Couple with Coombe surname visit Coombe Abbey Hotel as part of unique 20th anniversary celebrations

A couple celebrating their 20th anniversary have used their surname as inspiration for their celebrations – starting with a stay at a historic Warwickshire hotel which shares their name.

Yvonne and Paul Coombes will start their Coombe-themed anniversary adventure at Coombe Abbey Hotel with a two-night stay.

The Hertfordshire couple, who married in August 2001 and have two daughters aged 20 and 15, were inspired to visit places with ‘Coombe’ or similar in their names after visiting the village of Castle Combe near Bath.

They made plans to start their celebrations earlier last year, but the complications of the pandemic meant their fun had to be delayed.

Yvonne said: “We just thought visiting places which related to our surname would be a fun thing to do, and might take us to new places we’d never thought of going to before.

“The initial plan was to try and visit one Coombe-themed place per month during our anniversary in 2021.

“Our research allowed us to find Coombe Abbey pretty early on and it was one of the first places we booked.

"It looked absolutely gorgeous, so we knew we wanted to book a stay there.

“Sadly, the pandemic meant we couldn’t do everything as planned from the start of the year.

"But now restrictions have eased, it means our stay at Coombe Abbey will be the start of our celebrations.

“We had only booked one night originally, but after the restrictions eased we decided to extend our stay to two nights and book a room for our daughters to make it into a family occasion.

“We’re really excited about finally marking our milestone properly and enjoying as many Coombe-related places as we can.”

Alongside their stay at Coombe Abbey, Yvonne and Paul are also planning on walking Coombe Hill in the Chilterns, visiting Coombe Lodge in Somerset, horseriding in the New Forest with a company called Coombe Stables, and much more.

They also plan to have a special lunch at their wedding venue in Ware, Hertfordshire.

Ron Terry, general manager at Coombe Abbey Hotel, said: “We’re delighted Yvonne and Paul will be starting their Coombe-themed anniversary celebrations with us.

“It’s such a fun and original idea, and we’re flattered Coombe Abbey was one of the first places they booked.

“We’re looking forward to hosting them at our hotel and we’re confident their stay will be the perfect start to their 20th anniversary.”