Red Carnation Hotel Founder Named European Hotelier of the Year 2012

Bea Tollman has been recognized for continuingly unparalleled levels of service, excellence and luxury across all of the collection's five- and four-star properties in Europe, which include flagship The Milestone Hotel in Kensington, Guernsey's only five-star property, The Old Government House Hotel and Spa and the famed Hotel d'Angleterre in Geneva.

Scooping one of the biggest awards of the evening, Bea Tollman said:
"I'm humbled and honored to have been recognized for doing something that I truly love, each and every day. I thank the judges, the fantastic teams at all of my hotels and of course my wonderful family, many of whom are involved in the business too. My driving passion is to make every stay memorable for every single guest, to make them feel truly welcomed and special, and I believe having this at the heart of everything we do is what has led to this award and many of the others we are lucky to have received."

Summarizing their verdict, the judges said: "Personifying the value of having a genuine hotelier running the show, Beatrice Tollman has never lost sight of the guiding principle of hospitality: service. After five decades in the industry, Beatrice's ongoing involvement on the front line of her hotels is an inspiration, setting the standards for the next generations to follow."

Jonathan Raggett, Managing Director of Red Carnation Hotels added:
"Mrs. Tollman really is an inspiration. She has an innate sense of what it takes to make the guest experience truly exceptional and she cares deeply about this and also about the staff that deliver this experience daily in each of our properties. We are very lucky to have her at the helm challenging and encouraging us to be the best that we can."

The Hotelier of the Year award from the European Hospitality Awards is the latest in an array of recent accolades for the collection, which includes recognition from Conde Nast Traveler for '41,' The Rubens at the Palace and The Chesterfield Mayfair as the "Best Hotels for Business in London," top five rankings from Travel + Leisure World's Best Awards, Certificates of Excellence from TripAdvisor across all hotels in the collection and a debut in 2012 into the Sunday Times "Best Companies to Work For."

Established in 2010, The European Hospitality Awards recognizes the best in the hotel industry across the continent, and judges include Ted Tang, CEO of Leading Hotels of the World, Peter Bierwirth, President of the Hotel Managers Association and Claus Sendlinger, CEO and President of Design Hotels.