Accommodation

to stay

• As with all things in life you get what you pay for
• Whether that is what you are looking for is another matter
• Accommodation in Britain obviously covers from the cheap and cheerful to the extravagantly luxurious
• Here we will cover hotels, bed & breakfast and other places to stay

• Britain does have big hotel chains, but they are not the norm that they are in the USA. Most UK hotels are privately owned. The group hotels tend to be more expensive and less personal.
• Your best bet is to get hold of a good (and reputable) guide book. There are a lot of books portaining to be guide books, but that are merely compendiums of paid adverts for hotels
• The AA Hotel book and the Michelin Guide to Britain are the ones which cover the most hotels and also have independant inspections. Their weakness is that the write ups on each hotel are minimal
• Or you could try the Tourist Boards "Commended Hotels" book which does at least have photographs, but is not as comprehensive
• Britain does not have a unified, national hotel grading system. You will see hotels boastings both stars (from AA or RAC or Tourist Board). They are not always comparable
• The best one to follow is the AA stars. They awards 1 to 5 stars based solely on the hotels facilities - note they are nothing to do with quality. Quality marks are awarded separately. So confusingly a 2 star hotel may have a higher quality mark than a 3 star (and indeed cost more)
• To get a range of hotels try Country House Hotels for an easy to find selection of hotels
• If you are coming to Cornwall, then stay with us at Corisande Manor, Cornwall
• 0r a wide selection at Hotels of Britain

• Most British people would book directly with the hotel and not use a travel agent
• however most hotels are happy to accept reservations from travel agents

• A sore point with hotels. In Britain once you have made a reservation then you are liable for the cost even if you cancel, unless the hotel can re-let the room.
• This is not the practice in North America - hence a culture gap between many overseas visitors and the hotels they are going to stay at, as guests believe their reseervation with the hotelis only one sided and that they can cancel with equinimity
• If in doubt ask what the hotels cancellation policy is when you make a reservation. After all you waould not like to turn up and find there was no room at the inn

Departure

• Most hotels will expect you to vacatre your room on the day of your departure by about 11 a.m.
• Similarly on arrival , it is unlikely that your room would be ready before around 1 p.m. unless you have enquired in advance
• To avid misunderstanding you should let a hotel know if you are going to arrive afer 6 p.m.

Breakfast

• In Britain this invariably refers to rooms available in private houses.
• You will find a forest of signs advertising Bed & breakfast establishments on the outskirts of tourist towns and in the countryside in touring areas like the West Country or the Cotswolds
• Standards vary from the sublime (which will cost you more than a good hotel) to the ridiculous (rather you than me!)
• Prices in country areas start around £15 per person per night for room and breakfast, and will vary with season.. B & Bs in towns will cost more.
• If you are going to use B&Bs then for goodness sake buy a good guide book. You will have far fewer problems with a guide book than if you take pot luck.
• Buy a guide book at any branch of W H Smith, a national chain of newsagents that you will find on virtually every high street.

• Ther are Youth Hostels all over Britain. They are well situated (usuall) in towns. There are also large numbers in the countryside
• Join the International Youth Hostel Federation to get the benefits of membership
• get their guide book of Youth Hostels in Britain and away you go