Christmas Parties at the Cottage in the Wood 2008. 'Outlook' makes a unique venue for your pre-Christmas get together. The Daily Mail called the thirty mile vista spread out beneath the restaurant's panoramic windows 'the best view in England'. Add to that, good food, world class wines and uniquely too, our notorious Party Bags filled with all sorts of silliness including a cracker of course, poppers, rocket balloon, noisemakers and the return of pea shooters by popular demand! (For those of a delicate disposition they can of course be omitted.). Why not organise your party to take advantage of our exclusive use facility for parties of 20 to 24, 38 45 or of 55 to 70 people. This must be stated clearly when booking. Oh yes, the cost. Lunch £22.95. Dinner £27.95 for three courses and coffee, your individual 'Cottage Party Bag', it also includes service and the Chancellors share @ 17.5%. There are only 14 Party Days, so they do fill up fast. Ring us today to make sure you can have the date of your choice. Party Nights - Dinner and Dance. Friday 19th and Saturday 20th December £34.95. Live music from 'Clearwood', dancing to midnight, Festive Dinner and the 'Cottage Party Bag'. Arrange your cars and taxis for 12.30am. but why leave? crash out in one of our sumptuous bedrooms and pay just half the normal rate including full breakfast in the morning. Singles from £39.50 to £54.50, Doubles from £49.50 to £89.50. Christmas Party Menu. Pork and Pistachio Terrine. Apricot Chutney, Dressed Leaves. Spiced Butternut Squash Soup. Smoked Haddock Risotto with Grain Mustard, Chive and Butter Sauce. Goats' Cheese Panna Cotta with Marinaded Beetroot. Horseradish, Honey Roasted Walnut Salad. Roast Turkey with Rosemary and Sultana Seasoning. Chipolatas, Roasted Potatoes, Gravy and Cranberry Sauce. Rump of Lamb with Roasted Roots. Creamed Potatoes, Red Wine Jus. Baked Cod with Parsley Puree. Citrus and Caper Couscous, Wilted Bok Choi, Soft Herb Veloute. Mushroom and Vegetable Tart with a Cabernet Sauvignon Reduction. Rum and Plum Pudding Ice Cream. In a Brandy Basket with Rum Anglaise. Bitter Chocolate Torte with Honeycomb. White Chocolate and Orange Sauce. Mango Tart with Coconut Cream. Cafetiere Coffee or Tea. Pre-payment We deeply regret having to impose pre-payment for parties of 10 or more and to toughen up on the notice period for confirmation of numbers, but we have been badly let down in the past. So sorry, but needs must! Full pre-payment is required 14 days in advance for bookings of 10 or more covers. If the booking is cancelled within two weeks of the booked date, no monies will be refunded. Party Days Served every day from Wednesday 10th to Tuesday 23rd December. Parties of 20 or more can be catered for outside these dates. Please ask. Numbers Bookings of any number up to 70 may be made. See 'exclusive use' on inside page. Confirmation of Numbers Confirmation of numbers is required one week in advance. After that, if the number decreases, I'm afraid you will be charged for the original number stated. Last Orders and Departure. Lunch: Last orders for drinks - 3.30 pm and final departure time - 4.00 pm. Dinner: Last orders for drinks - 11.00 pm and final departure time - 11.30 pm. Party Nights: Last order for drinks - midnight and final departure time - half past midnight. Please contact us to discuss your individual requirements.

20th Anniversary Celebrations'. In November we celebrated our 20th year in the business with an open day for local businesses and regular guests of the hotel. We are all a little older and a little greyer than when we started in 1987. Now into the second generation, the business is still going strong with the help of our extended family (the team). However we do remember that none of it would have been possible without the support of our guests past and present and we would like to take this opportunity to say thank you! Johansens 'Best English Wine List 2008'. The Cottage in the Wood was awarded the Johansens Special Award for Best English Wine List. Just seven special awards were given this year with others going to world famous names such as Raymond Blanc's Le Manoir aux Quat's Saisons. We've had English wines on our list for 20 years and now have twelve really good ones. We offer a money back guarantee on English Wines! The Pinnacles Massive Investment. Our new £1m+ development which saw the replacement of the Coach House with a completely new nineteen bedroom building, has just seen its 4th anniversary. How time flies! The bedrooms have received very favourable comments and many guests have returned because the comfort of the new rooms has enhanced the experience of staying at The Cottage. Needless to say there were teething problems and we were not helped by both the main contractor and the main sub-contractor going into liquidation. John used to be a ginger top and is now grey! Water Despite the handicap, the water situation has been resolved by installing a cold water reservoir and by increasing the hot water storage. Its interesting to observe that increasingly people shower nowadays but whilst staying here, tend to bath. Perhaps its all part and parcel of relaxing. An average bath takes three times the water of an average shower so no doubt this is what gave rise to the plumbers miscalculations. As client, I distinctly remember posing the question during the building phase and being told the calculations were correct! Wrong! Weve also suffered a technical problem with the floors causing cracking sounds through the structural walls of the room beneath. Its more complicated than just shrinkage but to save boring you with technicalities we have, after many attempts at a remedy, six in all seem to have solved it and the successful template for the remedy is being quickly extended throughout the building. Oh, the joys of builders! Training The Team is the hotel John often says and the enjoyment and satisfaction our team get from what they do, shines through to our guests. Friendly but respectful, backed by professionalism is our aim. Training is an ongoing part of what we do as a progressive organisation. Recent activity has included First Aid, Fire Evacuation procedures, Wine Foundation Certificate, Computer Skills and Business Economics. Much effort has been put into training the management team of Nick Webb (General Manager) and Sian Alexander (GM Front of House and Housekeeping) to actually run the company as opposed to running the operation of their own departments. Changing of the Guard John and Sue have entered their year of running The Cottageand its now time to stop working 100 hours or more a week and up the quality time of life. Not that were disappearing but our working days will be fewer so the day to day running of the hotel will fall upon the valued key members of our team, Sian Alexander, Lukasz Krysiak, Coralie Beattie, Melanie Davies and our children Dominic and Maria, and our son-in-law Nick. So as rare as it seems to be in this country in the hotel industry, were on to the second generation. Refurbishments For our guests we have refurbished room 4, 9, and 10 in Beech Cottage and others are planned over the next year, we have also replaced many of our bathroom carpets with tiles which I must say look far better and much more practical.. We have just refurbished our dining room, it now has a light airy feel with large mirrors, new lighting and stripped wood tables. We have also adapted our lunch menu to reflect this! New Televisions/DVD Players We have just had new flat screen televisions and DVD/video players put into our rooms. We are starting to get together a library of DVD's so if you have any ideas about which ones you think we should have, just let us know! Free use of local leisure facilities. We have a membership with Malvern Splash Leisure Centre for our guests to use the facilities which include a gym, sauna and swimming pool, free of charge. You can also play squash at our local club for just £1. Golf is also available with considerably reduced green fees (conditions apply, please ask). Call us on 01684 588860 for more information.

For Boardroom Meetings with a view, in an idyllic setting why not conduct your conference in the peace and tranquility of The Cottage in the Wood? The boardroom facility, located in the Main House has an adjoining syndicate room, both enjoying natural light. The facilities are ideal for boardroom-style meetings, seminars, interviews and small training sessions. With it's handy location just 10 miles or so from the M5, and just 40 miles from Birmingham, the Cottage in the Wood makes a convenient point upon which delegates can converge. Personal Attention In order to ensure the smooth running of your meetings, please discuss any details and requirements before arrival so that meal-times, special requests, equipment, leisure pursuits and other items can be organised. Relaxation We can arrange the following: If your meetings require a break-out or teamwork activity; Falconry, Archery, Clay-Pigeon Shooting and Quad Bike Safari all available nearby at Eastnor Castle. Alternatively, we can arrange 'in-house' activities at the hotel such as hawk walks and hawk flying, laser clay pigeon shooting, giant Scalextric, stock market evenings, race night (video racing) to name but a few. For more information about the events and activities described above, please contact on +44(0) 7831 674144. Or walk directly onto the Malvern Hills with 100 miles of criss-cross paths. Golf can be arranged one mile away. Local squash club (virtually free), local 'Splash' Leisure Centre including swimming pool, gym and sauna (free of charge). Fishing and riding can also be arranged. Conference Room Equipment. Over Head Projector Screen TV VHS Video Player Flip-chart Magic markers Pads Pencils Malvern Water Cordial. Photocopier Facsimile Direct-dial telephone, computer compatible ISDN line available, for remote conferencing. Other equipment can be hired by the hotel and will be charged at cost. Quietitude allied to good food and maybe a dip into the wine cellar, makes for quality thinking time output!

 Baby chairs and cots are provided
 Conference and meeting room
 Credit cards accepted
 Dinner may be served in the room
 Facsimile services
 Hairdryer
 Heating
 Ironing facilities
 Licensed bar
 Smoke-free guest rooms
 Pets are accepted
 Parking lot
 Private park, garden, courtyard
 Quiet surroundings
 Clock/radio
 Restaurant
 Private/Ensuite bathroom
 Phone at reception
 Phones in rooms
 TV sets in rooms
 Patio, summer terrace
 Cheques accepted
 Common room with a TV set