We travelled 36 hrs from Australia, arrived at 4pm and met by daughter, had to ask for milk for tea, then she went out and we were alone, 4.20, time for a shower, alas no hot water! sat aroud 'til 5.0pm when husband came home with loaded trailer, told him no hot water, he said "I expect the timer has not come on, will check it when I have finished"
We sat around for another 30mins and hot water now available, No remorse by hosts!
The room had far too much furniture, you could not use the suitcase holders provided and still move around the room. The breakfasts were fine, but certainly not at all special.
Second morning and a 7.30am shower, alas only hand towels in bathroom, which I used.
Once dressed went looking for hostess, no one around! Located a chest on the landing which held towels and linen, so at least my wife had a bath towel. Told the hostess at breakfast, she said, "Oh, must have forgotten to put them in" No sorry!
We were the only people staying, I paid 80 pounds a night, very expensive we felt, though if the advertising blurb had been correct this would have been acceptable.
My wife was refused permission by hostess to use internet, she gave some lame excuse why it could not be used.
We continued with our two week trip around Ireland, every other B&B was better and cheaper and friendlier without exception.
We have complained about the rating and our experiences to the N.I. Tourist Assn.
We ran a B&B near Cape Town for 8 years, so I guess we know what the business entails!
Gordon and Sheila Mayfield, Adelaide.

I really enjoyed my stay at Pheasants Hill Farm. I found it to be a lovely B&B in one of the most stunning areas of Northern Ireland.

The bedrooms were spotlessly clean and tasteful, – with tea, coffee, TV, toweling robes etc – all that you need for a comfy stay.

The breakfast was excellent. – Pheasants Hill is a fully functioning farm – and they also run a farm shop – so the breakfast was literally straight from the farm, and I think they are totally deserving of their best breakfast award.

Bear in mind that you'll need a car to stay at Pheasants Hill – as its right in the middle of the country side – but its an excellent jumping off point to visit the beautiful sites of County Down like Strangford Lough, The Mourne Mountains.

I'd definitely recommend this Guest House – after all how often do you get the chance to stay on a farm surrounded by idyllic countryside?

A comparison between the Shangri-La depicted in the artful website, and the rather grim reality, is instructive.

“Luxurious” - ? I don’t think so. No sign of the tea by the fire offered on the website, either, just a cursory heads up before the landlady retreated to her quarters.

No sense of spaciousness or ease: the place seems to be run on the battery chicken principle adapted to guests. The rooms are cramped and uncomfortable, a riot of ghastly cheap chintz; all the stuff listed in the website is present and correct, but it obviously took ingenuity to pack it all in.

There's nowhere in the house where guests can spread out or relax. The breakfast room is jammed tight, boarding house style, (quite unlike the website photo) and is the sort of tense, claustrophobic setting where couples whisper stridently to one another and scoot as quick as they can bolt down their breakfast.

The AA award for best B & B in Ireland is not only laughable, it is 6 years old. There should be a statute of limitations on these things. Why the place has a 5 diamond award is a mystery. I’ll be very sceptical about these awards in future. They’re even in the Farmstay book - usually a sure fire guide to proper rural hospitality, but not in this case.

The guest rooms seem to have been shoe-horned into the house. Sound installation was poor, so we had to fidget disconsolately on top of the bed until the proprietorial telly was switched off and we could get to sleep.

We had admittedly proficient but rather gross fry-ups dumped in front of us at breakfast without being given a choice. We made an excuse and left, and happily had no trouble finding nice places everywhere else we went in beautiful Ulster.

We stayed here to attend a wedding at Strangford. The room and ensuite was pleasant, as was the food. The owners let our girl play with the dog and see the sheep. The owners were pleasant, but not as outgoing as other B&Bs had been, as the other reviewer points out.