Ellwood Cottages below:

@hannahedeakin

Inside 📍Ellwood Cottages, Woolland, Dorset. Three amazing wheelchair accessible holiday cottages! 🌻 Blog review: https://hannahshope.co.uk/ellwood-cottages-dorset-my-review/ Visual description: Hannah in her powerchair showing the courtyard at Ellwood Cottages and view, inside Barnes cottage, the splash pool with hoist, recreation room with Hannah playing the piano, gardens and view of rolling hills with neighbouring sheep. #hannahshope #Disability #accessibletravel #nature #accessibleholiday #accessibleholidays #accessibleholidaysuk #disabledholiday #accessibleholidayescapes #disabledholidays #disabledtiktok #disabledvideos #disabled #holiday #dorset

♬ original sound – Hannah Deakin

Hannah x