Saturday 30th April 2011 - Gig Championship Weekend

The 2011 World Pilot Gig Championship Weekend is upon us and in full swing! We have quite a few gig rowers staying with us at the hotel this year from various parts of Cornwall.

The weather forecast for the Gig Championship weekend has been bad, but today I think they have got away with it as it has stayed dry, although the winds picked up this afternoon from the east. It could've been a lot worse as last night we had an almighty thunder storm at 2am with lots of super bright lightning and loud thunder and a torrential downpour to go with it! Lets hope the forcast for tomorrow's rain is incorrect for the finals.

Here is a photograph of the gigs all lined up on Town Beach this afternoon. The picture is courtesy of Martin Hall who works in the Coop. He managed to get a good view from the back of the shop on his break.

Guest Review Extracted From TripAdvisor

“A most enjoyable and welcoming stay”

Date of review: 28 Apr 2011

We stayed 3 nights B&B at the Bell Rock in the week before it opened for the season, and we enjoyed the quietness. Daniel and Shirley kindly let us stay ahead of opening and they were most hospitable, friendly, and helpful. Both Shirley and Daniel can cook perfect boiled eggs which were delicious and locally produced.

I would gladly recommend this hotel and in fact did to three ladies on a Saga trip who wanted to come back again under their own steam.

Local hostelries within easy walking distance with excellent real ale and food.

We left as two happy emits.

Date of stay: March 2011
Visit was for: Leisure
Travelled with: spouse/partner
Age group: 50-64

Guest Review Extracted From TripAdvisor

“Best Value On The Islands”

Date of review: 27 Apr 2011

This was my third stay at the Bell Rock and, as usual, Daniel and his colleagues ensured that I had a great time. The Bell Rock is run extremely well with a personal touch lacking in bigger hotels. The hotel is ideally placed just a few minutes from the harbour, the rooms are comfortable and staff friendly. It seems that nothing is too much trouble for the people looking after you and once you've been a couple of times, you're greeted like a friend rather than a customer. Very highly recommended and I hope to be back for a long weekend later this Summer.

Date of stay: April 2011
Visit was for: Leisure
Solo Traveller
Age group: 35-49
Recommended by this reviewer? Yes

Sunday 24th April 2011

...Another lovely weather Sunday for my day off! Lucky me!! :)
The sun caught me out a bit this week though, and I ended up with a red face and the beginnings of a T-Shirt tan; oops!! The wind was deceptive again, and we had managed to tuck away in a sheltered spot at Juliet's Garden for some lunch in the full sun beating down. It's a great spot for watching boats come & go. I love the way the bright sun shimmers on the water.

Sunday 17th April 2011

There are a lot of people walking around with red faces & limbs after the lovely weather we had this Sunday. The sun was strong, and there was a good breeze to mask the heat; and no doubt wind burn factors too! The sea was calm, the skies were blue. Great for my day off! :)

Thursday 14th & Friday 15th April 2011

There's been a bit of cloud cover the last coupe of days, but the sun has been trying to get through. The warmth is there though which is the main thing!

Thursday 14th April - Down the Quay:

Friday 15th April - After The Sun Had Gone To Bed... A Gap In The Clouds At Horizon Level:

Guest Review Extracted From TripAdvisor

“Much, much too good for it's official star rating”

Date of review: 9 Apr 2011

The Bell Rock is a classic example of where traditional star ratings, based on lifts (elevators), 24 hour porterage etc completely miss the point. If you like the ethos of the Scillies then you'll find this hotel perfect. It blends the best aspects of a traditional seaside hotel with high service standards. Our children are 11, 9 and 8 - they loved the generous breakfast, setting them up for a day in the open air. Dinner choices were adequate with some interesting nods to modern cuisine - decent and reasonably priced wine list. All food fresh, well prepared and attractively presented. Rooms clean and equipped wholly in line with price and style of hotel. I'd far rather stay here than most of the 5 star hotels in which I spend too much time!

Date of stay: April 2011
Visit was for: Leisure
Travelled with: Family with Young Children
Recommended by this reviewer? Yes

Sunday 10th April 2011

Well the emphasis was on the "Sun" for "Sunday"... well at least until around 3pm in any case! The day started off like a summer's day with clear blue skies and glorious sunshine. We headed off to the beach for a picnic lunch which was very peaceful and warm... then unfortunately, the fog rolled in!!

Porthcressa:

No, You're Not Having My Lunch!

...Then Here Comes The Fog Rolling In Fast Over The Garrison:

Thanks Sent From Prize Winners

Last year, the Bell Rock Hotel donated a complimentary 3 night stay as a prize for the Cancer Research UK, Isles of Scilly Grand Summer Prize Draw 2010. The lucky winners were Mr & Mrs Davies from Wokingham, Berkshire. They have not long returned home from their stay, and have sent through a kind card of thanks:

Guest Email of Thanks

----- Original Message -----

From: Gerry Handcocks
To: bellrock.hotel@btclick.com
Sent: April 2011 2:26 PM

Subject: Just to say.......................................thank you


Good afternoon,

Just to say ...................... thank you for making our stay with you memorable following the cancellation of our helicopter flight to Penzance.

We appreciate the professional and friendly way you treated us, the welcome you gave us ensuring we were comfortable, and arranging early breakfast enabling us to catch our early flight back to Penzance.

Also many thanks for having medication picked up from the hospital.

Good luck for the season

Kind regards,

Daphne and Gerald Handcocks
Reading
Berkshire

Room Photo Update For The Ground Floor Rooms

We have re-decorated the rooms on the ground floor during the winter closure of 2010/11 and replaced the fabrics to revamp the rooms. We have gone for a lighter shade and simpler, more elegant colours for the fabrics.
I have now taken some new photos of these and replaced the old ones in the "Ground Floor - Easy Access Rooms" photo gallery. This can be found on the right side of the page. The rooms are numbers: 22, 23, 25, & 17.

...Photos to follow: The Dining Room. We now have the new tables, but are still awaiting the new chairs, which should hopefully be with us at the end of April. I will post photos of this when we get these in!

A Few Photos - Wednesday 6th April 2011

The sun is shining, and the sky is an amazing blue, so here's some photographs:

Nicola Lawson Art - Acrylics of Scilly

This is basically a blatant free advertisement for my wife's art! She has been busy over the last few months painting ready for the 2011 season. Her art is now being displayed at the Boatshed Restaurant down on Porthmellon.
It's all new and exciting for Nic as she's only been painting for a year, and her work has been improving with each and every painting.
I've set up a blog for her to show off her paintings to the world. Please do check it out and watch her further progress as we update the site ...And don't forget to ask me at the hotel if you are interested in any ;)

www.acrylicsofscilly.blogspot.com
I've put a link in my link list also on the right side of the page. Otherwise, copy & paste this into your address bar)

Here are a few samples of Nic's work: