Do you charge differently? I get this question every once in a while and I sure I'm not the only one.
Do you have a special tete a tete fee for those who spend the day and depart without spending the night or having breakfast? I knock $35 off the regular room rate, because its still a flip, just no food.
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Never approach a bull from the front, a horse from the rear or a fool from any direction.
I had one request for this with a morning check-in, supposedly followed by a very early check-out the next morning, so no breakfast was needed. I charged for 2 nights since the room had to be reserved for 2 nights with that timeframe. Turned out that they actually checked out that evening (which was probably the plan all along). Appeared to be a fling. Only incidence like that in a little bit over a year in business....
Breakfast is complimentary, I don't knock anything off the rate if they don't eat breakfast.
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"You can't blame gravity for falling in love." ~ Albert Einstein
keep in mind, this was a very small harbor village with only my place and little hotel.
poor guy was driving something like 6 hours to be in a friend's wedding on a friday eve. i was a little nervous about it but decided to give it a try. told him if he didn't remove his belongings when he left to go to the wedding, i'd assume he was staying over and it would be the full room rate. he agreed.
it worked out fine. the man arrived, (before our usual checkin time of 3 but at 1 by prior arrangement) got himself ready, put what he changed out of into his car and went off. that was it. i charged him $35. to use the room for a few hours to rest up, shower, shave, dress, have a cup of coffee and some cookies. he was happy, i was happy. i went up and cleaned the room at about 5 pm. he used every towel ... but that's okay. and he left a $5 tip
6:30, we had a walk in which i was able to accomodate because i'd cleaned the room.
i debated about doing it but i knew there was nothing sketchy about his request.
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' not all those who wander are lost ... ' jrr tolkien
I think people are just losing it anymore. Another 8 o'clock call last night. This is becoming a pattern I don't like.
Okay, this is just getting weird. Another one tonight and I couldn't even understand what he was asking me.
I think people are lumping us together with motels. The only experience I can related it to is a road trip in college. We never booked anything in advance. Just played it by ear. We would drive until it started to get dark and then would begin looking for a motel.
To answer your question Tim. No, I don't need that kind of business.
"I think people are just losing it anymore. Another 8 o'clock call last night. This is becoming a pattern I don't like."
No, this is people still wanting to travel but maximize their savings on our backs based on the advice the TV financial talking heads have been giving out for the last six months.
My opinion is that if you're not hurting and your occupancy rate is comfortable for your needs, then don't grind your teeth over it.
We just had a call really late last night from someone looking for this weekend and despite being really wide open, when I called him back today I didn't just open the floodgates and start knocking big bucks off. Because he so clearly was only interested in the "deal" I could offer him, I went the conservative route. Nothing about our place, what great things he had heard about us, etc.. We probably won't hear from him again, but we have a comfort level we maintain.
For holidays here, we have a three day minimum and a 10% surcharge if the holiday is in thr high season. In the low season we charge the high season rate. He only wants two nights so I offered him a waiver on the minimum stay requirement and our standard high season rate, no surcharge.
We have a renovation project we've been putting off finishing on our living quarters, so if we get a few bookings between now and the weekend, great, it'll get worked on piecemeal. If we don't I can focus on it more fully.
Do you offer rooms via any second party systems where you pay a commission? If so, and you want the business ( in general, not "that kind of business" whatever that means to you ) then you've got an internal argument to make with yourself. If you're willing to pay a second party a commission for a reservation that depending on your setup with the system could also be last minute, but not willing to extend a discount to the guest themselves, that would seem to be a contradiction.
We do offer rooms that way and so if somebody calls and we really want the business ( in general, we always do ) we'll offer the room at a discount that is half the percentage of the commission we'd pay if they used the second party system.
We're always looking ahead and if our being flexible in the most trying economic times in 70 years helps get us through it then its all good. If it also shows the guest we empathize with their situation, then we may have earned ourselves a loyal, returning guest when things turn around.
Its a choice one needs to make based on need, intuition and comfort level. If late arrivals on very short notice at a discount or not are problematic for your setup, then that helps answer the internal dilemma.
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Tim@HLB
I think I'm finally getting the picture on this and you're right Tim. The last guy appeared to be calling from a bar, as there was a lot of loud background noise. He seemed to have some type of foreign accent or was just drunk, either way hard to understand. I think what he was asking was, how much for a room.
So the modus operandi appears to be - to wait until the very last minute, then call around and see who will give you the best price. Well, as someone else said, "This innkeeper isn't playing that game."
The reason I have been able to last as long as I have without burning out after a few years, as many around me have, is that I try to avoid unnecessary aggrevation. I enjoy what I do and the people I meet. To me, that kind of business is unnecessary aggrevation.,
I think people are just losing it anymore. Another 8 o'clock call last night. This is becoming a pattern I don't like.
Okay, this is just getting weird. Another one tonight and I couldn't even understand what he was asking me.
I think people are lumping us together with motels. The only experience I can related it to is a road trip in college. We never booked anything in advance. Just played it by ear. We would drive until it started to get dark and then would begin looking for a motel.
To answer your question Tim. No, I don't need that kind of business.
it depends on what feeling you are getting from these callers. my mother and aunt travel a lot together and they never make reservations. very difficult when they happen on some sort of event or festival in the middle ot podunk but they just keep driving. they are both in their 70's so it can be a little upsetting when they cannot find a room. sometimes it is late in the evening when they arrive in a town. now that they have a gps an computer in the car they can look things up ahead of time but they don't make resevations. this is the vagabond life they want to live. no destination. just go.
I think people are just losing it anymore. Another 8 o'clock call last night. This is becoming a pattern I don't like.
Okay, this is just getting weird. Another one tonight and I couldn't even understand what he was asking me.
I think people are lumping us together with motels. The only experience I can related it to is a road trip in college. We never booked anything in advance. Just played it by ear. We would drive until it started to get dark and then would begin looking for a motel.
To answer your question Tim. No, I don't need that kind of business.
it depends on what feeling you are getting from these callers. my mother and aunt travel a lot together and they never make reservations. very difficult when they happen on some sort of event or festival in the middle ot podunk but they just keep driving. they are both in their 70's so it can be a little upsetting when they cannot find a room. sometimes it is late in the evening when they arrive in a town. now that they have a gps an computer in the car they can look things up ahead of time but they don't make resevations. this is the vagabond life they want to live. no destination. just go.
Just out of curiousity, have they ever had to sleep in their car?
We did once - in a 1986 Jeep Cherokee with 2 adults (front seat), 3 kids in back seat (who were 5' 9", 5'3", & 5'3" and not overly fond of each other as siblings 16, 16, and 12 would be), and in the back-back with luggage that did not fit in the lid on top the Jeep was a 6'2" 18 year old son. Thank goodness he listened to me from then on when I said let's stop for the night.
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OK - is this a NEW TREND??? Are they thinking they will get a special deal or something?
I just hung up with my second such call just this week!! The woman said 'we would like to check in around 10AM and stay through early evening, we won't be spending the night' When I told her check in is not until 3PM her reply " Oh is that how it works, I've never stayed in that kind of place before!"
What the 
kind of place does she think a B&B is??? This must have been a rendezvous and she thinks we are THAT kind of place!!!! NOT
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"Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it." Hebrews 13:2
I think you may have hit the nail on the head.
Can you imagine the potential headache of spliting your calendar into hour by hour increments instead of the way it is now?
Nearly every town of any substiantial size has its seedy motel for that "hourly" purpose.
Talk about a mini-vacation. LOL
"Hey honey, let's get away for some R&R, and still be back home for dinner"
This is in my opinion one of the consequences of the blurring of the lines between motels, hotels and B&Bs by the big travel consolidators like Expedia. The more the public doesn't see distinct differences, the more they assume we're like anybody else.
We use sites like Expedia and Hotels.com to pull attention to ourselves.....we use our natural charm and skills to SHOW them the difference. I find it to be a very happy tradeoff and have never had a problem with the "type" of guests I've seen from the big consolidators. But then again, I don't think of them or treat them any differently than any other type of guest either.
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The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue and gives kisses freely and enthusiastically to everyone!
We use sites like Expedia and Hotels.com to pull attention to ourselves.....we use our natural charm and skills to SHOW them the difference. I find it to be a very happy tradeoff and have never had a problem with the "type" of guests I've seen from the big consolidators. But then again, I don't think of them or treat them any differently than any other type of guest either.
Us too... kind of hard to beat the exposure power that those two afford and the nice thing is you don't pay a cent in commission unless or until someone books through them. The number of folks who probably find a place via those systems but still book directly is probably pretty substantial.
The showing them the difference doesn't occur until they get here though and for a few previously never stayed at a B&B guests booked via those two, it can take a little bit of effort to clarify the distinctions.
I hear ya. I just never heard it called and hourly rate. LOL I have them call and request to do a photo shoot and can they pay me something for it.
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Kindness not only makes the coffee. Kindness says good morning.
By the day??? what kind of place do they think you run there? I sure wouldn't want to get a reputation for doing that....what about by the hour??
By the day??? what kind of place do they think you run there? I sure wouldn't want to get a reputation for doing that....what about by the hour??
I know it sounds seedy, doesn't it?
I got a call yesterday from a couple with a new baby. They weren't comfortable leaving the baby overnight, but found a sitter for the day. They said they just needed some 'away time'...from 3 to 10 PM. ( guess this is when they could get a sitter for)?
Yes, most sisters are kids that have to go home at night.
We got asked about hourly/day rate for a photographer that doesn't have his own studio.
=)
Kk.
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Yes, most sisters are kids that have to go home at night.
We got asked about hourly/day rate for a photographer that doesn't have his own studio.
=)
Kk.
Sheesh what kind of photos is he wanting to take?
Yes, most sitters are kids that have to go home at night.
We got asked about hourly/day rate for a photographer that doesn't have his own studio.
=)
Kk.
He did a photo shoot for a bride. He had a female assistant with him who did hair and makeup, and he brought a white backdrop which he set up in front of the desk. They also did some shots by windows, etc.... was looking for a "classic Hollywood" setting, lace curtains and rich colors. Oh, and the bride brought a girl friend with her, also to help with outfits, etc. While he was banished from the room he wandered around taking other photos.
=)
Kk.
Yes, most sisters are kids that have to go home at night.
We got asked about hourly/day rate for a photographer that doesn't have his own studio.
=)
Kk.
Sheesh what kind of photos is he wanting to take?
roflmao! I think we all know the answer to that....
Maybe he wants to make her a 'star'! (nod... nod...wink...wink)
Yes, most sisters are kids that have to go home at night.
We got asked about hourly/day rate for a photographer that doesn't have his own studio.
=)
Kk.
Well, lol.....that's another thing altogether!
I've been asked for reduced rates because they'll only be there for 6 hours and aren't going to wait for breakfast. (Still staying 'overnight' tho.) Because it's just as much cleaning and breakfast doesn't cost that much, I don't take anything off the price. Now if you can get the room flipped to rerent it for a 'regular' tourist you can decide what you think is a fair price.
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Spare me the perky.
I have been asked but do not do this. Most of my reguests have been wanting to arrive early in the AM wanting to spend the day and no decisive departure time. This just will not work for me.
Uh no. Guests who want to stay past check out or come back anduse their room to shower after running a marathon or triathalon. They can book it two nights to have it two.
Breakfast is complimentary. Take it or leave it, no cost to the guest.
I so agree with that.
Sometimes we have guests who want to check in at 6 am - excuse me, if I provide that room for you at 6 am that means no one can use it the night before, right? That will cost you and you can move in any time you please, sir 
Long answer short, I would also charge for 2 nights.
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