About Us
Daish’s Holidays was formed in 1979 when Jeanne Wilson purchased Daish’s Hotel in Shanklin on the Isle of Wight. After five years, they decided to enhance the value of their package holidays by providing transport to and from their hotels. Accordingly, in 1984, Daish’s Coaches was created. In 1993 Daish’s Holidays brought its sales and operations in-house, removing the need for high street travel agents. Today, the company owns five hotels on the Isle of Wight and the south coast of England, including: • The Devonshire Hotel, Torquay• Daish’s Hotel, Shanklin• The Sands Hotel, Bournemouth• The Barrowfield Hotel, Newquay• The Claremont Hotel, Eastbourne In 2001, Mrs Wilson established the company’s headquarters at the Devonshire Hotel in Torquay, where she created a new centralised booking office and reservations system. Each hotel has a lift to most floors with centrally heated, en-suite bedrooms. The bedrooms include flat screen televisions and tea and coffee making facilities. In the restaurants, fresh homemade food is served by friendly, hospitable staff. All five hotels have live entertainment every night of the week. With an 18 strong fleet of 49-seater coaches, Daish’s Holidays provides travel to and from its hotels from major regions across the UK, including West Yorkshire, the Midlands, Suffolk and the Isle of Wight. Each route has several different pickup points and every coach has a designated regular driver. Daish’s Holidays runs over 60,000 holidays each year. The standard five day holiday package comprises coach travel, four nights in the hotel with English breakfast and evening meal. Optional excursions to local attractions give guests the choice of going sightseeing or simply relaxing around the hotel and its surroundings. The company is also happy to create bespoke group itineraries. Each holiday package has the option of self-drive, although the majority of customers prefer to take the coach. Daish’s Holidays also welcome groups who organise their own coach travel, offering a free room for the driver. Daish’s Holidays offers seasonal breaks such as the Christmas themed ‘Tinsel and Turkey’ holiday throughout October, November and December. Also very popular are Daish’s Holidays’ bowls group holidays at the Torquay, Bournemouth Newquay and Shanklin hotels. Thanks to its partnerships with local clubs and county associations, Daish’s Holidays can set up tournaments and provide a tailored event complete with bowls itinerary. In 2012, Daish’s Holidays was voted the ‘Most Friendly Hotel Group or Chain’ by readers in the Group Travel Magazine Awards. The company also won an award at the Group Travel Awards 2012 and has regularly been a finalist in many awards over the past five years. These include: • The Group Leisure Awards 2008• The Group Leisure Awards 2009, Best Accommodation for Groups Category• The Group Travel Awards 2009• The Group Leisure Awards 2010, Best Coach or Tour Operator – UK Tours category• The Groups Travel Awards 2011 Daish’s Holidays enjoys occupancy rate across all five hotels of 97%.