Bournemouth 2021 Will Have New Administrators

[Sami Sheard]

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to put an update on regarding Bournemouth next year as me and Mum have offered to take over the organisation of this weekend.

As you are all probably aware The Queens Hotel has been bought out and the new owners have let us know they are not interested in holding this event going forward. I am sure everyone will agree this is a real shame as it was a fantastic venue and we all have some great memories over the years.

Going forward Mum and I have been in contact with a large hotel chain in the Bournemouth area that are really interested in taking over the event. We have a meeting arranged with the events manager to look at 4 potential hotels in their chain. One of which is the hotel some people stayed in this year due to Queens issues.

Before we go for this meeting we would like to have an idea on how many people are keen for this weekend to still run in 2021? I appreciate that this years weekend was not without it's hiccups, at no fault of the organisers from our end, but I would hope that this would not put people off for future years. I also understand with the situation with COVID being so difficult this may effect peoples decision also.

If people could just reply to the thread what their thoughts that would be really helpful.

Kind Regards,

Sam

[bigtj]

Would be interested if goes ahead and we can secure a good deal

[magners]

Hi Sami, thanks to you and Chelle for taking on the task.
I would still be attending all being well. I would drag along DC, Colin and hopefully Tony.

[little legs]

Hi Sam , all being well yes we would be there .

[bigpete]

Jane and I will be interested if you are able to arrange it

[curtd]

Thanks for looking into this .

I will be attending next year

Thanks

Curt

[missymoo]

Thanks Sami. Brian and me would be interested.

[Chunky Monkeys other half]

Hi Sami im sure all us Halls would be interested. Always enjoy this Weekend
Sandra and Co.

[mel]

Definitely! Interested we’ll done guys 👍🏻

[Chris]

Dear Sammi and Chelle

Excellent idea.

So some questions.

Will the hotel you stay in be able to take the tables ?

Will guests all be in the hotel that you run the event in?

I totally praise you both for what you are doing but there are broader questions that need addressing which includes a venue that can be wholly used for the event, or a venues that has accommodation and has a sister hotel that can hold the event. If so how far away ?

Would there be a contract that we are bound by if so what about a second spike 're COVID.

I am truly not being negative, I admire what you are doing, just posing questions that may be needed to protect AEBBA monies and those booking would need to know before they say yes on here and then say no.

Thanks
Chris

[Sami Sheard]

Hello again,

So Myself, Mum, Nige & Matt all went down to Bournemouth today to check out the hotels the chain had to offer. I did leave out in the original post that Matt and Nige would be in charge of running the actual tournament, me and Mum are just here to do the admin and organisation for the hotel portion and social aspect of the weekend, not sure if this was clear in the original post

We met with the functions manager of the group who showed us around 3 of their hotels they thought would be suitable. One of these hotels we found to be perfect. It has more than enough space for what we require for the weekend with 2 large function rooms for the tables giving us options and 2 smaller function spaces (one of which is its own pub) in case we are in a situation where we need to split the competition in line with COVID. The hotel occupancy is just slightly more than the Queens so we are aiming to have exclusive use and it also has two hotels in the chain either side if we are lucky enough to go over occupancy these could be utilised as an overflow. It also has the added bonus of being directly on the seafront so there are some rooms that will have a beautiful sea view.

We also got the opportunity to view the leisure facilities, it has a lovely indoor swimming pool, small gym and two squash courts. Which should give you some indication of the sheer size of this venue and all the options it has to offer. I also enquired and we are more than welcome to use the full spa facilities in the hotel next door if we would like.

Another bonus of this hotel is that it offers a limited amount of single occupancy rooms which means no pesky addition surcharge if you would like your own room.

We haven't gone into the nitty gritty of the financials and contract terms but Brian (functions manager) is going to get a proposal over to us hopefully by next week. Also we would obviously have to monitor the COVID situation and he specifically said that we both need to be flexible in the current climate so if dates need to be changed for any reason this would be fine. We will be bringing all of this to the AGM in September for further discussion but any questions in the mean time please let us know and we will get an answer from the hotel.

Here is a link to the hotels website so feel free to have a look at the facilities on offer - Hotel Info


Kind Regards,

Sam

[little legs]

Hi Sam

Thank you to you and the guys for putting in the effort to keep this great weekend going .
Looking at the hotel the room choice is quite varied from basic to deluxe , will you be offering different price packages rather than the all in one price we had at the Queens .
Let's hope by March we can all get together and enjoy the game we love , oh and a few beers and a laugh that we all look forward to .

Kev .

[rickc]

Count me and Cathy in

[doug]

Count the Dawson mob in COVID permitting. Thank you Sami, partner, Nige and Matt for picking this up.
Can I also give my thanks to Chrissie for all she has done the last few years. All of your comments earlier are perfectly valid but I have every confidence that the new team will continue to run the weekend seamlessly.

[bigjimsilverfox]

The Fox would be interested

[oaklj007]

Very good news! Nice to see a positive post on pro boards nice change!!! I will 100% be there waiting at the bar!!!

[hevvie]

Hi Sami
Thank you for all your hard work.
The Millwards will be there, i’m sure

[exiled]

I think the only concern from most people will be how Covid restrictions will be by then. Other than that most of us will be keen to attend

[SirKT]

Great work guys, we will be interested if all is ok with the world 😉

[4timeschamp]

If the tournament goes ahead then Hevs and I will be there.

[Auntie Pauline]

Thank you to you all for trying to sort out Bournemouth in March. Carol & I will definitely be up for going depending of course on what is happening with covid restrictions etc. next year. We look forward to hearing updates ie. prices, parking etc at the Suncliff Hotel as it does look very nice.xx

[bigtj]

Well done guys a lot of work gone into this already, you deserve and I am sure will get the support.

[Sami Sheard]

Aug 8, 2020 20:20:58 GMT little legs said:

Hi Sam

Thank you to you and the guys for putting in the effort to keep this great weekend going .
Looking at the hotel the room choice is quite varied from basic to deluxe , will you be offering different price packages rather than the all in one price we had at the Queens .
Let's hope by March we can all get together and enjoy the game we love , oh and a few beers and a laugh that we all look forward to .

Kev .

Thanks for your feedback Kev - as I said before the financials haven't been discussed in depth as of yet. We are awaiting the proposal this week from the hotel but he was quietly confident that the price we received from the Queens wasn't out of the realms of possibility. As for the different room options we are not keen to over complicate things...there were a number of different room options at the Queens but it was kept simple. Obviously we have the added bonus of a sea view which may require a small supplement but this will all need to be discussed with the hotel and at committee before it can be confirmed.

[Sami Sheard]

Thank you so much for every ones positive comments I will post another update as soon as the details are confirmed.

[NigelS]

Well done Sami for getting there on time yesterday, not our fault we were late traffic bad to Bournemouth. Meant Sami went round the first two hotels in the searing heat and us 3 were spared the long walk round

The Suncliff really fits the requirements for the event, plenty of room for the billiards and room to have the entertainment which has always made this a great weekend. I am very optimistic now the AEBBA pairs has a future, which has to be a big positive in these uncertain times.

The function manager Brian came across as very supportive and enthusiastic and got on well with the 2 girls and Matt, as you can imagine I let them do all the talking.

Obviously it is fingers crossed with the covid situation but for this event to happen we have to start the planning now. Formats can be decided later, know some liked groups, some didn't. But think we can accommodate either as I believe we could fit the 12 tables if necessary if go down the group format route again. It's good to have both options.

The reality is becoming increasingly likely this maybe the first AEBBA event back since the pairs in March this year. I am sure us 4 will help answer any questions coming up with any concerns but with the response on here already I am hopeful it will be a great event to restart our national game

[Chris_Sav]

 Well done for getting an alternative underway after the debacle at the Queens this year.

Yes we kept things as simple as possible at the Queens with a standard room rate. We ran the bookings to try and keep things fair but it was always a source of difficulty and worry for us at the weekend. I wrote a  bespoke booking system that Chrissie and I carried on but that was dedicated to the Queens and would need considerable alteration  and floor plans to work at the new venue.

This looks more difficult at the new venue with a big difference in room quality. I would not advise trying to run the bookings yourself let the hotel handle it. From the time that I took it over and Chrissie has followed, room privilege concessions were stopped and all discounts went back to the players. The only person who got a free room was Dave Alder in thanks for his tireless commitment. You will save yourself an immense amount of work and worry if you let the hotel handle the bookings, no-one knows the rooms for 2021 so they cannot grumble! That's the way Jersey and Guernsey are run.

Do not commit AEBBA to anything they cannot walk away from if covid is still about, or the weekend is less well supported next year due to worries.

Don't forget residency at the hotel is still compulsory for entry on the weekend. If AEBBA intend to relax that it will need a proposition at  the forthcoming AGM. If AEBBA do relax that condition, and I don't advise it, then get whatever discounts you can off  the room rates, not the beer prices. The residents at the hotel then benefit most.

Chrissie and I have a wealth of experience with this weekend, any other advice, glad to help.

[lewisstrat26]

We have stayed at the Suncliff a few times when the rules on accommodation were relaxed. Very nice hotel and nicely positioned on the seafront. Looking forward to attending this event next year

[alan]

I'm pretty sure that you can count on me & Ian and Allan & Phil......all being well of course.