Queens View is situated at 31 High Street, Elie in the Neuk of Fife in Scotland. It is a very comfortable and well appointed two bedroom second-floor, self catering flat. We stayed there for four nights during October 2009. We found it to be more than holiday accommodation – it feels more like a home from home.

The entrance and stairwell are carpeted and appear exceptionally well maintained and clean with artificial flowers and some real plants. There is a security entrance system and lights which automatically switch off after three minutes.

Queens View itself consists of a twin bedroom, a double bedroom, a shower room, a dining kitchen and a living room.

The double room, to the rear of the building, is a large room with quirky wooden furniture providing plenty of storage space. It also has a portable television and a hairdryer provided. The bed is extremely comfortable – not too soft and not too hard – with a cosy duvet and plenty of pillows.

The living room, at the front of the building, has the most fabulous window seat – and yes, you can see the sea! This was my favourite spot to sit with a cup of tea and a book, whenever I got five minutes peace and quiet. There are also two comfy sofas with lots of cushions, a small TV/video combo, a DVD player and a stereo. There is a bookcase with a selection of paperbacks, videos, CDs and DVDs )some good, some really not-so-good!) There’s also a cupboard with board games and jigsaws. The focal point of the living room is the lovely fireplace with the gas living flame fire. Very cosy.

Elsewhere in the hall there is a cupboard containing bits and bobs for outdoor activities; buckets and spades, Frisbees, a kite, badminton set, rounders bat and ball – even a set of golf clubs.

Nothing is left to chance and there are manual, written instructions and little notes posted with operating instructions for all appliances, the boiler, heating system etc. We found that the pilot light for the boiler was a bit on the temperamental side, but I am, if nothing else, persistent, and we got there eventually. There is an extensive folder containing tourist leaflets, details of doctors, dentists, takeaway establishments, taxis and contact details for the owners. In fact, pretty much everything has been thought of.

The only minor inconvenience (other than that darned pilot light) was that the secure entry phone in the flat is out of order, but as we didn’t really go out and about independently (and we had our mobile phones), this didn’t really affect us too much.

Obviously being on the second floor, up several flights of stairs, Queens View is not suitable for those with mobility issues and it would be a bit of a challenge with a pushchair or pram too. (Parking is available on the street right outside the door though.) The elevated position does however afford decent views of the beach and the sea, and traffic noise is minimal. (Elie High Street is not the busiest of thoroughfares but does get the odd passing bus, lorry and tractor.) The biggest noise disturbance we encountered during our stay were the hourly chimes from the local church – but this would only be a problem if you were an extremely light sleeper.

Admittedly we were very lucky with the weather; it was dry, sunny and even warm at times. So would we go back to Elie? Undoubtedly. And would we stay at Queens View again? Most definitely!