Hotel sees ebay wedding boom
A hotel in North Devon has been selling weddings on auction website ebay for £1k to help boost its mid-week bookings.
Nick and Tara Culverhouse, owners of the Fox & Hounds Country House Hotel in Eggesford, decided to list the all inclusive wedding packages on the site last year to attract trade at quieter times and have dubbed the idea a success.
Tara said: “The only problem we have encountered is people finding it on the ebay website – we have to list it under the Wedding Accessories category, because they do not have a category specifically for weddings. We have asked ebay to create one, but so far they have been reluctant – I would have thought, especially in the tougher economic climate, that this could be a good growth area for them.”
So far the couple have sold six weddings on ebay. The £1k package allows couples and 18 guests to celebrate their wedding day at the Fox & Hounds from Sunday to Thursday.
The package includes hire of the chapel, a three course dinner for 20 people, seven bottles of house wine, a glass of bucks fizz for each guest after the ceremony, a glass of sparkling wine for the toasts and the bride and groom are also given an overnight stay in the hotel`s bridal suite. The only condition is that wedding guests must book and pay for a minimum of nine of the rooms at the hotel for at least one night.
The latest package went on sale on ebay on Monday and will be listed until July 4.
Tara added: "It is a great value at only £1,000 and gives them the chance to get married at one of the best wedding venues in the Devon.”