<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="no"?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><rss xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" version="2.0"><channel><title>Ilfracombe House Hotel, Southend-on-Sea</title><description>A 4-star Family Run Guest House in Southend-on-Sea with spacious and comfortable accommodation. • 20 Bedrooms &amp;amp; 4 Apartment Suites • Own CAR PARK; all SKY SPORTS - All Rooms with Flat screen TVs, • DVD Player &amp;amp; mini-Fridge in each room • Honeymoon 4-poster Suites Available • Free Wi-Fi Internet &amp;amp; Free Guest PC Internet kiosk • Full English Hot Buffett Breakfast included  </description><managingEditor>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</managingEditor><pubDate>Sat, 5 Oct 2024 02:58:19 +0100</pubDate><generator>Blogger http://www.blogger.com</generator><openSearch:totalResults xmlns:openSearch="http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/">16</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex xmlns:openSearch="http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/">1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage xmlns:openSearch="http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/">25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/</link><language>en-us</language><itunes:explicit>no</itunes:explicit><itunes:summary>A 4-star Family Run Guest House in Southend-on-Sea with spacious and comfortable accommodation. • 20 Bedrooms &amp;amp; 4 Apartment Suites • Own CAR PARK; all SKY SPORTS - All Rooms with Flat screen TVs, • DVD Player &amp;amp; mini-Fridge in each room • Honeymoon 4-poster Suites Available • Free Wi-Fi Internet &amp;amp; Free Guest PC Internet kiosk • Full English Hot Buffett Breakfast included </itunes:summary><itunes:subtitle>A 4-star Family Run Guest House in Southend-on-Sea with spacious and comfortable accommodation. • 20 Bedrooms &amp;amp; 4 Apartment Suites • Own CAR PARK; all SKY SPORTS - All Rooms with Flat screen TVs, • DVD Player &amp;amp; mini-Fridge in each room • Honeymoon</itunes:subtitle><itunes:owner><itunes:email>noreply@blogger.com</itunes:email></itunes:owner><item><title>Emails from Derek and Anne Flynn, Nick from Frankfurt, Emma and more...</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/emails-from-derek-and-anne-flynn-nick.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Wed, 24 Apr 2013 11:07:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-8316832068097859542</guid><description>&lt;DIV dir=ltr&gt;  &lt;DIV style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000"&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV   style="FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; COLOR: #000000; FONT-STYLE: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none; DISPLAY: inline"&gt;  &lt;DIV   style="FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; COLOR: #000000; FONT-STYLE: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none; DISPLAY: inline"&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d size=5 face=Verdana&gt;Emails and Reviews sent online, 24th April   2013&lt;/FONT&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV dir=ltr&gt;  &lt;DIV style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000"&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;  &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000&gt;The staff were   very friendly and and couldn't do more to assist us.The buffet breakfast was   delicious and filled us up for the day. The bed was one of the comfiest beds I   have ever slept in. Would definitely stay here again if visiting Southend.   &lt;STRONG&gt;E&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;mma Philpott, &lt;/STRONG&gt;stayed 18-21st April   2013&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;   &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;SPAN class=style57 style="FONT-FAMILY: "&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d   size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;* * * *&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;   &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000&gt;'Would like to   say a BIG thank you to all the staff at Ilfracombe hotel. We stayed there this   weekend and had a lovely time, room was gorgeous. food was outstanding, staff   were so helpful and friendly. Would recommend you to anyone. We will definitely   stay there again. Excellent.'' stayed on 19-21st April 2013 &lt;STRONG   style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;Derek and Anne Flynn'&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;   &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;SPAN class=style57 style="FONT-FAMILY: "&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d   size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;* * * *&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&amp;nbsp;   &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;  &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d&gt;''Our Home from Home''&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt; - &lt;STRONG&gt;Nick, Frankfurt,   Germany&lt;/STRONG&gt;, &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;A style="FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: "   href="http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g503795-d289234-r156975052-Ilfracombe_House_Hotel-Westcliff_on_Sea_Southend_on_Sea_Essex_England.html"&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;Trip   Advisor.com&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/A&gt;&lt;BR&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;We   returned to the Ilfracombe again after a break of 2 years and stayed in a   self-catering apartment. (Roman style) As usual the service was very friendly   and accommodating and the appt. was clean and spacious. There are TVs in all   rooms now, so our daughter was delighted.&lt;BR&gt;I can recommend this as a very   reasonable option to families who prefer to cater themselves and want the   privacy and space of their own apartment. The location is great and the staff   too. This has become our home from home when visiting the UK.&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;DIV align=left&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;Room   Tip:&lt;/STRONG&gt; Top floor apartment is the best if   self-catering.&lt;BR&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;  &lt;P id=review_156697919 align=left&gt;&lt;SPAN class=style57   style="FONT-FAMILY: "&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;* * *   *&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;DIV align=left&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#000000&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d&gt;''Hidden gem in   Southend-on-Sea''&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt; - staceyjade, Brighton,   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;A style="FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: "   href="http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g503795-d289234-r153384329-Ilfracombe_House_Hotel-Westcliff_on_Sea_Southend_on_Sea_Essex_England.html"&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;Trip   Advisor.com&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/A&gt;&lt;BR&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;We've   recently stayed at the Ifracombe House hotel for a weekend. We found their   details on the Southend on Sea information website and for the price thought it   was very reasonable for a bed and breakfast.&lt;BR&gt;Now that we've been and stayed,   we have to say its definitely value for money!! The staff were ever so friendly   and couldn't do enough for us to make sure we were happy throughout our stay.   &lt;BR&gt;Set in a lovely area, a few minutes walk to the seafront and has a car park,   bar and restaurant. &lt;BR&gt;The breakfast was buffet style but had more than enough   to chose from. &lt;BR&gt;Our room was not very big but more than adequate.&lt;BR&gt;Would   definitely recommend this little gem to family and friends. Stayed February   2013, travelled as a couple&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;P id=review_152113440 align=left&gt;&lt;SPAN class=style57   style="FONT-FAMILY: "&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;* * *   *&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d&gt;''Well run by family Team''&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt; -MeMonster,   Manchester, &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;A style="FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: "   href="http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g503795-d289234-r152113440-Ilfracombe_House_Hotel-Westcliff_on_Sea_Southend_on_Sea_Essex_England.html"&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;Trip   Advisor.com&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/A&gt;&lt;BR&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;We   have used it a couple of times now for family visits and it is comfortable,   clean, with a good location close to the centre and has a small convenient car   park. The fabric of the building and rooms are nothing special but everything   works fine. What makes it is the service, dedication and attention to guests'   needs by owner, Bertie and his family. I personally would trade the satellite   subscription channels (available in bedrooms and in the excellent hotel bar) for   a lower price -- I was amazed by how much Bertie told me he has to pay for   these. We will certainly stay again. Stayed February 2013, travelled with family   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;SPAN class=style57 style="FONT-FAMILY: "&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d   size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;* * * *&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P align=left&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d&gt;''Good Value''&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt; -Sylrog99 Bishops Stortford, United   Kingdom, &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;A style="FONT-FAMILY: ; COLOR: "   href="http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g503795-d289234-r156697919-Ilfracombe_House_Hotel-Westcliff_on_Sea_Southend_on_Sea_Essex_England.html"&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;Trip   Advisor.com&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/A&gt;&lt;BR&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;Just   stayed at this hotel for one night, &amp;amp; the proprietors couldn't have done   more to make us feel at home. The room was spacious, clean &amp;amp; comfortable   &amp;amp; their food was great. The prices of their food &amp;amp; drinks were very   reasonable so we didn't feel at all "ripped off". We'd definitely stay again.   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;DIV align=left&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;Room   Tip:&lt;/STRONG&gt; no.6 has a 4 poster bed!&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;H4 class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;SPAN class=style57 style="FONT-FAMILY: "&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;* * * *&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/H4&gt;  &lt;H4 class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;"Very   Comfortable and would stay again"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H4&gt;  &lt;P class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;Staff were   very friendly, the room comfortable and clean, very convenient location. The   fact that this Hotel did meals at a reasonable price was a bonus as I was   travelling alone and didn't want to go out for a meal. Mrs Florence Ann   Scullard&lt;BR&gt;Cumbria, United Kingdom&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;H4 class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;SPAN class=style57 style="FONT-FAMILY: "&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;* * * *&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/H4&gt;  &lt;H4 class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d size=4   face=Verdana&gt;"Excellent"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H4&gt;  &lt;P class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;friendly   staff, clean room in nice quiet area and a short walk to most attractions and   train stations. Would recommend and stay again. David Richards&lt;BR&gt;Shropshire,   United Kingdom&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;H4 class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;SPAN class=style57 style="FONT-FAMILY: "&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;* * * *&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/H4&gt;  &lt;H4 class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c0504d size=4 face=Verdana&gt;"very   pleasant.room clean.cheerful staff &amp;amp;helpful"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H4&gt;  &lt;P class=style56 align=left&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;Highly   recommended.nice room.quiet environment. staff were very helpful and diligent.   will use it again in future. Mr Chelfat&lt;BR&gt;London, United   Kingdom&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;</description></item><item><title>April 2013 Guest Reviews</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/april-2013-guest-reviews.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Wed, 17 Apr 2013 22:16:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-5795886154852814921</guid><description>&lt;DIV dir=ltr&gt;  &lt;DIV style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV   style="FONT-STYLE: normal; DISPLAY: inline; FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none"&gt;&lt;FONT   face="Times New Roman"&gt;2013-04-17 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV dir=ltr&gt;  &lt;DIV style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"&gt;  &lt;DIV class=review-name&gt;&lt;FONT face="Times New Roman"&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;Barbara   Popov&lt;/STRONG&gt;, Bradbury (AU)&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV class=review-score&gt;&lt;FONT face="Times New Roman"&gt;10.0&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV class=review-score&gt;&lt;FONT face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4&gt;&lt;FONT   style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px" face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN   style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px" class=review-plus&gt;&lt;FONT   style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #009900"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;+&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt;   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;We had a great time the staff accommodation food and   service was First Class!!!! &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px"   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-minus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cc0000"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;-&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt;   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;There was nothing we did not like all was   perfect!!&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN-TOP: -10px" class=review-date&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 6.6pt" color=#333333&gt;2013-04-16   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 100px 10px 0px"   class=review-name&gt;&lt;FONT face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   style="FONT-SIZE: 9.6pt"&gt;Colin Lynn&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   style="FONT-SIZE: 9.6pt"&gt;, Norbury (GB)&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="POSITION: absolute; LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; RIGHT: 20px; TOP: 20px"   class=review-score&gt;&lt;FONT face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 14.4pt"   color=#666666&gt;7.9&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-plus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #009900"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;+&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt; "Close to   town centre/hotel was clean &amp;amp; comfortable staff very friendly, 10 out of 10,   definitely will be returning"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-minus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cc0000"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;-&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt; Walking down   to the prom can be a bit dicey if you are not too able   bodied&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#333333 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN-TOP: -10px" class=review-date&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 6.6pt" color=#333333&gt;2013-04-13   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 100px 10px 0px"   class=review-name&gt;&lt;FONT face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   style="FONT-SIZE: 9.6pt"&gt;Graham Bonner&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   style="FONT-SIZE: 9.6pt"&gt;, Aylesbury (GB)&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="POSITION: absolute; LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; RIGHT: 20px; TOP: 20px"   class=review-score&gt;&lt;FONT face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 14.4pt"   color=#666666&gt;7.9&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-plus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #009900"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;+&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt; "Good value   for money."&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-minus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cc0000"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;-&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt; Car park very   limited but appears also to be space in the street.&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#333333 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN-TOP: -10px" class=review-date&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 6.6pt" color=#333333&gt;2013-04-08   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 100px 10px 0px"   class=review-name&gt;&lt;FONT face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   style="FONT-SIZE: 9.6pt"&gt;Tony Grieve&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   style="FONT-SIZE: 9.6pt"&gt;, Birmingham (GB)&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="POSITION: absolute; LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; RIGHT: 20px; TOP: 20px"   class=review-score&gt;&lt;FONT face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 14.4pt"   color=#666666&gt;8.8&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-plus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #009900"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;+&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt; "Wonderful   Staff, Very Welcoming &amp;amp; Very Accomodating."&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-minus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cc0000"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;-&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt;   Nothing&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#333333 size=4 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN-TOP: -10px" class=review-date&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 6.6pt" color=#333333&gt;2013-04-07   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 100px 10px 0px"   class=review-name&gt;&lt;FONT face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   style="FONT-SIZE: 9.6pt"&gt;Roger Daley&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT   style="FONT-SIZE: 9.6pt"&gt;, Bishops Stortford (GB)&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="POSITION: absolute; LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; RIGHT: 20px; TOP: 20px"   class=review-score&gt;&lt;FONT face=Helvetica&gt;&lt;FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 14.4pt"   color=#666666&gt;10.0&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-plus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #009900"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;+&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt; "A   very friendly hotel, proprietors couldn't do enough for us. The food was very   good so we didn't have to go &amp;amp; look for a restaurant. The drink &amp;amp; food   prices were very reasonable. It was only 5/10 minutes walk along to the theatre,   as this was our reason for staying it was really convenient as parking would   have been difficult at the theatre. We would stay again"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Verdana&gt;&lt;SPAN style="PADDING-LEFT: 4px; PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"   class=review-minus&gt;&lt;FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cc0000"   color=#ffffff&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;-&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;FONT color=#333333&gt;   Nothing&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: 20px; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px" class=comment&gt;&lt;FONT   color=#333333 face=Verdana&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;FONT face=Arial&gt;William   Wakeling&lt;BR&gt;&lt;FONT color=#666666&gt;Colchester, United Kingdom, 15 April 2013   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;  &lt;H4 style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px"&gt;&lt;FONT size=4 face=Verdana&gt;"Very comfortable   with good accommodation"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H4&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT size=4 face=Verdana&gt;We have stayed at this hotel four or five times and   have always been well look after in clean and comfortable rooms. The room we   were in on this visit had been newly decorated and carpeted.&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;FONT   face=Arial&gt;Geoffrey Thompson&lt;BR&gt;&lt;FONT color=#666666&gt;Stevenage, United   Kingdom&lt;BR&gt;11 April 2013 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;  &lt;H4 style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px"&gt;&lt;FONT size=4 face=Verdana&gt;"Very enjoyable in   every way"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H4&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT face=Arial&gt;&lt;FONT size=4 face=Verdana&gt;Everything was very good. If we   intend to visit the area again The Ilfracombe will be our first choice   hotel.&lt;/FONT&gt; &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;</description></item><item><title>Apartments Review</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2013/03/apartments-review.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Sun, 17 Mar 2013 13:14:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-8466582761250891625</guid><description>&lt;DIV dir=ltr&gt;  &lt;DIV style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri'; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;'Just returned from another stay in the Ilfracombe Hotel   Apartments and we will definately be returning again.&amp;nbsp; As some others have   said, some of the decor a little dated but who really cares when you've got a   spacious and comfy appt, great location, good food and excellent customer   service.&amp;nbsp; (Thank you girls for sorting out our little group's accommodation   issues!)&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;We will be back!'&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;'Paula H &amp;amp; Friends' &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Date of stay: Feb 9   2013&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;</description></item><item><title>Hotel Guest Reviews</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2013/03/hotel-guest-reviews.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Sun, 17 Mar 2013 08:18:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-1068882925112988275</guid><description>&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;&lt;span class="grouptext"&gt;                  &lt;em&gt;David Russell&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;                  Gaertringen, Germany&lt;br&gt;                  14 May 2012              &lt;/span&gt;              &lt;span id="overallrating"&gt;                  &lt;img src="http://www.thedms.co.uk/graphics/signposts/cu-new/Reviews_Blob4.png" id="imgRating" alt="Rated as 4 out of 5" title="Rated as 4 out of 5"&gt;              &lt;/span&gt;          &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;          &lt;div class="reviewcolumn"&gt;              &lt;h4&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;"Pleasant and comfortable"&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h4&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;                  Clean and comfortable and good location for our needs. &lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;&lt;span class="grouptext"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;&lt;span class="grouptext"&gt;                  &lt;em&gt;Brian Hall&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;                  Attleborough, United Kingdom&lt;br&gt;                  03 May 2012              &lt;/span&gt;              &lt;span id="overallrating"&gt;                  &lt;img src="http://www.thedms.co.uk/graphics/signposts/cu-new/Reviews_Blob4.png" id="imgRating" alt="Rated as 4 out of 5" title="Rated as 4 out of 5"&gt;              &lt;/span&gt;          &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;          &lt;div class="reviewcolumn"&gt;              &lt;h4&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;"Overnight stay whilst visiting theatre"&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h4&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;                  Helpful and friendly staff. Good service. Lovely breakfast. All guest areas very nicely decorated.  &lt;br&gt;Shame about the wet and windy weather.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;&lt;span class="grouptext"&gt;                  &lt;em&gt;David Dinnie&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;                  Glasgow, East Dunbartonshire, United Kingdom&lt;br&gt;                  23 April 2012              &lt;/span&gt;              &lt;span id="overallrating"&gt;                  &lt;img src="http://www.thedms.co.uk/graphics/signposts/cu-new/Reviews_Blob4.png" id="imgRating" alt="Rated as 4 out of 5" title="Rated as 4 out of 5"&gt;              &lt;/span&gt;          &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;          &lt;div class="reviewcolumn"&gt;              &lt;h4&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;"Enjoyable despite the weather."&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h4&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;                  Our room was on the ground floor and had the additional   bonus of a kitchen area with fridge and microwave. The buffet breakfast   was very good, staff very pleasant and helpful. Accomodation was   comfortable, in a quiet location but within walking distance of the   local amenities. The hotel is within 10-15 minutes walking distance of   Southend town centre and the train staions. The Cliffs Pavilion and sea   front are only a few minutes walk. &lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;              &lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;&lt;span class="grouptext"&gt;                  &lt;em&gt;Patrick Proctor&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;                  London Select County, United Kingdom&lt;br&gt;                  21 April 2012              &lt;/span&gt;              &lt;span id="overallrating"&gt;                  &lt;img src="http://www.thedms.co.uk/graphics/signposts/cu-new/Reviews_Blob5.png" id="imgRating" alt="Rated as 5 out of 5" title="Rated as 5 out of 5"&gt;              &lt;/span&gt;          &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;          &lt;div class="reviewcolumn"&gt;              &lt;h4&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;"excellent service and food-kids loved it all as us"&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h4&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;                  This is the second time we have stayed there with 2 young kids.  &lt;br&gt;They love it all and find the owner and staff very helpful and friendly.  &lt;br&gt;Our family room was excellent value for money.  &lt;br&gt;  Thanks to all. &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="imagecolumn"&gt;              &lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;&lt;span class="grouptext"&gt;                  &lt;em&gt;Amanda Payne&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br&gt;                  Hereford, United Kingdom&lt;br&gt;                  20 April 2012              &lt;/span&gt;              &lt;span id="overallrating"&gt;                  &lt;img src="http://www.thedms.co.uk/graphics/signposts/cu-new/Reviews_Blob5.png" id="imgRating" alt="Rated as 5 out of 5" title="Rated as 5 out of 5"&gt;              &lt;/span&gt;          &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;          &lt;div class="reviewcolumn"&gt;              &lt;h4&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;"excellent"&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/h4&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 18px;"&gt;                  always clean and tidy. The shower in bedroom was a bit   poor .The breakfast was lovely all freshly cooked and my grand daughter   loved it.  will go again this will be 4th time me or my family have used   it . &amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</description></item><item><title>New Aer Lingus Regional Dublin to Southend route launch</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2012/06/new-aer-lingus-regional-dublin-to.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Wed, 27 Jun 2012 17:36:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-5259904255060255827</guid><description>&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;Bono, Ronan Keating and Colin Farrell* celebrate new Aer Lingus Regional Dublin route launch&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;Leading Irish showbiz celebrities*, music from traditional ceilidh band Wraggle Taggle, Black Velvet cocktails and a huge plane shaped cake were all part of celebrations marking the launch of a new link between Essex and Ireland.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;Daily flights to and from London Southend Airport and Dublin with Aer Lingus Regional, operated by Aer Arann, started on Thursday 10 May 2012.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;Travellers will also be able to take advantage of connecting Aer Lingus transatlantic flights via Dublin to New York, Boston, Chicago and Orlando. Not only that, passengers on these flights can also take advantage of the unique US Customs and Immigrations pre-clearance facilities at Dublin Airport, allowing them to arrive in the USA as domestic passengers.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;With direct morning, mid-afternoon and evening flights between London Southend Airport and Dublin, Aer Lingus Regional is offering a new competitive choice for both the day return business passenger and the longer-stay leisure passenger. Passengers flying out from London Southend will wait for a maximum of four-minutes for security, whilst those arriving with just hand luggage can expect to travel from plane to train within 15 minutes of their aircraft doors opening. The new railway station is less than 100 paces from the terminal and has up to eight services per hour to and from London – the airport is the only one in the UK with a direct mainline rail connection with the Olympic Games at Stratford.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;10 May is also the official opening of a new Aer Lingus Regional base at London Southend Airport. A total of fifteen Aer Lingus Regional staff - including pilots and cabin crew – are now permanently located at London Southend.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;Flights from London Southend to Dublin start from &lt;strong&gt;£25.99&lt;/strong&gt; one way including taxes and are available for booking on &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.aerlingus.com/"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;www.aerlingus.com&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;</description></item><item><title>Thank You</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/thank-you.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Wed, 1 Sep 2010 22:36:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-1389981095201207386</guid><description>I would like to thank all at the Ifracombe for a comfortable and enjoyable stay, the staff were so friendly and made us feel at home. We only spent one night there on the 28th August 2010 but it was like a home from home. The rooms we had were comfortable and clean , we ate both in the evening and the breakfast in the morning and it was all lovely. We would definitely come again and we will recommend you to all our friends. &lt;br /&gt;
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Once again thankyou. Joanne, Elaine, Marion, Debbie, Sinead, Leanne and Carol.</description></item><item><title>Ilfracombe House New Photo Album</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/ilfracombe-house-new-photo-album.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Mon, 24 May 2010 23:28:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-1246107357170200539</guid><description>&lt;span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"&gt;This is the latest photo album from the recent changes made to the hotel rooms, some of them with new carpets, new beds, different type of linen, and the new little but cosy restaurant.We're all ready to go for the busy Summer season.&lt;/span&gt;    &lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;feat=flashalbum&amp;amp;RGB=0x000000&amp;amp;feed=http%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F108643085107318492755%2Falbumid%2F5472181950451628481%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="667" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="800"&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;br /&gt;</description><enclosure length="22253" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" url="http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf"/><itunes:explicit>no</itunes:explicit><itunes:subtitle>This is the latest photo album from the recent changes made to the hotel rooms, some of them with new carpets, new beds, different type of linen, and the new little but cosy restaurant.We're all ready to go for the busy Summer season.</itunes:subtitle><itunes:author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</itunes:author><itunes:summary>This is the latest photo album from the recent changes made to the hotel rooms, some of them with new carpets, new beds, different type of linen, and the new little but cosy restaurant.We're all ready to go for the busy Summer season.</itunes:summary></item><item><title>Cliffs Pavilions Theatre  - Main Events for 2010</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/cliffs-pavilions-theatre-main-events.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Sat, 27 Mar 2010 21:26:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-3538396510486047109</guid><description>&lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT face=Calibri&gt; &lt;TABLE id=thedmsBrowseEvents border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1    width="100%"&gt;&lt;TBODY&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TH style="WIDTH: 40%" scope=col&gt;date&lt;/TH&gt;     &lt;TH style="WIDTH: 60%" scope=col&gt;event&lt;/TH&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Mon 22 - Sat 27 Mar 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1092&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1092&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Riverdance        - The Farewell Tour&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sun 28 - Tue 30 Mar 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1093&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1093&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Derren        Brown: Enigma&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sat 3 Apr 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event The Soldiers"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1094&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;The        Soldiers&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Wed 7 - Sun 11 Apr 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event Snow White on Ice"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1095&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Snow        White on Ice&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Mon 12 Apr 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event James"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1096&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;James&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Wed 14 Apr 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event Joan Armatrading"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1048&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Joan        Armatrading&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sat 17 Apr 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1097&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1097&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;That'll        be the Day&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sun 18 Apr 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1049&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1049&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Luxembourg        Philharmonic Orchestra&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Thu 22 Apr 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1103&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1103&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Debbie        Reynolds - Alive and Fabulous&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Wed 28 Apr 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1098&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1098&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Most        Haunted Live on Stage&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sat 1 May 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1104&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1104&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;An        Evening with Bradley Walsh&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Fri 7 May 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event Lee Mack - 'Going Out'"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1050&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Lee        Mack - 'Going Out'&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sun 9 May 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1051&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1051&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Moscow        State Symphony Orchestra&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Mon 31 May 2010 - Sat 5 Jun 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event Blood Brothers"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1099&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Blood        Brothers&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Fri 11 Jun 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1105&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1105&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Buddy        Holly - A Legend Reborn&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sat 19 Jun 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event Aled Jones"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1111&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Aled        Jones&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sat 26 Jun 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A        title="View event Magic of Motown - 'The Reach Out' Tour"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1106&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Magic        of Motown - 'The Reach Out' Tour&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Fri 9 Jul 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event Joe Longthorne"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1107&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Joe        Longthorne&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sat 10 Jul 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event They Will Rock You"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1108&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;They        Will Rock You&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sat 23 Oct 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event John Bishop: Live"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1109&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;John        Bishop: Live&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Thu 28 Oct 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event Vampires Rock"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1110&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Vampires        Rock&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sun 7 Nov 2010&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event The Armstrong and Miller Show Live"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1100&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;The        Armstrong and Miller Show Live&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;Sat 11 Dec 2010 - Sun 9 Jan 2011&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD align=left&gt;&lt;A title="View event Peter Pan"        href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/whats-on/thedms.aspx?dms=13&amp;amp;feature=1101&amp;amp;GroupId=1&amp;amp;venue=0670142&amp;amp;easi=true"&gt;Peter        Pan&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;&lt;/TBODY&gt;&lt;/TABLE&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;</description></item><item><title>Secretary of State approves Southend Airport expansion</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/secretary-of-state-approves-southend_21.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Sun, 21 Mar 2010 08:32:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-2918582806870974363</guid><description>The development of Southend Airport has been given the seal of approval by Secretary of State John Denham. The future of the airport was thrown into question by government intervention in January, in which Mr Denham reviewed the situation personally.&lt;br /&gt;
Cllr Anna Waite, who is responsible for transport and planning, told BBC News: “I am extremely pleased the Secretary of State has vindicated the careful consideration given to this application by the development control committee.“It took a great deal of time and effort to produce the balanced report presented to the committee which reflected the views expressed by the various interested parties.“The airport expansion will bring not only travel opportunities but much needed jobs.”</description></item><item><title>Guest Reviews</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/guest-reviews.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Tue, 16 Mar 2010 08:37:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-5612690894043623149</guid><description>&lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT face=Calibri&gt; &lt;DIV class=quote&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=5&gt;&lt;I&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c2c2c2&gt;"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/I&gt;Great  Hotel&lt;I&gt;&lt;FONT color=#c2c2c2&gt;"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/I&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;H2 class="name hotel"&gt;&lt;FONT title="" color=#202d95&gt;Ilfracombe House  Hotel&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H2&gt; &lt;DIV class="wrap forSave"&gt; &lt;DIV class=profile&gt; &lt;DIV class=avatar&gt;&lt;SPAN id=SRC_58117334&gt;&lt;SPAN class="scrname hvrIE6"&gt;&lt;FONT  color=#202d95&gt;Review from: Mrs_DH&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;SPAN  class=dn_arrow&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=location&gt;Essex&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class="date new"&gt;Mar 9, 2010 | &lt;SPAN class=triptype&gt;Trip type: Couples  &lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;IMG class=sprite-new alt=New  src="http://cdn.tripadvisor.com/img2/x.gif"&gt; &lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=entry&gt; &lt;P id=review_58117334&gt;This Hotel was a really good find. The rooms are comfy,  the Staff are really friendly and the food is very nice. We had a nice dinner  before going to see a show at the Cliffs Pavilion, which is just a short 5-7  minute walk away. &lt;BR&gt;&lt;BR&gt;The car park is pretty small and is situated at the  back of the Hotel. We park the car on the street and did not have any  problems.&lt;BR&gt;&lt;BR&gt;The Hot and Cold breakfast in the morning is buffet style and  was really tasty. I would definitely visit the Hotel again.&lt;/P&gt; &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Date of stay&lt;/B&gt; March 2010  &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Visit was for&lt;/B&gt; Leisure  &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Traveled with&lt;/B&gt; With Spouse/Partner  &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Age group&lt;/B&gt; 35_49&lt;/LI&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=summary&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=summary&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;Online Reservations: &lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href=""&gt;http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;Online Guest Reviews: &lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href=""&gt;http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;</description></item><item><title>Latest Online Guest Reviews</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/latest-online-guest-reviews.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Tue, 16 Mar 2010 08:27:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-3879209510711870852</guid><description>&lt;FONT face=Calibri&gt; &lt;DIV class=quote&gt;&lt;FONT size=5&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;First class comfortable  accommodation&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class="wrap forSave"&gt; &lt;DIV class=profile&gt; &lt;DIV class=location&gt;Review from: JFALCO, HORNCHURCH&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class="date "&gt;Dec 9, 2009 | &lt;SPAN class=triptype&gt;Trip type: Friends getaway  &lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=summary&gt; &lt;DIV class=entry&gt; &lt;P id=review_50974950&gt;This was our 6th time back to this hotel. Rooms are very  roomy and comfortable, very friendly staff who make you feel very welcome and  first class breakfast in the morning. Mrs J Falco&lt;/P&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;!--/ rating-list--&gt; &lt;UL class=stayNfo&gt;   &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Date of stay&lt;/B&gt; December 2009    &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Visit was for&lt;/B&gt; Leisure    &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Traveled with&lt;/B&gt; With Friends    &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Member since&lt;/B&gt; December 09, 2009&lt;/LI&gt;&lt;/UL&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;Online Reservations: &lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk"&gt;http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;Online Guest Reviews: &lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm"&gt;http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class="username mo"&gt;&lt;SPAN&gt;&lt;SPAN class="scrname hvrIE6"&gt;&lt;FONT  color=#202d95&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=5&gt;``An Unexpected Delight``  &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT title="" color=#202d95&gt;Ilfracombe House  Hotel&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt; &lt;DIV class="username mo"&gt;&lt;SPAN&gt;&lt;SPAN class="scrname hvrIE6"&gt;&lt;FONT  color=#202d95&gt;Review from: PennyLondon&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;SPAN  class=dn_arrow&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/SPAN&gt; &lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=location&gt;London&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class="date "&gt;Feb 17, 2010 | &lt;SPAN class=triptype&gt;Trip type: Couples  &lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=summary&gt; &lt;DIV class=entry&gt; &lt;P id=review_56308168&gt;The staff were very friendly and approachable in this  hotel and nothing was too much trouble. The room took us by surprise as it was  much nicer than we had hoped. We had a four poster bed in our large, luxury  double room and quality furnishings. The bathroom too was always spotless. It  was a very big and very comfortable room with lots of light from the large  windows. &lt;BR&gt;It was the perfect location for us as it was just a short distance  to Southend town centre and to the beachfront and it was also only about 6 - 7  mins walk to Cliffs Pavilion. &lt;BR&gt;I liked the hot and cold buffet breakfasts in  the mornings and I also loved the glamorous chandeliers hanging from the  ceilings! It is obvious that care that has been taken to make this hotel a real  pleasure for guests.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;Online Reservations: &lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/"&gt;http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;Online Guest Reviews: &lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm"&gt;http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=quote&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=5&gt;&lt;I&gt;&lt;FONT  color=#c2c2c2&gt;"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/I&gt;Fabulous&lt;I&gt;&lt;FONT  color=#c2c2c2&gt;"&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/I&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;H2 class="name hotel"&gt;&lt;FONT title="" color=#202d95&gt;Ilfracombe House  Hotel&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H2&gt; &lt;DIV class="wrap forSave"&gt; &lt;DIV class=profile&gt; &lt;DIV class=saveReview&gt;&lt;SPAN id=ssd58077274  onclick="savesInlineLoginOnClickHandler(function () {showSavesWidget(document.getElementById('ssd58077274'), 1, 58077274, {d:289234}); return false}, function() {return login(['tt', 'saves', 'pid', 798, 'returnTo','/ShowUserReviews-g503790-d289234-r58077274-Ilfracombe_House_Hotel-Southend_on_Sea_Essex_England.html#savessd58077274']);}, document.getElementById('ssd58077274')); return false;"&gt;&lt;FONT  color=#202d95&gt;&lt;IMG class=sprite-saveReviewGrn90x20 alt="Save Review"  src="http://cdn.tripadvisor.com/img2/x.gif"&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=avatar&gt;&lt;A href="http://www.tripadvisor.com/members/BurnleyBlue"  rel=nofollow $included="null"&gt;&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=rating&gt;&lt;SPAN class="rate s50"&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class="username mo"&gt;&lt;SPAN id=SRC_58077274&gt;&lt;SPAN  class="scrname hvrIE6"&gt;&lt;FONT color=#202d95&gt;Review from:  BurnleyBlue&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt; &lt;SPAN class=dn_arrow&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/SPAN&gt; &lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;SPAN  class=contribs&gt;&lt;FONT color=#565656 size=2&gt;1 contribution&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/SPAN&gt; &lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=location&gt;Burnley&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class="date "&gt;Mar 8, 2010 | &lt;SPAN class=triptype&gt;Trip type: Family  &lt;/SPAN&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV class=summary&gt; &lt;DIV class=entry&gt; &lt;P id=review_58077274&gt;The rooms is ace, Foods is fantastic and delicious. Staff  is so nice and friendly.&lt;BR&gt;Would love to come back again.&lt;/P&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;!--/ rating-list--&gt; &lt;UL class=stayNfo&gt;   &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Date of stay&lt;/B&gt; March 2010    &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Visit was for&lt;/B&gt; Leisure    &lt;LI&gt;&lt;B&gt;Traveled with&lt;/B&gt; Family with Young Children&lt;/LI&gt;&lt;/UL&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;Online Reservations: &lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/"&gt;http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;Online Guest Reviews: &lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm"&gt;http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/hotel_reviews.htm&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt; &lt;DIV&gt;&lt;U&gt;&lt;FONT color=#810081&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/U&gt;&lt;A  title="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/&amp;#10;CTRL + Click to follow link"  href="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/"&gt;&lt;/A&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt;</description></item><item><title>Festival of Fireworks at Southend Seafront</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/festival-of-fireworks-at-southend.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Sun, 4 Oct 2009 20:50:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-7060213869576144845</guid><description>&lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT face=Calibri&gt; &lt;DIV id=thedmsDetailsPanel&gt; &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;The skies over the seafront dazzle, shimmer and explode with  colour every Saturday night at this time of year as a fabulous array of  fireworks are launched from a barge at sea just off Jubilee Beach about 100m  east of the Pier.&lt;BR&gt;&lt;BR&gt;The fireworks are just a part of the season of  "Seafront Spectaculars" and follow the "Battle of the Bands" events each week  where local bands battle it out to scoop top prizes.&lt;BR&gt;&lt;BR&gt;You can also win  prizes for the top scorers at Kursaal Ten Pin bowling so you can make it a fun  night out for all the family.&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt; &lt;H2&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Prices&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H2&gt; &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Free entry &lt;BR&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt; &lt;H2&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Event details&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H2&gt; &lt;TABLE id=thedmsOpeningTimesTableFullWidth&gt;   &lt;CAPTION&gt;   &lt;DIV align=left&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Dates and Times&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/CAPTION&gt;   &lt;TBODY&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;DIV align=left&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;     &lt;TH style="WIDTH: 33%"&gt;       &lt;DIV align=left&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Dates&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/TH&gt;     &lt;DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;     &lt;TH style="WIDTH: 66%"&gt;       &lt;DIV align=left&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Times&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/TH&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Sat 10 Oct 2009 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;20:00 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Sat 17 Oct 2009 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;20:00 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Sat 24 Oct 2009 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;20:00 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Sat 31 Oct 2009 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;20:00 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Sat 7 Nov 2009 &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/TD&gt;     &lt;TD&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;20:00&lt;/FONT&gt; &lt;/TD&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;   &lt;TR&gt;     &lt;TH&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/TH&gt;     &lt;TH&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/TH&gt;&lt;/TR&gt;&lt;/TBODY&gt;&lt;/TABLE&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;</description></item><item><title>Christmas Spectacular &amp; Lights Switch-On, Saturday 14th November</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/christmas-spectacular-lights-switch-on.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Sun, 4 Oct 2009 20:26:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-9052418701226555533</guid><description>&lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT face=Calibri&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Whether you want fantastic family fun or sensational seasonal   shopping, there's something for you in Southend-on-Sea this Christmas. Here   you'll find all the&amp;nbsp;highlights&amp;nbsp;and dates when events are taking place   so you can plan ahead and make the most of the festive season.&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;We hope you enjoy celebrating the festive season with us and   wish you a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND BEST WISHES FOR   2010!&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT face=Calibri&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV&gt;&lt;FONT face=Calibri&gt;&lt;IMG class=float-left title="Christmas Lights Switch-On"   alt="Christmas Lights Switch-On"   src="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/img/featureboxes/christmas-tree-small-12.jpg"&gt;&lt;FONT   face="Times New Roman"&gt; &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;  &lt;DIV class=textholder&gt;  &lt;H5&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;&lt;SPAN class=purple&gt;Saturday 14th   November&lt;/SPAN&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/H5&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;Southend-on-Sea Town Centre will be transformed into a winter   wonderland, with a day full of festive fun and entertainment for all the family   - everything you need to get your Christmas off to a cracking start! &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;This very special day will give you the chance to enjoy a   festive experience like no other, with a very special parade featuring Santa and   his REAL reindeer, music courtesy of BBC Essex and Heart FM and a whole host of   seasonal sensations, including street entertainment, mouth-watering market   stalls and, of course, the ever popular Christmas lights switch-on and a truly   spectacular fireworks display! &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;9:00am - 8:00pm, Christmas Market &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;8:30am - 5:30pm Christmas Farmers and Craft Market   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;All day BBC Essex broadcasting at the top of Pier   Hill&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;1:00pm - 1:30pm, The Royals Christmas Toy Parade   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;1:45pm - 6:00pm, Don't forget to visit Santa at the   Royals Shopping Centre&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;12pm - 2:00pm, Christmas Spectacular Stage   &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;2:00pm - 4:00pm at the Heart Stage &lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;4:00pm - 5:00pm, Heart FM Roadshow hosted by Martin   &amp;amp; Su&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;5:00pm - Christmas Lights Switch On -from the Heart   Stage&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;  &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT size=4&gt;5:30pm - Spectacular Seafront Fireworks   Finale&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/P&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;</description></item><item><title>Ilfracombe House Hotel on 'The Mail on Sunday' Newspaper</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/ilfracombe-house-hotel-on-mail-on.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:28:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-7209087382786984664</guid><description>&lt;span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div&gt;&lt;h1&gt;In search of Southend's seaside for a British family holiday &lt;/h1&gt;&lt;div class="float-r hidden" id="digg-button"&gt;&lt;script src="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis.js" type="text/javascript"&gt;
&lt;/script&gt;&lt;iframe frameborder="0" height="18" scrolling="no" src="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis.php?u=http%3A//www.mailonsunday.co.uk/travel/article-1205346/Family-holidays-Southend-The-home-British-beach-breaks.html&amp;amp;s=compact&amp;amp;t=Family%20holidays%20in%20Southend%3A%20The%20home%20of%20British%20beach%20breaks%20%7C%20Mail%20Online&amp;amp;k=transparent" width="120"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;By &lt;a class="author" href="http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/home/search.html?s=y&amp;amp;authornamef=John+Nichol" rel="nofollow"&gt;&lt;span style="color: #003580;"&gt;John Nichol&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp;Mail on Sunday&lt;br /&gt;
Last updated at 5:09 PM on 09th August 2009&lt;br /&gt;
Back in the olden days, children used to spend summer holidays enjoying simple pleasures - playing games in the street, riding bikes and, if they were lucky, going to the beach. &lt;br /&gt;
And because my childhood home was a few miles from the North East seaside town of Tynemouth, that's exactly what I did. Day after idyllic day, my mates and I would cycle the four miles to the coast and disappear for hours on end playing on the sand and fishing in rock pools. &lt;br /&gt;
There were no mobile phones, no one worried about the busy roads and the term 'stranger-danger' hadn't even been coined. And as long as you took a packet of sandwiches and a bottle of squash, it was largely free. It was innocent, timeless fun. And, most importantly, it was home-grown. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class="clear"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="thinCenter"&gt;&lt;img alt="John Nichol and his daughter on the beach" class="blkBorder" height="288" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/08/09/article-1205346-05FD821B000005DC-768_468x288.jpg" width="468" /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class="imageCaption"&gt;Pleasure beach: John Nichol and his daughter Sophie make sandcastles at Southend-on-Sea&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;on a school skiing trip, and I'd reached the heady age of 20 before my first 'trip to the sun' to experience the dubious delights of a beach holiday in Corfu. &lt;br /&gt;
In stark contrast, the youth of today think it normal to jet all over the world to exotic locations in search of sun, sea and sand. Indeed, my four-year-old daughter, Sophie, has already frolicked on the beaches of the Cayman Islands, cruised - in considerable luxury - the French canal system and sailed around Honduras and Belize. &lt;br /&gt;
Obviously, then, she is immune to my endless lectures on vacation frugality and tired of the 'we used to live in a cardboard box' stories of Geordie life in the Seventies. But she has inherited my love of the old-fashioned British beach holiday and delights in visits to her grandmother's home in the North East. &lt;br /&gt;
It is entirely normal to see three generations of the Nichol clan, wrapped up in waterproofs, hats and scarves, leaning into the wind to build sandcastles and dipping toes into the icy seas of Tynemouth beach in midwinter.&lt;br /&gt;
Sadly, because we live in Hertfordshire, visits north are sporadic. So, in an effort to fulfil Sophie's desire for sand between her toes, I consulted my road map to find a suitable venue for a weekend break at the coast. I was confronted by the initially unpalatable fact that our nearest seaside resort was Southend. &lt;br /&gt;
My mind filled with stereotypical images of barely clothed bottle-blonde ladettes, tottering around in white, six-inch stilettos, pursued by dribbling youths displaying their dubious driving skills in souped-up Ford Escorts. &lt;br /&gt;
Indeed, one travel guide damns Southend thus: ' Pugnacious and brash . . . unless you're after tacky arcades, flash amusement rides or sleazy nightspots, there's not much to do.' &lt;br /&gt;
Not a resounding recommendation, then. But I cast my inhibitions aside and the Nichol family duly decamped from commuter suburbia to make the hour's drive to the Essex coast.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class="clear"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="thinCenter"&gt;&lt;img alt="Adventure Island rides" class="blkBorder" height="286" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/08/09/article-0-05FD8700000005DC-770_468x286.jpg" width="468" /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class="imageCaption"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: xx-small;"&gt;Beyond the beach: Adventure Island has rides to keep the whole family happy &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="imageCaption"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;Arriving on the outskirts of Southend, it seemed my worst nightmares would be realised. Run-down shops and polystyrene kebab cartons littered the streets, and a worrying array of white-socked teenagers, bedecked in market-stall nylon tracksuits, occupied the pavements. &lt;br /&gt;
But my initial fears ( possibly prejudices?) were cast aside as we drove along the seafront to squeals of delight from the young back-seat passenger.&lt;br /&gt;
Yes, there were fish and chip shops every few yards. Yes, the amusement arcades rubbed shoulders with shops selling candy floss, rock and myriad cheap tat. Yes, OAPs dozed in deckchairs with hankies on their heads. &lt;br /&gt;
But that's the whole point, isn't it? This is the very essence of a family holiday by the sea - it's what makes Britain so great. &lt;br /&gt;
Southend-on-Sea gained popularity as a seaside resort after that good-time lover of excess, the Prince Regent (the future King George IV), took his wife Caroline there to enjoy the healthy climate. &lt;br /&gt;
The idea was that the sickly Caroline should bathe in the waters in an effort to improve her health. But, not least because the Princess was renowned for some 'personal hygiene issues', George used to abandon her in Southend while he indulged himself in more upmarket Brighton. &lt;br /&gt;
Today, Southend is Essex's largest town and the population of some 175,500 host nearly three million visitors each year. &lt;br /&gt;
Accommodation varies greatly in quality and price. An internet search found basic family rooms as expensive as £250 per night. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="background-color: yellow;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #cc0000;"&gt;&lt;em&gt;But then I discovered a gem. The Ilfracombe House Hotel, a five-minute saunter from the beach, offers twobedroom self-catering apartments from just £75 a night. And that included a sumptuous English breakfast for all three of us.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="color: #cc0000;"&gt;OK, it may not have been five-star luxury but it had a well-equipped kitchen and the lounge and both bedrooms had TVs and DVD players. It was clean, comfortable and perfect for our family.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class="clear"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="thinCenter"&gt;&lt;img alt="Southend-on-Sea" class="blkBorder" height="296" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/08/09/article-1205346-05FD67AE000005DC-968_468x296.jpg" width="468" /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;div class="imageCaption"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: xx-small;"&gt;Popular: The beach has been a popular British holiday spot since King George IV took his wife there&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="imageCaption"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;The beach was our main focus of entertainment. The sun blazed down as we gambolled in the sand. I say sand but perhaps Southend's biggest drawback is that most of the beaches are covered in sand-coloured gravel. &lt;br /&gt;
Still, the squeals of delight seemed to suggest that this didn't affect Sophie one iota as she built countless sandcastles and transported bucket after bucket of seawater to fill ever-leaking moats. &lt;br /&gt;
Once the sun went down, we relocated to Adventure Island and its multitude of, in my opinion, terrifying rides. But Sophie gets her courage from her mother's side of the family and she enjoyed stomach-churning rollercoasters, dodgems and waltzers. &lt;br /&gt;
We spent most of the weekend in the open but there were enough covered activities, such as Sealife Adventure or Kids Kingdom, to cater for rainy days. &lt;br /&gt;
It was an exhausting few days but the Nichol family loved it. We enjoyed old-fashioned seaside pleasures: sunhats, sand in our socks, melting ice creams drizzled in red goo and fish and chips laced with vinegar, washed down with fluorescent fizzy drinks. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="color: #20124d;"&gt;Despite my initial reservations, Southend provided a magical family holiday. &lt;br /&gt;
We will certainly go back.&lt;/span&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;Medic: Saving Lives - From Dunkirk To Afghanistan, by John Nichol and Tony Rennell, will be published by Penguin in October, priced £20. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description></item><item><title>Leigh Folk Festival at Leigh-on-Sea</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/leigh-folk-festival-at-leigh-on-sea.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Sun, 14 Jun 2009 00:20:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-8768601230890149669</guid><description>&lt;FONT color=#000000 size=2&gt; &lt;DIV&gt; &lt;DIV align=center&gt; &lt;SCRIPT language=javascript&gt; &lt;!--  today = new Date() glast = new Date("Jun 24, 2009") //glast.setYear(today.getYear())  msPerDay = 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000; daysLeft = (glast.getTime() - today.getTime()) / msPerDay; daysLeft = Math.ceil(daysLeft);  if (daysLeft&gt;0){ weeksLeft=Math.floor(daysLeft/7) daysLeft=daysLeft-7*weeksLeft  if (weeksLeft&gt;1){ document.write("There are ",weeksLeft," weeks") } if (weeksLeft==1){ document.write("There is 1 week") } if (weeksLeft==0){ document.write("There ") if (daysLeft&gt;1){ document.write("are ",daysLeft," days") } if (daysLeft==1){ document.write("is 1 day") } }  if (weeksLeft&gt;0){ if (daysLeft&gt;1){ document.write(" and ",daysLeft," days") } if (daysLeft==1){ document.write(" and 1 day") } }  document.write(" until Leigh Folk Festival 2009") }  // end hiding contents from old browsers  --&gt; &lt;/SCRIPT&gt; &lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;BR&gt; &lt;DIV id=mainText&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT color=#ff00ff size=5&gt;Leigh Folk Festival at  Leigh-on-Sea&lt;/FONT&gt; &lt;DIV id=thedmsDetailsPanel&gt; &lt;P&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;FONT color=#800080 size=4&gt;Sat 27, Sun 28 Jun 2009&lt;/FONT&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;  &lt;/P&gt; &lt;P&gt;One of the largest free festivals of music, song and dance in the County with  more than 500 performers. Includes traditional and contemporary, Folk, Cajun,  Country &amp;amp; Western, Blues, Jive, Flamenco, Appalachian &amp;#8211;plus storytelling,  poetry and various workshops.&lt;/P&gt; &lt;P&gt;&lt;IMG  style="BORDER-BOTTOM: 1px solid; BORDER-LEFT: 1px solid; BORDER-TOP: 1px solid; BORDER-RIGHT: 1px solid"  src="http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:1qPEDR7q-_j2vM:http://www.oldleigh.com/_Media/regatta_7-8.jpg"  width=150 height=113&gt;&lt;BR&gt;&lt;BR&gt;The artists confirmed include Kelli Ali, Francesca  Bassenger, Clare Blackman, Eric Bogle &amp;amp; John Munro, Phil Burdett &amp;amp; Band,  Tom Burgess, Fancy Dress Party, Faustus, Rachel Harrington, Isnaj Dui &amp;amp;  Roshi Nahesi, Shona Kipling &amp;amp; Damien OKane, The Kittiwakes, The Owl Service,  The Severed Limb, The Smoke Fairies, Vicki Swan &amp;amp; Jonny Dyer, Nancy Wallace,  Trevor Watts &amp;amp; Peter Knight, Wills Fargo, and The  Woodlarks.&lt;BR&gt;&lt;BR&gt;Contact&lt;/P&gt; &lt;DIV id=thedmsContactPanel&gt;Information&lt;BR&gt;&lt;SPAN class=caption&gt;Tel:&lt;/SPAN&gt; 01702  715111&lt;BR&gt;&lt;A title="View the Leigh Folk Festival  website"  href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/thedms.asp?dms=27&amp;amp;dc=ee&amp;amp;wc=ce-send&amp;amp;venue=0676005&amp;amp;r=1&amp;amp;GroupId=&amp;amp;feature=1001&amp;amp;SiteName=Leigh+Folk+Festival+&amp;amp;Website=www%2Eleighfolkfestival%2Eco%2Euk"  target=_blank&gt;www.leighfolkfestival.co.uk&lt;/A&gt;&lt;BR&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;STRONG&gt;&lt;BR&gt;&lt;BR&gt;&lt;/STRONG&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/DIV&gt;&lt;/FONT&gt;</description></item><item><title>Adventure Island Southend will be very busy this summer.</title><link>http://southendblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/adventure-island-southend.html</link><author>noreply@blogger.com (Unknown)</author><pubDate>Tue, 2 Jun 2009 22:49:00 +0100</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357340170264012178.post-1038419739870270528</guid><description>&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:Arial;font-size:12;color:black;"   &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;'You only pay if you play' and with over 60 rides and attractions, there's something for the whole family to enjoy. With four roller coasters including 'Rage' with it's 75ft drop and 360 degree band roll, the only coaster of it's kind in England, plus unique rides 'Ramba Zamba' and 'The Archelon'. There are also sixteen rides for tiny tots and a themed Jungle Jive Cafe and Pizzas of Eight Restaurant. Open every day from Easter until early September and every weekend and school half term holiday from Sept to March including special Friday and Saturday 'Light Fantastic' nights during September and October.&lt;br /&gt;Island Cafe and Jungle Jive Cafe. Plus kiosks and parlours serving everything from hot dogs to ice cream, candy floss and fudge.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Don your capes and eye masks for Rage, Adventure Island's newest exciting ride! With a 23 metre vertical lift that becomes a vertical drop, vertical loop, overhead turns and 360 degree barrell roll with forces topping a huge 4.5G it's set to attract the bravest of thrill seeking super heroes.&lt;?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 2" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:Arial;font-size:12;color:black;"   &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;&lt;img title="Adventure Island Southend" alt="Adventure Island Southend" src="http://providerfiles2.thedms.co.uk/eandapics/ee/0213411_2.jpg" /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 2" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:Arial;font-size:12;color:black;"   &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;Prices &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 10pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 3" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;b&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:Arial;font-size:12;color:black;"   &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;Free entry&lt;br /&gt;You pay only for the rides and attractions you use. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;table style="mso-cellspacing: 1.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184" class="MsoNormalTable" border="0" cellpadding="0"&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;&lt;tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes"&gt;&lt;td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #d4d0c8; BORDER-LEFT: #d4d0c8; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BORDER-TOP: #d4d0c8; BORDER-RIGHT: #d4d0c8; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-: 0.75ptcolor:transparent;" &gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:Arial;font-size:12;"  &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;Opening Hours&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 1; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"&gt;&lt;td style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #d4d0c8; BORDER-LEFT: #d4d0c8; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0.75pt; PADDING-RIGHT: 0.75pt; BORDER-TOP: #d4d0c8; BORDER-RIGHT: #d4d0c8; PADDING-TOP: 0.75pt; BACKGROUND-: 0.75ptcolor:transparent;" &gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:12;"  &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;Open daily from April to September plus school half terms, Easter Bank Holiday and all weekend during the winter months unless they fall on Christmas Day or Boxing Day.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Open from 11.00am until between 5.00pm and 11.00pm depending on the time of year and weather. Check website or phone for details. Special discounts for group bookings.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:12;"  &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:12;"  &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;&lt;span class="281192521-02062009"&gt;To book your hotel accommodation at Ilfracombe House Hotel go online: &lt;a href="http://www.ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk/"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;ilfracombe-hotel.co.uk&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; or call 01702 351000. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:12;"  &gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;&lt;span class="281192521-02062009"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:12;"  &gt;&lt;span class="281192521-02062009"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;Adventure Island Contact details&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-: EN-USfont-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:12;"  &gt;&lt;span class="281192521-02062009"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;&lt;span class="caption"&gt;Tel:&lt;/span&gt; 01702 443400&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a title="View the Adventure Island Southend website" href="http://www.visitsouthend.co.uk/thedms.asp?dms=27&amp;amp;dc=ee&amp;amp;wc=ce-send&amp;amp;venue=0213411&amp;amp;r=1&amp;amp;GroupId=&amp;amp;feature=2&amp;amp;SiteName=Adventure+Island+Southend&amp;amp;Website=www%2Eadventureisland%2Eco%2Euk" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;"&gt;www.adventureisland.co.uk&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:100%;"&gt;Adventure Island Southend &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:100%;"&gt;Western Esplanade, Southend-on-Sea, SS1 1EE&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:100%;"&gt;By Road:&lt;br /&gt;From the A12 take the A130 then the A127 to Southend. Fom M25 either junction 29 or 30 eastbound to Southend on Sea.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;By Public Transport:&lt;br /&gt;From Southend Central station it is 5 minutes' walk to Adventure Island Southend. Southend Victoria Station is a 10 minute walk.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/td&gt;&lt;/tr&gt;&lt;/tbody&gt;&lt;/table&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</description></item></channel></rss>