Graduation Week in St Andrews

This week is the time that we say goodbye to a good number of students who have helped make the town such a great place to visit - they do add a certain buzz to it all.

So, well done to all the graduands, and we do hope that we will see you over the years to come when you return to the town (and remember that many do to get married!)

Despite the forecasts, we have been enjoying some great weather, and it is good to have so many of our clients making use of the wonderful Terrace for lunch, afternoon tea, or simply a glass of champagne.

Phil and Euan, our gardeners, have been working hard to get the gardens and grounds in tip-top condition, and we have had a steady flow of vegetables, salads and herbs coming in to the kitchen over the last few weeks.

As always, we have some great deals available now and over the next few months for those of you looking for a short-break. The East Neuk is not just about golf - fantastic scenery and some of the best hospitality (obviously at Rufflets) makes the area an ideal destination. Do check out the website.

Happy New Year to one and all from all at Rufflets, and best wishes for a wonderful 2011.

We do hope that we will be able to welcome you to the hotel at some point in the very near future, and as always, please do check our on-line bookings page for the best rates, or perhaps have a look at our Late Deals on the Short Breaks page.

The Winter Blues.....

I am pleased to say that the roads are all now completely clear of snow - a bit of slush still around, but all passable.

The last week has been interesting to say the least - we have been working hard to make sure that the hotel is clear and safe for access for our customers, but the main problem has been the wider travel issues.

Most of the staff did try very hard to get into the hotel for work - even Dorothy who looks after breakfast service (she lives in one of the highest villages in the area but managed with her 4 wheel drive car).

Always listening.....

One of the things that has been raised by our residents over the past six months has been the matter of full wifi coverage in the hotel. We have now extended the coverage to all the bedrooms in the main hotel as well, offering free access to the high-speed internet system that we have.

And finally......

We are all looking forward to a busy few weeks and for those of you who won't be able to pop in we would like to wish you a very merry Christmas, and we hope to see you again in 2011.

The Hotel Inspector

Twice a year, we get a surprise visit by secret inspectors (from the AA and Visitscotland), and last week, we had our annual visit from Visitscotland.

Being scrutinised (un-announced) by someone who uses a fine tooth-comb is always difficult , and this time around was no exception, but we are really pleased that we have, yet again, had a very good report.

Perhaps the fact that the total score has gone up, meaning that we have been again recommeded for 4 gold stars, is pleasing. But for us, the fact that he looks at the service that other guests receive is even more important, and the staff have been highly praised for the overall high level of customer service that they have delivered.

The fact that we are now at No. 1 in Tripadvisor for hotels in St Andrews means that many of our other clients think that we are very good as well!

Staff on Secondment!!

One of the good things that happened last year is that one of our reservations team, Sam Adam, was awarded a scholarship in conjunction with HIT Scotland and Golf Tourism Scotland (GTS), as she had won the 'Young Industry Person of the Year' at the GTS Awards last October.

The reward for winning this was to spend a week in the USA working with an agent specialising in golf tourism into the UK, and she went out last week to Florida to carry out her secondment with a company called Golfpac.

She is obviously being kept very busy, as we have not heard from her as yet, but I am sure that when she returns next week she will (as always) be full of enthusiasm and energy - and full of new ideas.

It is good to know that our staff are recognised by the industry for the hard work that they put in, and the fact that they do work hard to promote the very best of what our country (and Fife) can give to our visitors.

I hope that when she returns, she might find time to be able to post a blog all about her experiences.

The end of the Summer - we hope not!

It is always interesting at this time of year to see that, even with the days getting shorter, we still have lots of clients visiting the hotel for a whole range of reasons.

Golf is still clearly a real draw, and although now approaching the end of the season, we are really pleased that all our golfing parties are enjoying some fantastic golf, and more of them enjoying the Old Course.

There are still many other reasons for coming to St Andrews as well, and the numbers of people coming for short breaks - whether it is mid-week or weekends is increasing all the time.

For me personally, the end of the summer is marked by the fact that my children have started school again, and so the reality of school-runs and homework sessions has hit home again. So, our plans are that we will be looking for a short holiday sometime in October, and hopefully we will be able to find some options as good as the ones on offer at Rufflets!

So, for those of you reading this, keep an eye on our breaks page on the site, as well as the 'Late Deals' page, as these do offer some great value.

We are also finalising the Christmas and New Year menus at the moment, and these will be published very soon, so again, keep a watch for them on the site.

Finally, we will be launching the new a la carte menu in mid-September!

Regards to all - hope to see you soon........

Another great Open Golf Week.....

The dust is settling after what has been a very busy week for the hotel (and obviously the town), and whilst we still have a few of our guests with us, we are now back to the normal operation.

As can be expected, we have seen a huge rise in enquiries from overseas from clients who have seen the delights of St Andrews on TV wanting to come and see it in the flesh, so the phones have been busy.

The dates for the next St Andrews Open are yet to be announced, and it will probably be September before they are confirmed, but we do know that there is a desire to have the 150th Open in St Andrews, which means that the next time the show will be in town will be either 2015 or 2016, so watch this space.

The sun is shining, and the East Neuk is looking at its best, and we are looking forward to a good second half of the summer.

As always, we are keeping our webiste up to date with all the room rates, and so if you are planning on coming our way, do check them out.