Thanks, Nigel. We've got a good bunch here at the boatyard, so it's always nice when they get a mention! Hope you had a lovely time exploring the Broads aboard Sunrise, fab photo by the way!
All the best,
The Team at Barnes Brinkcraft
“We had a brilliant time on our day boat.
It was the first time we had done this and really enjoyed it. The boat was easy to handle and my two granddaughters handled it with no problems. Staff were very helpful and informative.”
“We did have a good day out on the boat, but unfortunately the experience could have been so much better.
When we arrived, the staff were very young and none of them seemed like they had much interest in being there nor did they come across as welcoming. We were also given a life jacket for the toddler that was covered in what looked like old chocolate and other dirt, which really wasn’t acceptable.
Once we got onto the boat, we could see straight away that it wasn't very well maintained, most importantly, the toilet was absolutely filthy and smelled awful. When we actually needed to use it, it clearly hadn’t been cleaned properly - there were hairs and other dirt stuck around the toilet.
It’s a shame because we genuinely did enjoy our day, but the boat really needed a proper clean and some basic maintenance before being hired out. With a bit more attention to cleanliness, equipment and organisation, it could have been a much better experience.”
Thank you for taking the time to leave such detailed feedback. We’re pleased that you still managed to enjoy your day on the Broads, but we’re sorry that the experience around it fell short.
You should have received a warm and helpful welcome when you arrived, and the life jacket and boat should both have been presented to you clean and ready to use. In particular, the condition you describe the toilet being in is not acceptable and we are very sorry about that.
We will be investigating this with the team who were on duty that day, both in relation to the cleaning of the boat and the welcome you received. We’ll also make sure the condition of the life jackets is included in that review.
Thank you for highlighting it. It’s particularly frustrating when relatively straightforward things like cleanliness and customer service detract from what was otherwise an enjoyable day out, and we appreciate you bringing it to our attention.
Dear Peter
Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry that the handover felt rushed, as that certainly isn’t the experience we want you to have.
We do normally provide a copy of the Broadcaster, which includes a map of the Broads and useful information on places to visit, so we’re sorry if this wasn’t offered to you on the day.
We’ll remind the team to make sure both the handover and the local information are covered properly, particularly when the yard is busy. We hope you might give us another try, as this is not the standard of welcome we aim to provide
All the Best
The Team at Barnes Brinkcraft
“Boat is not in amazing condition in terms of cleanliness. Water did not work and lost an hour waiting at Horning for an engineer (no refund offered). Table was barely fixed so kept wobbling. Steering was incredibly difficult. Would not use again. The picture of the boat in this review is not reflective of what we had”
We’re sorry to hear that your day on the Broads did not meet expectations.
The water supply issue should not have occurred, and we appreciate that losing around an hour of your hire while waiting for an engineer was frustrating. We are also disappointed to hear your comments about the cleanliness and the loose table, as both should have been addressed before the boat left the yard.
Following your feedback, the steering was checked and found to be operating correctly. This type of dayboat does require frequent small steering adjustments, particularly at lower speeds, and this can feel difficult or unfamiliar at first.
This is one of the older boats in our dayboat fleet, and the photographs on our website are intended to show its layout, style and general specification clearly. However, we are sorry that its condition did not meet your expectations and appreciate you taking the time to bring these points to our attention.
“Easy booking process and a great day on the broads after a very poor start.
We arrived at the boatyard on time at 9.30am for our day hire to then find that they were running way behind already ! Along with several other groups we were left standing around for 30 minutes to then be greated by a staff member who ushered us all into the office for another wait !
Finally onto the boat. The induction was just about as basic as it could be, with a 'couldn't care less' attitude from the staff member.
Very poor first impression and customer service. No way to treat a customer. All in all we were left with the distint feeling that we were just an inconvenience, just getting in the way, If we had not paid in advance we would have just walked out and left straightaway.
The broads are a great place to spend a day. We are planning to return for a longer stay next year, just not with this company.”
