Tapping into twixmas

My personal interactions with the hospitality industry during the latter part of the year had been slightly dispiriting and seriously less than hospitable in the odd case. Early December had seen a celebratory lunch at The Ritz with my mother end rather prematurely following a rather unsavoury confrontation with an exceedingly obnoxious customer. The learning from this was that you can choose your restaurant, but you can’t choose your fellow diners.?

This was followed by a Christmas Eve dinner at The Holborn Dining Room in the Rosewood London Hotel that involved very friendly service, but this was unable to overcome the factors such as overly loud music overpowering the festive chatter and rather pedestrian food for the money. This can lead you to question the value you are receiving for what is the increasingly frequent occurrence of bills running away from you. Needless to say, the bill always finds its way back to you when it’s time to pay.

Thankfully, my spirits were lifted, and my love of dining out returned to me during a short stay between Christmas and New Year (or “Twixmas”) at The Bell Hotel in the Kent town of Sandwich. This has always been a favourite period of my family’s, with a relaxed vibe fuelled by families of multiple generations coming together to celebrate the holiday period.

?Such trips have become an annual activity – we should really call it a Christmas tradition – and often involve grandparents, with everyone enjoying this time together while being absolved from those boring old chores that are involved with having guests to stay and the non-stop cooking of various meals. We have typically decamped to the much-loved Old Bridge Hotel in Huntingdon, but this year we decided to shake things up a bit with a change of scenery in Kent.

The results were pretty much the same. A couple of days in a relaxing environment that is devoid of the invariable pressures that seem to impact on both Christmas and the New Year celebrations. Just like the Old Bridge, The Bell Hotel was stuffed with large multi-generational groups having an enjoyable time together with the upside of a great value food and drink offer. Lots of choices for diners of all generations, and at prices that wouldn’t shock the unfortunate member of the family footing the bill.

The one differential between the two venues was the lack of any Twixmas deal at The Bell Hotel, which we have always valued at the Old Bridge and at other hotels and pubs that undertake similar practices. The deals typically work on the dynamic of half-price accommodation as long as you have two courses in the restaurant for each night of your stay. This has always struck me as a great way to attract business at quieter times of the year and ensure there is a buzzy bar and restaurant. Having a lively food and beverage offer has always been a major driver for me to stay in places where accommodation is available. There’s clearly something of a virtuous circle thing going on here with these promotions.?

In reality, such mechanics can be used at any time of the year. My family’s multi-generational short stays at the glorious The Grand Hotel at Eastbourne have always involved such deals being taken at the peak-time of the school summer holidays. In my case, the hotel ultimately reaps rewards from this promotional offer because I’m a sucker for going large on the wines when faced with linen tablecloths, and The Grand excels in this area.

?Okay, that’s enough looking backwards. Having had my hospitality spirit reignited by Twixmas, I’m now looking forward to 2024 and the opportunity to visit some of the restaurants and bars that I failed to make it to last year – and I’ll no doubt experience some new places that swing open their doors for the first time this year. I’ve already got my eye on some local restaurants as well as locations to visit in the UK. If they have an accommodation/food and beverage promo, then they definitely count me in, and can they please send me the wine list?

Glynn Davis, editor of Retail Insider?

This piece was originally published on Propel Info where Glynn Davis writes a regular Friday opinion piece. Retail Insider would like to thank Propel for allowing the reproduction of this column.