Each year we attend several trade shows and exhibitions for the hotel and tourism trade. We've just returned from the Independent Hotel Show in London.
Whilst we were there, we were proud to pick up a ROSE Award (in Recognition of Service Excellence) from Visit England. It was great to be recognised by the national tourism agency in England.
Our main reasons for going are to stay abreast of the latest trends, source new suppliers and gain new ideas. We also always stay at another top hotel to see what they are doing - as London often leads the way in hospitality.
This year, as we become more established it was good to see some of our existing suppliers face to face and catch up with them. We also saw a few friends there. We find it hard to go anywhere without being recognised nowadays! There were also some useful seminars.
It was an enjoyable few days and an opportunity also for us to celebrate our recent awards success with afternoon tea at one of our favourite places - Browns Hotel.
We've come back with lots of ideas and some potential new suppliers so we're raring to get on with our winter renovations and making our bedrooms even better than they currently are. Although we've won some awards lately, we personally still have lots we want to do to improve the guest experience even more. Watch this space...