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Home > Blackpool Hotels and Guesthouses > Accommodation and Grading of our hotels in Blackpool
Accommodation and Grading of our hotels in Blackpool
Blackpool Hotels, Guesthouses, Self Catering Apartments and B&B's.
StayBlackpool only represents Quality Assessed accommodation providers. You can rest assured that all the accommodation featured on this website meets a minimum standard set out by either VisitBritain, AA or RAC. Some hotels still adopt the local 'Quality' standard.
The quality of the best B&Bs has risen markedly in recent years, and national tourism agency VisitBritain has raised the game further by announcing that it now only promotes accommodation that has been inspected, checked and graded by an intrepid band of Quality Assessors. Also, the accommodation is being assessed and rated by all the main inspection bodies using a common set of criteria. This means that a B&B in say, Blackpool, will be awarded the same number of stars (some have still have diamonds or the quality grade) no matter who it is checked by, giving peace of mind to the traveller who finds it easier to compare places to stay.
VisitBritain has a team of 55 trained accommodation assessors working throughout England - and checking out B&B's is a very important part of their job. Like a secret agent of sorts, they book incognito, study all aspects of a property, including cleanliness and customer service, stay overnight and eat all meals offered, including that special cooked breakfast. Only when they have paid the bill do the assessors reveal their true identity, when they spend time pointing out to the host anything not up to scratch.
Key to their role is being able to preserve their anonymity until check-out time. They have to look like a 'normal' guest and will vary their dress according to the type of accommodation visited - for example a business suit in a remote property used mainly by walkers or tourists would be a complete give-away. Only rarely are the host's suspicions aroused!
So how does a B&B vary from a hotel in an assessor's eyes? "At a B&B we put more emphasis on hospitality than attentive service - the people who run it are key to the whole thing. Taking an interest in their guests and making them feel welcome is so important. But cleanliness is paramount, just as in a hotel," says Alison Barham, Quality Manager at VisitBritain and formerly an assessor for 10 years.
Informality is part of the appeal: the owner's children taking breakfast orders would be 'cute' in a B&B but not necessarily in a hotel.
The reactions from owners when assessors disclose their 'true identity' range from "I thought you were an assessor but I didn't let on," to one woman who passed out in the hallway on hearing the news. "My colleague was 6ft 7in tall, so maybe his mere presence was overpowering," says Alison.
At the end of the process the B&B will be awarded one to five Stars or Diamonds (this is a period of transition; Stars will replace Diamonds fully from 2007 and are already used exclusively in Scotland and Wales). This in turn provides visitors with the information to make an informed choice when booking their accommodation. Choose from one star/diamond for a simple, practical place with no frills; or five star/diamond for something rather special, with a degree of luxury. The more stars, the better the level of quality you can expect to find. Accommodation that has something extra special to offer gets the bonus of a Gold or Silver Award. With these, you can be sure your experience will be of the highest quality.
As with most areas of life, you get what you pay for with B&B and it is not necessarily a low-cost option. Though you will find pleasant, clean and comfortable B&Bs for as little as 22 per person per night, at some the cost heads skywards from 70 to 215 per person per night.
For many guests, it is the B&B hosts who really make their stay. These are people who are proud of their homes and neighbourhoods, know the best local pubs and restaurants, can point you towards the most historic attractions and the prettiest beauty-spots. In short, they are walking, talking mines of information and they are determined you will have a good time.
As someone once said, B&B is a little like staying with friends but you pay for the pleasure. Equally reassuring is the fact that someone like Alison (motto: "we check it out before you check in") has been there first.
For further information visit www.qualityintourism.com
