BED and breakfast proprietors in Horrabridge who designed and maintain their own website have won the website of the year category of the South West England Tourism Excellence Awards.
Sue and Rob Kamara moved to Brook House in Horrabridge from London at the beginning of last year, opening for business at the beginning of summer 2003. Sue designed the website and they both maintain it.
Rob Kamara said they were ?very surprised and happy? to win the award. He said he was from a computer background, having previously been an IT tech manager.
?When we were originally thinking of doing a website I was thinking of an all-singing-all-dancing one, but my wife insisted on making it very simple to use,? he said.
Sue ? who was not from a computer background ? went on a course and designed the site herself.
Rob said: ?We looked at the market and decided our prospective customers didn?t necessarily want flashing images.
?When we looked at the other finalists? websites they seemed more along the lines of what I was thinking of.
?But it?s good to know all our effort has been put to good use. It is good to put us on the map and hopefully it will increase our trade.?
Because they were too late to get entries in guide books for last year, the website was their only source of bookings and income.
Sue designed the site to be user-friendly, suitable for all ages, and visually attractive, with pictures. ?People like to see where they?re coming and the rooms,? she said.
The website includes details of the house, facilities, rooms, rates, location ? with maps to guide visitors ? a list of activities and places to visit in the area, links to relevant websites, and a reservation and enquiry form. It can be found at http://www.brook-house.com">www.brook-house.com
The awards, known as the region?s ?tourism Oscars?, aim to reward and promote quality within the tourism industry.
They will be presented by chef and hotelier Michael Caines at a ceremony following South West Tourism?s annual meeting at the Southgate Hotel, Exeter on November 3.