25 special couples are being sought by an award winning hotel and spa in the Lake District to take part in a once in a lifetime celebration. The luxurious Gilpin Hotel and Lake House, situated in Windermere, is marking its 25^th anniversary by offering long term couples the opportunity to win a fabulous, all inclusive break.

One of the lucky couples will win an exclusive stay at the six bedroom Lake House for 12 people, worth £4,500, and can enjoy a really luxurious celebration with their friends and family.

The Gilpin, named as the AA’s English Hotel of the year for 2011/12 is located in the heart of one of Britain’s most beautiful areas; the Southern Lakes. It is renowned for its exemplary facilities, excellent food and wine and good old fashioned hospitality. It is the perfect place to celebrate a truly memorable occasion.

Gilpin has been owned and run for the past 25 years by the Cunliffe family (John, Christine, Barney & Zoë), and in that time they have hosted thousands of special celebrations, ranging from romantic dinners à deux to large family gatherings.

John says: ‘Our feeling about running a hotel is that perfection is a big word but a good objective. It’s got to be right and it’s got to be special – every moment. Nothing less will do.

‘It’s about friendliness, attention to detail and tailoring the service we provide to each guest’s particular needs.’

The Cunliffes decided the ideal way to celebrate their anniversary would be with other couples enjoying equally enduring relationships.

Barney adds: ‘We’re really looking forward to meeting the winning couples and learning the secrets of their relationship success.’

The 25 lucky couples will each receive an inclusive mid-week overnight stay at Gilpin Hotel, worth at least £400, including afternoon tea, and later, Champagne followed by a five course dinner with matched wines, and full English breakfast the following morning.

During their stay, each couple will also be given the opportunity to enter the competition for the grand prize of exclusive overnight use of the fully serviced and staffed Lake House for themselves and up to 10 friends and family members.

They will also be asked to share their thoughts and experiences of love and relationships, previous anniversaries and special occasions.

The ultimate celebration prize is worth £4,500 and includes sole use of all facilities at the Lake House, which featured in the ITV series ‘The Lakes’. It is set on a private lake in 100 acres of grounds and has its own swimming pool, hot tub and sauna.

The winning couple will be greeted with Champagne and an in-room spa treatment in the master bedroom, ‘Harriet’. Later, they and their guests will enjoy a Champagne reception, a delicious bespoke dinner prepared by the chef at the Lake House and, before checking out at 11am the following morning, they will be served a full English breakfast.

To be eligible to enter, couples must have been together for at least 10 years and need to provide two photos of themselves – one from the early days of their relationship and one taken more recently.

Zoë said: ‘People come to Gilpin for all sorts of celebrations – anniversaries, birthdays, honeymoons, engagements, recovery from illness – and whether they are basking in new love, celebrating a long-term relationship, or have been through a difficult time, we are very privileged to play our part in turning these important milestones into cherished memories.

‘As the competition progresses we really want to get to the heart of why relationships work, or don’t work, as they are the core of everything we do at Gilpin – guests’ relationships with each other, relationships between the team, between the team and the guests… without people we are nothing!

‘That’s why inviting long-term couples to tell us their stories and join us to celebrate them is the perfect way to mark Gilpin’s 25th anniversary.’

To enter the competition, log on to www.facebook.com/gilpinlodge

Entries close on 15 February, 2012, at 11am, and the 25 winning couples will be announced by 28 February.

For more information about Gilpin Hotel & Lake House, visit http://www.gilpinlodge.co.uk/ or call 015394 88818.

To read the family’s blog about life in the hotel business, go to online magazine http://www.gilpinlife.co.uk/

Follow Gilpin on Twitter, at www.twitter.com/gilpinhotel

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Free swimming lessons are being given to young people through a collaboration of a non-profit organisation and council bosses in East Staffordshire. The partnership is between the council and Star Foundation, an organisation which collects unwanted clothes in the local area and then sells them. The Foundation have said that over 60 percent of the money being raised is going to go into a fund for the swimming lessons.

These lessons are going to be promoted through local schools as well as children’s organisations and leisure centres. The lessons are going to be available to anyone who is under 16 years old.

Bernhard Peters is a representative from the council who has commented, “We are always looking for the best ways to provide new opportunities to our young people and we want to encourage them to take part in as many healthy activities as possible. Therefore we are very pleased to announce that we will be working with Star Foundation to bring the swimming opportunities to people in the local area.”

The scheme has a double benefit as it is also going to allow people to recycle clothes that they no longer want and this saves having to take them to local recycling areas. Often people do not bother recycling because this is too much of a hassle and many clothes are going to landfill.

Peter Tryner is from the Star Foundation and he is commented, “We are always looking for ways to help the local community and by offering people an easy way to recycle clothes, as well as giving swimming lessons for young people we believe we are making a difference in the community. We will shortly be providing collection bags to people in Burton and we would encourage them to fill them up with any unwanted clothing that they might have.”

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The Great Glass House at the National Botanical Gardens offer

It doesn’t matter how gloomy the weather is in January, you can take a trip to the The Great Glass House at the National Botanical Gardens inWalesfor a true Mediterranean experience, and to make it even better its absolutely free to get in for the whole month.

A series of events that each last for a weekend are planned throughout the month with the intention of encouraging visitors to come to the Garden, which was described by The Times as the UK’s No. 1 winter wonderland. Highlights amongst these events include a woodcraft weekend, an antiques fair and food fair highlighting local produce. All will be held in the Great Glasshouse owned by Lord Foster.

The antiques fair, organised by Derwen Fairs, is to take place on the weekend 14-15 January, and has been billed as a 2 day extravaganza of top quality antiques stalls that will sell jewellery, furniture and china. The wood-craft weekend is on 21-22 January and will interest anyone who loves wood as there will be demonstrations of toy making, wood-turning and carving amongst others by master craftsman such as Mark Raby.

In addition, there will be a number of trade stands, including Robert Sorby, Trend, Ashley Iles, Timberman, Turners Retreat and many more.

On the last weekend of FREE January (Saturday and Sunday, January 28-29), there will be a festival of local food and drink with more than 30 stalls offering the best that the west has to offer in terms of local produce.

Head of Marketing and Communications David Hardy said: “Our ‘FREE January’ was such a big hit with visitors last year we are hoping – with some additional events – we will be able to tempt even more folk along to the Garden.”

Also on at the Garden in FREE January are the next two performances in the Celtic Women Concert Series which feature singer, pianist, and entertainer Amanda Painting (Sunday January 8 at 2pm) and harpist, songwriter, poet and storyteller Hazel Saville on Sunday January 15.

For a full list of what’s on at the Garden, go to www.gardenofwales.org.uk

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Sidmouth Swimming Pool, which is located in East Devon, is celebrating the 20th anniversary since it opened and in order to do this it is giving away a month’s membership in a competition. There are two prizes up for grabs, the first is an unlimited adult membership and the second is an unlimited membership for an under 18.

The competition will be going on for the next two weeks and entrance forms can be found in the local papers. In order to enter the competition you have to read the article about the swimming pool and answer a question about how many years it has been open, the answer to the question can be found in the article.

You can also enter by e-mail or by coming into the leisure centre itself and handing in a competition entry form. All competition entries must be received on or before December 23 and the winners will be informed after the Christmas holidays.

In order to enter the competition you have to include your telephone number, address and name. In order to see which price you are eligible for you must indicate whether you are under or over 18. If you want to find some more information about the competition then you can visit the leisure centre’s website, which can be found at www.ledleisure.co.uk.

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The Japanese government are offering some 10,000 plane tickets to people in order to encourage people to visit the country seven months after a tsunami and earthquake struck the north-east of the country. Tourism has dropped significantly and it is hoped that the airline tickets will encourage people back to the country. The tourism agency in Japan has commented that the cost of this programme will be about £10 million.

Japan has recently received acclaim in the Observer and Guardian newspapers as readers voted the country as their favourite long-haul destination. For the second year in a row Tokyo was voted as the best city to visit in the world. Those who win the airline tickets will be entitled to a free plane journey but they will have to cover all of their other expenses.

20,000 people died or are still missing after the disaster that hit the country in March. According to the latest figures from Japan the number of tourists visiting the country in August fell by over 30% when compared with last year’s figures. A representative from the Japanese tourist office has said that the UK is the country with the most people visiting Japan in all of Europe.

The airline tickets are being given away as the tourist office hope that those coming to the country will spend in regional economies where tourism dropped by nearly 15% immediately after the disaster. Many visitors are currently being put off by the fact that the currency is very strong, making travel expensive, and also by the nuclear accident that happened earlier in the year.

Before the disaster occurred the country wanted to see 30 million visitors per year from foreign nations. Recent figures suggest that this number is going to be unattainable for several more years to come.

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The Game is coming to the UK and will be launching in London, and is the first treasure hunt event that has been organised in the UK by The Game. 200 tickets are being given away for the first 200 customers who sign up for the treasure hunt. In order to get your hands on one of these free tickets visit www.UKthegame.com.

In the United States ‘The Game’ has already been proven to be a huge success and now people in the UK will also be able to take part in this treasure hunt which is guided by mobile phones. The game will start in the City of London and Covent Garden.

It is a combination of treasure hunting, history, sightseeing, and insider knowledge. The tour is entertaining in a completely unique way and it is an interactive experience that will fully immerse players in an interactive and self-guided treasure hunt.

The game works through text messaging so players with any type of phone will be able to take part. On the treasure hunt players will have to visit various points and they will face puzzles, riddles, and trivia questions in order to find the treasure.

Players are able to set their own pace and there is no set starting time, each treasure hunt takes around three hours to complete. Before the game begins the treasure hunt is heavily researched and amusing activities and interesting facts are gathered together to entertain players. For those who live in London it is a great way to do something a bit different in the city and should appeal to everyone.

Players of the game will be taken through the major sights of London as well as to some parts that are away from the normal tourist attractions. These initial treasure hunts are expected to be the beginning of a larger project.

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Visitors are going to be welcomed to Scotland with more leisurely days this winter and many attractions in the country are being offered at a discounted rate or for free. The winter festivals in Scotland begin on St Andrew’s Day which is the 30 November and run all the way through to 25January, which is Burns night. This series of festivals includes the famous Hogmanay celebrations which take place on New Year’s Eve.

Celebrations will start taking place on the weekend nearest to St Andrew’s Day, which runs on the 26th and 27th of November. These will be occurring in many of the major cities in Scotland including Glasgow, Edinburgh and St Andrews. Anyone can take part in the celebrations and tickets for the different events can be booked ahead of time. There has even been a special application designed for smart phones that will allow people to find out information about the various celebrations.

The winter festivals in Scotland are seen as a way for the government to boost tourism interest in the country and many of the top tourist attractions in Scotland are open for free, which includes Edinburgh Castle, which is the most popular tourist attraction in Scotland.

For those activities that are not free there are many special discounts being offered, these include free ticket for children as well as several buy one get one free offers. Edinburgh Dungeons, The Scotch Whisky Experience, Highland Wildlife Park and the Seabird Centre are just some of the famous attractions in the country that are taking part in these promotional offers.

The application with details about all these promotions is available for free on the Apple App Store and also for the Android market. There is a database of all the events occurring on St Andrew’s Day and there is a guide for most of them.

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One of Scotland’s top heritage locations, Arnol Blackhouse, is opening its doors this November and there will be no charge for visiting the attraction. The free admission is offered through Historic Scotland and this is just one of many locations that will not be charging entry this winter. Scotland’s top attraction, Edinburgh Castle, is another one of these attractions.

The Visit for Free programme is available to people who register online and a special website has been created at www.ticketgiveaway.co.uk where visitors will be able to download a weekend pass for free so that they can get access to these attractions at no cost. The pass is valid for two adults and three children.

Arnol Blackhouse is located in the Western Isles and there won’t be any charge associated with it on the 26^th November. They hope that this will attract new and old visitors to the location where they will enjoy experiencing what island life was like in the past.

St Andrews Castle and Edinburgh Castle will be offering free admission to visitors on 30 November. This programme is in part to celebrate Scotland’s Winter Festivals. Fiona Hyslop is the culture and external affairs secretary and she has commented, “This period of free admission is very popular with all visitors and it is a great way for Scotland to start the winter season of festivals. Some of the most beautiful castles in the world are located in Scotland and this is a fantastic way for people to visit them.”

Several performances involving costumes will be taking place at the various sites. The legend of St Andrews is one of these and will be taking place at St Andrews Cathedral. Performances and several other special events will be taking place at Edinburgh Castle.

There are also competitions for those who take advantage of the free admission as each location is offering a stamp. Once a visitor has collected five stamps they will be able to take part in an online competition where the prize is membership to Historic Scotland as well as a trip to Edinburgh Castle as a VIP.

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Last month the money-saving website discountvouchers.co.uk announced that its user numbers had doubled over the last nine months, and that there are currently more than 150,000 visitors to the site every day.  They also reported a sign-up rate of about 10,000 per day – not a bad record at all, and it just keeps getting better.

Doug Scott, the website’s managing director, said it’s not just a matter of people snapping up one discount offer, but that they’re coming back over and over and “engaging with the site”.  He estimates that discountvouchers has saved consumers about £3.8 million since its conception in 2009.

Right now is the time to go find some great deals on fall fashions, like 2 for £20 on jeans at New Look, and buy one, get one at ½ price for all Luxury Shirts at Marks & Spencer.  This week you can also find great offers from Debenhams on sweaters and coats for fall, with free delivery on orders over £30.  But that’s just this week; every day the discount vouchers site features as many as 500 new money-saving offers from over 5,000 retailers.

More great savings can be had on dining out this month.  During October you’ll find discount vouchers like two-for-one on selected meals at Burger King, and Pizza Hut vouchers good for £5 plus free unlimited salads and ‘kids eat free’.  You can also get classic Italian pasta dishes from Prezzo:  two courses and a drink for £11.95 or three courses plus a drink for £13.95.

Discounts from restaurants, hotels, cinemas, supermarkets, even discounts on college courses . . .  just about anything you’re looking for can be had at money-saving prices.  Downloads are free, and you can search for a product or shop right there at the site: www.discountvouchers.co.uk

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Appearing in the United Kingdom for the first time is Shankar Ehsaan Loy, a highly acclaimed Bollywood music group. They will perform their show, Asia Rocks at the Royal Albert Hall for one night only on 18^th September 2011. Two free tickets to the show are on offer on the website.

Their soundtrack music for films such as Dil Chahta Hai, Kal Ho Naa Ho and My Name is Khan has proved to be extremely popular in the last 10 years. They have also written the music score to the movie Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara which has become one of the top Bollywood movies of all time.

The group, known as SEL, is made up of vocalist Shankar Mahadevan, guitarist Ehsaan Noorani and keyboard player Loy Mendonsa. The trio takes their name from the first name initials of the three members. The group has a unique and exciting sound and their music is having a lasting effect on the Bollywood film industry.

Each of the members provide an equal musical contribution to their sound. Shankar, on vocals, has a voice with warmth, depth and melody. Ehsaan is the rocker in the group, performing some excellent guitar breaks while keyboard player , Loy is calm and gives a sobering effect to the band.

Also appearing on stage will be Karan and the KSpark Dancers who were most impressive in the show Just Dance, which featured Hrithik Roshan. This group has become a hit on the  United Kingdom Asian dance scene and  is renowned for its exclusive, memorable and traditionally enhancing performances. Additional support will take the form of an audiovisual presentation of Gitanjali by Rabindranath Tagore.

The Asian Music Circuit will be presenting the Asia Rocks concert and any further information may be obtained on their site. B4U Music will partner the event and the concert is supported by the Anjool Malde Memorial Trust and the Arts Council of England.

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