s u n i o J BECOME A MEMBER O F T H E S AW D AY ’ S F A M I LY
SPECIAL PLACES TO STAY
On the cover: THE ELTERMERE INN, CUMBRIA
Every property featured is a Sawday’s Special Place – look them up at sawdays.co.uk
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T I M E AWAY I S F A R TO O P R E C I O U S TO SPEND IN THE WRONG PLACE. THAT’S WHY, B A C K I N 1 9 9 4 , W E S TA R T E D S AW D AY ’ S . Twenty years on, we’re still a family concern – and still on a crusade to stamp out the bland and predictable, and help our guests find truly special places to stay. If you have one, we do hope you’ll decide to take the plunge and join us.
ALASTAIR & TOBY SAWDAY
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Our story I T ’ S A F A M I LY A F F A I R
Sawday’s began as a campaign against the bland and predictable – the corporate takeover of tourism. Celebrating eclecticism and individuality, two decades later we are still, successfully, challenging convention. We are a family-run business. In the early nineties Alastair Sawday’s Tours, always maverick, led travel groups to the hidden delights of France, to B&Bs, farmers, small privately-owned hotels and nourishing human encounters. Alastair’s first book was a best-seller, and our guidebooks of carefully hand-picked Special Places to Stay are still hugely successful today.
In 2010 Alastair handed the reins over to his son Toby, who amongst other things, launched our new website and our first pubs iPhone app, as well as Sawday’s Canopy & Stars, our collection of glamping places. Alastair is still involved, always on hand to visit a new place, organise a member gathering, or to gently chide us for not cycling enough.
“Our gentle campaign against mass tourism and chain hotels remains at the heart of what we do.” TOBY SAWDAY
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Celebratibonokg !his first
WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT? We believe in what we do, passionately and honestly. We love all things local and independent, and seek out quirkiness and creativity, only selecting the most special places and members. Our trusted network of inspectors in Britain, Ireland, France, Italy, Spain and Portugal have grown our ‘family’ of Special Places
to almost 5,000. They come in the wildest imaginable variety of shapes and sizes, from funky fincas and blissful B&Bs to arty agriturismi and charming châteaux. We don’t conform and we don’t ask you to – we will defend to the last your right to do things your way. You have personality and we like it.
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Things we love... DELIGHTING IN INDIVIDUALITY Character, charm and authenticity Good conversation, humour and a sense of fun All sorts of buildings, from the crumbling but dignified to the modern and stylish Open-minded, friendly owners who love welcoming guests Free-range pets and children Hardly any rules and regulations
“With us, there’s only one box you have to tick – the ‘do you run a very special place indeed?’ box.” ALASTAIR SAWDAY
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we really like this STUDIO FARROWS, SOMERSET
we’re not such fans of this! NOT VERY SPECIAL PLACE, DULLSTOWN
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Gwen visiting one of our very first members
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Joining the family A ‘ S P E C I A L LY ’ G O O D I D E A So why join us? The short answer is that becoming a member of our ‘family’ of Special Places is like being awarded a Michelin star (but better, obviously). Our stamp of approval will tell guests that you offer a truly special experience and you will benefit from our knowledge, reputation and support. The long answer is overleaf...
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Jane's vintage charm
THE BEACHHOUSE, FRANCE
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YO U R S TA K E I N O U R R E P U TAT I O N Sawday’s success is built on the trust our guests place in us to hand-pick only the most Special Places, on their behalf. A CURATED COLLECTION
Q U A L I T Y, N O T Q U A N T I T Y
We really can’t stress too strongly what a massive difference that makes. In an online world drowning in information, a site like ours that presents a relatively small and careful selection of Special Places stands out like a brilliantly shining beacon.
We don’t pretend (or want) to be in the same business as the sites that handle zillions of bookings a day. Enabling our carefully selected members to use our name ensures that you attract the right kind of guests.
INSPECT AND RE-INSPECT
VARIETY
Our inspectors have an eagle-eye for the special, but absolutely no preconceptions or check-lists. They visit every member, see every bedroom and bathroom and, on the lucky days, eat the food.
From country-house hotels to city pads and funky fincas to blissful B&Bs, the variety of Special Places in our collection has grown and grown. We genuinely delight in individuality and we promise we won’t try to change the way you do things.
Not everyone makes the grade (we reject 1 in 4). And if you are selected, you can’t afford to relax back in your hammock, because we regularly re-inspect all our Special Places – a vital part of maintaining our reputation, for the benefit of all our members.
L OYA LT Y We’re pleased to say that nearly half of our members have been with us for five years or more. We must be doing something right!
“Sawday’s. Is there any other?” SONIA HODGSON, HORRY MILL
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ABC
THE OF MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS Being part of the Sawday’s family is one of the very best things you can do. So let’s take a look at what you get in return for being one of our selected Special Places.
BAY HOTEL, CORNWALL
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is for
ACCREDITATION Enabling our carefully selected members to use our name ensures that you attract the right kind of guests – the kind that come back again and again. All our places feature on our popular website, visited almost 3 million times a year. Guests see your full contact details so they can contact you directly, and our online Member Area helps you to make the most of your Special Place. Most of our Special Places have the opportunity to feature in our guidebooks, too. Since our first book back in 1994, we’ve sold over 1.4 million and continue to publish
guides on British and French B&Bs and Hotels, English and Welsh pubs and Italian Special Places. They are much loved and set us apart. But featuring on our website and in our guidebooks is only the beginning of the story. Your hardearned accreditation entitles you to use your badge across all your own marketing activities – letting guests know that you and your place really are something very special.
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is for
BELONGING One thing we’ve learned over the years is that running a smallish hospitality business can sometimes feel quite lonely. So we make a big effort to give all our members a genuine sense of belonging to a friendly, supportive community. That starts with our membership team. You’ll find they are fully paid-up members of the human race, who talk your language and will always be happy to provide you with any help you need. They genuinely want to get to know you better and love to hear from you.
And we’re sure you’ll also enjoy coming along to our regular member gatherings, where you’ll have a chance to get to know other Sawday’s members, and do a bit of serious networking. Or exchange cake recipes – whichever you prefer.
“Trustworthy, friendly and helpful – with a reputation for offering wonderful places and discerning visitors.”
Nic onytoonur in
JULIA NAISMITH, HOLLYTREE COTTAGE
L
Toby has a tipple with our Andalusian members
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Nicky enjoys a Toulouse gathering
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is for
C O N T E N T. . . Okay, that may be a bit of a marketing buzz-word, but it’s really just another way of saying that people love to hear about Sawday’s and our Special Places. OUR NEW MAGAZINES
MARKETING & SOCIAL ACTIVITY
Our gorgeous Sawday’s magazine for guests is positively bursting at the seams with travellers’ tales and inspirational articles. Our recently launched members’ magazine is packed with handy hints from fellow members, news from Sawday’s, and tips on how to get the most out of your membership with us.
Public awareness of Sawday’s is high, thanks to our themed website collections of Special Places, popular blog, monthly newsletters and competitions. We’re active on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest, too, and love to share our stories of Special Places to help us reach out to even more guests for our members.
F A C E B O O K . C O M / S A W D A Y S @ S A W D A Y S P I N T E R E S T. C O M / S A W D A Y S
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...and also CONNECTIONS
Oh yes, there’s another C. The fantastic relationships we’ve built up over the last 20 years, both with the media and like-minded household names such as Waitrose, The Guardian and Cath Kidston, means we’re able to reach millions of exactly the right kind of people. We introduce them to the Sawday’s name – and sometimes to individual Special Places – while ‘piggy-backing’ their marketing budgets. The exposure and coverage we get is wonderful, and all our members reap the benefits.
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G ord on's glossy mod ern lines
KAYWANA HALL, DEVON
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B runchers
Seasid ers
Nature-lovers
Explorer s
Lone ranger s
Pub lunchers
DOMAINE DE PÉLICAN, FRANCE
THE PIGGERY, MONMOUTHSHIRE
FINCA EL MORO, SPAIN
180 DEGREES BLUE, CORNWALL
ADA NADA AGRITURISMO, ITALY
THE WHEATSHEAF, CUMBRIA
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BB EE CC OO M M EE AA M M EE M M BB EE RR OO FF TT HH EE SS AA W W DD AA YY ’’ SS FF AA M M II LL YY
Meet your loyal and lovely guests We’re proud of the fact that 99%* of our guests would recommend us. And when you become a member, that loyalty to Sawday’s is all yours. If you’re interested, we’d be happy to provide you with lots of fascinating information about the kind of people you’ll meet through us – starting with the fact that, between them, they visit our website nearly three million times a year. Actually, though, the most important thing of all about the ‘Sawday’s tribe’ really can’t be quantified. We mean what an interesting, diverse and altogether delightful bunch they are. We love dealing with them, and
we know our members feel the same; we hear countless stories of lasting friendships formed in Special Places, around the breakfast table. And remember, you’re not dependent on us to make the introductions. As a Sawday’s member, you can use our name to attract the kind of people who really appreciate a Special Place like yours, and are likely to book again – as well as recommending you to their friends.
“We have greatly enjoyed many Special Places. Thank you for making a difference to our travel.” JUDITH HODGKINSON, NORTHAMPTON
*2012 Sawday’s survey of 948 visitors to sawdays.co.uk
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Carolyn’s
labour of love YARLINGTON HOUSE, SOMERSET
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H ow to join OUR SELECTION PROCESS
If your place is really special, then becoming a member of Sawday’s is a piece of cake. Here’s how our selection process works... GETTING IN TOUCH
T E L L I N G YO U R S TO R Y
We’d love to hear about you and your Special Place. If it all sounds promising, we’ll arrange for one of our inspectors to come and take an informal look around.
If all goes well, we’ll ask you to supply photos, while we create a sparkling write up for you to check – so no need for you to rack your brain, searching for the right adjectives to make your Special Place stand out.
MONEY MATTERS Before we visit, we’ll agree a fair membership fee, based on the size of your place and what you charge – so you’ll know from the outset how much belonging to Sawday’s will cost you. (We think you’ll come to look on it as one of your best ever investments.) We’ll also ask you for a small initial fee, to cover our costs, which is refundable if we decide you’re not quite right for us.
And once you’re up and running on our site, you can update your details whenever you like, through our Member Area. TIME TO CELEBRATE All done? Then maybe a chilled glass of something crisp and fizzy, and a toast to you and your place, the hard work you’ve done to make it so special, and the even greater success you’ll soon be enjoying as part of the Sawday’s family of Special Places.
“Becoming a member really isn’t daunting or complicated – we’re not out to find fault, just specialness.” CHARLOTTE MURPHY, HEAD OF MEMBERSHIP
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G et in touch If you’d like to become part of Sawday’s – or if you have any questions at all about membership – please do get in touch. We’d love to hear from you, even if you’re not ready to apply. We love a good natter! C A L L O U R F R I E N D LY M E M B E R S H I P T E A M . . .
+44 (0)117 204 7810 Monday to Friday, 9am – 5.30pm gmt
. . . D R O P U S A L I N E A N D W E ’ L L C A L L YO U B A C K . . .
members@sawdays.co.uk . . . O R F I L L I N YO U R D E TA I L S AT
sawdays.co.uk/joinus
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Everything you love about Sawday’s – but outdoors To join our collection of beautiful and quirky glamping places, or to find out more, get in touch: +44 (0)117 204 7830 ideas@canopyandstars.co.uk canopyandstars.co.uk
Pubs Special Places to Eat & Drink If you have an original or authentic pub and would like to join our new collection, please get in touch: +44 (0)117 204 7829 pubs@sawdays.co.uk sawdays.co.uk/pubs
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Peter’s romantic harbour views OLD HARBOUR VIEW, WEYMOUTH
S AW D AY S . C O. U K