OPEN FOR THE SEASON

Boniface Abbott recalls his years of hotel work, from a small family resort. The Upham in Bethlehem, New Hampshire, to the Vendo in Boston, Gasparilla Inn, Florida, from jobs as a youngster working with his father, to working for others and eventually to managing then owning his own hostelries. It covers the ineties and the present, and presents a panorama of change, from the leisure and formality of his youth to the standardisation of today. There are stories of hunting, sports as well as the human problems of guests and help, of the unexpected catastrophe of storm, fire, sickness and death, of the techniques of hotel running from equipment and service to building and financial operation, of famous names and famous incidents in his career. Mine host reminisces in friendly fashion and makes the reader welcome behind inn, hotel and resort scenes. Quite a different tone from The Man Who Bought The Waldorf.