Former Castle Harbour guest workers return for a reunionBy Owain Johnston-BarnesTwenty-five former Castle Harbour staff returned to their old stomping grounds this week as part of a 50-year reunion.The hotel has been closed for more than a decade; the site is now the home of Rosewood Tucker’s Point.Hannes Broschek, who organised the reunion, said the group agreed it was appropriate to return to the Island to celebrate.“We’ve come from South Africa, Germany, England, US, Canada,” he said. “We had the best time in Bermuda.“All of us agree that we had a great time. Most of us have come back two or three times now. One of us has come back 34 times.“We have all kept in contact with each other around 50 people over the years.”Mr Broschek worked at the Castle Harbour from 1960 to 1968. He praised Tucker’s Point during a tour of the property with his former colleagues.“It’s first-rate,” he said. “When I look around, they have done an amazing job. Castle Harbour was an institution for us, but it needed to be upgraded. I like what I see here.”He said working in the Bermuda hospitality industry was the first step in what proved to be long and successful careers for the members of the group.Andreas Hofer left Castle Harbour in 1966 to work in Hong Kong’s Mandarin Oriental hotel. Following that he was made vice president of Mandarin Oriental, South East Asia.He is now vice chairman of Lanson Place Hospitality Management Ltd, managing properties in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.Mr Hofer said that despite his time spent visiting tourism hot spots throughout the Pacific, he still believes Bermuda is the most attractive destination.“I have done a lot of cruises in the South Pacific Islands, the French South Pacific. There’s no competition to Bermuda,” he said.“I have been back here five times since I left. The first time, when I didn’t have any money, I stayed with friends. More recently, I have been coming here on the cruise ships. I like what you have been doing here. You have protected it and it’s still a great place.”Mr Broschek agreed, saying that while he has heard Bermuda’s hospitality industry is facing its share of challenges, he felt the tourism product had improved since his days working here.“I think Bermuda has changed for the better in a lot of ways,” he said. “When I was working here, St George’s was nothing. Now it’s really nice and clean. It didn’t used to be like that.“Dockyard was just a prison. You weren’t allowed up there, but they really did a great job. I found that Bermuda is still the best island. It’s clean, and the people are friendly.”He felt that competition from other tourist destinations plays a part in the Island’s tourism troubles, particularly because of the cost of visiting Bermuda.“I think that you just have to compete with so many other locations, and Bermuda is expensive,” he said. “Even in the old days, it was expensive. There are a lot of travellers, but not everyone can afford Bermuda.”Said Paul Telford, director of rooms for Rosewood Tucker’s Point: “We were so thrilled to welcome 25 former employees from Castle Harbour Resort to our new property here at Rosewood Tucker’s Point.“Many had not been back to the Island since they worked here and it was a joy to see them reminiscing and exploring what the property looks like today.”