Baskerville House

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Baskerville House

Baskerville House was a Georgian coaching inn, a pub and now a boutique hotel, with 11 ensuite rooms
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12/11/2021

We were delighted to host a thoroughly enjoyable dinner with forty-five, delightful members of the Brecon and Radnor Conservative Association. In attendance were Fay Jones MP, James Evans MS and Tom Tugendhat MP

This winter, the reality of sharp rises in petrol, gas, electricity, food and labour together with recent tax rises and the latest allegations of corruption should dent the popularity of this corrosive government. One which seems immune to simple, common sense and ignorant of any world beyond the Notting Hill, Eton, Harrow and Cotswold corridor.
So it was encouraging and refreshing to hear a heartfelt and passionate talk from Tom Tugendhat, which demonstrated to us all that there are still morally sound, articulate and capable people in Parliament. Not the showiest or most visible Members, individuals such as this best represent our hopes for the future of government and indeed politics in general .

Our thanks to all of them for making time in their busy schedules and we look forward to the next event.

03/08/2021

The bar as it is now and one or two further shots of the interior, then onto the website for the rest.

29/07/2021

We are settling in to a new life. These last two weekends we have hosted large private events for over forty each time, which all went off very well with great feedback. The bed and breakfast side is up and running and beginning to get busy. In advance of some professional photographs next week, here's an update of what some parts of this old building now look like. It's been a long slog but the place is beginning to look loved!

25/06/2021

Since September last year, we have removed over five tons of brick, plaster and timber, installed 200 metres of new copper pipe, the same for electrics, revamped our customer loos (they finally have central heating), rebuilt our bedrooms and bathrooms, a new commercial kitchen and private dining room. It's been traumatic and we are indebted to a few hardy souls who helped us through.

Shaun Lerigo has been with us for a long time. Shaun can pretty much turn his hand to anything and has been our ally in this development from the start.
Simon Anderson, SMA Plumbing and Mike Greenow MG Carpentry, both from Talgarth. An old school plumber and carpenter respectively but so much more than that. Utterly reliable and hard working and for anyone requiring anything to do with bathrooms or kitchens, I could not recommend them more highly. We are grateful to have found them.

So far, so good. Sadly, for those of you looking forward to returning, the news is not so good. We have been smitten with the latest problem crippling the hospitality industry, namely acute staff shortages. It's well documented. The loss of possibly 200,000 workers has arisen through a combination of Brexit and the fact that many people have reflected on life over this last year or so and reached the conclusion that this business is not for them. Already short staffed, on the cusp of reopening we lost some key players, including our head chef. Though we are searching, it’s totally unrealistic to presume in this environment that we can replace them in the very near future.

As for the wider picture, it is worrying. This further crisis for hospitality is mirrored across other service sectors and a prolonged exit of skilled people from the industry itself, from Wales and other rural areas is something that may well continue. If it does, it will alter business outlook dramatically and the very existence of hotels, pubs, cafes and restaurants.

We have decided therefore to embrace the change and turn necessity into a virtue and move forward in a positive way. We do not have the staff though to allow us to function normally. Food and beverage operations on a part time basis sadly, are not workable but we will continue to honour our advance bookings on a bed and breakfast basis, plus we do have the capacity to cater for larger private events or group bookings.

It's disappointing but pivoting this way means we move on, maintain our licence, keep our few remaining staff happy and operate in a fashion that will allow us to swing back into action quickly if the employment situation changes, as we suspect it must.

Please do call or email us for any further information and in the meantime, we will update the website and Facebook as things move along or with any news.

12/05/2021

The Welsh government kindly stepped into line with England and announced a welcome easing of restrictions for hospitality businesses from Monday 16th May.

It’s undoubtedly a great relief and very welcome news for so many although here, the doors have to remain closed for a while yet. The refurbishment of this building has been exhausting and frustrating. It’s also heavily behind schedule, primarily due to the difficulties in finding good tradespeople, which seems to be a common complaint across the whole country.

Mercifully, things are nearing completion. We have to wait for a new fire alarm system and the replacement of some roof areas next month and plan to reopen in July. That’s subject also to rebuilding our team, which understandably has shrunk after such a long period of closure. Hopefully we’ll be luckier there!

I'll post an update in June when things are clearer.

04/12/2020

Feeling confused?
So are we after a bewildering few months of ever changing rules; standing orders, last orders, marching orders, social distance, no assistance, firebreaks, higher peaks, tiers, fears and now the latest genius move by Westminster and the devolved governments, lockdown by stealth.

I’m delighted we made the decision to keep our doors closed on the now proved correct assumption that there was more to come. For those souls in the hospitality industry that decided to forge ahead, we feel for them. Now they have been slapped in the face, often despite the stringent efforts made to conform to some very difficult restrictions. If you get the opportunity and find that rare animal, a restaurant, pub or hotel that is actually open in December, do try and give them some custom. Not only am I certain it will be warmly appreciated but indirectly, the hard-hit F & B suppliers benefit too. This side of the industry has been to an extent under reported and neglected but the reality is that many food merchants, breweries and the swathes of support businesses that depend on a thriving hospitality sector face a dire Christmas, particularly here in Wales.

There may be trouble ahead, probably with further shutdowns, so we will keep our doors closed and carry on with our renovations and hope to emerge next year with the Covid and Brexit monsters behind us. Let’s hope Irving Berlin got it wrong and Emerson was right. After all, Tomorrow is a new day!

15/09/2020

Well the good news from here is that we are moving forward, albeit pretty slowly due to various problems encountered along the way. Inevitable I suppose in a property of over 10,000 square feet. With the exception of the kitchen, soon to be gutted also, downstairs is done and we are currently in the process of stripping out all eleven bedrooms.

The bad news, for anyone hoping to eat, drink or stay here soon is that our timetable is skewed. It has dawned on us very recently that with so much work to be done and with, in my opinion at least, the certainty of further lockdown measures ahead, there is no realistic way to get our business open again this year. I'm sorry for the many people, locals and returning visitors alike who have tried to book and who had hoped we would be up and running in the winter somehow but I'm afraid the circumstances just don't permit that option. We thought long and hard on this but we are committed to finishing what we started and this is the best way forward.

So many apologies for the delayed public appearance of our new look. Let's hope 2021 sees either a return to normal or we all find an acceptable way of managing things within a more rigorously controlled environment. Either way, we will forge ahead with our plans and welcome next year all smart and gleaming and open a new chapter in this building’s life story.

03/08/2020

In line with the Welsh Government's lifting of restrictions on hospitality businesses from today, it seems our neighbours are making plans for reopening, albeit with various limitations on both their hours of service and the style of offering envisaged

We can’t comment on the plans of others but wish them luck. In our opinion, the current advice would make for difficult operations in an economic environment that is anything but certain, with limited tourists and people still wary of venturing out. Our focus now, after months of closure is how best to survive what will undeniably be a difficult autumn and winter. The Government’s murmurings don’t exactly inspire hope and the fear of enforced closure in September or later is real and the associated disruption to staff and customers, not to mention the economic pain it would cause is not one we are prepared to face.

So for the present we remain closed, whereby we can manage costs effectively and watch carefully how things unfold - or unravel. Hopefully, with no further downturns and schools returning without issue, we will look to some form of reopening for food and drinks in late September, with accommodation some time after that. In the interim though, may we take this opportunity to thank you for the many kind thoughts and good wishes passed on to us. In equal measure, we wish you all well also and in the not too distant future, we hope for a fitting and permanent end to this very annoying time.

23/06/2020

Today, the Prime Minister is expected to allow some further easing of restrictions on group attractions such as cafes, cinemas, pubs, restaurants and museums from July 4th. Quite how this will pan out is far from clear but there is at least the start of something.

Here in Wales, the current restrictions remain, with no further announcements due until the Government's next assessment on 9th July. At that point, although there are some expected changes to the rules surrounding self catered holiday accommodation and travel, there is no indication that indoor venues such as hotels, restaurants and pubs will be allowed to operate.

It's a difficult call, with the tourist months in Wales all but destroyed but with ministers under enormous pressure to allow the country to salvage something, at the risk of undermining their stance so far.It's possible there may be changes by mid August but at this stage it's likely to come with so many caveats that it's unlikely to prove commercially sustainable. If one adds in the threat of possible spikes in the autumn and winter sending people scurrying back indoors, hospitality businesses are going to find it difficult

So although we have only just marked the summer solstice, it's essential to make a realistic plan based on nothing significant occurring in the next two months. As such we are now making plans for September onward and under some kind of restricted commercial operation to take us to the other side, if that's not too apocalyptic given the cartoon!.

In the meantime, we have altered a lot and have two new rooms for quiet drinks and dining in addition to the main bar and restaurant area. This autumn and winter will see all eleven bedrooms and bathrooms refurbished and trust that along with everyone else, we'll witness a better 2021.

11/05/2020

I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore!
We know how Dorothy must have felt emerging into Oz. Seven weeks on and we seem no closer to actually understanding the landscape or what the future holds, despite the Government utterances last night.

Some things have changed for ever. We don’t at this stage have any idea what the post lockdown environment will bring. What has become clear in recent weeks is this is being driven by big City sentiment but the effects are in some respects worse in the rural communities. Here in the Welsh Marches, with large numbers of self-employed trades and business people and so many directly and indirectly affected by tourism it may alter our entire demographic.

It’s clear that things are also much worse for some. The combination of grants, business rates reductions and the furlough scheme have lessened the blow for many but businesses forced to look at taking on debt and those outside any Government support provision face a very hard time indeed. Likewise, all the suppliers, many of them family concerns, who support tourism and hospitality businesses have seen a massive reduction in turnover. Our thoughts are with them all.

With regard to hotel bookings and future outlook, it’s impossible to gauge more than 4-5 weeks ahead and the Welsh assembly has suggested it will be September before we have a better picture. Its probable we will be closed for the whole summer and possibly the entire year. We have tried to use the time wisely though and finished the renovations downstairs to bar and restaurant and are now continuing with other areas and the garden.

Whatever happens, we’ll be up and running on the other side of this, whenever that may be and look forward to seeing you then.

Address

Clyro, Nr Hay On Wye
Clyro
HR35RZ

Website

http://www.baskerville-house.com/

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Our story

The Baskerville Arms Hotel is a family run, country inn only a 30 minute walk or 4 minute drive away from Hay on Wye. We have 11 en-suite rooms in the hotel, a traditional bar plus a restaurant with roaring fires in the colder months, a function room and smaller dining room for private events. We serve both pub style food and more elaborate dishes, all of which are sourced from a very local base and cooked to order.

Sitting amongst some of the finest walking countryside in Great Britain, we have fishing, kayaking and shooting opportunities on the doorstep and the Hay Festival, Royal Agricultural Show at Builth Wells and Brecon Jazz festival only a few miles away.

We have large and exciting plans for the BAH with substantial but sympathetic upgrades to the rooms and common parts. The business, originally an important coaching inn, has a terrific history and we look forward to revitalising and re-establishing it as an essential part of a truly wonderful community in a beautiful region.