There’s no profit in packets of crisps
I am back home after my odyssey across Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Hampshire, walking 120 miles, accessing all areas. This is my feedback to you, the Tourism and Hospitality industry.
The flight of busy house martins calling as they circled overhead caught our attention. The sunny pub garden that was overlooked by gorgeous thatched cottages with roses around the door looked like the ideal place for a spot of lunch, so we stopped.
“The housekeeper didn’t show up today so my husband, who is also the chef is covering both roles,” explained the publican. “We can only offer crisps or a plate of fries for lunch”.
I was eight days into my odyssey across Buckinghamshire, South Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Hampshire, walking 120 miles from Pitstone to Portsmouth. During my trip, I have accessed all areas including; equipment supplies, accommodation, food and drink, sightseeing, emergency cake rations, first aid, transport and visitor information. This is my feedback to you, the Tourism and Hospitality industry.
Her response typified what ails our industry: a product in robust health, yet staff shortages coupled with poor communication and service delivery will keep our sector from advancing out of second gear.
You know I have been working in the T&H industry for many years and you may say I have become jaded, cynical even. I have been careful to view this trip through the eyes of my travelling companions who don’t work in our industry and to be as balanced as the BBC.
My route
At the end of May this year, joined by friends for some sections, I walked for 10 days along the Ridgeway National Trail from Tring to Nuffield in Buckinghamshire and South Oxfordshire, then cross-country from Nuffield to Reading in Berkshire to pick up the St James’ Way in Hampshire all the way to Southhampton. And finally along the King Charles III Coastal Path (also a National Trail) to Portsmouth. It was brilliant, exhausting, a delight, painful too, but it has left me with much to ponder and a new list of places to return to for further exploration and enjoyment.
At no time did I use an official ‘Visit Somewhere’ website
It started with a chance meeting last summer with two middle-aged American women who were walking from Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk to Southampton in Hampshire. Then on a seemingly unrelated visit to the Catholic Church in Marlow to see the mummified hand of St James the idea began to form that here was the walk I could do: from my home in Pitstone to where my son lives in Portsmouth, via the St James’s Way, a modern day Camino and precursor to the Camino de Santiago. If the American’s could walk 180 miles, I could have a go at 120!
At no time did I use an official ‘Visit Somewhere’ website. I plotted, trained, worried, planned, plotted, trained and worried some more. I was on YouTube, reading specialist long distance walking and pilgrimage blogs, listening to advice from family and friends, I joined a Facebook group too. These together recommended the accommodation, transport, refreshment and other services I might need on my trip.
What impact did my trip have?
Slow travel has a lower impact on the environment, with apologies to the nettles that I trampled - but took their stinging revenge. I know I left no trace, and spent an average of £100 per day across the region on accommodation, food and some public transport - and quite a lot on pints of Guinness! £1,000 give-or-take for the trip. Was it value for money? Operating costs are high, but some businesses are confused about what it is they are offering, so the jury is out on that one. Could I have gone abroard and spent a lot less? Without a doubt, but the experience wouldn’t be an English one. Would I do it again. Already planning the next one.
Where is everyone?
It was Half Term in South East England, it was going to be crowded, people everywhere, traffic and noise. Not in the countryside it wasn’t. For the majority of the time, I was on my own, or with my walking companion for the day. We would encounter dog walkers near conurbations, one horse rider, about 10 cyclists (two of these had been foolhardy enough to cycle on a footpath through the tallest nettles I had ever seen!), zero long distance hikers and a smattering of day walkers. Where is everyone? On this trip they were on Coombe Hill, around Nuffield, in Winchester city centre and Southampton, going to and from the cruise terminal or getting pissed in the bars on Oxford Street.
England in spring
I was leaving the church in Dummer in Berkshire, when a car screeched to a halt blocking my exit. Out jumped an apologetic Lynn, church warden who was late in opening. It was only 8.45am! She had me entranced with amusing stories, mysterious marks on the walls, tales of death and destruction…did I know I was on the Devil’s Highway? She also prepped me for my next stop, where to get my Pilgrim’s stamp and to buy a pork pie from the farm shop for lunch. Sadly you won’t find 80-year old Lynn on any website, yet she really is a local treasure and probably has done more for tourism than any regional agency.
I was reminded how fortunate we are to have these hard-won rights-of-way and countryside access, there are few other countries like it. We are also a safe destination, I never felt unsafe or too far from help if I needed it.
The product is in robust health: the gentle rolling countryside of Berkshire and Hampshire, the Kennet and Avon Canal towpath boarded by buttercup-infused meadows, shady tree-lined lane and the river Itchen in no hurry to get to the sea. May is my favourite month, the growth verdant with colours at their best showed off the tiny hamlets nestled at the bottom of a windy lane, the verges full of butterflies and blue damselflies, huge slices of delicious homemade chocolate cake, ancient places of worship outside historic flinty churches and their welcoming wardens. I had an impromptu bell-ringing lesson, tea and finger-sandwiches with the pensioners group, walked the Devil’s Highway, faced-off inquisitive cows creating unwanted diversions, sat on thoughtfully positioned swings on a old oak and woodland cuckoos all made for a delightful journey.
Everyone wants a rating, but do they pay attention to the results?
Looking at some of the official, local accommodation and pub websites now I know more about the region, they simply don’t communicate the local charm. If you are lucky, it’s lists of stuff you can tick off. It doesn’t entice nor help potential visitors. You won’t find Lynn on any website, or David and his band of volunteers keeping the nettle-infested footpaths clear, nor an understanding of the power that long distance trails have in spreading visitors and their spend around a region - on day trips as well as longer trips. But still they cluster and jostle in easy-to-promote (city) centres or big regional attractions with a car park, toilets and a tearoom. Have I answered my own question?
We seem to have lost our way in how we can celebrate the landscape and the amazing access walking gives us to local history, culture, culinary traditions and the biodiversity. And the sheer enjoyment of being outside in the countryside. England is a safe country too. I’m not trying to paint some bucolic picture from a time gone by, but it can help us focus on what is good, what is working, what we can access, what we can promote and how enjoyable it is. It’s easy to get stuck on the negatives.
Why are shorter trading and kitchen hours still with us? The publican’s response typified what ails our industry: a product in robust health, yet staff shortages coupled with poor communication and service delivery will keep our sector from advancing out of second gear. For the business owner, these problems are real and are a great hindrance to opening the kitchen for longer, but you can’t make any profit on crisps.
What is done about the lack of skilled and motivated staff, is a question for another time. Or please do share any insights you may have here.
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I enjoyed reading about your walk down to Portsmouth - May IS a fabulous month! I’ve never really walked long distance routes but dream of walking the Camino de Santiago but in reality it’ll probably not happen.
Me & my 2 friends who walk every Wednesday do about 4/5 miles, we don’t stop for refreshments as it’s so expensive at the various pubs we pass by, so we bring water and then take it in turns to provide homemade cake and copious cups of tea at home. In reference to staffing issues at the pubs/hostelries, it’s very obvious the lack of staff in some places, I suppose they’re finding it highly difficult as so much of the food & beverages they supply aren’t as cheap as they used to be and obviously gets passed onto the diners/visitors. There used to be lots of Australian/New Zealand students/travelers that’d work for a good few months then move onto other areas, maybe they get paid better in cities? Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed your writing about your adventures . Thanks very much. Debbie
Sounds like a wonderful experience. Completely agree about “official” info and unofficial insider inspiration!