Walking the Cheddar Gorge

Location
Weston Super-Mare ( North Somerset) is located off Junction 21 of the M5. Take the A370 into Weston Super-Mare

Our hotel is situated opposite Weston’s famous Marine Lake, a few minutes stroll to the town centre where we can enjoy the numerous shops, theatres and attractions. Weston–Super–Mare Railway Station is approximately a 10 minute taxi journey away. There are approximately 20 car parking spaces and these are allocated on a first come first served basis. There is also additional parking on the road and a long stay car park situated 250m away which is £3 per 24 hours.

Check in from 2.00pm
Check out by 10.00am

Walking programme
Two guided walks are included in the programme.

Day 1 – Full Day walking programme graded as follows
Easy - Cheddar Village
Medium – Cheddar Gorge
Ascent 125m
Distance 5.5 miles approx
Total Walking Time 5 hours approx.
A coach/mini-bus will be used to transfer you to the starting point of the walk and return back to the hotel

Day 2 – Half Day walking programme is graded as follows
Weston Super-Mare
Total Walking Time 2 – 2.5 hours approx. Walk commences from hotel
Distance 2 miles approx

It is your responsibility to ensure that you are fit and well enough to take part in your chosen activity holiday. If you are unsure as to whether the walks are within your capabilities, please contact the office to discuss this matter, thus making sure you appreciate the terrain that you will be walking.

You could be walking across uneven ground in some areas and extreme care must be taken, especially if wet. If used to using a pole/stick, it is advisable to bring it. Please appreciate the route and content of the holiday may change at the time and at the discretion of the guide/organiser, should conditions require. Solo’s Holidays Ltd cannot be held responsible for personal injury, accident or damage to property whilst on these walks other than incidents arising out of the company’s negligence. The guide has the right to refuse to guide a walk with anyone not properly attired.

What to Wear
It is of paramount importance that you have the correct footwear. It is essential to wear walking boots that are comfortable and preferably lightweight, with some ankle support and a good grip. If you already have a pair of boots that you are happy walking in (including during hot/wet weather and on hard ground), then bring these along. However, if you are bringing new footwear, do make sure they are well broken in before you arrive. Experience has shown that wearing 2 pairs of woollen socks adds to comfort.

Whilst we would hope for good weather during your holiday, it is of course impossible to guarantee this. We would therefore recommend you travel with clothing suitable for all conditions, and suggest you use the following checklist as a guideline of what to take:

• Walking boots with good ankle support
• Waterproofs – jacket and trousers
• Walking poles – recommended as they provide good support for the knees, particularly on downhill sections of walks and when conditions are wet/slippery
• Lightweight trousers and shorts with pockets
• Shirts or t-shirts for walking in
• Walking socks – several pairs
• Lightweight fleece or jumper
• Hat & gloves
• Daysack/rucksack for walking
• Umbrella – it can be used also for protection from the sun as well as rain
• Lightweight drinking bottle to carry water whilst walking
• Small first aid kit – plasters, insect repellant, etc
• Good, high factor sunscreen, sunhat and sunglasses

Gratuities
There is often confusion on the question of gratuities, since it frequently depends on the type of holiday, location and, of course, your attitude towards tipping, as to what is normally expected. In order to give you a rough idea, we have given appropriate guidance below. The Tour Leader will be on hand to offer advice or suggestions if required but gratuities are offered entirely at the sole discretion of the individual. We suggest a group collection at the beginning of your holiday to cover drivers, guides and hotel staff (including restaurant, kitchen and reception staff) of approximately £5. Your Tour Leader will collect this on your behalf and distribute it accordingly, thus relieving you of the burden of who, when and how much to tip. The tipping of bar staff and housekeeping will be left to your individual discretion (the rounding up of the drinks bill and a small amount left in your room on departure should cover this and would be much appreciated). As is customary, ‘the hat’ will be passed around for the driver and guide on all optional excursions. For any meals that are not included in your itinerary, restaurants expect a 10% gratuity (do check that service has not already been added to your bill). For taxis 10% of the metered fare.

Dress Code
The dress code for during the evening is casual.

FREE bar 6pm – 10 pm each evening
Below is a list of the current drinks currently included in the hotel promotion (subject to change)
Carlsberg (Draft) ,Boddingtons (Draft), Thatchers Gold Cider (Draft), Murphys Irish Stout (Draft) Bass (Draft), Medium White Wine (Pump), Red Wine (Pump), Cola (Pump), Diet Cola (Pump), Tonic Water (Pump), Lemonade (pump)
Orange Juice (Pump), Lime Cordial (Pump), Slimline Tonic (Bottle), Canada Dry (Bottle), Bitter Lemon (Bottle), Grapefruit Juice (Bottle), Pineapple Juice (Bottle), Tomato Juice (Bottle), Vodka, Whiskey, Gin, Brandy, White Rum, Dark Run
Sherry, Sweet Martini, Dry Martini, Cinzano, Port

Other Drinks are available, but these must be purchased as usual. Whilst the hotel endeavours to ensure that all drinks are available, occasionally the hotel may run out of stock and therefore be unable to replace that item.

The free bar is offered from 6pm-10pm each night, the only restriction are as follows;

The hotel requests that guests order and drink one drink at a time
Drinks over dinner will be available from the bar. (no table service available)
Empty glasses should be returned to the bar and exchanged for a new drink
No double spirit measures
No neat spirits

Guest will be issued a voucher that must be shown to the bar staff