Cool package idea

In the hunt for cool package ideas I came across one offering guests a trip on a lobster boat and then a cooking lesson with lobster and then dining on the prepared lobster with wine, etc. There is also a lobster lunch and champagne brunch included.
OK, we do a lobster boat trip for guests. ($60/couple) I can't do cooking classes but we do offer a package with a gift card for getting lobster dinner in town. ($75) I could raise the price of the GC to $100 and most everyone could have 2 full dinners from soup to dessert and wine.
So, what was the price of the package deal I found? $1399 PER PERSON. So $2800 + tax and gratuity for a 2 night stay. In a standard room.
I have one where you stay 4 nights and get 2 dinners, the lobster boat ride, admissions to 3 other adventures for $200 less than the one person rate and mine is for TWO people.
I'm not charging enough for my packages.
Still on the hunt...

Another innkeeper in town who loves to cook and is very good at it, offered a two night package including a four course dinner in the inn the second night.
Looked pretty good.

TheBeachHouse said:

Another innkeeper in town who loves to cook and is very good at it, offered a two night package including a four course dinner in the inn the second night.
Looked pretty good..

Click to expand...

How much were they charging for that? I have found pricing for packages to be a challenge. But, a BB consultant once told me that you don't have to necessarily make it a good bargain, just something interesting to draw folks in. There isn't much to do in town within an hour's drive, so I am stumped! I like to cook.

blackcat said:

TheBeachHouse said:

Another innkeeper in town who loves to cook and is very good at it, offered a two night package including a four course dinner in the inn the second night.
Looked pretty good..

Click to expand...

How much were they charging for that? I have found pricing for packages to be a challenge. But, a BB consultant once told me that you don't have to necessarily make it a good bargain, just something interesting to draw folks in. There isn't much to do in town within an hour's drive, so I am stumped! I like to cook.
.

Click to expand...

She has three rooms. She is charging 299, 349 and 399 for the "Fall Harvest Dinner Package."
Her regular prices are 135, 160 and 200.
She is well known as a very good cook.

TheBeachHouse said:

blackcat said:

TheBeachHouse said:

Another innkeeper in town who loves to cook and is very good at it, offered a two night package including a four course dinner in the inn the second night.
Looked pretty good..

Click to expand...

How much were they charging for that? I have found pricing for packages to be a challenge. But, a BB consultant once told me that you don't have to necessarily make it a good bargain, just something interesting to draw folks in. There isn't much to do in town within an hour's drive, so I am stumped! I like to cook.
.

Click to expand...

She has three rooms. She is charging 299, 349 and 399 for the "Fall Harvest Dinner Package."
Her regular prices are 135, 160 and 200.
She is well known as a very good cook.
.

Click to expand...

So it looks like she isn't really isn't marking up or down, just charging about $29 for dinner. It is a good idea, since the most she will get is six dinner guests at a time with the three rooms. Thank you!

blackcat said:

TheBeachHouse said:

Another innkeeper in town who loves to cook and is very good at it, offered a two night package including a four course dinner in the inn the second night.
Looked pretty good..

Click to expand...

How much were they charging for that? I have found pricing for packages to be a challenge. But, a BB consultant once told me that you don't have to necessarily make it a good bargain, just something interesting to draw folks in. There isn't much to do in town within an hour's drive, so I am stumped! I like to cook.
.

Click to expand...

blackcat said:

How much were they charging for that? I have found pricing for packages to be a challenge. But, a BB consultant once told me that you don't have to necessarily make it a good bargain, just something interesting to draw folks in. There isn't much to do in town within an hour's drive, so I am stumped! I like to cook.

Click to expand...

Packages shouldn't be bargains. They are something either a) you do all the work, they buy it and show up, or b) something they can't get on their own, ie think Chef's table idea.
We did a brunch this past weekend, and my husband actually thought about what we charged, and finally got it. Besides the whole booking, planning, preparing, shopping, my fuel my time, it took the cooking, prepping, setting up, serving and cleaning. He and I did it and ran around the whole time.
If someone paid for my time (like you would at a restaurant for a hired chef, servers, etc) to do any of those things, there is no way anyone could afford it. They paid no gratuity, no service fee. We bought the food and paid tax on it, and they expect to not pay tax.
We go back and forth - as two of us own the inn, he has no experience in the hospitality industry prior to the inn. So it was something we did for guests who booked rooms here but would not do to draw people in, it would never pay for itself in time consumption alone. The required you must be done before 11am did not hold either.
We rarely do these and overall it was a way to feed everyone at once and make everyone happy.

We have some little crawdads (mountain lobster) in the creek. Do you think that would sell? lol

ONLY my first excursion into package was a "bargain" effort. And that is what killed it. Because the other half of the package could only see what percentage of increase HE was getting, not that I was compensating for the work I did - they packed a lunch for the trail and I did a dinner - when I raised the price. I quickly saw that it was going to be a "first year introductory price" to raise it the next year. They are now long retired but we could have milked it for several more years if he had not decided, and I quote - "You are too hard to work with."
Since then, IF it is an inn-to-inn all do the same and the price is split 50/50 plus taxes. AND all packages contain 3 or mote items so prices cannot be divided out - I PAD the price of everything except the room rate since that is on my web site. They are paying for the convenience of one-stop-shop.