Press release -
Fields of Gold
A family-run bed and breakfast, converted from an old farmhouse, has received a four-star gold grading from VisitScotland.
Knockhill Farm B&B, located four miles outside St Andrews, was upgraded from four stars by the national tourism organisation’s Quality Assurance (QA) Scheme in recognition of its outstanding customer service. The gold star award was introduced to highlight establishments within the QA Scheme that strive to exceed customer expectations, while taking an innovative and proactive approach to customer care.
Owned and run by Linda and Peter Wood, Knockhill is a working farm and has been home to the couple, and their family, since 1996 when they moved to Fife in search of pastures new. They instantly fell in love with the region’s stunning scenery and St Andrews.
After many years living on the farm with daughters Lauren, Jen and Kathryn, as well as family dog Spangle, the hard-working Woods decided they wanted an additional project. Seeing that an old barn and smithy had fallen into disrepair, a massive renovation took place to turn the derelict buildings into luxury accommodation.
Six apartments were opened in July 2014 and guests are able to wander around the farm, spot wildlife and get an insight into the idyllic, rural life enjoyed by the family.
Linda Wood said: “We are delighted to receive this award from VisitScotland. There’s been a lot of hard work over the last three years and it’s great to see it has paid off. Knockhill Farm is the perfect place to get away and enjoy Fife’s beautiful scenery. We do our upmost to ensure guests have the best stay possible so it’s great to get this recognition.”
Manuela Calchini, Regional Director for VisitScotland said: “Congratulations to Peter and Linda, as well as the rest of the family, on achieving this four-star gold award. Knockhill offers guests an exceptional standard of accommodation and welcome in one of Scotland’s most beautiful areas – their gold award is well deserved.
“Our Quality Assurance Scheme is world-leading and provides a trusted, independent and impartial source of information for visitors. It is about much more than just a star rating – it is about the entire visitor experience and investing in the business to make it as economically sustainable, and profitable, as it can be.”
VisitScotland’s QA Schemes can open the door to new customers. It is a powerful marketing tool and works well with online review sites in using an independent perspective to measure visitor experience against tried and tested criteria, so visitors know exactly what to expect.
For more information on Knockhill Farm B&B, go to www.knockhillfarm.co.uk
For more information on VisitScotland’s Quality Assurance scheme, go to www.visitscotland.org
ENDS
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- quality assurance
Regions
- Scotland
Notes to Editors
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- VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
- The organisation’s core objective is to contribute to the Tourism 2020 Strategy ambition of growing tourism revenues by £1 billion by 2020.
- This will be supported by seven overarching strategies:
- Marketing: we will market Scotland and its outstanding assets to visitors from all parts of the world, including the promotion of Scotland to people living in Scotland to visit different parts of the country
- Events: we will support the national events strategy and its delivery, and sustain, develop and promote Scotland’s international profile as one of the world’s foremost events destinations
- Internationalisation and International Engagement: we will utilise all our platforms to enable Scottish-based tourism businesses to better understand international opportunities and market to a global audience and we will work within One Scotland Partnerships to optimise the potential of Scotland’s Diaspora and our strategic partners at regional, European and global levels
- Customer Experience: we will provide information and inspiration to visitors both locally and globally via their preferred medium of choice
- Quality and Sustainability: we will provide support and advice to businesses, with the goal of improving the quality and sustainability of the tourism sector in Scotland. We will provide quality assurance to visitors through our Quality Schemes
- Inclusive Tourism: we will strive to make tourism in Scotland inclusive and available to all
- Working in Partnership: we will listen to and work with the industry, partners and communities to shape our offering and support
- To ensure everyone can safely enjoy Scotland’s amazing countryside and landscapes, VisitScotland encourages all visitors to fully respect their surroundings by behaving in a responsible and appropriate way.
- VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to grow.
- The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
- Spending by tourists in Scotland generates around £12 billion of economic activity in the wider Scottish supply chain and contributes around £6 billion to Scottish GDP (in basic prices). This represents about 5% of total Scottish GDP
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- Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh) 2017 Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology
- 2017 is the year to delve into the past and discover Scotland’s fascinating stories through a wide-ranging variety of new and existing activity to drive the nation’s tourism and events sector, boosting tourism across Scotland.
- The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology begins on 1 January 2017 and will end on 31 December 2017. It will build on the momentum generated by previous themed years in Scotland including the 2015 Year of Food and Drink, Homecoming Scotland 2014, the Year of Creative and the Year of Natural.
- The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology is a Scottish Government initiative being led by VisitScotland, and supported by a variety of partners including Creative Scotland, Scottish Tourism Alliance, Scottish Enterprise, The National Trust for Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Built Environment Forum Scotland, Heritage Lottery Fund, Museums Galleries Scotland and Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland.
- The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology is supported by £570,000 of Scottish Government funding.
- The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology events fund is managed by EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate.
- For more information visit visitscotland.com/HHA2017 or join the conversation at #HHA2017
