Bed & Breakfast News Issue #46 Spring 2018 | Page 15

Visit our website: | bandbnews.co.uk | 15
The first ever National B&B Day
After many months of planning, Saturday 24th March dawned
on the first-ever ‘National B&B Day’ at last - and so much was
happening up and down the country to mark the event.
We have been overwhelmed by all the
messages, tweets and news of what B&B
owners were doing and saying about B&B
Day - which incidentally helped #BandBday
‘trend’ in the top 10 on the day on Twitter.
There were at least eight radio or TV
broadcasts mentioning or about National
B&B Day – including our chairman David
Weston being interviewed at 08.15 on BBC
Radio.
The press coverage included 12 pieces in
national papers, reaching a total of just over
half a billion (yes 502 million) readers in all,
and 60 pieces in regional press, reaching 2.5
million.
National B&B Day’s website (BandBday.
com, funded by the day’s main sponsors
eviivo) carried supportive comments on its
‘sponsors’ page from VisitBritain, Google,
TripAdvisor, Booking.com, Expedia, AA
Hospitality, Laterooms, Ryanair Rooms,
Toprooms, National Express, Yorkshire
Tourism, Cumbria Tourism, Visit Somerset,
Visit Wiltshire, Tourism South East, English
Riviera, Stay Blackpool, Visit Brighton,
Bournemouth Tourism and others.
And it was good to see the normally
‘unsung’ heroes of hospitality - Britain’s
brilliant B&B owners - being recognised by
MPs from Blackpool to Orkney, who visited
local B&Bs and guest houses on the day.
David and Louise Weston of the B&B
Association accompanied the Minister of
Tourism, Michael Ellis MP, on his visit to
Hillview Guest House in Northampton.
Such visits not only show proper recognition
by politicians of hard-working businesses,
but also can only help foster better
understanding amongst politicians about
the B&B sector - and the Minister was very
supportive in what he has said.