Re: Major New Accommodation in 2014 - Themed Lodges
I recall having concerns about the scale of the restaurant offerings when this news first broke, and I was at that point mocked for thinking that ATR wouldn't have accommodated for this in their plans... to which we now have the plans and my initial concerns are seemingly a potential reality :-\.
210 max capacity if you include the 60 outdoor seats, which might well be okay on a warm summers eve, but what happens if we have a wash-out summer with torrential storms and everyone needs to be inside? Capacity down to 150, when the site on the whole could be potentially holding 500+ people at that point.
I've had a closer look at some of the layout plans for the huts/lodges/holes, and they simply say 'kitchenette' as a description, but nothing more detailed with regards to whether this includes a hob/oven? Has anyone seen a more substantial document with a break down and could confirm/refute the claims they will not have a hob/oven?
Personally, if I go 'self-catering', I'll sort out breakfast and lunch for myself, but eat out in the evenings anyway. I'd consider self catering to mean having the freedom to sort your own meals if you wish, but with the option to ditch the pans and have a meal elsewhere. I just hope that these plans aren't relying too much on guests taking the former option and not the latter - folk are on holiday, they want a break from cooking sometimes
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Even if guests cooked for themselves in their respective accommodation, its likely they'll fancy a wander out to a bar/entertainment venue... of which there appears relatively little available.
Actually, just thinking about it, 150 seats to cater for 500 guests wouldn't actually be that bad? Half an hour time slots, a constant flow of bums-on-seats from 6-9pm, and you'd probably manage it... that's if all guests decided they wanted to eat at that restaurant on that night?
My 500 estimate comes from the fact there will be 150 huts/holes/lodges in total, averaging at around 3 guests each.
Any ideas on the numbers that Secret Garden and Flambos deal with on a peak-season Saturday night?