Spring Lambs, Wild Garlic and Bluebells

Hello everybody, well here we are in May!  The year is passing us by yet again!  How I love Spring!  Just walking the dog down by the River Nidd recently in Nidderdale, I noticed that nature had got a spurt on too!  Riley and I passed fields of Spring lambs, skipping around and their Mums bleating at us loudly.  The smell of wild garlic wafting up into the air as we walked by and that glow of purple and blue from the woodland bluebells - how wonderful!  You know we can take so much for granted, it's good to just stop for a while and take in the sights and smells that are all around us, we are so lucky to live in such a special area. 

Business is great and we are nearly full this Summer.  We have the odd gap here and there so if you fancy a short break, do get in touch.  Alternatively why not look ahead and book something for late Summer?  It's a super time to come to Nidderdale and we do offer short breaks all the year round. Although the cottages are busy and we are even receiving bookings for 2013, I am always looking at how I can improve the experience of staying at our cottages for our guests.  At the moment I am busy putting together some fantastic local information packs for our guests to browse during their stay.  I do get to meet most of our guests and always point them in the right direction, but that is not always possible when guests are travelling some distance to reach us, so the best thing to do in this situation, is to provide these guests with my assistant - Sarah 2!  Within these info packs I've mentioned all the great places Tim and I like to visit when we are in the area, where we like to walk, which are our favourite pubs to enjoy a tipple and what are the 'must see' places to visit.  We hope you will love these places as much as we have enjoyed researching them!

Looking ahead, we are making some internal improvements to our cottages at the moment.  Just having some fantastic new solid wood furniture made by hand ,by a local company called 'Pine Junction' who are based in West Tanfield, Ripon for the bedroom at Ashknott Cottage in Kirkby Malzeard.  Carol Ayres, also from Kirkby Malzeard, who is in fact our neighbour up there too, has just made some gorgeous new curtains, blinds and cushions for Bewerley Hall Cottage.  Carol's work has really given a lift and a super fresh look to the place, so much so, we have decided to say cheerio to the four poster in the bedroom and it will shortly be replaced with a wonderful new king size wrought iron bed frame in cream - a bit more country living!

The improvements are not stopping there, watch this space and keep an eye on our website www.yorkshireboltholes.com for more updates as they happen!

Have a fantastic May, enjoy the Bank Holidays and get out there and enjoy nature at it's best!

Sarah, Tim and Riley x

Hot off the Press - our latest availability at Yorkshire Bolt Holes, Nidderdale, Yorkshire

Here it is folks!  Our latest remaining availability at our stylish holiday cottages just for two in Nidderdale, Yorkshire.  Don't leave it too late, you have been warned!
We'll see you soon,
Best
Sarah x

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Our-latest-and-remaining-availability-Summer-2012-.html?soid=1107401835225&aid=8dDHs9VsPis

The Yorkshire Dales - When are you coming?

Hello friends,
Hope our latest mutterings find you well?
Just wanted to share with you this brilliant new video which truly highlights why you should be visiting our great area. Makes me very proud to say I am from Yorkshire!  Enjoy.
We still have availability at our cottages http://www.yorkshireboltholes.com/  throughout the year, so
I suppose the question is, when are you coming?
See you soon!
Best wishes

Sarah x

We've just become a 'Firm Friend of Nidderdale'

Hi everybody, hope life is treating you all well?  Am writing this listening to this years' budget being read out on Radio 4, I know I am SO 'rock and roll'!  We have had a terrific start to the year, Ashknott Cottage and Bewerley Hall Cottage are back in full swing, our booking calendars are looking busy and we are welcoming back lots of familiar faces.  Just like any business, you cannot afford to stand still and we are always trying to improve our product and our service to our guests.  We have received terrific feedback regarding our new on-line booking system and hopefully you will all agree, just how much easier it is to use and find your way around.  We are very excited to learn that we have been featured in Aprils' edition of 'Living North' magazine where they have featured great places to stay including our own 'Yorkshire Bolt Holes'.  Thank you to Georgina Farrer - http://www.livingnorth.com for requesting our info. 
We are also delighted to become involved with a new venture that has recently taken off in Nidderdale and have just become a 'Firm friend of Nidderdale'.  By becoming a Firm Friend, we are demonstrating that our business take its environmental and social responsibility seriously and that we actively encourage the patronage of local shops and produce whilst our guests are enjoying their holiday in this stunning area of natural beauty.  More info can be found at http://www.nidderdalefirmfriends.co.uk
Well back to it folks! 
Sarah x

Making booking with Yorkshire Bolt Holes, that little bit easier!

Hello there!  What a busy week it has been, lots happening within the towers of Yorkshire Bolt Holes!  A few of you may have noticed that we have recently re-launched our Ashknott Cottage website, hope you love it as much as we do?  We didn't want to leave our home page of http://www.yorkshireboltholes.com out, so why not take a peek at what our friends at http://www.stayclassycreative.com have created for us!  Think you will agree that it gives you a great feel for what we do and how we like to look after our guests at Ashknott Cottage and Bewerley Hall Cottage in Nidderdale, Yorkshire.  We didn't want to stop with just an improvement on the design and feel of the websites, so have taken, what I think is a brilliant step forward, the implementation of a brand new on-line booking system, which we hope will help you when you are checking availability and wishing to book on-line.  In the last couple of years we have seen a tremendous increase in the amount of on-line bookings that we receive and we wanted to offer you much more flexibility when you make your booking with us through this channel.  The new calendar is clear, concise and allows you to book short breaks on-line for the first time too!  You can choose your payment method, whether you wish to pay by cheque, BACS or by card and if your date of stay is outside of six weeks of booking, you just need to pay the deposit only. 
Hope you love the changes - let us know what you think, always on the look out for feedback in everything that we do.
Until the next time,

Best wishes
Sarah & Tim Manby

Ashknott Cottage website now re-launched!

Hi everybody, just a quickie to let you know that we have just re-launched our website for Ashknott Holiday Cottage in Nidderdale.  We would love to know what you think.  The guys at Stay Classy Creative have really captured the feel and atmosphere of the cottage, hope you love it as much as we do!  And if you do, why not come along and see it for yourselves!  We are delighted to offer short breaks all the year round from just £250.  The kettle will be on and the fire lit if it's chilly, see you soon!
http://www.ashknottcottage.co.uk/

Holidays are good for the soul!

Practice what you preach!  Well we have done just that recently!  Just returned from a fantastic skiing holiday in France, the sun shone, the snow came down and we met some great people to boot!  It's great to get away, to recharge the batteries, read a good book, scare yourself silly trying to ski in a white out!  Hey ho!  Back home now and in one piece which is a blessing as we are already welcoming guests to our cottages and it's only the beginning of February!  So when you can get away - get away! 
Meanwhile, we are busy working on a shiny new website for Ashknott Holiday Cottage in Kirkby Malzeard and for Yorkshire Bolt Holes Ltd, we hope you will love the new sites as much as we are excited about them!  We are delighted to be featured in the new Alastair Sawday book 'Dog friendly Breaks in Britain', it's getting some fantastic press coverage currently and copies of it are literally flying off the shelfs, there's going to be some happy dogs and owners out there! 
We are also delighted to be featured on the Yorkshire Dales website as a 'Brilliant Business' no less!  Here's the link should you wish to read the feature http://www.yorkshiredales.org.uk/index/livinghere/sustainabletourism/brilliantbusinesses.htm.
Well had better get cracking, there's ironing to be done!
Have fun,
Best wishes Sarah, Tim and Riley x