Educational Visit to Yorkshire
Great Potential hosted an educational visit to Yorkshire for 15 buyers and media over two days and nights on 24th & 25th November 2011. Here is brief outline of the trip.

The group included guests from the British Psycological Society; Chubb Insurance Company of Europe; E.On; Event Management360; Events Matter; International Travel & Conferences; Informa Exhibitions and The Northern Echo Newspaper.

The group were entertained by six Venues with Great Potential and travel provided by the York Party Wheels Coach.

On the way to Whitby we stopped to see the Hole of Horcum, an immense natural hollow created many centuries ago by a giant called Wade who scooped out the earth while in one of his many rages and threw it at his wife, Bell! A less interesting explanation is that this huge hollow was formed as a result of the erosive action of springs over thousands of years, known as spring-sapping.

The visit began on Thursday in Whitby and a visit to the Ebor Jetworks where we experienced the traditional craft of turning Whitby Jet found on the nearby beach. A walk through the attractive fishing town of Whitby included a visit to the town's famous Whale Bones monument.

An excellent dinner followed at Dunsley Hall Country House Hotel in the hotel’s rosette standard restaurant hosted by owners Carol & Bill Ward. Bill and Carol explained their approach to events and the option to make use of the hotel's own farm for team-building activities as well as the main conference suites and grounds.

Friday morning included a private viewing of the Captain Cook Memorial Museum where we learned of the fascinating travels and exploits of probably our most famous explorer.

Wydale Hall the rural retreat centre near Scarborough followed where Barry Osbourne, general manager explained the benefits of booking Wydale Hall and provided an interesting show round of the venue. Barry explained the venue was the home of passenger flight as the terrace and the valley below were used by the Corby airplane manufacturer who owned the house at the time to test fly his aircraft.

On the way into York, a brief visit was made to the Hotel Noir. Owned by Steve Morrell who also owns the Party Wheels Coach, the hotel has 28 rooms and has recently been fully re-modelled in a contemporary style and offers competitive rates and a slick and comprehesive range of services.

York was in full swing as we reached Bedern Hall and enjoyed a hearty meal of salmon encroute served with locally grown vegetables and potatoes. Roger Lee of Time & Place Catering who operates the Hall on behalf of the Guilds of York explained how the venue has been an historic meeting place since medieval times. The Hall today is set up to accommodate modern needs with free wi-fi, a full suite of conference equipment and options to include visits to other local attractions as part of the conference experience.

The afternoon was spent in York for the annual St Nicholas Fair Christmas Market and a visit to York Minster.

Mince Pies and Mulled Wine greeted the group at St William's College as Morwen Ayres showed us around this soon to be re-launched medieval venue. St William's College is part of York Minster and has nine beautiful and atmospheric timber-beamed meeting suites, tea-room/restaurant and an open air courtyard. The York Minster Chapter House is also part of the conference and events options providing an exclusive venue for prestigeous events.

Warmed and informed, the group headed for the Best Western Crown Hotel Boroughbridge where Emma Lee, general manager hosted an excellent dinner and guests were able to see the meeting suites and enjoy the hotel's leisure club.

Emma explained the hotel's history dating back to the 13th century and is still in private hands. The hotel was one of the important coaching inns on the Great North Road and housed over 100 horses in a circular stable that was unique in its day. The hotel now provides a good quality meeting and events venue just a mile from the A1(M) motorway with fully equipped leisure club with fitness suite, sauna, steam room and heated swimming pool.

The Best Western Crown Hotel owner also operates the Best Western Kilima Hotel in York which has a meeting suite for up to 15 delegates and there is much scope for business to be placed in both hotels when the demand arises for options in the York/Harrogate area. York is 17 miles from Boroughbridge and Harrogate only 10 miles.

All of the venues involved in this visit have a great range of space for meetings and events. Their independence ensures that discussions about rates can be actioned quickly and without compromising quality.

For more information, please call John Gallery.

Tel: 0845 838 6338

Mobile: 07967 032623

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