Cliff and Tricia Nicholson decided that getting up at 5.00am each morning and setting off for work was taking its toll after 14 years. Cliff’s drive was M11, M25 and either the A1 or M1, a 120 mile round trip. It was about time they spent more time together. So, they set about moving from Essex to buy a business that answered their demands. For many years they had holidayed and enjoyed Exmoor and when Spears Cross came on the market they felt ‘at home’.

Tricia had spent 18 years working for Sainsbury’s at a local supermarket. She is the workhorse in the partnership. She is a fine cook and enjoys entertaining. She has an eye for detail and has decorated and furnished each of the bedrooms. Tricia is the one who services the rooms each day; she is the one who makes things happen.

Cliff has a wine marketing background and was latterly the marketing director for a national wine specialist supplier. Proud of being left-handed, he is the creative one in the team, the one who does the talking and the one who helps you plan a day out on Exmoor.

Spears Cross is a combined effort; ultimately it is our guests who really take to the atmosphere, make it happen and enjoy a memorable holiday break.

Since mid 2005 Cliff & Tricia have worked at improving the standards and decorating at Spears Cross, they still have some way to go, but the results are starting to show. All the bedrooms have been decorated to a high standard; all four en-suite bathrooms have been replaced. The beds are not ‘normal hotel’ beds, but premium quality  Relyon Super King Size that have been specially made for Spears Cross. From the outset Cliff and Tricia have invested and set a standard that they would demand when staying at a hotel. The fact is, with only 4 bedrooms Spears Cross cannot be called a hotel, but then Bed & Breakfast does not conjure up the style that they have achieved.