STAR. CASTLE. HOTEL. GoodHotelGuide 1001 RESTAURANTS TARIFF Christmas Diary 2014/15. Restaurant Winners in the South West.

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1 The STAR. CASTLE. HOTEL I S L E S O F S C I L LY GoodHotelGuide YOU MUST EXPERIENCE BEFORE YOU DIE 1001 RESTAURANTS Best U.K. Historic Hotel 2015 Taste of the West Restaurant Winners in the South West Excellence Awards 2013 Editors Choice: TARIFF 2010 Christmas Diary 2014/15

2 Dear Guest Seasons greetings from all of us at the Star Castle. We re busy decking the halls as we prepare for a fully-booked Christmas and New Year. With 2015 almost on our doorstep we enclose details of our spring and summer breaks together with our special events. Thank you all for continuing to visit us in This year has seen a considerable increase in visitor numbers for Scilly as a whole, which is incredibly encouraging considering the challenges the islands have faced over the last few seasons. No doubt the country moving out of recession and the return to proper summer weather has played a significant part in this. Hopefully this is a return to more defined seasons. Fortunately advanced bookings are looking extremely positive for another good summer season in The gloriously settled weather has also been very kind on the vineyard. Having netted the crop from our ravenous birds, we have managed to achieve our first fully successful harvest. The weather has also been very helpful on the transport front; we have enjoyed an exceptionally consistent season for Skybus and the Scillonian, assisted by the completion of the new terminal at Land s End and the hard surfacing works at both Land s End and St. Mary s. Significant improvements have also been made to St Mary's road surfaces and the airport terminal on Scilly. All of these improvements have not only provided great logistical benefits but St Mary s looks better for it too! On the subject of transport we are all fully aware that the issue of travel operators hiking their prices for school holiday periods is a fairly hot national topic. To counter this, we offer younger family members to stay free of charge at the Castle (when sharing with parents). Ask our reception staff for more information on our schools out offers. We re delighted to announce that we ve been awarded The Good Hotel Guide Editors Choice for best U.K. Historic Hotel We have also been nominated as a favourite place to stay in Land Love Magazine; if you feel so inclined, you can vote for us at landlove.com/awards, the closing date for which is 4th January The good news doesn t stop there; we have been named amongst the best restaurants in the world in 1001 Restaurants You Must Experience Before You Die. On another positive note, for those of our guests who wish to stay in touch with the big wide world, a new super fast broadband cable from the mainland was brought in to the islands this summer at Porthcressa with connection expected imminently. You can, of course, turn it off if you simply want to leave the world behind and get out and enjoy the beauty of the islands! On the family front Robert is totally euphoric about the harvest and completely absorbed with the winemaking operation. Theresa is looking after our winter refurbishment programme which is quite comprehensive involving a new outdoor terrace, and a full refurbishment of some of our rooms and bathrooms in the garden wing. James is now in his second year as a local councillor and is naturally delighted with the improvements made to the islands infrastructure during this time. The Mermaid has also had a fun and busy summer.

3 Sophie is now at school full time giving mum Ella the opportunity to make a welcome return to the hotel, although Thomas is becoming a little character and is singlehandedly finding ways to keep her entertained! It should come as no surprise given all the fine weather that the children have spent the majority of their time on the beach! Wishing you a wonderful Christmas and New Year and we look forward to seeing you again soon. Best Wishes, The Francis Family.

4 Romantic Scilly From 12th February 28th February Escape to an Island paradise this February! Enjoy a welcome glass of Champagne and Star Castle handmade chocolates, the perfect start to a romantic break. Scilly is generally quieter in February providing the perfect opportunity to take bracing walks along the coastal path followed by a five-course gourmet dinner in our16th Century Castle Dining Room. 85pppn including a complimentary upgrade to either a Castle or Garden Room with Sea View and Veranda. Easter Getaway Stay any four nights during the Easter holidays from 539pp. Prices include dinner, bed and breakfast and return flights from Land s End. Children stay free of charge on a b&b basis, flight charges apply. Spring is a lovely time to visit the Islands and enjoy everything Scilly has to offer. The indoor heated pool is perfect for unwinding after a busy day Island hopping and remember guests of the castle can enjoy complimentary golf and tennis, too. Spring Offers As always, we re offering Early Spring Breaks from 439pp to include three nights dinner, bed and breakfast and return flights from Land s End. You can choose to fly from Newquay for an extra 45pp or Exeter for an additional 110pp. Room upgrades are also available starting from 10pppn. In addition to this special offer we also have a selection of themed breaks taking place during the first half of We ll keep you posted on our website.

5 Gourmet Wine Weekend 26th March 2015 Now a firm part of our annual events programme our spring Wine Weekend will include a vineyard tour and wine tasting at our newly-opened tasting room located at Holy Vale, the gourmet wine dinner and a boat trip to an island of your choice. Stay four nights from 584pp based on two sharing a Castle or a Garden Room. Complimentary upgrades for bookings made before 15th January 2015.

6 Walk Scilly Saturday 11th April Time to get your boots on! By popular demand, Walk Scilly will be back in 2015, from the 11th - 17th April. There will be some 20 guided walks across all the inhabited Islands and one or two of the uninhabited ones. Get up close with the wildlife, go foraging, visit flower farms and learn about the islands amazing history. The Star Castle provides the perfect base for you to enjoy this popular event with prices from 100pppn

7 Archaeological Holidays Tuesday 5th May Saturday 9th May from 799pp & Thursday 9th July- until Monday 13th July 885pp Following the success and popularity of our 2014 archaeological holiday, we re delighted to offer two breaks next spring and summer. The holidays include visits to sites of many different periods, from prehistoric to post-medieval. The itinerary for the holidays takes in sites on St Agnes and Gugh, Tresco (including the Abbey Garden), St Mary s and Samson. These prices include: return travel by plane from Land s End to St Mary s a welcome reception 4 nights dinner, bed and breakfast all boat trips entrance fees guided visits to all sites To book, or for details of supplements for single occupancy, upgrades and extensions, please call reception. For more information about the holidays, please katharine.sawyer@which.net

8 Stop Press - Schools Out 2015 Children stay free of charge during any school holidays and can enjoy a host of activities including swimming, tennis and golf. We can offer discounted rates on horse riding and snorkeling with seals, too.

9 The Vineyard at Holy Vale I am delighted to report that we have had our first successful harvest at Holy Vale Vineyard. We had a good crop of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris. It is now, however, a worrying time for me, a novice wine maker, with long days and nights in the winery trying to control the fermentations and temperature of the various wines. I am hoping I can produce something good, but Willi Opitz the winemaker from Austria who is giving me advice, told me it took him 40 years to make a good bottle of wine! That means I will be 101 before you get something worthwhile, so don t hold your breath! Anyway, it is a very steep learning curve we ll see what happens! Providing something drinkable is produced, you may be able to sample a Pinot Noir Rosé by Easter and the other wines in early summer. Exclusive offer! Enjoy Robert's special Christmas collection of great value wines this Festive Season, featuring a selection of our Californian Coppola wines and other excellent examples from around the world. This special offer at 169 includes a mixed case of reds and whites featuring a complimentary bonus bottle of wine and free delivery. The collection will also make a perfect gift, give us a call and we can take care of delivery together with your personal message so your friends & family can enjoy great wine this Christmas! To place your order please ; robertfrancis53@hotmail.co.uk or call Votre Santé Robert

10 The Mermaid As you may remember James has taken on the operation of the iconic Mermaid Inn, in partnershipwith his friend Nick George, who along with his family is a very well known publican from Penwith, Cornwall and is an MCC cricket colleague of James. The pub has enjoyed a very busy first season and the new menu has proved exceptionally popular with both visitors and locals; the Tresco beef proving to be a firm favourite! The fire is lit daily during the cooler months, so be sure to pop in for a pint on your way back from boating or after dinner to lap up the island s social scene.

11 Pedn-y-ke As a previous and much valued guest at the Star Castle Hotel, I wonder whether you might be interested in another Cornish seaside retreat offered by the Francis family. You may know already that our family home for many years was just outside Mullion, on the Cornish mainland. Over the years, as we settled in Scilly, rather than give up our much loved home entirely, we decided to refurbish it completely and make it available for rental throughout the year as a beautiful retreat for families and couples alike. Pedn-Y-Ke ( occupies an enviable cliff top position, surrounded by National Trust coastline in a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is located in its own grounds with a spacious enclosed garden and is within minutes of some wonderful cliff top walks and delightful sandy coves. The house has three roomy and beautifully furnished bedrooms - families with children find the play space provided in the top room, which can sleep up to 4, a real bonus. Other bedrooms provide an outstanding level of comfort and en-suite bathrooms. The rest of the house offers plenty of beautifully appointed living space, a large homely kitchen with Aga and separate dining and sun rooms. Do please get in touch if you are looking for a beautiful Cornish escape at any time. We love the house at Mullion and we are sure that you would, too. Theresa

12 Star Castle Hotel, St. Mary s Isles of Scilly TR21 0JA Telephone / Facsimile info@star-castle.co.uk.