COUNTRY HOSPITALITY RUNS IN THE FAMILY FOR NEW GEMLIFE RAINBOW BEACH RESORT MANAGERS TRICIA AND REESE BRYANT.
“My parents owned and ran hotels for many years,” said Tricia. “You could say it is in the blood. We’ve run small hotels and large hotels with close to 100 guests. You’re always working every day of the week, ready to answer enquiries at all different hours.”
Reese comes from a farming background in New Zealand so when he and Tricia met ten years ago, it made sense to combine their skills and run country hotels – the last one being in picturesque Launceston.
“The city held no appeal for us at all,” says Tricia. “Managing a big city hotel wouldn’t suit us – it’s all a bit too stiff and formal.
“We love to greet our guests and make them feel welcome for their stay but that’s one of the problems, we’d meet some fascinating people and then they’d leave, and we wouldn’t see them again.”
That’s when the discussion turned into a plan of managing an over-50s lifestyle resort.
“The idea of managing a place where we could really get to know residents on a long-term basis was really appealing,” Tricia adds.
“And then we discovered GemLife resorts and could see that this was on another level altogether!
“The homes are so beautiful with their high ceilings and great inclusions. Everyone is so proud of them and Reese, being a country boy at heart, is looking forward to maintaining the gardens.”
In December, GemLife Rainbow Beach welcomed its first homeowner and over the next few months there will be plenty of new faces for Tricia and Reese to get to know.
When not hard at work, the couple love to travel and naturally prefer the road less travelled.
“We tend to stay away from the typical destinations and go off-the-beaten track to see how the locals live – we’ve been to over 50 countries so far,” says Tricia. “Our most recent trip was to Cambodia, and it was wonderful to experience the culture and the lifestyle.”