A small bed and breakfast in Great Dunmow has been named as a top hotel in the East of England beating some big, expensive hotels.
Harwood House in Stortford Road, run by a married couple, has been rated by the people who have stayed there and come out a winner on feedback websites including Trip Advisor, Google Plus and Booking.com.
The accolade has been given by Trivago which constantly assesses the comments on such websites but for the first time this year, has decided to release a national list, broken down into regions.
Harwood House, with just eight rooms en suite, which as it says on its website, is just five miles from Stansted Airport, has been rated 15 in a list of all the hotels commented on in the Eastern Region, including the most expensive luxury ones.
Customers noted the friendliness of its staff, Harwood’s “excellent breakfast” and said the rooms were “very large” and “exceptionally clean”.
Helen Aldridge, who has owned the B&B with her husband Ian for nine years, told The Broadcast: “We are delighted. They mentioned our good service. My husband is always smiling and cheerful. He trained at the Leith School of Food and Wine and he cooks the breakfasts. We have locally sourced food. Our sausages are from Hatfield Broad Oak, we serve free range eggs from a nearby farm. He always cooks the breakfasts to order, we don’t have food waiting around.”
She added: “We have just refurbished all the rooms with Laura Ashley wallpaper. The rooms have iPod docks and high quality magazines. We want people to be as comfortable as possible. The house began as a family home and I think people like that.”
The couple, who have three daughters aged eight, seven and four, live in the house next door to the 1930s B&B which they first moved into as their family home when their eldest daughter was on the way.
Denise Bartlett from Trivago said: “What is interesting is that we thought it would be the luxury hotels which got the high ratings. But it isn’t, it’s the bed and breakfasts. We think people like to stay somewhere that is family run.”
The top hotel in the nation is Hotel 41 in Knightsbridge. Number three on the list is a small B&B in Blackpool, the Arthington Guest House.
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