Merchant House: Review

Tested by: Simon & Jenny Gomm and dog Alfie.

We've recently enjoyed a few days late September break at the Merchant House Bed & Breakfast in Truro, Cornwall, 10 minutes walk from the city centre. As stated on their website, Merchant House "Welcomes hounds big and small and we’re not just a dog tolerant hotel, we’re extremely dog friendly".

We received a warm welcome on arrival, as did our Bedlington Terrier, Alfie – presented with a Doggy Welcome pack: a Boneo, a couple of dog bags and information sheets on what the B&B offered Alfie and where to walk him near the hotel and further afield. Fido-friendly eateries and beaches, parks, and tourist attractions were also listed.

The cost for our stay in a King Double Room was £115 per night, with no extra charge for Alfie. Merchant House have certain rooms they use for those folk bringing their dogs and, although they are currently in the midst of renovations, nothing was noticeable nor disrupted the service we received.

We were a little disappointed with the room, although couldn't fault the standard of décor and cleanliness. The style was "minimalist décor" which, for us, lacked character. We had a Velux window so there was a limited view, apart from the tops of trees. Space for us and our dog seemed limited – as did storage space, however we had a very comfy bed and good heating for the cooler days.

Reception staff and others we met were always friendly and helpful and obviously used to seeing dogs coming and going. The bar and lounge area were very comfortable with attractive décor and the daily complimentary afternoon cuppa and cake went down a treat, as did the dog biscuits available for Alfie! Should he have wanted it, he could also have used their outside heated doggie shower (towels and shampoo provided) and joined us for breakfast if we had gone down for the last 15 minutes of service.

Dogs weren't allowed to be left unattended in the bedroom but Alfie was comfortable enough in our car whilst we had our breakfast. Whilst there was no specific exercise area for dogs, there was a written recommendation of the nearest green area to walk to from the B&B.

Talking of breakfast, we couldn't fault it! Lots of variety to choose from, well presented and all the food and drink we had was of a high quality. Breakfast was served in the pleasant surroundings of the lounge/bar area, although there was also a separate dining room, used at busier times.

We enjoyed time exploring Truro on foot, accompanied by a happy dog, glad to be out and about rather than in the car. Trips further afield included St Ives, a town of character and interest, despite the rain. We enjoyed exploring The Lizard too and generally pottering in the local area. We didn't specifically seek out any dog-friendly beaches, parks or tourist attractions, content to just take Alfie if we could or let him stay in the car if taking him wasn't appropriate.

Overall we enjoyed our stay at Merchant House and were glad to be in a warm and comfortable B&B as a base for exploring this area of Cornwall with our dog.

If you would like to find out more about Merchant House, or to book a short stay here, visit the Merchant House website.