My Husband Calls Me "The WonderWoman" And Bought Me The Pants To Prove It!
This is me... Sue... sitting overlooking the Menai Straits in a rare moment off duty! When you contact Cadair View Lodge it'll more often than not be me that you speak to or receive an email from.
So what can I tell you about me?
I live in a quiet little village on Anglesey with my wonderful new (married 2019 in Florida) husband. So my Office is about 60 minutes drive from the log cabins and Llys Ednowain. We enjoy the best of both worlds - I can see Snowdon and all of the mountains in that area from my kitchen and I can see "The Rivals" down the Llyn Peninsula from my Office window (when there are no leaves on the trees). I can be driving up the Nant Ffrancon valley within 20 minutes of leaving home or walking (paddling!) on the beach at Newborough within 10. I am so lucky to live in this fantastic location.
I have 2 fantastic daughters - one of whom is a professional musician (plays bassoon and saxophone amongst other instruments and the other one is a professional mermaid (yes you read that right). I have a gorgeous grandson (born in 2021) who I don't get to see enough of. My stepson who works in Saudi Arabia. I also lost a stepson in a tragic accident and there is a lifeboat named after him at Barmouth Lifeboat Station "Craig Steadman" (go and see Craig if you're in the area).
What do I like to do?
At the moment I'm trying to master the art of sourdough - not always very successfully. I love to cook and find it a great relaxer (unless it goes wrong). I like to be out and about and learning about our locations (both around Trawsfynydd and here). I LOVE to be in the sea (probably where my mermaid got it from) and I love to swim. I've just gone back to Welsh class (dosbarth cymraeg). Starting from the beginning again so you might find me throwing the odd phrase in here and there. AND I love going out and doing crazy things with my husband and anybody else that we can rope in. Look out for #mischief and adventures on our Instagram posts.
Why "Wonder Woman" pants?
These are framed and are on my Office wall (together with TripAdvisor certificates of excellence and a few other awards). They are to remind me that I've faced some challenges over the years and that I've come through them and carried on. They're in a sort of "In Emergency Break Glass" frame just in case I ever need to put them on again.
So how did Sue get from IT professional to Wonder Woman?
Yes, in a previous life I worked in big business as computer programmer, systems analyst, project manager, etc. etc. until I was made redundant in 2000 (read the gory details on my Linkedin profile HERE). In the 1990s our family had been given use of a log cabin on Trawsfynydd Holiday Village by an elderly uncle. We eventually bought it and spent many holidays and most weekends there (it was only 70 minutes drive from Wrexham where my family were living at the time).
In 2003, my then husband was also made redundant and we used some of his redundancy to buy 2 log cabins to rent out. We planned a business that would just be our log cabins but best laid plans etc. By the end of 2003 we'd been asked to manage log cabins belonging to other owners at the same location. We learnt the business as we went along and offered our guests what we'd want for ourselves on holiday - knowledgeable staff, friendly customer service, flexibility over stay lengths and arrival times, a "can do" attitude and a good standard of accommodation. The business grew a bit like "Topsy". At its height we were managing 26 log cabins plus 2 bunk houses at the Rhiw Goch.
These are some of the cabins that we've managed over the years.
So... 19 years on. My family has grown up, life has changed, technology has changed, properties have come and gone (several owners sold up after the 2008 financial crisis) but the core values are still maintained.
Although I have "the pants" I can't do everything by myself. I have some other very hard working ladies who are there to support me. Rachel, who calls herself "my partner in crime". We have regular "plotting" sessions and eat lots of cake! And Jo, who runs the clean team. She and her team get the cabins ready for our guests' arrivals and are also on hand for any maintenance issues that may arise during guests' stays.
What do I like best about the business?
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I LOVE to help guests to plan their stays so that they have great memories to take home with them and get the stay that they really want. Not quite so easy with online booking systems but it still happens.
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I LOVE making new connections with people and businesses in our area so that I can find out more information to pass on (I'm a bit of an information magpie - love new, "sparkly" bits of information).
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I LOVE to innovate. I'm always asking myself "How can we do this better? What extra value can we add for our guests?". We were the first in the area to offer our guests many things from card payments over the phone to welcome packs (and more).
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I LOVE to be welcoming back guests who've stayed with us many times over the years. You are almost like an extended family.
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I LOVE to hear what guests have done during their stays (and see their photos)
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I STILL give an almost audible "scream" of delight when a booking comes in
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and of course, I LOVE to receive nice feedback and reviews, after all THIS is my baby!
To keep up with our ongoing story AND to get the latest news and offers...
I share lots of my life on the Cadair View Lodge Facebook page and on my blogs but I'm sorry to disappoint anybody but my Facebook profile is private and I don't accept Friends requests on there. A girl has to have some privacy ;-)
Many of our regular guests are now almost like family. Some have done their "courting" with us, proposed on our decks in the moonlight and are now bringing their children to stay with us. I'd love YOU to be part of this family too and make your stay much more than just another holiday.
If you'd prefer to make an enquiry or booking over the phone (rather than book through our online system) you'll usually find me in the office Monday to Friday 9.30am to 6.30pm. Outside of those hours I may not answer the phone, I might be off having an adventure of my own, but if you leave me a message (or drop me an email) I'll get back to you as soon as I can - usually well within 24 hours.
I look forward to hearing from you soon and to helping you to plan your stay with us in Snowdonia.
Cofion cynnes (bit of Cymraeg!) - Kind regards
Sue Steadman
Yes - it used to be Sue Hall - but I'm saving THAT STORY for my autobiography.
P.S. Did I say "Dw i'n tryio siarad mwy o Gymraeg" - please humour me!
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