Self-Catering Holiday Tips

How to make a cottage holiday as relaxing and enjoyable as possible, from planning and packing to settling in on arrival.

A self-catering cottage holiday offers something hotels can't: the freedom to eat when you want, do what you want, and live at your own pace. But a bit of preparation makes the difference between arriving frazzled and arriving ready to relax. These tips come from years of hosting guests and hearing what works well — and what people wish they'd done differently.

Before You Go

Check What's Provided

Most self-catering cottages supply bed linen, towels, kitchen equipment, and basic cleaning products. Some provide a welcome pack with milk, tea, and bread. Read the booking confirmation or property description carefully so you know what to expect and what to bring. There's no point packing towels if they're already there, and no point assuming there's a corkscrew if you haven't checked.

At Yorkshire Wolds Cottage, we provide all linen, towels, a fully equipped kitchen, and a welcome pack of basics. You just need to bring your own food and personal items.

Plan Your Meals (Loosely)

You don't need a rigid meal plan, but having a rough idea of what you'll eat for the first couple of days saves stress. The last thing you want after a long drive is to arrive at 5pm with nothing for dinner and no idea where the nearest shop is.

Consider bringing enough food for your first evening meal and breakfast. After that, you'll have time to explore local shops, markets, and farm shops. Many of our guests find that cooking with locally sourced ingredients becomes one of the highlights of their stay.

Bring Store-Cupboard Basics

Salt, pepper, cooking oil, herbs, and condiments are easy to forget and annoying to buy in full-size containers for a week's holiday. Decant small amounts into containers or grab travel-size versions. Most cottages don't stock these items.

Packing Smart

What Most People Forget

• Phone chargers and adapter leads
• A torch (essential in rural areas with no streetlights)
• Binoculars (you'll want them for wildlife and coastal views)
• A good book (cottage evenings are made for reading)
• Walking boots and waterproofs (this is Yorkshire, not the Riviera)
• Dog towels and leads if you're bringing a pet

What You Probably Don't Need

• Hair dryer (most cottages provide one)
• Iron (usually supplied)
• Board games (check — many cottages have a selection)
• Too many clothes (a washing machine handles the rest)

Arriving and Settling In

When you arrive, take 20 minutes to walk through the cottage and work out where everything is. Find the thermostat, check the hot water, locate the fuse box, and read any notes from the owner. This saves fumbling around later when you're tired.

Unpack properly. Hanging clothes in the wardrobe and putting things in drawers makes the cottage feel like home rather than a hotel room. If you're staying a week, it's worth doing this on day one.

If you've brought a first-evening meal, get it started while you unpack. There's nothing like the smell of something cooking to make a new place feel welcoming.

Making the Most of Self-Catering

Explore Local Food

One of the genuine pleasures of a self-catering holiday is cooking with ingredients you can't easily get at home. Visit the local farm shops and markets — they're often a highlight of the trip. Saturday mornings at Beverley market, for instance, are a good source of local meat, cheese, bread, and seasonal produce.

Mix Cooking and Eating Out

Don't feel you have to cook every meal. The beauty of self-catering is flexibility. Cook when you feel like it, eat out when you don't. A pub lunch after a morning walk, followed by a simple supper at the cottage, makes for a balanced day.

Build in Downtime

The temptation on holiday is to fill every day with activities. Resist it. Schedule at least one day with absolutely no plans — a day to sit in the garden, read a book, walk to the end of the lane and back, and cook a slow meal. These unstructured days are often the ones people remember most fondly.

Use the Garden

If your cottage has outdoor space, use it. Breakfast outside, evening drinks watching the sunset, an afternoon reading in a deckchair — these simple pleasures are the whole point of a cottage holiday. At Yorkshire Wolds Cottage, the garden views across the Wolds are one of the features guests mention most often.

Departure Day

Leave the cottage in reasonable condition: wash the dishes, empty the bins, strip the beds if asked, and make sure all windows and doors are locked. A brief tidy is courteous; a deep clean isn't expected.

Check under beds, behind cushions, and in drawers before you leave. Every cottage owner has a collection of chargers, reading glasses, and children's toys left behind by departing guests.

For information about our cottage and what's included, visit the accommodation page. To plan activities during your stay, browse our area guides.