How Brathay Cottages Doubled Their Holiday Let Portfolio in the Lake District With Hostaway

At a glance:

• Company: Brathay Cottages (JRG Hospitality)

• Founded: 10 years in hospitality, managing third-party cottages for 5 years

• Portfolio: 15 holiday cottages, a guest house, and a bed & breakfast (Diamond Lodge, ranked 5th best B&B in the UK on Tripadvisor for 2025)

• Location: Ambleside, Windermere, and Bowness-on-Windermere, Lake District

• Previous platform: SuperControl (7–8 years)

• Key result: Doubled the number of cottages on their books since switching to Hostaway

• Website: brathaycottages.co.uk

From a Decade in Hospitality to One of the Lake District's Most Trusted Letting Agents

George Hardy didn't stumble into hospitality; he built his way into it. With over ten years in the industry, George launched the holiday lettings arm of JRG Hospitality, Brathay Cottages, around five years ago, taking on the management of properties on behalf of other owners across one of England's most visited regions.

Today, Brathay Cottages manages 15 holiday cottages, the Ambleside 1869 Guest House, and Diamond Lodge, a bed & breakfast that earned a place in the top five B&Bs in the entire UK on Tripadvisor for 2025. Operating across Ambleside, Windermere, and Bowness-on-Windermere, the business has quietly become one of the Lake District's most respected short-term rental operators.

But strong reviews and loyal guests only take you so far. As the portfolio grew, George knew that scaling further would come down to having the right property management software in place, and what they had wasn't cutting it anymore.

Before Hostaway: Seven Years on SuperControl, and a System Stuck in the Past

Brathay Cottages had been using SuperControl as their property management system for seven to eight years. In the early days, it did the job. But as the business evolved and the team began thinking seriously about growth, the cracks became harder to ignore.

OTA data was coming in incorrectly. Guest messaging was clunky. Owner invoicing was slow, often inaccurate, and lacking the detail that property owners needed to feel confident in the partnership. On top of that, there were no task management tools, something the team now considers a non-negotiable part of running an efficient holiday let operation.

"Invoicing to owners would take a long time, and often be incorrect. We were unable to provide enough information in our invoices to communicate to our owners well. The stats provided were much less flexible." — George Hardy, Managing Director, Brathay Cottages

The moment that really crystallised things came during a conversation with a web designer who worked with SuperControl's API. It turned out the designer was effectively training SuperControl's own staff, the internal team simply didn't have the technical knowledge to keep up. For a platform that property managers were depending on to run their businesses, that was a red flag that was hard to come back from.

George and the team started looking for a SuperControl alternative.

Finding Hostaway: The Right Property Management Software for Growing Teams

The search began where most searches do, at Google. From there, the Brathay Cottages team did their homework properly, looking at what other holiday let operators in the Lake District and beyond were using, and how those platforms actually performed in practice.

A shortlist came together, but Hostaway stood out. The deciding factors were financial reporting, task management, and the appeal of a genuine all-in-one platform for short-term rental management, everything the business needed, without having to patch together multiple tools.

As George puts it: "We looked at a few other options, but Hostaway won for us."

The migration from SuperControl to Hostaway went well overall. There were a couple of hiccups along the way as expected with any platform switch, but the support through the transition was solid. 

There was one particularly memorable moment: as soon as the system went live, pricing that had been set too low triggered a rush of bookings while the team was still on a call with their handover specialist. It was a stressful few minutes, and some bookings had to be cancelled, but it came with an unexpected silver lining.

George recalls with a laugh: "We did see how many people must be looking for accommodation at any one time."

Once the dust settled, the team found Hostaway intuitive and quickly got up to speed. The onboarding support was better than expected, and the platform's AI-powered assistant has continued to impress for day-to-day queries.

Running a Tighter, Smarter Operation With Hostaway

Switching from SuperControl to Hostaway changed how the whole business operates on a daily basis. The features that have become central to Brathay Cottages' workflow include:

• Unified inbox: used every day to manage guest communication across all booking channels in one place

• Financial reporting: owner statements that are now accurate, detailed, and quick to produce

• Automated tasks: keeping the team on top of daily property management workflows without the manual effort

• PriceLabs integration: powering dynamic pricing across the holiday let portfolio

• AI-powered support: fast answers to routine questions, with human support on hand when it's needed

The impact on owner relationships has been particularly significant. Where invoicing once created friction and eroded trust, Hostaway's reporting tools have allowed George's team to communicate with property owners clearly, accurately, and professionally.

George highlights dynamic pricing and automated task management as the two features that have made the biggest difference, and he's aware there's still more to unlock. As George adds: "There are parts of Hostaway we wish we had time to explore, and I'm sure we will as we grow."

The Result: A Doubled Portfolio and a Team That Can Finally Focus on What Matters

Since making the switch from SuperControl to Hostaway, Brathay Cottages has doubled the number of holiday cottages on their books. And the ambition doesn't stop there.

What's changed isn't just the size of the portfolio, it's what the team is able to do with their time. The hours that used to disappear into invoicing errors, manual admin, and chasing information are now spent on the things that actually move the business forward: delivering standout guest experiences and building strong, lasting relationships with property owners.

George is clear about the impact: "We have definitely saved time in all aspects, or at least been able to do more with our time than before."

And when it comes to Hostaway's support throughout the journey, he doesn't hesitate. George says, "It's been great, and I can't fault it so far."

That confidence goes beyond his own business. George has already been recommending Hostaway to other property managers in the region, a pretty strong endorsement from someone who spent nearly a decade on a different platform.

What's Next for Brathay Cottages

With the operational side of the business in better shape than ever, Brathay Cottages is focused on one thing: continued growth across the Lake District. The goal is to bring more holiday cottages onto their books while maintaining the standard of service that put Diamond Lodge in the UK's top five B&Bs.

For George, Hostaway isn't just the platform they're using today — it's a core part of how they plan to grow tomorrow.

"When we decided to move away from SuperControl we had a lot of other options, but we are really glad we decided to switch to Hostaway. It has really helped us grow as a company, and give our guests and owners the best experience we can. The way we use the automated tasks and financial reporting has saved time and allowed us to spend time where it really matters — without being bogged down by admin."

Company details

• Name: Brathay Cottages (JRG Hospitality)

• Website: brathaycottages.co.uk

• Primary market: Lake District — Ambleside, Windermere, Bowness-on-Windermere

• Contact: George Hardy, Managing Director