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Guest Experience
I recently read a blog on the site of a hotel software supplier. They were writing about 15 ways and ideas to improve the hotel guest experience. I had a quick look down the list and I’m pleased to say that we already do all of them at The 25 Boutique B&B so no wonder our guests love us and we get such great TripAdvisor reviews. 1. Touch base with guests’ pre-arrival We send out a pre-arrival email with all the details you’ll need to get here and links to things to do, and of course our f
The “Nothing-cation”
First, we had the “stay-cation”. This came about during Covid times. For many reasons people were looking to stay more local when they went on holiday. Perhaps there were restrictions about which areas were in which tier, and foreign travel was still not allowed. Some people just wanted a change of scene, but didn’t want to have to get on a train or plane, and some people didn’t want to go so far that they needed to stop off at motorway service stations with all the other people there that t
Steam Train to Dartmouth
A day out on the steam train from Paignton to Kingswear, then a foot ferry over to Dartmouth and a circular river cruise on the River Dart. We also had lunch at Rockfish restaurant in Dartmouth and a look round the independently owned shops before catching the observation carriage back on the steam train. A thoroughly recommended day out.
Torbay Pride
Torbay Pride is being held this year on Saturday 2nd September 2023. After a parade along the seafront, a day of live entertainment, various acts on stage, stalls and much more will be taking place for free on Torre Abbey Meadows which is just a five minute walk from The 25, so we’re an ideal place to stay for Pride weekend.
Bucket List
245 days elapsed between my first being diagnosed with throat cancer in July of 2022 and getting the all clear in April 2023. Of course, the worry went on for some time before diagnosis, and I’d actually had a health scare already at the beginning of the year when they thought I had lymphoma cancer so 2022 was a bit of a write off. It’s not over either, I will have lingering side effects of the treatment for a long time, maybe forever. I must get used to living a “new normal” just like we did
Obsessive About Detail
We often discuss our obsession with detail with our guests. They comment on how everything is so perfect and everything you need or want is already there in the right place. Everything is beautifully presented and in mint condition. A tea tray I prepared with welcome drinks for a room is a good example: The brownies have to have the corner piece underneath and the side piece on top and be beautifully placed. When I was placing them, three crumbs dropped onto the plate and so I removed them –
What is Torquay like?
Many of our guests come and stay with us because they want to experience the “Best B&B in the World” and not necessarily because they wanted to visit Torquay. Most people know we’re in Devon, some know we are in the centre of the area known as the English Riviera. Almost everyone will have seen the seventies sitcom Fawlty Towers which was set in Torquay, but what is Torquay actually like now? For me Torquay is the ideal town, encompassing everything you could possibly want in a relatively smal
Torre Suite Renovation
We're proud to unveil our latest creation - we've completely renovated the Torre Suite. The Torre Suite was the first we completed nearly seven years ago when we became The 25 Boutique B&B. We therefore felt it was time for a change and have completely re-plastered the room, decorated, re-carpeted and had some new furniture, soft furnishings, lighting and art work. What do you think? The room now has an opulent midnight green colour on the walls which has been fused with a burnt-orange. Here
Little Touches = Big Difference
Probably one of the most common phrases we hear from our guests all the time is “little touches”. They tell us how the little touches helped make their stay special or made us stand out. They say it’s amazing how we’ve thought of everything and all the little touches, or “we love all the little touches”. These “little” touches seem to make a big difference though. Many of my blog readers will know we’ve been doing this for a long time now – 15 years, yet we always say we’ll never have a finished
Want a Workation?
The latest buzz word is “workation” – a mashup of work and staycation – ie holidaying in the UK but still continuing to do some work each day. It’s also been called a “woliday”! Now, more than ever, people are able to work from home. However, working from home often means you can work from anywhere. As long as you have your laptop and mobile with you, many people can, and are, choosing to work in other locations too. And if you can work just as well in the car or a local coffee shop, then wh
Occombe Farm Shop
Occombe Farm Shop is about an hour’s walk away, via the thatched village of Cockington so if it’s nice weather then it’s worth a stroll, particularly if you plan to stop off in Cockington with its craft centre, pub, tea rooms and so on. However, if you think you might buy lots of shopping then it may be worth popping along in the car as it’s only a ten minute drive when you go via the dual carriage-way towards Paignton. We walked, purchased a few items, and enjoyed a trip to the café but then
Things to do in Torquay on a stormy day
There have been some pretty bad storms over the last week with the highest wind speed ever recorded in the UK down here in the South West. We didn’t escape ourselves, with a flat roof three storeys up sustaining damage. It was a pretty nasty time for our guests too who had timed their breaks away for the same period. If you are unlucky enough to arrive in bad weather yourselves, don’t worry, there’s a whole host of things to do and see if it’s raining and windy. Here’s twenty things to do when
Being a “Green” B&B
You may have heard of the phrase “green washing”. This is where a company indicates that they are doing lots to help the environment and work in a green way, but in reality they are doing very little. I watched part of a programme on tv recently about a food manufacturer. They were printing on their packets that they were now fully recyclable. Whilst this may be true, there was only one company in the UK recycling that type of packaging, and it was difficult for the consumer to be able to dr
Feed the Rhinos!
We recently had the privilege of feeding the Black Rhinoceros at nearby Paignton Zoo which is a 15 minute drive from The 25. Paignton Zoo is a conservation, education and scientific charity and the zoo, although right next to Paignton, is set in large landscaped grounds making it feel like the middle of nowhere. The rhinos are critically endangered. Between 1960 and 1995, the number of black rhino dropped by 98% to around 2,500. They are killed mainly for their tusks for use in medicine and al
Cheap Evening Out
You could be forgiven for thinking that you have to spend a fortune when eating out in Torquay. We want you to have the very best experience on the English Riviera, and part of that is going out for some lovely meals. Our two leaflets detailing our favourite places to eat are therefore jam packed with the very best places – the best for locally caught fresh fish, the best for South Asian cuisine, the best for tapas, the best Italian, the best independently owned restaurants, and even a Michelin
Top Ten Christmas Gift Ideas
1 Rockfish Tinned Seafood Our famous Brixham harbour is just across the Bay from Torquay and forms part of the English Riviera. You can now take advantage of the fresh daily caught fish from the Rockfish chain of restaurants by celebrity chef Mitch Tonks by purchasing tinned fish online. This unique delicacy is now available mail-order. https://therockfish.co.uk/collections/rockfish-tinned-seafood 2 Rib Ride You may have seen the video on Facebook recentl
Importance of Feedback
I’m sure I’ve had a moan about this before, but why do almost no hotels or bed and breakfasts ask for guest feedback? If they do, then it’s likely to be a form with a few questions asking for a score out of ten or to grade from terrible to excellent with no open questions. As our previous guests will know, we have a feedback form on the rear of their personalised welcome letter on the bed. We’ve always done this from day one as I saw the importance of feedback following my customer service exper
Design over substance
This is not the first time I’ve talked about a hotel using an interior designer but not thinking about the actual end user – the guest. We’ve stayed in two hotels recently, one for pleasure in Cornwall and one for business in London. Both were part of small independent chains and fell short of what we were expecting. It’s only when we stay somewhere else that we realise how much thinking has gone into our own rooms. When I design a bedroom, anyone who has stayed here or looked at our website wil
Best fish restaurant in Torquay
We’re often asked where the best place to eat fish is in Torquay. If you’ve not been to stay at The 25 before, the reason guests often want to eat fish is that just a short ferry ride across from Torquay is the town of Brixham, which is also part of the English Riviera. Brixham has a fishing port which lands the largest value of fish anywhere in the UK. It therefore makes sense to eat some of that delicious, locally caught fish literally the same day in a restaurant overlooking the sea or har
Guide to Choosing a Pillow
Getting a great night's sleep can often come down to having the right pillow, but with thousands of guests a year staying at The 25, how on earth do we offer a pillow that suits everyone? Some people like a soft and squishy one so it cradles their head, others like so soft it ends up flat as a pancake and others like it so firm it doesn’t move at all. With fifteen years’ experience in hospitality we believe we have the most ideal compromise, along with alternate pillows if needed. We use an en
No pre-order breakfast
Having been contestants on the ever popular TV show Four in a Bed whilst still at our last hotel in North Wales, I have to confess we never miss an episode. It’s an ideal opportunity to see inside other people’s accommodation businesses and how they run them. You get to see what they put on their tea trays, what they serve for breakfast and what little extras they offer. Which other businesses have this kind of access to other similar businesses on a daily basis? However, a weekly moan for us
Walks in Torquay
We’ve had some amazing autumn sunshine down here on the English Riviera over the last few weeks. And what great timing for the first ever English Riviera Walking Festival which took place over the last two weeks. I believe it’s been incredibly successful with a whole range of walks, all bookable online, covering all types of terrain and abilities. Many walks had themes such as Agatha Christie, others took in the South West Coast Path and others explored why the area is a unique UNESCO Global G
Silence is Golden
We’ve all been to hotels and had a bad night’s sleep. How many times have you been to a large hotel – the kind where there’s a row of 50 rooms all off one long corridor? There’s a heavy self-closing fire door about every ten bedrooms so each time a business person heads to their early breakfast, the doors go bang, bang, bang as each one shuts in turn. Then the housekeepers arrive, and they struggle getting their trolleys through the doors so push and clatter them through as they go. Next the
Gin Making Experience
The Gin Nest (part of The Wine Box, an independently owned local off licence) is located opposite B&Q on the way out of Torquay, in the direction of the M5. It’s dead easy to find, just turn right out of our drive and after a mile you’ll come to the B&Q traffic lights – turn right here. However, if you’re going on a Gin Making Experience, why on earth would you want to drive? We took part in the activity earlier this week and chose to walk. There’s a lovely wooded path which runs alongside t
Local Gin Shop
There’s only one shop better than one that sells just gin, and that’s a shop that sells nothing but gin and chocolate! Fortunately for me there’s one such shop only a ten minute drive down the road in Babbacombe which only opened in December and is run by the lovely Wendy who is more than happy to chat about gin all day long. If you pop in there next time you’re staying at The 25, she can take you through the array of local craft gins available so you can work out the best one to buy and take h