Sykes announces return of holiday let competition

UK: Holiday home owners could be in with a chance of winning £10,000 as part of a nationwide search for the best holiday lets across the UK and Ireland, launched by Chester-based holiday rental agency Sykes Holiday Cottages.

The company announced the return of its competition to find the UK and Ireland’s best holiday lets for the second year running, with multiple categories and prizes up for grabs.

Sykes is calling on property owners to put their holiday lets forward for five categories, including Best Renovation, Most Quirky, Best Interior Design, Best View and Best Glamping.

The overall winner will be awarded £10,000, while winners of individual categories will receive a smaller cash prizes and a free consultancy session from the experts at Sykes.

The competition will be judged by Sykes CEO Graham Donoghue, alongside The Times’ deputy property editor, Carol Lewis, and Vanessa Warwick who co-founded property investor forum Propertytribes.com.

To enter the competition, holiday home owners are invited to visit this link.

Entries are open from now until 1 July and T&Cs apply.

Donoghue said: “Last year’s competition was a great success and it was a joy to celebrate such a diverse selection of world-class holiday lets.

“We recently carried out independent research of UK holiday let owners which found that a quarter only started letting during the pandemic – so we can’t wait to see what else is out there when we resume our search this year and look to spotlight some extraordinary properties,” he added.

The winner of last year’s competition was Martin Matheson, owner of The Sheiling in the Scottish Highlands.

The wooden lodge nestled on the edge of its own loch blew judges away thanks to its “stunning” views and contemporary design, with the property only opening to holidaymakers in 2021.

Matheson said: “I’d encourage all holiday home owners to enter this competition! I wasn’t really expecting anything to come out of my submission so it was a wonderful surprise to get the call last year to say I’d won and have all my hard work recognised.

“Our bookings have shot up as a result and I’ve been able to share the prize money with friends and family who helped with the build, as well as paying off some past debts and putting money left over into savings,” he added.