Fife hotel owners celebrate 35 years in business

Kathryn and Rankin Bell bought the Kingswood Hotel in Burntisland on May 12, 1986, and since then they have made a number of improvements including adding four extensions to accommodate the hotel’s growing demand.

In over three decades, the couple believe the Kingswood has hosted 1000 weddings – and has even gone on to be the venue for second generation weddings as well as christenings, special anniversaries and birthdays.

Rankin explained how he and his wife came to buy the hotel.

We stopped in for lunch one day and instantly fell in love with the setting, the view and the general ambience,” he said.

"To our surprise as we chatted to the former owners of the hotel, they offered to sell it to us. We had owned a pub in Perthshire for a couple of years before that.

"In the early years, we rarely had weddings due to lack of space, but bar suppers were extremely popular and we also had an la carte restaurant. Back then, the hotel had just four bedrooms, with no en-suite.

"There was a demand for en-suite bedrooms and we felt the hotel was the perfect setting with wonderful views.

"So we worked on extending it, and, over the past 35 years, we have completed four extensions.

"As a result, we now have 13 bedrooms including two family suites, an accessible downstairs bedroom as well as two function suites.

“We have also rebuilt the hotel’s 'secret garden' which is a fantastic spot for weddings.

"We believe we have possibly had over 1000 weddings at the hotel during the past 35 years.

"We’ve gone on to have their children’s christenings, their silver weddings, their children’s weddings and even their children’s grandparents silver, ruby, and golden weddings – we’ve had amazing support from customers over the years."

The couple have had help from their own children who have worked in the Kingswood over the years and Rankin says the whole family works together on Christmas Day - a tradition that still continues.

He said: “The walls might have changed, but our passion and commitment to serving our guests hasn’t.

"Our emphasis has always been on service and teamwork. Surrounding ourselves with a dedicated team has always ensured our guests have a great experience.”

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Rankin said the past year has been difficult and that it has been sad to see couples have to postpone their weddings due to the pandemic and restrictions.

He said: “Furlough has been massive relief but being an established hotel has helped enormously. Although restrictions continue, once again customer support since re-opening has been tremendous.”

Rankin added: "It’s important to celebrate our 35th anniversary and we’re lucky to be located in this small haven. Over the years it has been a joy to welcome guests from around the globe but it’s our local communities support that has truly kept us going over the years.

“To celebrate our anniversary, and as a thank you to everyone for their support over the past 35 years we will be offering customers 35 per cent off our Tall Trees Restaurant Menu this week until Friday, May 21.”

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