23/12/2020
The Trevelyan, Christmas, and Those Covid Tiers
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The Christmas Holiday
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❀ We are closed for Christmas. This has always been the case since we started running this guest house. This has nothing to do with the changing 'Christmas bubble' rules.
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What to Expect During Your Stay
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❀ Guests must wear masks in all communal areas of the building. The sole exception is the dining room. It is somewhat difficult to eat or drink while wearing a mask, although doubtless some youtubers and tiktokers have tried.
❀ Guests should not mingle or loiter within the building or entrance. In addition, guests who step outside to smoke should be clear of the steps leading to the front door.
❀ Any guests who book and then find themselves unable to stay for their intended purpose as a result of an increase in tier will not be charged (and will be given a refund for any money already paid).
❀ For the duration of the Covid-19 crisis, some guest rooms have been permanently closed. This is to ensure that all guests rooms will have either an ensuite bathroom, or an external bathroom that is for that room's exclusive use. No rooms have shared bathrooms.
❀ For the duration of the covid-19 crisis, we cannot offer room service.
❀ Guests will be provided with extra tea/coffee for their room on request.
❀ Guests staying for several days who have rubbish should bag it up and leave it in the hallway by the kitchen for collection. Guests who are staying for an extended period will be offered fresh bed linen and towels; however, as we do not enter guest rooms during their stay, guests making use of this facility will be expected to strip and dress the beds themselves. The used linen can then be left outside the room in a basket for collection.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close/closing-certain-businesses-and-venues-in-england
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We Are Currently in Tier 3
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Lancaster (indeed, the whole county) is currently in tier 3. As such, we are only accepting bookings from guests who are travelling for a reason that is allowed under the tier 3 guidelines. In particular, we expect any guest to provide documents in advance of arrival to prove that they are travelling for such a reason. This will normally mean an email from their employer, medical professional, funeral director, or other service provider that confirms the purpose of their travel. Also due to tier 3 restrictions, we are not able to open our dining room or provide room service. We can offer a packaged bacon sandwich (or equivalent substitute) as a take-out breakfast.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-3-very-high-alert
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Speculation on Changing to Tier 2
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There has been some speculation that Lancaster will be considered separate from the rest of the county, and may drop down to tier 2. What does that mean for us?
Guests travelling from a tier 3 area continue to carry their tier 3 status with them. This means that for anyone travelling from such an area, all the rules for tier 3 continue to apply (no dining room access, take-out sandwich for breakfast, email from employer or other authority required to confirm the stay is for a permitted purpose).
Tier 2 does allow for hotels to be open for tourism and/or holidays.
However, it advises that such travel be 'local'. We have chosen to interpret 'local' for this purpose as meaning 'neighbouring county'. This means that (based on current tiers), we would be able accept holidaymakers from the following areas: Merseyside, Cumbria, North Yorkshire, and Lancaster (city council). The other neighbouring counties are currently under tier 3 restrictions, and so we would only be able to offer guests travelling from those areas hospitality under the tier 3 rules.
For insurance reasons, even if we do drop to tier 2, we would be unable to accept holiday/leisure guests travelling from tier 1 or tier 2 areas who do not live in a neighbouring county.
Guests travelling from a distant (non-neighbouring county) tier 1 or tier 2 area may stay if they can satisfy the tier 3 requirements.
We would be able to offer a full cooked breakfast to tier 2 guests. Breakfast will be table service only. Guests should book a breakfast time slot (8:00, 8:45, or 9:30 am) no later than 9pm the day before. On the day, they must wait to be seated, and should not leave their seats except to leave the room.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-2-high-alert
