In common with many other industries the Hospitality Industry has found 2011 to be a very tough year, so at the Hillthwaite we were very happy to welcome back so many old friends to stay with us in October. In addition I am also very happy to report that in addition we saw an upsurge in the numbers of new guests sharing and enjoying the Hillthwaite experience for the first time, and from the feedback from our Guest Comment Cards it seems that most of them will soon be joining our ever growing band of returning guests.

The review website 'Trip Advisor' has come under some scrutiny during the past few months and the recent Channel 4 documentary did little to dispel the belief held by many hoteliers and guest house owners that the publication of highly personalised reviews has caused and continues to cause considerable collateral damage to hard won reputations and livelihoods. At the Hillthwaite we take a positive view of Trip Advisor- warts and all. The recent phenomenal growth of internet social networking has convinced us that this form of of guest feedback is here to stay and that we have to take the good and not so good reviews in our stride, all we ask of our guests is that their review is honest and constructive, and whenever possible if you find something you are unhappy about whilst staying at the Hillthwaite to give us the opportunity to put the problem right before posting a review on Trip Advisor. I have been criticized by some members of staff for not replying to the good reviews as well as the not so good. I can assure all our guests that this is not due to complacency or ingratitude, it is merely because the time taken to pen a review reply can often be considerable. Therefore, I would like to use my blog to thank all our guests who take the time to write a review on Trip Advisor, please continue to do so, we do read them all and always address any issues a review raises.

As Christmas draws near we are heading towards our annual closure period which this year starts on December 11th (after lunch) reopening for our ever popular 'Twixt-Tween' festive break on December 27th. I am happy to report that our pre-Christmas festive lunches, launched for the first time this year, are proving very popular with our local customers and these will undoubtedly become a permanent fixture in future years. As I mentioned in my last blog we have now introduced our new 'Walk -in' menu which has been very favourably received. As you will see from elsewhere on our website, in conjunction with the Walk-in menu we have published our attractive 3 for 2 winter offer. The third 'free' night is on a room and breakfast basis and the Walk in menu gives room and breakfast guests the opportunity to dine on a more informal basis. Our superb five-course dinner menu will of course continue to be a highlight of our standard accommodation packages. As an additional bonus, please note that our exit discount vouchers can also be used in conjunction with our 3 for 2 offer.

It is with some sadness that I have to report that our Restaurant Manager, Marco, has decided to seek pastures new. Marco has been with us for almost five years becoming very popular with all our guests and he leaves us with our best wishes for every success in his new post, we will of course be announcing our plans for Marco's replacement in due course.

Finally on behalf of Marjorie, John, Victoria and Jake and all the staff at the Hillthwaite I would like to wish all our guests a very happy and peaceful Christmas and a very prosperous New Year.

Thanks once again for reading.

Geoff Bond

General Manager