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American travel writer in Edinburgh heartbroken by visit to B&Bs after pandemic

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date16 June 2022
AuthorJacob Farr
Publication titleEdinburghLive (Scotland)
Cameron Hewitt, who writes for Rick Steves guidebooks which are popular in the US and Canada, has revisited Edinburgh seven years after he wrote reviews on 14 B&B's in the capital

He was full of praise for the sector and commended many businesses for being able to ride out the COVID storm.

READ MORE - American travel writer in Edinburgh heartbroken by visit to B&Bs after pandemic

But the writer noted that two businesses that he had previously visited had closed down due to losing confidence in their own safety during COVID or by running out of cash as the pandemic hit.

He also noticed that a number of hospitality businesses were struggling to find staff, whether that be for working in the kitchens or even front of house.

On his "B&B shuffle" which saw him visit various venues in Auld Reekie, Cameron said: "It's been a rough couple of years for the B&B owners of Britain.

"I heard lots of heartrending stories about dashed dreams, depleted savings, slow-arriving (and paltry) government help, beloved employees who had to move on to other jobs, and so on.

"Of the dozen B&Bs we list, two have closed their doors.

"One of them answered my doorbell and explained that, frankly, he and his wife just aren't comfortable serving breakfast to a roomful of strangers in our age of fast-spreading variants. They're converting some of their rooms into a "self-catering" apartment instead.

"I'm sad to see these stalwart B&Bs go."

The guidebook writer added that he was...

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