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GUEST PACK FOR RESIDENTS

(Edition: 15) Please leave this pack in your room

Welcome to Craig y Nos Castle This information pack should give you some useful information about the castle and what to do here and locally.

A quick history

In 1878, the castle and its setting captivated the leading opera star of the day, who felt she had found the home of her dreams amid the calm isolation of this beautiful valley. The castle’s name in rough translation means ‘Rock of the Night’. Although unconfirmed, it is said that Edward VII visited Craig-Y-Nos when he was still the Prince of Wales. For 25 years Adelina Patti sang by private invitation for Queen Victoria.

The Area

The castle is a venue for private parties, functions, group bookings and weddings throughout the year. The grounds provide magnificent opportunities for walks – visit Craig y Nos Country Park with its 40 acres of woodland walks, meadows and lakes and the many paths all along the River Tawe. It would be a shame if you visited Craig y Nos and did not go for a walk around the Country Park! Close by you will find the Dan Yr Ogof show caves (open from the Spring) which are worth a visit. They are 500 hundred yards north of the castle. Also in the summer, in the former ‘game’ room (continue along the path beside the theatre and through the green gate), there is an Adelina Patti Exhibition and information video, provided courtesy of the neighbouring Country Park.

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Dog Walking & Pets www.dogfriendlywales.com

Pets are welcome at Craig y Nos. Unlike other places that accept dogs, there is no charge for pets to stay. Simple

routes include paths around the Country Park and surrounding hills. The longer walks involve hills but are rewarded by excellent views. Good walking boots are recommended as some paths can be muddy and slippery. The hills behind the castle (i.e. facing the Conservatory) lead onto some former railway tracks and to the ‘Beacons Way’.

The Beacons Way can be reached on foot via a track behind the Country Park. Or by car; drive left out of the castle and take the first left up a steep single track road. This saves you walking up the hill. Once at the top you can park near the quarry area and then go through the field gate, next to the row of houses (the gate is to your right now, off the road you just came up). Follow the track to the next field gate, cross over this and you will soon rejoin the old rail tracks. Walk north along the old railway line (the tracks have long since been removed) and enjoy a more ‘level’ walk. You can then walk back again, or for a 1 ½ hour circular walk, take the path to the right a mile or so further along. Take this right hand track through a large wooded area, climbing steadily. At the top of the wood, a

path circles around to the right so you are eventually walking back parallel to the railway track, with excellent views, before descending a steep path to the caving club and back to the quarry area where you parked. Going south is not worth bothering with as you come to a dead end after a mile or so; to avoid this, if going south, follow the track to the Caving Club and head past it into the hills (a steep climb) and then you can do the above circular walk in reverse.

Further afield there is the Usk Reservoir which is an interesting 2 hour circular walk without much in the way of hills. Turn left at the Tafan Y Garreg pub towards Trecastle and follow the lanes (you will need a map to find the reservoir). Opposite the castle there is a steep stepped track that takes you above the coach house and into the mountains. This affords good views over the castle and is accessed via a field gate opposite the entrance to our rear car park. Maps of local walks are available at Reception and from our website. With a little planning there are many circular walks you can do. See the ‘Walks’ links on our website. There are both local walks within walking distance of the castle, and about 50 walks you can drive to, complete with photos of the walks, distance and time to get to from the castle, directions etc. There are woodland walks, castle ruins walks, beach walks, loads of forest track walks with fine views at the top of mountains, and also a number of sites of historic interest are covered in the walks links on our Dog Friendly Wales website. Most of these walks are 'prammable' (walkable with a pram) if you have your child in a large wheeled pram. Most are suitable for dogs to be let off the lead as they do not involve going over land stocked with sheep or farm animals. However some open mountain areas may have sheep on at certain times of the year. Some involve some climbing uphill, but most are easy walks. More Walks are featured on our main www.craigynoscastle.com website, arranged by direction - South, East, North and West of Castle. 'Time' from castle and 'distance' from castle are shown according to Tom Tom sat nav and / or RAC route finder. You just decide if you want to go North, South, West or East, select a walk by time to get to and distance, then key in your chosen walk's 'location' from the selection below and let your sat nav get you there. The 'Pop in' option shows other places to visit or pop into while there. See www.dogfriendlywales.com for the various local walks and within driving distance ‘day excursion’ walks.

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What’s to see nearby www.groupaccommodationinwales.com

The National Showcaves for Wales Distance from Craig-y-Nos Castle ½ Mile. There are many miles of natural limestone caverns under the mountains on both sides of the valley at Craig-y-Nos. See three very different cave systems plus a Dinosaur Park, Geological Exhibits and an Iron-Age Village. Originally known as the Dan-yr-Ogof caves, the National Showcave Centre now provides lots of interesting information and photo opportunities, illuminating the cave systems and facilitating access. It is an easy and picturesque walk from The Castle to The Caves (via the Country Park).

Cefn-yr-Erw Primate Sanctuary

Distance from Craig-y-Nos Castle 3 Miles. Cefn-yr-Erw Primate Sanctuary takes in and cares for unwanted primates. These may come from zoos, research labs and other sources, which are no longer prepared, or are unable, to continue caring for them. Some were kept as pets but became unwanted when they reached adulthood. Visitors are welcome to see the animals and to learn about the work of the sanctuary. There are also Alpacas, Wolves, Foxes, Pigs, Capibaras, Ducks, Rabbits, Donkeys, Miniature Horses and Shires at the sanctuary.

Henrhyd falls Henrhyd falls are a pleasant three mile walk from Craig-y-Nos Castle, on the stream known as Nant Llech at Coelbren in the Swansea Valley. They tumble 90 feet ( 28 metres ) into a steep sided valley which leads the stream to its confluence with the river Tawe at Abercrave. A footpath follows the stream down the valley from Henrhyd Falls and after around one mile, where the valley opens out, the ruins of an old woollen mill can be seen. The mill used to have a water wheel for driving the wool spinning machinery and here a path leads up the side of the valley to Cefn-yr-Erw Primate Sanctuary.

Mumbles and the Gower Peninsula

Distance from Craig-y-Nos Castle 20 Miles. The lovely Gower Peninsula is unique as it benefits from the warm waters of the Gulf Stream and has numerous superb beaches. Being on the Bristol Channel it also enjoys substantial tides and is noted for its surfing. The coastline is rocky with lots of small sandy bays and some long beaches such as Pendine Sands where car speed trials were once conducted. The small villages are picturesque with numerous thatched cottages, small pubs and some wonderful seaside locations. Mumbles with its pier, lighthouse and Oystermouth Castle is a famous and long established holiday town.

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Hay-on-Wye

Distance from Craig-y-Nos Castle 38 Miles. The little town of Hay (from the Norman French Haie - hedge or enclosure) on the banks of the River Wye is worth a visit even if you are not looking for old books. This is one of the few places in Britain comparatively untouched by the 20th century. Motor traffic is low since most visitors park on the outskirts and enjoy walking the narrow streets and exploring the ancient architecture. Practically every shop is devoted to books but you don't have to be looking for rare first editions, there are plenty of shops where you can pick up reasonably priced modern books. Hay Castle dominates the town

and has a large old book department of its own. The town also boasts some interesting antique and print shops.

Brecon

Distance from Craig-y-Nos Castle 18 Miles. As the former county town of Brecknockshire, and an important regional centre, Brecon has a castle, a cathedral and an olde-world charm which visitors enjoy. The lovely river Usk flows through the town and there is a promenade with boating and playing fields along the river bank. The town of Brecon is synonymous with the Brecon Beacons, impressive mountains which dominate the local landscape. These give name to the Brecon Beacons National Park, an area specially designated for its

outstanding natural beauty. The town is also now famous for its annual Jazz Festival. Brecon Jazz is an annual event and every August people come from all over the World to enjoy three days of non-stop jazz.

What to do at the Castle: Enjoy a warm welcome and good food and drink in the Castle’s bars, or even participate in a Ghost Tour (please book at reception – minimum numbers required). You can visit one of the local pubs or stay in and try one of our bar meals. There is a sports room with full exercise equipment and a hot tub which residents can use free of charge. A TV lounge leads from the Nicolini Lounge bar and this in turn leads to the Conservatory with its amazing views of the surrounding countryside.

See the Group Accommodation website for details about what to do in the area and at the Castle – www.groupaccommodationinwales.com

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Checking in times and booking out times Checking in time is 15.00 hrs. Booking out time is 11.00 hrs. (Bridal Suite 10.00 hrs when there is a wedding on the next day) If you wish to check in before this, please be advised that your room will not be prepared or cleaned until 15.00 hrs. If you arrive earlier than this, you may not be able to get access to your room until it is cleaned. If you are arriving for a function and need to use your room to change in prior to the book-in time, we offer a 12.30pm check in for an additional £25. Booking out time is 11.00 hours on the day of departure.

To Eat at the Castle

Subject to the volume of bookings and number of residents, meals are usually served in the evenings from 18.00 – 21.00 hrs. We serve bar meals most evenings in the Patti Bar and main function room. At the castle you can sit round a real log fire which is lit in winter or on cool summer evenings. On Fridays and Saturdays the castle often has private functions so the Castle may then be closed to non-event guests. Availability for dining and staying is shown on our Dog Friendly Wales website here: http://www.dogfriendlywales.com/accommodation-availability.html

Breakfast Menu

Served in the Main Function Room or the Conservatory.

Breakfast is served from 08.00 – 10.00. If you wish to arrive earlier than this, please check with reception as the room will otherwise be locked until 08.00. While it may not be possible to have a cooked breakfast before 08.00, or after 10.00, should you require a continental style breakfast prior to this time please advise reception the day before

Sample menu – individual items may change according to season and availability and various changes are introduced throughout the year.

Choice of cereals Orange Juice, Pineapple Juice, Apple Juice and other juices as available

Tea / Coffee Bacon

Egg Sausage

Hash Browns Beans

Mushrooms Tomatoes

Plenty of Toast

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Local Restaurants Should you wish to have a few drinks while out – don’t risk it as the police (lacking any serious crime in the area) are especially vigilant in this part of Wales. We recommend Ystradgynlais Cabs on 01639 849 472. When the castle restaurant and bar is open, it is worth eating in as the castle’s chefs offer excellent cuisine at affordable prices.

To Drink Locally The castle bar has lagers and beers and plenty of wine and a good stock of shorts on our top shelf. However if you are a keen Real Ale drinker, a good pub to visit is the Ancient Briton. The Ancient Briton has regular live music on Fridays and Saturdays and often on other nights. Eccentric Landlord Gerald will welcome you and stay open till you fall over as long as you don’t become too noisy (he is a strict landlord). 1 mile staggering distance from castle – organise a lift rather than drive back as the police have nothing to do in these parts. Speed limits in our area also need to be adhered to. One police tactic I personally have experienced is to come up behind you and drive really close. You are tempted to speed up thinking you have an impatient driver on your heels; you’ll then get pulled over for speeding. If you still want to unearth more watering holes or restaurants we regret there is nothing of note beyond Abercrave to our south, for some distance. On a good summer’s day / evening you might enjoy the mountain drive to Trecastle. Turn right out of the castle and take the first left opposite the Tafan yr Garrag pub which is a little north of the Gwyn Arms pub. Take the long winding single track road to Trecastle which is about 7 miles drive. You go right over the mountain and there is some nice scenery. Take CAREFUL NOTE of the one T junction on this rural lane (at which you turn right to Trecastle) as on the return journey it is very easy to miss this turning off back to the castle. If you do miss it, you can go a little off course, carrying down another lane for what seems like 20 miles, ending up in some very remote areas in the Black Mountains. Trecastle has a pub and two antique shops. There are plenty of walks off the mountain road between us and Trecastle. Another interesting pub for Real Ale drinkers is the Red Lion at Penderyn which is a must if you are in the area. It is difficult to find even though Penderyn is something of a one lane village so here are two key photos. Coming from the South, at a cross roads you will find The Lamb Hotel (pictured below left).

In this picture you are facing North, on the main road and at the crossroads; this is the view you will have of The Lamb Hotel while still on the main road going through Penderyn. To get to the Red Lion you must turn off the main road in front of the Lamb Hotel and take a very narrow single track lane which (looking from this angle) goes off to the Lamb Hotel’s left. You will eventually come across an unprepossessing looking building right on the side of the single track lane with somewhat limited parking (though there is a hidden overflow car park). Here is a

picture of it on the right… The Red Lion is opposite Penderyn Church. It offers a good range of ales all served from kegs behind the bar. If the pub appears closed, a knock on the door might open it. My own advice is to start by ordering a half each of three or four of the most promising looking ales, and then, once you have determined your favourite, continue with as many pints of your preferred choice as required.

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PRIVATE FUNCTIONS If you are thinking of putting your own event on and wish to hire rooms for your exclusive use, there are some good Deals to be had – especially if you join the Members Club – see http://www.membersdiscountclub.com See also www.groupaccommodationinwales.com for information on group accommodation rates, parties, birthday parties, hen parties, ghost events, conferences, training facilities etc. Our main weekend business is weddings – see http://www.craigynoscastleweddings.com for details of all our wedding offers. The Functions Rooms Theatre – Licensed for weddings Grade One listed Opera House

Function Rooms – Patti Bar, Music Room, Billiard Room

Conservatory

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Adelina Patti

Some Interesting Facts About Adelina Patti & Craig-Y-Nos Castle

• In 1841 Captain Powell created a Neogothic

Mansion at Cae Bryn Melin Bach on a site above the River Tawe.

• In 1875-76 the mansion was sold to the Morgan Family for £6,000.

• In 1878 the mansion and its rural setting captivated the leading Opera Singer of the Day, who felt she had found the home of her dreams. She paid £3,500 for Craig y Nos.

• Adelina Patti renamed the mansion Craig-Y-Nos Castle, which means Rock of the Night. • Although unconfirmed, it is said that Edward VII visited Craig-Y-Nos when Prince of Wales. • For 25 years she sang by private invitation for Queen Victoria. • Madam Adelina Juana Maria Patti was born in Madrid on the 19th February 1843 to a Sicilian Father and

Italian Mother. • In 1868 she married the Marquis De Caux, Equerry to Napoleon III of France; • They divorced in 1885. • On 9th February 1886 she married Signor Ernest Nicolini, a French tenor with whom she often performed,

sometimes Juliet to his Romeo. • The Theatre was a remarkable addition to the Castle and could hold up to 150 people. • The opening ceremony took place on 15th July 1891. • The death of Nicolini brought great change to Adelina and her Castle. At 55 she was a widow and met

Baron Rolf Cederstrom, a Swedish nobleman 26 years her junior. • She married Cederstrom in the Catholic Church in Brecon on 25th January 1899. • The Diva was kind and generous but somewhat temperamental, calling everyone Devil or Darling. • The Diva made her last public appearance in 1914. • Craig-Y-Nos was one of the first private houses to be wired for Electricity. • Adelina Patti passed away at her beloved Craig-Y-Nos Castle on the 27th September 1919. She was 76. • Her resting place is in the Pere Lachaise in Paris where her favourite composer Rossini was also buried

(though he has since been moved). • In 1920 Baron Cederstrom put up for sale virtually all inside furnishings at Craig-Y-Nos. • Also in 1920, the winter garden was dismantled and removed to Swansea, where it remains today as the

Patti Pavilion. • The Castle became a TB hospital for 40 years, after which it continued as a Geriatric Hospital for a further

20 years. During this time the castle interior lost its Victorian furnishings and style and the building was allowed to fall into disrepair. Roof slates would fall off and be replaced with X-Ray plates.

• The Castle went back into private ownership in the 1980’s. Various improvements were attempted first by a consortium of pharmacists. Further repairs were attempted under the Jones’s who owned Craig Y Nos for six years, till 2000, though their main efforts were expended seeking grant funding which was not forthcoming.

• SelClene Ltd, the present owners, took over in October 2000 and we counted over 60 buckets, troughs and even old baths collecting rainwater in the visible areas. We found many more buckets arranged one beside the other in serried rows in loft areas – all in turn overflowing into the buckets and troughs we could see in the rooms below. Roof repairs were urgently done and gradually we have redecorated and restored function rooms and created new en-suites and facilities. Renovations continue with a view to making the castle commercially viable. Roughly £3m was spent in the first 10 years (up to 2011) and in the second decade we still average around 100k per annum on renovations and maintenance. As soon as we uncover something to improve an area, we find a whole load of unexpected problems. No grant monies have been forthcoming nor are likely to be offered. In the absence of grants and particularly during these

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still challenging economic times, we have to be very careful what we do. In an ideal world we would do much more!

• Plans include opening a new kitchen and dining room in the cellars to serve B&B guests not attending a function or event, further internal redecoration, new carpets where required, adding more en-suite rooms, continuing work on gutters, gullies, and roof work, and completing the paths, terraces and walls at the rear of the castle.

More information on the history of the Castle can be seen here -

http://www.mosthauntedcastle.com/castles_first_owner.html

Works to Castle 2000-2010 1. Roof to main Building: We repaired most of the roof to the main building so the fabric of the building is

protected. We no longer need the two troughs and 160 buckets once scattered around the Castle to catch the rain. There are some areas still needing attention but fundamentally the building is now ‘safe’.

2. The Patti Bar: We have redecorated the Patti Bar, using 2.5 tons of plaster on one wall alone! The ‘hole-in-

the-wall’ to the right of the fireplace once housed a safe. The owners before us tell the story of the owners before them having to leave in a hurry, abandoning valuables in the safe. They later revisited the castle, then under new ownership, and raided their own safe, knocking through the wall to penetrate through the back of the safe. An old patterned Axminster carpet was replaced with a ‘character oak’ sold wood floor in 2011. However the bar is beginning to look a little tired and could do with another make-over.

3. The exterior walls: Two sections of the front of the castle have been restored and the walls cleaned and

sealed. All the limestone walls absorb water and need re-pointing, cleaning and either ‘sealing’ or left allowed to ‘breathe’ (i.e. leak) where walls internally are left as natural stone. In many cases the stonework and mullions around windows need to be replaced or repaired. Gutters and windows on the main building badly need repairing and painting. This work is slowly getting advanced each summer. An exterior repaint of the window frames in 2012 kept two full time painters fully employed for 6 months and they still did not finish all the windows. We’ve repainted the main billiard room but still need to fix some leaks above music room and theatre corridor/ loos.

4. The Lead Gullies & leaks: Previous owners had spent considerable energies repairing and replacing roof slates

which had the effect of moving the leaks from slated areas to the gullies and flat roofs. Further work replacing century old lead gullies has taken place. In one five month project the lead gullies between the 160 year old pyramids were replaced at a cost of £118,000. The leaks from the pyramids and anywhere where roofs are joined with gullies in-between were responsible for much of the damage to the main building. Another project saw lead gullies between the music room and billiard room roofs replaced, stopping the leaks coming in to these function rooms. Water from leaking gullies was absorbed via the stone walls causing ceiling and floor joists to rot and also to destabilise stone walls as the lime in-between was washed away.

Many internal floors and entire ceilings have had to be replaced as floor joists were found to be rotten from decades of water damage. Much of this entirely unseen work was necessary to protect the structural integrity of the building. The castle in 2001/2 was in a far worse state than anyone could ever have imagined. It was in danger of caving in. The roof and all the floors underneath would soon have collapsed under their own weight. Unfortunately there are insufficient funds to embark on large capital projects which means the two upper floors of the castle, known as ‘the derelict area’, cannot be converted into accommodation or guest use. They will remain derelict ‘ghost hunting’ areas for the foreseeable future – see www.mosthauntedcastle.com In years to come we intend to tackle one room a year in the derelict area. As there are nine rooms, this will be a decade’s work.

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5. The Nurses Block: £85,000 was spent creating a separate budget hostel standard accommodation block out of the old ‘Nurses Block’. There are eleven rooms, communal showers, a disabled bathroom and a smart kitchen and living room providing inexpensive budget accommodation. It is ideal for groups and organisations on a low budget, charities and so on. However it does not meet the standards required by those accustomed to modern en-suite accommodation and is not graded under the current tourist board guidelines – being more ‘hostel’ standard than guest house or hotel standard. It used by budget groups, self-catering groups, and as overflow accommodation for weddings, for hen parties and ghost hunting parties on a budget deal. See http://www.groupaccommodationinwales.com/sleep_in_budget.html

6. The ‘North Ward’ once housed SelClene’s Call Centre, which employed 16 staff. This has now been downsized

and moved to Twickenham, freeing up the room for use as a conference and training facility. Sounds grand but when not in use, any unused space becomes an untidy storage area. Book a training event and we can tidy it up! See http://www.groupaccommodationinwales.com/training_office.html

7. The Blue Bar: An informal and rustic ‘Blue Bar’ was undergoing refurbishment. Ultimately it will provide space

for a separate bar, dining room and small meeting room with direct access on to the terraces overlooking the country park at the rear of the building. This project was suspended in 2006 as we got diverted onto restoring the old Aviary, converting it into a sports room, and then the Conservatory. It is intended to re-commence work on this area in winter 2015, when we will also upgrade the theatre / function room loos.

8. The large Billiards & Music room was re-decorated a few years back with a colour change from various shades

of green to light blue and white. 2011 saw new oak flooring replacing the old carpet and it has since been repainted in cream with highlights of reds and golds. Continued small gulley leaks in two corners and above two arched windows are discolouring the ceiling and will be repaired when funds allow. Currently in use for breakfasts, evening dining room for B&B guests, and as a night time disco and party room for weddings – see http://www.groupaccommodationinwales.com/music_room_.html and http://www.craigynoscastleweddings.com/evening_in_music_room.html

9. The Fountain has been repaired, shot-blasted and repainted in black and gold and is now working properly. It

often needs repainting though as the paint seems to peel off the sides every winter. 10. The Castle Clock, which had not worked for many years, has been repaired at a cost of £23,000 and its

Westminster Chimes can occasionally be heard across the valley. Currently the chimes are turned off as night time guests were complaining about the noise. A night time ‘retracting arm’ needs repairing to stop it chiming away all night.

11. Patio and Courtyard Completed in 2005, at a cost of about £21,000, a new, well lit patio and walkways have

been laid around and behind the theatre. Newly installed lanterns, in the gothic style of the castle, illuminate the roadside wall, courtyard, paths and patio at night. Ideal for summer events or just relaxing outside when the weather allows.

12. The Atrium Block –first floor: this block is to the right as you walk into the courtyard from the main gates. The

atrium block used to be three separate houses and were once quarters for Adelina Patti’s staff. The builders have repaired most of the Atrium Building’s roof and converted the first floor and most of the ground floor into en-suite rooms. We also have a new bridal suite in the old chapel room. Cost: about £450,000. Work is currently ongoing in what will become room 17, to create a self-catering apartment sleeping 4 persons, complete with kitchen and lounge. Room / apartment 17 should be completed in Winter 2014.

13. The Jacuzzi & Sports room: Guests can enjoy the benefit of a 7 seater Jacuzzi and modern fitness equipment

all overlooking a private veranda and housed in a conservatory with views over the Country Park. Please shower before using the hot tub as we are occasionally getting complaints about floating fats on the surface of the water. Even a small amount of deodorants and unseen grease on a person’s body can interfere with the clear appearance of the water. With high usage by people not having a shower first, this becomes a problem, increasing periods of closure for cleaning and maintenance. The water is filtered constantly and completely changed regularly but please report anything wrong with the hot tub to reception.

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14. The Conservatory: The Conservatory was completed in November 2008 and has since become the most popular function room in the Castle. With a panoramic view overlooking Craig-y-Nos Country Park, the room is popular with both wedding and conference clients and can seat up to 120 or more people. Mainly used for Wedding Breakfasts, but we discourage its use as a disco room at night due to its proximity to the bedrooms. Instead we use the main function room for the night ‘do’.

Since we purchased the castle on 27/10/2000 we have spent circa £3.5m on repairs and improvements. While discussions have taken place with every government body imaginable regarding grants, none have been forthcoming for the castle. We did have some funding for an options appraisal on the theatre which concluded we should sell out to an opera company! So we progress slowly, topping up with income from London Property lettings, a cleaning agency franchise, and the castle functions business. In quieter business periods post 2008 (the recession did not fully affect us until late 2010 due to forward bookings of weddings but hit us hard in 2011), work has to be scaled down, while in good economic periods, more can be achieved. The more events we hold, the more we can continue to do work on the property. We experienced a 30% drop in events and B&B bookings in 2009 which necessitated a reduction in renovation work but we picked up again in 2010. For a while were confident we could maintain our spending on the castle at previous levels. We did not start implementing the savings needed until mid-2011 due to existing commitments to unfinished projects and a late realisation that bookings for 2011 were not going to improve. The ‘recovery’ in 2010 resulted in a flurry of redecorating but 2011 saw a massive 50% drop in business and consequently any ability to fund repairs and works to castle got put ‘on hold’. We approached the bank for more funding, and they responded by cancelling our overdraft - £150,000 at the time. We agreed a staged reduction in the overdraft at £10,000 per month, while making massive cuts to accommodate the drop in castle income during what became a longer than expected recession. We reduced from 8 full time builders and one maintenance/ gardener to 2 full time builders and the owner doing the gardening (very therapeutic it was too). Weddings in 2012 and 2013 recovered almost to previous levels thanks to a Special Offer Deal which doubled forward bookings compared with 2011 – see www.craigynoscastleweddings.com for details of the wedding offers. With B&B bookings down 50%, it became uneconomic to service B&B guests in the mid-week periods and in the winter off-season. In 2009/10 we economised by cutting back our mid-week (Sunday Thursday) service to offer continental breakfasts only and no evening meals - which did not affect many as midweek guest numbers were low. In 2012 with a live-in B&B couple replacing about 5 external staff, we were able to serve smaller numbers more economically. We resumed full breakfasts and evening meals midweek in the summer only, while achieving savings by closing during winter months. In 2011 and 2012 we closed from mid-October to March, except for event bookings. We added up all the income lost by not opening in these slacker periods, against all the staffing and fuel costs of staying open, and we found we achieved a net saving of £60,000! All the savings we made enabled us to move into a break-even trading position in 2012, after a big loss in 2011, thanks to a lot of reorganisation. Writing this in 2014, we are now seeing more B&B business mid-week again, thanks to the prominence in Google of the Dog Friendly Wales website, which is supplemented with a few mid-week discounted offers. This means we will remain open through October to December, semi-closing only in January - March. One expense I would have preferred to avoid was a legal action over an uncompleted installation of a guest bedrooms phone system, which we should have won. We lost the case even though, as guests will observe, many rooms still do not have phones! This was very much our own fault as we presented our evidence badly, even though, technically, our argument that the phones are not physically in all the rooms, cannot be disputed. Cost: about £120,000.

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2011 - 2014 Despite a halving of B&B business caused by the recession, Weddings initially held up well due to forward bookings - we had 83 weddings in 2010, up from 68 in 2009. Bookings for 2011 were down to just 51 weddings and remained slack at 57 weddings in 2012. However we started taking a load more forward bookings in 2012 thanks to the new Special Wedding offer and the new wedding website, and so recovered to 77 weddings in 2013 and 76 in 2014. Initially we’d run a special 'free wedding' deal where a couple could have their wedding 'free' at the castle if they arranged for 50 guests to stay on a DB&B basis. This accounted for a third of weddings booked in 2010. We assumed income from ‘free weddings’ would be 50% below the normal weddings. However when we worked out the average income from the lower budget 'free' weddings, and compared it with the full 'paid- for' weddings, we found overall income was just 2% less. This was a revelation! It seems those on a budget deal have a load of extras they would not normally have been able to afford, and they add more guests to their wedding account. Extra B&B income from guests staying overnight, together with increased bar income means the weddings on a ‘deal’ (effectively slightly less than half price per head) had the same overall value as a 'full tariff' wedding. The ‘free wedding’ deal was replaced with the ‘Special Wedding Offer Deal’ advertised on our separate weddings website http://www.craigynoscastleweddings.com in 2011. The Bride and Groom have to get 50 guests staying overnight at £75/head each, B&B, to qualify for this Deal. As more guests stay overnight, the ‘big day’ does not come to a premature close with people choosing to leave early or finding their own way home. These budget deals have helped maintain wedding bookings despite the recession as couples realise Craig y Nos is surprisingly competitive for larger numbers. Since the new dedicated special offer website went live, bookings have recovered, though we are a little shy of our target of 80 weddings a year. B&B bookings are now subject to price competition from sites such as Groupon and as the recession continues people have become accustomed to getting a ‘deal’. This is true of tourism generally. Our heavy reliance on one primary income stream, weddings, is risky. While we have become consistently competent in handling these large events and gain excellent feedback on the weddings - and the castle with its large function room lends itself to big functions - it is not sound business practice to become too reliant on a single income source. Other establishments, even small pubs, are now vying for the same business as they try to survive. Ideally we need larger numbers of people staying just to enjoy the area. This is where B&B guests staying once or twice a year for a day or two, and coming back each year, cumulatively starts to add up. There are also opportunities for diversification which we are looking into, including group accommodation deals, two night B&B deals, birthday parties, training weeks etc. In 2012 our Dog Friendly Wales website achieved top positions organically in Google, Yahoo and Bing and this site has generated ever increasing numbers of dog owners staying at the castle and liking the place enough to come back. Dog friendly mid-week breaks are an excellent niche market to which the castle is well suited. In the Autumn we also supplement with Groupon offers similar to the Dog Friendly discounted package and this has been very successful. It is a constant balancing act trying to trade through the recession with either low numbers of B&B guests - or higher numbers at a discount to normal tariffs - while at the same time fuel and electricity costs are increasing, as has VAT. It has also been a challenge catering for the essential, repeat B&B business, alongside the much larger events and weddings side of the business. As most weddings take all the accommodation and the castle exclusive, B&B guests are now limited to dates when there is no wedding on. Also to reduce noise, weddings now move from the Conservatory by day to the main function room for the evening party. This makes for a quicker ‘turnaround’. The function room can be readied for the evening party even

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as the wedding guests are having their wedding breakfast in the Conservatory. Emptying the Conservatory by 8 pm enables the room to be set up for the next day’s event, early the same evening. This is popular with the next day’s wedding party who can then set up their table decorations the day before. This means the wedding party benefits from having a change of scene; they get the use of two rooms rather than being stuck in one room for the whole day as is common with most other venues. The Conservatory is ideal for the Wedding Breakfast in the day, with its extensive views over the local mountain scenery. At night, the evening disco is held in the evening function in the main building, well away from the guest rooms. We can confine the noise of the disco and general party hubbub within the thick walls of the castle. The only noise that remains comes from smokers and drinkers congregating outside the front entrance. The regular rainfall we seem to get at night helps discourage this! We trade as a guest house / B&B rather than as a permanently open full service hotel. Our tourist board grading is consequently 3 star guest house rather than 3 star hotel. In the longer term, the castle deserves to become a fully functioning hotel, with at least 50 en-suite bedrooms, including full conversion of the derelict areas into high standard bedroom / sitting room apartments. There is a large area of cellars under the main function room, adjacent to the theatre, which once housed the Blue Bar. This area is partly in use as loos, which need upgrading. During 2015-16 we intend to rebuild this area, creating a smaller loo area, and a larger restaurant / bar area with its own kitchen. This would become the dedicated restaurant for B&B guests, completely independent of any big function. With this facility in place, and a general upgrading of facilities in the bedrooms, we could qualify as a 3 or 4 star hotel. NEW SPORTS ROOM AND SPA. It all started at the Builth Wells show in Summer 2005, when I spotted a hot tub. Having spent the afternoon reviewing different hot tubs, I paid a deposit and anticipated delivery in a couple of weeks. My idea was to install the Jacuzzi in a log cabin in the garden. But on consulting the Brecon Beacons National Parks Authority, we discovered planning permission for a log cabin would not be granted. So where to put the Jacuzzi? From this….. Via this…. Almost there…. To. Our General Manager Ian Bloom had the idea of putting it in the derelict Aviary adjoining the old Conservatory. The Aviary of course would need some restoration work. We then decided we’d need a space for exercise equipment – to create a sports room. Next we realised we would need showers and toilets for the new sports room and spa. We added disabled facilities including a disabled loo and shower and exercise equipment for the upper body

(suitable for disabled use). All the levels on the floor had to be changed to allow wheelchair access. The steel took 6 months to fabricate and erect instead of the five weeks or so quoted by the suppliers – not a problem as we were still scratching our head over the wall, ground levels and coping stones.

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Just straightening up the old iron rails on the patio outside involved a month digging up the old patio and laying new foundations.

Two and a half years later, and some £150,000 of work done, maybe I’d have been wiser to cancel the hot tub and lose my £300 deposit! The good news is that we finished restoring Adelina Patti’s Aviary as shown. We replaced what was an eyesore, the ugly hospital era glass lean-to (see page above), with a new glass and steel extension to house the sports centre and spa.

The sports equipment, lockers and changing rooms can now be used by overnight guests and Castle Club Members. Currently the terrace outside is unfinished but we should get some paving slabs down soon…. RESTORATION OF MAIN CONSERVATORY TO PROVIDE SECOND FUNCTION ROOM.

The problem with restoring the Aviary and making it into a smart spa and sports room, was that we had an eyesore next to it – the Conservatory. This was a leaky derelict building fit for nothing, with water streaming into it for decades. Most of the roof was rotten and the original felt covering had long disintegrated. As for the 130 year old windows, these as you can see from the picture (left) were in a sorry state. The top third of what you see on the left was original while the lower two thirds were cheap modern panes installed in the Hospital era, probably in the 1950’s/ 1960’s, when the Conservatory was used as a TB ward for children.

Our original thoughts were to fence it off so it could not be seen from the spa. However the water pouring in through the leaky roof was introducing water into our new toilets for the spa area and flooding the neighbouring Breakfast Room (resulting in damp walls and peeling wallpaper). So we bit the bullet and had the entire roof repaired, stripping off the old roofing felt, replacing all the rotten timbers, and re-covering with fibreglass roof (which still leaks)!

We were pleased to find the Conservatory, despite its appearance, was structurally sound. The building is supported by heavy wrought iron pillars and has not subsided or deteriorated structurally. We have replaced all the window frames and glass panes. Patti’s Conservatory, abandoned since the 1970’s, is now a function room for weddings and events. A new bar exists in what was the ‘Conservatory Dormitory’ though this is

mainly used as a food serving station. The ‘outside’ Atrium toilets now service guests using the Conservatory. The roof still leaked for a while because the new fibreglass coating we had a contractor put on was inadequate. This was a fault by the roofer whom we later found from other firms’ prices, had ‘under-quoted’ by about 70% to get the work. This demonstrates how a trader who under-quotes may then be unable to do a decent job, yet both he and the customer remain unaware of this until the job fails! We were quoted a further £20,000 to put the still leaking roof right, but fortunately, from another roofing job we had done ourselves, on another commercial building, we sourced a supplementary coating we could paint on top that seems to have sealed it effectively, for a cost of only £2,000. We now recoat the fibreglass every year as an alternative to completely redoing the fibreglass roof a second time. BLUE BAR AND CELLAR KITCHENS – DEVELOPMENT OF CELLAR RESTAURANT We found most of the ceiling joists supporting the room above, the heavily used Music Room and main Function Room, were rotten. So during a slack January and February in 2006 we replaced all the floor joists. Though nothing can be seen for this work, it was quite major and took several weeks. We now have a new ceiling with recessed

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spotlights in what was the Blue Bar. It just needed a lick of paint and to be ready for use. This was to become the restaurant for B&B guests mentioned earlier. We then decided the new ceiling was too low. Anyone over 6 feet would hit their head on it. So we excavated the floor, dropping it by three feet. The initial question was – how far could we dig without undermining the foundations? Test holes were dug and duly inspected by a structural engineer. As we could not get any equipment in to this area, two Slovakians spent over a year of hand-digging, on and off, between other jobs. Carted out by wheelbarrow, the floor of the old Blue Bar formed a pile of rubble in the rear car park that took eighteen 20 ton truck loads to clear. Work has temporarily been shelved as this has proved a more involved project than we realised. Priority was instead given to the Conservatory to create a large second function room for events. Once completed, the Cellar Restaurant can be used as a breakfast area, and as a separate dining room and restaurant for B&B guests not part of a function, and by day it can be used as tea rooms. THE CONSERVATORY The main Conservatory needs a few finishing touches but is popular for weddings. A food preparation area needs adding though for now we are able to use the main kitchens and move food through to the Conservatory Bar on Bain Marie servery equipment from where we can serve guests in the Conservatory. The veranda outside offers al fresco dining in the summer and an outside area for smokers. THE BREAKFAST ROOM The Breakfast room has had a make-over, preserving one wall of the original William Morris wallpaper that dates back to Patti’s era. Originally all the walls were covered in this dark patterned wall paper, which made the room very gloomy. As two walls had been affected by leaks for decades, before we fixed the roof gullies three storeys above, and re-roofed the conservatory, lime had over many years leached from the limestone walls, staining the original wall paper with white streaks. So this wallpaper was removed, which is why we are now left with only the fireplace wall having the original wallpaper. We can get the original design but decided against replacing it as it made the room uninvitingly dark. THE NICOLINI LOUNGE We planned a similar make-over for what used to be the Nicolini Bar only to discover there were structural problems. The same water leaks from the top floor had soaked all through the internal stone walls, causing the beams and joists to rot where they connected with the stone walls. The ceiling was found to be resting on just two beams, being about 10% of the original support network of beams and joists. The rest was just hanging in the air. So the original ceiling had to be dismantled and re-built from scratch with massive new steel support joists. Most hotels have a waiting area or reception room for guests to sit down and relax in, upon arrival. The Nicolini Bar, being next to the reception desk, now makes a very pleasant lounge. We have removed the Bar from the Nicolini room as it was never used (the Patti Bar is quite sufficient) and we have reinstated the fire place we discovered behind the old bar. We’ve converted this room into a nice new reception lounge that guests can relax in upon arrival. TELEPHONES / INTERNET IN BEDROOMS A program of adding telephones and TVs to all the rooms and smartening up corridors and communal areas generally is ongoing. Progress on the phones was delayed by problems with a sub-contractor, who promised a fully installed and working package. They collected a £50k advance payment via a finance deal, and then failed to ever install a fully working phone system in all the bedrooms. We waited a year or so while their subcontracted engineers ran wires everywhere and puzzled over the complexity of the building and thick walls. When they eventually gave up and left, we took the main contractor to court.

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However we failed to satisfy the Judge that the system was not ‘fully’ installed. We did eventually end up with 37 out of the 47 phones originally contracted for, though most were not actually in the bedrooms where I wanted them. But we do have a lot in communal areas. Sadly the cost currently works out at £4,477 per working phone! These sorts of things do go on in business. One small plus is that the firm’s subcontractors became sufficiently confused and laid wiring for a further 40 or so phones, which were not initially stipulated in the contract for the hotel rooms. This arose because we discussed with the installers, as we went around the building, what would need to be allowed for in subsequent phases of the installation, including phones in communal and public areas. The subcontractors, rather than speak to the main contractors, then opted to do some of this additional work, ahead of completing the contract for the first phase. It did make sense to the people physically doing the work, but the net result was we ended up without connected phones in our rooms and about 90 lots of cabling to various points of the building, without phones attached to the ends. We can therefore complete the installation ourselves, eventually, for all 90 phones! One good thing about the whole phone saga is we now know enough to finish the job ourselves. We could happily source, supply and install an identical phone system that a large firm will sell you for circa £50k, for around £10,000 plus VAT - if anyone is interested! Our rooms will gain phones and internet etc, slowly, as part of a general carpet replacing and floor replacing project in the corridors. CORRIDOR CARPETS - BEDROOMS The corridor carpets were replaced after sunlight burnt the carpet outside AB35/36. We’ve put up blinds to stop sunlight burn through the wall of glass windows. A replacement better quality wool carpet was laid, alongside replacing floor joists, plus connecting the phones within some rooms. TRADING THROUGH THE RECESSION I have now been at Craig y Nos for 15 years. The first decade saw huge amounts of largely unseen work being done, and £3m spent, mostly out of income then being generated by a profitable cleaning franchise. The second decade of 2010 – 2020 will see a slow-down in renovation work, mainly because of the recession and there simply not being enough funds, but some work somewhere is always going on. It is now time for the castle to attempt to provide a return on investment. Instead of spending £350k to £400k a year, we will be reducing this to around £100k a year on relatively manageable renovation and maintenance works. More focus is now being put on generating a good bank of events business alongside repeat mid-week B&B business, and controlling costs to trade more sensibly. Our aim is to build up repeat accommodation business through longer stay deals (ideally Sunday to Thursday) which can run alongside the weekend wedding business. Our kitchen team and front of house staff are getting excellent feedback for their home cooked food and for their hospitality, as are our staff generally. Everyone working for the castle enjoys what they do and wants to see Craig y Nos succeed. Support of the Castle through people coming back for repeat stays, happy guests referring others to the Castle, plus the Members Club, will all help.

Kindly note that the Castle is “A Work In Progress” Kindly note the castle is a work in progress. We are continually doing renovation works and this is likely to be a permanent feature of castle life. Though we are aware of loads and loads of things that really should urgently be done, economic factors are a continual constraint on our desire to do more.

Cleaning of rooms Rooms are generally not cleaned during a short two or three night stay. Linen is replaced every 3rd day or as required. If you DO require your room cleaned during your stay please leave your key at reception and let the receptionist know. If you do not want anyone entering your room during your stay, please inform reception and

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place the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on your door. For longer stays, ‘tidies’ should be done regularly, so if they are not done, please inform reception.

What our guests say about the Castle I used to include pages and pages of praise about the castle and for obvious ‘marketing’ reasons, not include any of the bad comments. However every hotel does that so why put a load of good stuff about how wonderful the place is? It’s all ‘marketing’ and guests know this so they won’t read the good comments anyway. We all like to read the juicy stuff on sites such as Trip Advisor now! The fact is some people love the Castle, some people hate it, some people expect a load more of the place. Some are forgiving of its faults and quirks and come back, some vow never to return in their current lifetime. Some may just be unlucky and some may be delighted. Most do feel the staff are friendly, not all feel we are particularly competent, but everyone does try their best to keep customers happy. It is never the intention of management or staff for things to go wrong, but things can occasionally go wrong, and then we do our best to put things right. Now you can go to the Trip Advisor website and read all – good and bad, without any editorial control by the castle owner! So if you would like to add your own comments please do, but if you are really unhappy, please moan to us direct and see if we can solve the problem. If you are really happy, please make the effort to post a comment on Trip Advisor, as it will help balance out the score somewhat and encourage more to stay. People are now learning to treat the comments on these sites with a pinch of salt, understanding that a place just may not suit some people, but not everyone is able to see this if they discover too many moans all bunched together. So if you do want to post a moan, please be empathic and balance it out with what you liked about the place too, so the reader gets a helpful and balanced view.

Walks in the Country Park During your stay – do not miss out on Craig y Nos Country Park. You can explore on your own just by walking through the gates at the bottom of our own grounds. It is virtually empty in the evenings and during the week so you will pretty well have the 40 acre country park to yourself. Midge repellent (the spray version of Tesco’s own brand works well) is strongly advised.

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More pictures of the Country Park can be found on www.dogfriendlywales.com

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CASTLE NOT FOR SALE, BUT QUIRKY AND GOTHIC: The castle was up for sale during 2011, as I had planned to move to Sussex, however it has now been withdrawn from sale. This is in part because no one else really wants to take it on. Business-minded people worry about the continuing capital expenditure required. It probably needs another £3m to finish the restoration. Anyone with the ability to take on such a project, soon realises it is not something they would get a return on. Wiser heads steer clear; there are better things they can do with their money. I still wish to relocate to West Sussex so my children can be near their grandmother. In September 2015 my oldest son will be starting at a school in Sussex near where my mother lives. It will be good for him to grow up knowing his grandmother which will not be possible if we remain in Wales. Also it has to be conceded that the climate in Sussex is better! So it looks as if I will end up half in Sussex and half at Craig y Nos from September 2015. The only problem is buying anything there. I currently have our self-catering farmhouse up for sale – but so far no takers. Having recently taken up caravanning I am now reconciled to camping in a field in Sussex from September 2015! Craig y Nos does not lend itself to being a private house. It is too large, and too near the road, and for someone with £1.5m to spend, on a private house, you wouldn’t choose to live in a huge and expensive-to-run place like a castle (even a mock gothic one) with over 100 rooms and an opera house. Craig y Nos is virtually a village, employing up to 40 staff when it is busy. It is a substantial employer in this part of the world. I reckon it will always be a commercial building rather than a private house and like the neighbouring show caves, it will remain a draw for tourism and events. Our emphasis will be on keeping it on as a going concern. The priority right now is to make the most of the investment we have already put in, by trading at break-even or a small surplus. If Craig y Nos is to receive further substantial renovation investment, it needs to start generating sufficient income of itself, to fund its ongoing costs and to become self-sustainable. There are not very many people around who are prepared to take the castle on, as it is a daunting prospect. Even though we have done a substantial amount of work to it, we are only about half way to getting it into the condition we would like it to be in. It is a shame there are no Government grants available as if the building was in the state sector, substantial funds would no doubt be made available. As things stand, the castle may remain in its half-restored state for many years, a bit tatty around the edges, yet impressive in large parts and with an interesting history (Adelina Patti). It is half grand, half derelict, a curious mix of smart wedding venue with all the finery topped by derelict rooms suitable only for ghost hunts and our history tours. Craig y Nos is informal, friendly and more of a family place, rather than posh and smart and formal. It is an unpretentious 3 star guest house but with great presence. It perhaps should be, but is not, a five star hotel. It may one day become what perhaps it ought to be, or it may choose to stay as it is for a few decades yet. Quirky and gothic, and individual, stubbornly so, in an era where modernisation standardises everywhere into square boxy rooms in modern buildings. It also has a strong and loyal, enthusiastic team who are succeeding in gaining good feedback from customers, which all helps to increase our trade and safeguard the building's long term future.

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