{"id":1983,"date":"2017-10-15T19:15:08","date_gmt":"2017-10-15T18:15:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/davidwithington.com\/?p=1983"},"modified":"2017-10-15T19:27:06","modified_gmt":"2017-10-15T18:27:06","slug":"where-find-bargain-breaks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/davidwithington.com\/where-find-bargain-breaks\/","title":{"rendered":"Where to Find Those Bargain Breaks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sometimes you\u2019ve just got to get away!<\/span><\/p>\n

But a hotel break can be expensive, can\u2019t it?<\/span><\/p>\n

Well, actually… no.<\/span><\/p>\n

Not with some of those online low-price speciality companies.<\/span><\/p>\n

Somehow, they find special deals and reductions – and email you about them (if you’re on their email list, of course).<\/span><\/p>\n

Hotel and spa breaks, restaurant deals, city breaks…<\/span><\/p>\n

\"hotel<\/a>
Sometimes you just need to get away on a break<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We Can’t Believe It!<\/span><\/h2>\n

Let me tell you about our recent experience.<\/span><\/p>\n

Last week, my wife and I enjoyed a nice break in a Lake District luxury hotel.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was a\u00a0bed & breakfast 2-night package… including a 2-course dinner on the first night.<\/span><\/p>\n

Oh… and a superior room upgrade.<\/span><\/p>\n

All for \u00a3149.<\/span><\/p>\n

For that price, we were a bit sceptical.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Yes, we\u00a0too have been to a few of those hotels which don’t quite live up to expectations.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Rubbish<\/a>
“I hope it isn’t a dump!”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

But this was different.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Good reviews, nice location, swanky website. So we were looking forward to it.<\/span><\/p>\n

But would a discount price mean a less than satisfactory experience?<\/span><\/p>\n

The view was the first thing that struck us when we arrived.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Thankfully, we took in that lovely sight – because the rain arrived on the following day and the view disappeared (well, it is the Lake District!).<\/span><\/p>\n

Christine, my wife, was rather impressed when she opened the door to our room.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“Ooh! This is nice,” she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

“What a lovely room.”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Hunday<\/a>
Why do people take photographs of their hotel rooms?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“And a nice bathroom too!” she continued…<\/span><\/p>\n

“Come and look at this, Luv!”<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Hunday<\/a>
And why do people insist on taking photographs of a bathroom?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A good view from the bedroom-window set it off nicely – before the Lake-District-rain made that disappear too.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But at least the Autumnal colours in the garden made up for it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Does a Hotel Really Care?<\/span><\/h2>\n

When the hotel staff pay attention to detail, it’s usually a tell-tale sign that your stay is going to be enjoyable.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

You see… being typical Brits, immediately after unpacking, the kettle went on.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And, on the tea-tray, we noticed all the milk cartons were neatly lined up.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Hunday<\/a>
Even the milk cartons were all lined up.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That’s not normal in a typical hotel. But someone here had paid attention to little details.<\/span><\/p>\n

And it was noticed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Dinner and Ducks<\/span><\/h2>\n

Where do hotels find the personalities for their restaurant?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Our Italian waiter (complete with genuine Italian accent) was helpful, friendly and full of personality – you know, the sort of person you’d choose as a butler if you could afford one.<\/span><\/p>\n

My duck-salad starter and guinea-fowl for the main course were delicious. All part of the \u00a325 TDH menu which was included in the package.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Hunday<\/a>
My Duck-Salad starter from our Italian Waiter<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Hunday<\/a>
…and the main course. Why do people insist on taking photographs of their food?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Of course, the wine wasn’t included with the dinner. But \u00a316.50 wasn’t an extraordinary price to pay for a nice bottle\u00a0of red in a\u00a0quality hotel.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the second night: no problem. The \u00a312.50 seafood-platter bar meal was just as delicious, and was served to us in the restaurant – by our same Italian waiter.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Hunday<\/a>
The \u00a312.50 seafood platter<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“OK, David, where is that hotel?” I hear you ask.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was the Hunday Manor Hotel<\/a>, near Cockermouth.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Hunday<\/a>
Even the rain didn’t dampen the character of Hunday Manor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Finding the Hotels<\/span><\/h2>\n

“And how did you find this break, David?”<\/span><\/p>\n

Simple. We found this particular offer on Travel Zoo<\/a>, simply because we subscribe to their email list.<\/span><\/p>\n

But there are other similar companies, such as Holiday Pirates<\/em> and Late Luxury<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

After I submitted the review of this particular break to Travel Zoo<\/a>, they sent me a refer-a-friend link as a thank you.<\/span><\/p>\n

For every friend I refer, I’ll get a tenner.<\/span><\/p>\n

And even better news for you… you’ll get a tenner too!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Happy days.<\/span><\/p>\n

So now you know…<\/span><\/p>\n

There’s no need to work, work, work without a break or a massive budget.<\/span><\/p>\n

You just need to pick where and when to go.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And… relax.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Travel<\/a>
We found our luxury break on Travel Zoo<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sometimes you\u2019ve just got to get away! But a hotel break can be expensive, can\u2019t it? Well, actually… no. Not with some of those online low-price speciality companies. Somehow, they find special deals and reductions – and email you about them (if you’re on their email list, of course). Hotel and spa breaks, restaurant deals, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1997,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[99,3,231],"tags":[156,267,266,265],"yoast_head":"\nWhere to Find Those Bargain Breaks - David Withington<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Sometimes you simply need to get away on a break. 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