Bad Experience today-open farm cork

fleddy

Hi

I had a bad customer service experience with the owner of Tir na Si Open farm in Watergrasshill. I went there with my toddler and 2 month old baby and made a complaint about how disappointed I was with The experience of my visit.
I was very polite and it was a member of staff who suggested I should speak to the manager, as I wasn't initially bothered taking it any further.
however I was quite taken aback at how the manager/owner defensive and condescending attitude towards me. as if how dare I say I was disappointed in the visit.

I left feeling very very upset with two young children and had to stop for cup of tea on way home to cork city to calm down.
has anyone else experienced this?

Thanks

ahnowbrowncow

What disappointed you about the visit? Apart from the talk with the manager obviously

Orion

Moved from Parenting

fleddy

Hi
what disappointed me was that
• That the signage was poor, she then defensively pointed at 1 signpost near the entrance that I honestly missed with 2 smallies. and said I surely know what a vegetable patch was when I see one.

• Then when I said there were empty paddocks all near the pond. She condenscendingly said I obviously was not from a farming background as they rotate the animals in the paddocks (I said I actually grew up on a farm). Also note there was 1 cow and 1 horse alone in large paddocks.

• When I then said I found it expensive for the amount I saw (€10 in total as they charge for over 1 year Old’s) - she then said that Rumleys charge €8 and that I would be more suited to Fota.

also I think it is quite greedy charging another €4-€5 for the indoor play area.

basically I thought the viewing of the animals/pond/ so called nature walk were not up to scratch for public viewing, i honestly thought I had arrived at end of the season as the place was dead, no farming activity or pony and trap happening.
I felt I paid €10 to see 1 cow, 1 horse,goats/ponies/2 alpacas,few sheep and hens/geese.
I do not usually complain but I could live with all that if my little fella wasn't going to be charged extra for the indoor play area.

I just felt it was all money with 3 types of tickets and feel more effort was put into the visitor lobby and restaurant than on the actual farm itself.
both Rumley's and Leahy's offered more animals and indoor play area and could spend all day in both places compared to the above.

dj_

What did you expect the owner/manager to say? Apologise for how poor their establishment is and give you a refund?

It's pretty common for people to get defensive when you criticise them. I say just forget about it and move on. There is nothing more you can do and anyone reading this thread probably won't bother going there based on your review.

fleddy

your right dj, but I expect not to be spoken down to . i was polite and the woman had an awful attitude. she could have taken on board my comments and left it at that. the fact the place was dead... just shows me that it was more down to her and the place , then the schools being back. i only posted this thread as i feel so annoyed at the way i was spoken to more than the actual farm itself.

will.i.am

Well to be honest the woman is from a farming background and she understands for a farm is run. It is not possible for any farm to have animals in every field.
As for the signage. It can be difficult to have large signs due to planning laws and often large signs can cause people difficulty seeing out of junctions.

dj_

will.i.am wrote: »

Well to be honest the woman is from a farming background and she understands for a farm is run. It is not possible for any farm to have animals in every field.

Very true for a normal farm but when you are running an open farm you would imagine that things could be organised differently. It wouldn't be too hard to move the animals to fields further from the viewing areas outside of opening hours.

Can't really think of any excuse for the owners attitude. It is very important in any position when dealing with customers to be nice to them.

fleddy

thank you D.J, that is my point exactly, should be able to have the actual paddocks of the farm open to visitors with animals with them.
will.i.am, I am not an unreasonable person who complains ata drop of a hat. I am from a dairy farming background and realise it's not easy and animals need to be rotated and that long hours are involved, but I did not pay an entrance fee for myself and my 21 month old to see empty fields and 1 cow and 1 horse. my last word on this thread is that I went to rumleys farm recently and maybe this spoilt ne for choice, but they had several breeds of cow on display and had signage on the actual fences just telling you the breed and a little note on them. also leahys do something similar.I just felt it was less about the farm and more about having a nice indoor play area and restaurant. I just felt the farm side was secondary to everything else.

thanks for all the feed-back, and DJ -You got it in one when you said " It is very important in any position when dealing with customers to be nice to them".

Sam Kade

If you don't like it then don't go back there again and put it down to experience. If you thought the entry fee was too high what was stopping you saying no thanks and leaving?

Judes

I brought my nephew and parents to Leahy's Farm in East Cork about 3 years ago - it was raining - so we understood things wouldn't be as perfect as walking around a farm in the sunshine - but the place was horrendous. I reckon they would have failed on all counts of Health and Safety when it came to the "indoor playing area" - the place was dirty/rusty/dangerous - and I have spent time on farms previously - helping out and staying at friends' farms - so I don't need to be told I don't understand the runnings of a farm. Whatever we paid at the time - was too much. We went into the cafe and it just wasn't nice. I got the feeling they just wanted to make as much money as they could but offering very little. We left there disappointed and swore we would never go again.

I can't wait to go to Lumley's/Lumney's Farm - I've heard really good reports about both the farm and the cafe. So looks like I now have 2 farms to avoid. I'm only sorry I didn't complain to the Owners of Leahy's Farm at the time - but my parents just wanted to get out of the place. And my young nephew wasn't enthralled either.

Lisha

Judes wrote: »

I can't wait to go to Lumley's/Lumney's Farm - I've heard really good reports about both the farm and the cafe.

HI where is Lumney's/Lumley's farm please?

THanks

cordub

Lisha wrote: »

HI where is Lumney's/Lumley's farm please?

THanks

its just past the VIADUCT on the bandon road , about 3 mins from dunnes stores bishopstown

telekon

Lisha wrote: »

HI where is Lumney's/Lumley's farm please?

THanks

Just to clarify things, its called Rumley's Farm and I've only heard good things about it.


http://www.rumleysfarm.ie/

trotter_inc

To the OP...

I'm glad you posted this and I'm glad you complained about your visit to the manager. If you weren't happy then you were right to complain, for the most part we don't do it enough when we're not happy with a service.

The attitude of the manager was unacceptable and by posting here you'll be letting other people aware of what the place is like. I know all paddocks can't be housing animals, especially with the poor growth we've had this year, but an attitude like that from any manager is unacceptable.

Lisha

Ive been to Tir na si several times. I would agree with that it is too expensive, if you do both farm walk and play area. But I do like it .
It strikes me that they are not long open and are still finding their feet abit.
THey need more experience, and they will only get that with time. Which is a bit of a catch 22 for the moment. The foot fall through there is to slow for them to staff it properly and to gain proper experience.
If it was more fairly priced then it would definatley help.

Its a pity the managers people skills were so poor, that would leave a sour taste in any ones mouth.

I ve heard that parties there and the events day ran there go very well and are a great day.

I do hope they learn from your complaints OP and that the future is better for them

cordub

I had my childs party here and I have to say the kids really enjoyed it, the food was really nice and the place was really clean,i was a bit dissapointed that they charged for the birthday child though as most places always let the party child in free .

mrshappy

Glad you posted this as we were planning to go there this weekend - won't bother now.

Have been to Rumleys once and kids really enjoyed it - very well organised and laid out great. We go to Fota on average every fortnight. Leahy's farm I enjoyed but it was Christmas time so maybe it's different during the rest of the year.

pwurple

Good to know about this place. We have been to Leahys a couple of time, and it is nice in the sunshine, but my god is it tough going in the rain. That indoor play area might be good for older kids, but a lot of sharp things for the under threes.
We thought it was far too expensive at leahys. There is no child /adult rate, so a two year old is the same price as the grownups.

Rumleys is actually nearer, so we must go there instead. Will avoid the watergrasshill place.

The manager sounds like a right piece of work. Fota would suit ye, sheesh! :rolleyes:

Sapsorrow

Kennedy's farm on the Cork-Killarney road is fantastic, I'm going there today Third time going and we don't even have any kids, it's that much fun! Apart from all the farm animals (of which they have loads) they also have lots of different breeds of kittens and puppies which is the main attraction for us, highly reccomend it!

fleddy

hi

yeap- same here, am a member of fota and go abit (although with toddler and baby -have been lazy lately going there)
its good and I loved rumley's and went to leahy's other week but closed at 4pm on saturday-didn't mind as had good banter with the owners who are very down to earth. nice to know there are still some nice people out there -- who open these places for the kids and not just the coffee shops attached. thanks for your reply- I was just so annoyed with the attitude in watergrasshill by the owner--still in shock at the attitude..

fleddy

I know.. the comment fota would suit me..had my blood boiling... i decided at that point the woman was been argumentive when I was just giving my feedback on the place...I had to walk away at that stage!! although I think fota do the justice of having more than 1 giraffe in a field..LOL.

Elle 12

Hi,

With regards to Tir na Si I think they provide excellent service I have gone there many a time and also recommended it to my family and friends I have never had a bad experience here and I have never heard of anyone having one either until now. I know that everyone is entitled to there own opinion however with regard to a similiar open farm ie Rumleys I had a very bad experience here I felt they had way too many animals and they were in over there head as they are unable to care for them correctly an example of this was a batch of hens all shoved into together no clean water for them also they were in a hut in front of cattle.
I would continuously take my children to Tir na Si the staff are very friendly and more than helpul and it is very clean. I wouldnt reccommend Rumleys to any of my friends or familys as they would also be very unhappy with the service they are providing.

Thanks.

trotter_inc

We were at Rumleys yesterday and had a fantastic time, we couldn't fault the place, it was by far the best farm we've been to. Ok, you can't actually get up close to the animals, but I don't think it's advertising itself as a pet farm as there's so much more there than just the animals.

howamidifferent

Elle 12 wrote: »

Hi,

With regards to Tir na Si I think they provide excellent service I have gone there many a time and also recommended it to my family and friends I have never had a bad experience here and I have never heard of anyone having one either until now. I know that everyone is entitled to there own opinion however with regard to a similiar open farm ie Rumleys I had a very bad experience here I felt they had way too many animals and they were in over there head as they are unable to care for them correctly an example of this was a batch of hens all shoved into together no clean water for them also they were in a hut in front of cattle.
I would continuously take my children to Tir na Si the staff are very friendly and more than helpul and it is very clean. I wouldnt reccommend Rumleys to any of my friends or familys as they would also be very unhappy with the service they are providing.

Thanks.

This must be the manager of Tir na si. .

"I have never had a bad experience here"

trotter_inc

Elle 12 wrote: »

with regard to a similiar open farm ie Rumleys I had a very bad experience here I felt they had way too many animals and they were in over there head as they are unable to care for them correctly an example of this was a batch of hens all shoved into together no clean water for them also they were in a hut in front of cattle.

I wouldnt reccommend Rumleys to any of my friends or familys as they would also be very unhappy with the service they are providing.

Thanks.

Maybe they were having teething problems when you visited but the hens have a huge enclosure with ample space for them to roam and scratch. I didn't once get the impression that the animals weren't happy or weren't being cared for properly, the pigs were the happiest I've ever seen Overall, the enclosures are pretty big and all the animals appear to have good health.

Kenny Logins

pwurple wrote: »

Rumleys is actually nearer, so we must go there instead. Will avoid the watergrasshill place.

The manager sounds like a right piece of work. Fota would suit ye, sheesh! :rolleyes:

I wouldn't avoid anywhere based purely on the experience of one unhappy customer. I've been to Tir Na Si twice and the kids loved it. Isn't that what really matters?

Tir na Si

Dear Fleddy, Your post has been brought to my attention and I am very upset at your comments.
'Tir na Si' is a family run enterprise, we have been working very hard over the past two and a half years, without the benefit of grant aid to create a unique visitor experience. We are a 22 acre farm with a Restaurant and Indoor Softplay area, with an emphasis on self sufficency and sustainable living while at the same time being mindful of the traditions and folklore of our past.
We endeavour to pass on these skills and knowledge through cooking and gardening demonstrations and also give guided tours as well as welcoming the public.
The animals we keep are animals which are natively farmed in Ireland, (many of our animals are rescue), and we have enhanced our natural environment by planting a selection of over 3,500 native plants, most of which we harvest for food, e.g. rose, hazel, wild cherry, crab, elder. We also grow our own vegetables and much of the meat we use is sourced from the farm. Having been opened just over a year, we continue to work at enhancing the visitor experience.
We do not model ourselves on other open farms as each farm is different and offers the visitor a different experience.
'Tir na Si' is more that just a business it is also our home and we take great personal care to ensure vistors enjoy their experience.
I have worked in the hospitatily business since I was in my teens and have never been accused of being rude to a customer. I thought I had answered all of your questions in a polite and informative manner and it was certainly not my intention to be either rude or defensive. From a business point of view it would be ludicrous of me to suggest you visit another attraction instead. I am very sorry that you did not enjoy your visit here, may I invite you and your family to visit again at no expense to you and I will be delighted to personally give you a guided tour of our farm.

** There are no time limits to your visit.

posted by Julia (Tir na Si)

mp22

Tir na si post restored with some editing.
I will give the last word to Tir na Si in this thread.

Closed