Add-ons

[KatesCottage161]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I haven't opened yet. Projected opening date is in April. I wish I could have private baths, but I cannot rebuild this house! There just isn't any place to add another bath. There is a local massage therapist only a block away. I'll check into that. Good idea. Thanks.
.

Take a good hard look around...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere. You will be the last place to book with shared bathrooms. I have to tell you. If I were looking in your town and saw shared...I don't care what you had to entice me...you would not get my business. And lots of people feel the same way. Sorry to be a downer, but that is the way it is today.
.

...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere.

I stayed at an award-winning B&B in a circa 1820 house in England and below is how they added a bathroom into my room. They took just 3.3 feet from one end of a room that was 15 feet wide. It wasn't nearly as cramped as it looks in the scale drawing below. It was quite functional with toilet, small lavatory, and shower, and MUCH preferred over having to get dressed and go down the hall to a bathroom, and much much preferred to sharing with strangers. They also managed to get plenty of shelves and storage in there. It CAN be done!

.

This is a thought. Thanks. I'm looking at my smaller br which overlooks the back deck and is next to some attic space. I might be able to bump out the attic to adjoin a bath to this room. The other bath could connect to the bigger br by simply adding another door. Just thinking. Zoning and building is always an issue, especially with the older homes here in our historic Ohio village.

 

[EmptyNest]

Since you have a shared bath, one of your packages could be the option to be the only room. Charge more, they get their private bath and everybody's happy..

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.
.

Sorry a backyard spa is NOT a replacement for a private bath. Totally different...amenity. A Private bath is a requirement. Think outside the box and do it..you will not regret it.

 

[EmptyNest]

There was guy a few blocks east of me years ago who was to be a B&B but never opened or went underground ? Anyway I saw his rooms and they were smaller than mine but he took the closets & put a small shower + toilet there w/ the sink in the room. All 4 upstair bedrooms were the same. I guess anything is doable ..

My house is 180 years old. The closets are only one foot deep. Don't think that will do as a bathroom.

.

What is the room size?
Who needs a closet in a B & B? You can always put in some hanging space/ armoire which will be ok for a day or two guest. But a private bathroom is the necessity.

 

[EmptyNest]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I have shared bath and do well with them. It's all in the pricing and marketing.
.

I have shared bath and do well with them. It's all in the pricing and marketing.

You are not in the U.S. You are in a metro area. You are in a wonderful fun metro area. You do not apply.
I knew you would say that Sugar B. Now the waters will be muddied.
If this new B&B is in a major city like Vancouver or Montreal or Paris or Rome, etc then that changes everything.
.

Also, sometimes people are forgiving when it may be their only chance to ever visit a special property, century old homes, etc.
.

Don't try to "pump it up" so much Sugar Bear. You are in a totally different environment. Of course, we don't know where Kate's Cottage is but the same goes for your place. If I came to your city, and I could not get a private bath at your place, I would not be staying there.

 

[EmptyNest]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I haven't opened yet. Projected opening date is in April. I wish I could have private baths, but I cannot rebuild this house! There just isn't any place to add another bath. There is a local massage therapist only a block away. I'll check into that. Good idea. Thanks.
.

Take a good hard look around...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere. You will be the last place to book with shared bathrooms. I have to tell you. If I were looking in your town and saw shared...I don't care what you had to entice me...you would not get my business. And lots of people feel the same way. Sorry to be a downer, but that is the way it is today.
.

...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere.

I stayed at an award-winning B&B in a circa 1820 house in England and below is how they added a bathroom into my room. They took just 3.3 feet from one end of a room that was 15 feet wide. It wasn't nearly as cramped as it looks in the scale drawing below. It was quite functional with toilet, small lavatory, and shower, and MUCH preferred over having to get dressed and go down the hall to a bathroom, and much much preferred to sharing with strangers. They also managed to get plenty of shelves and storage in there. It CAN be done!

.

This is a thought. Thanks. I'm looking at my smaller br which overlooks the back deck and is next to some attic space. I might be able to bump out the attic to adjoin a bath to this room. The other bath could connect to the bigger br by simply adding another door. Just thinking. Zoning and building is always an issue, especially with the older homes here in our historic Ohio village.
.

See you are thinking...that is GOOD.... I am from OHIO. Name the city and I may be able to tell you something. Small OH villages usually don't have too many zoning regs.

 

[KatesCottage161]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I haven't opened yet. Projected opening date is in April. I wish I could have private baths, but I cannot rebuild this house! There just isn't any place to add another bath. There is a local massage therapist only a block away. I'll check into that. Good idea. Thanks.
.

Take a good hard look around...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere. You will be the last place to book with shared bathrooms. I have to tell you. If I were looking in your town and saw shared...I don't care what you had to entice me...you would not get my business. And lots of people feel the same way. Sorry to be a downer, but that is the way it is today.
.

...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere.

I stayed at an award-winning B&B in a circa 1820 house in England and below is how they added a bathroom into my room. They took just 3.3 feet from one end of a room that was 15 feet wide. It wasn't nearly as cramped as it looks in the scale drawing below. It was quite functional with toilet, small lavatory, and shower, and MUCH preferred over having to get dressed and go down the hall to a bathroom, and much much preferred to sharing with strangers. They also managed to get plenty of shelves and storage in there. It CAN be done!

.

This is a thought. Thanks. I'm looking at my smaller br which overlooks the back deck and is next to some attic space. I might be able to bump out the attic to adjoin a bath to this room. The other bath could connect to the bigger br by simply adding another door. Just thinking. Zoning and building is always an issue, especially with the older homes here in our historic Ohio village.
.

See you are thinking...that is GOOD.... I am from OHIO. Name the city and I may be able to tell you something. Small OH villages usually don't have too many zoning regs.
.

I am in Waynesville, Ohio, between Dayton and Cincinnati. You can "see" me on Facebook: The Sinclair House B&B. Since I've only just started on this venture I may coast this summer and see how things go before I start stirring up the zoning board. You may be right about the baths. Time will tell. Thanks for your input. What part of OH are you from?

 

[Joey Camb]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I haven't opened yet. Projected opening date is in April. I wish I could have private baths, but I cannot rebuild this house! There just isn't any place to add another bath. There is a local massage therapist only a block away. I'll check into that. Good idea. Thanks.
.

Take a good hard look around...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere. You will be the last place to book with shared bathrooms. I have to tell you. If I were looking in your town and saw shared...I don't care what you had to entice me...you would not get my business. And lots of people feel the same way. Sorry to be a downer, but that is the way it is today.
.

...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere.

I stayed at an award-winning B&B in a circa 1820 house in England and below is how they added a bathroom into my room. They took just 3.3 feet from one end of a room that was 15 feet wide. It wasn't nearly as cramped as it looks in the scale drawing below. It was quite functional with toilet, small lavatory, and shower, and MUCH preferred over having to get dressed and go down the hall to a bathroom, and much much preferred to sharing with strangers. They also managed to get plenty of shelves and storage in there. It CAN be done!

.

This is a thought. Thanks. I'm looking at my smaller br which overlooks the back deck and is next to some attic space. I might be able to bump out the attic to adjoin a bath to this room. The other bath could connect to the bigger br by simply adding another door. Just thinking. Zoning and building is always an issue, especially with the older homes here in our historic Ohio village.
.

you mention attic space - have seen rooms with the bathroom above the bedroom with a small stair case or spiral stair -ie stair is within the room - just thinking outside the box

 

[Madeleine]

There was guy a few blocks east of me years ago who was to be a B&B but never opened or went underground ? Anyway I saw his rooms and they were smaller than mine but he took the closets & put a small shower + toilet there w/ the sink in the room. All 4 upstair bedrooms were the same. I guess anything is doable ..

My house is 180 years old. The closets are only one foot deep. Don't think that will do as a bathroom.

.

My house is 180 years old. The closets are only one foot deep. Don't think that will do as a bathroom.

Can you bump out into the room? There were NO closets in this house when it was built but when guests see the size of the bathrooms (tiny) I say, ''Look what you can do with a closet!"
Most of the bathrooms here would be a smallish walk-in closet in a new home. My smallest bathroom is 3'x8' with a slight bump out for the toilet.
One bathroom has a sink that is 9x12".
You can try corner showers with doors that roll into the shower side walls.
The tough part is running the water/sewer lines. You can build a chase in a hallway and insulate it to keep the noise down.
Just ideas. You might find you get a lot of families and that's how I would try to sell the rooms for your first few months. Parents & kids or adults traveling together. You can also do one room at a time at a higher price.
I have a room with the bathroom across the hall. It's a tough sell in the off season. In peak season it sells because it's $20 less than the next room. But, I have reviews warning other guests that we have 'shared bathrooms' and they (the next guests) should make sure they ask us so they don't get 'stuck' with the shared bath!!! (None of those reviewers stayed in the room with the bath in the hallway, they were just idiots running their mouths over something they knew nothing about and didn't bother to ask about!)

 

[EmptyNest]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I haven't opened yet. Projected opening date is in April. I wish I could have private baths, but I cannot rebuild this house! There just isn't any place to add another bath. There is a local massage therapist only a block away. I'll check into that. Good idea. Thanks.
.

Take a good hard look around...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere. You will be the last place to book with shared bathrooms. I have to tell you. If I were looking in your town and saw shared...I don't care what you had to entice me...you would not get my business. And lots of people feel the same way. Sorry to be a downer, but that is the way it is today.
.

...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere.

I stayed at an award-winning B&B in a circa 1820 house in England and below is how they added a bathroom into my room. They took just 3.3 feet from one end of a room that was 15 feet wide. It wasn't nearly as cramped as it looks in the scale drawing below. It was quite functional with toilet, small lavatory, and shower, and MUCH preferred over having to get dressed and go down the hall to a bathroom, and much much preferred to sharing with strangers. They also managed to get plenty of shelves and storage in there. It CAN be done!

.

This is a thought. Thanks. I'm looking at my smaller br which overlooks the back deck and is next to some attic space. I might be able to bump out the attic to adjoin a bath to this room. The other bath could connect to the bigger br by simply adding another door. Just thinking. Zoning and building is always an issue, especially with the older homes here in our historic Ohio village.
.

See you are thinking...that is GOOD.... I am from OHIO. Name the city and I may be able to tell you something. Small OH villages usually don't have too many zoning regs.
.

I am in Waynesville, Ohio, between Dayton and Cincinnati. You can "see" me on Facebook: The Sinclair House B&B. Since I've only just started on this venture I may coast this summer and see how things go before I start stirring up the zoning board. You may be right about the baths. Time will tell. Thanks for your input. What part of OH are you from?
.

I lived in London at taught at OSU in Columbus. Been to Waynesville many many times. Love the town! Where is the house? What part of town? Wonderful shops there. Oh you sent me down memory lane today. Is the big fabric store still there? Think I am remembering right

 

[Breakfast Diva]

Since you have a shared bath, one of your packages could be the option to be the only room. Charge more, they get their private bath and everybody's happy..

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.
.

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.

Shared baths are a HUGE issue. Just don't do it. Times have changed and the U.S. customer will not go for it. We're not picking on you, we're trying to help. We want you to succeed. Do whatever is needed BEFORE you open. If not, your reputation for having a shared bath will not go away. Also, once you open, there's never a good time or money to get this kind of renovation done.
When I was traveling in Ireland recently, literally all the b&bs I saw now had signs out at the street proclaiming "en suite baths". In that land of b&b where there's one every few feet it seems, even they have seen the light. They have created bathrooms in each room that are tiny. A tiny bathroom en suite is far superior to a shared bath.

 

[KatesCottage161]

There was guy a few blocks east of me years ago who was to be a B&B but never opened or went underground ? Anyway I saw his rooms and they were smaller than mine but he took the closets & put a small shower + toilet there w/ the sink in the room. All 4 upstair bedrooms were the same. I guess anything is doable ..

My house is 180 years old. The closets are only one foot deep. Don't think that will do as a bathroom.

.

My house is 180 years old. The closets are only one foot deep. Don't think that will do as a bathroom.

Can you bump out into the room? There were NO closets in this house when it was built but when guests see the size of the bathrooms (tiny) I say, ''Look what you can do with a closet!"
Most of the bathrooms here would be a smallish walk-in closet in a new home. My smallest bathroom is 3'x8' with a slight bump out for the toilet.
One bathroom has a sink that is 9x12".
You can try corner showers with doors that roll into the shower side walls.
The tough part is running the water/sewer lines. You can build a chase in a hallway and insulate it to keep the noise down.
Just ideas. You might find you get a lot of families and that's how I would try to sell the rooms for your first few months. Parents & kids or adults traveling together. You can also do one room at a time at a higher price.
I have a room with the bathroom across the hall. It's a tough sell in the off season. In peak season it sells because it's $20 less than the next room. But, I have reviews warning other guests that we have 'shared bathrooms' and they (the next guests) should make sure they ask us so they don't get 'stuck' with the shared bath!!! (None of those reviewers stayed in the room with the bath in the hallway, they were just idiots running their mouths over something they knew nothing about and didn't bother to ask about!)
.

Thanks so much, Madeline. Your input gives me a lot to think about. I just didn't realize that the private bath was so important, but I hear all of you, loud and clear. The extra bath may not happen this year but I will start considering my options. There is a second full bath on the ground floor that will have to be mine. It's too bad that this is the bathroom with the claw foot tub (which I hate - I like showers!) Maybe I could move it upstairs at a later date. I'm thinking.

 

[JBloggs]

There was guy a few blocks east of me years ago who was to be a B&B but never opened or went underground ? Anyway I saw his rooms and they were smaller than mine but he took the closets & put a small shower + toilet there w/ the sink in the room. All 4 upstair bedrooms were the same. I guess anything is doable ..

My house is 180 years old. The closets are only one foot deep. Don't think that will do as a bathroom.

.

My house is 180 years old. The closets are only one foot deep. Don't think that will do as a bathroom.

Can you bump out into the room? There were NO closets in this house when it was built but when guests see the size of the bathrooms (tiny) I say, ''Look what you can do with a closet!"
Most of the bathrooms here would be a smallish walk-in closet in a new home. My smallest bathroom is 3'x8' with a slight bump out for the toilet.
One bathroom has a sink that is 9x12".
You can try corner showers with doors that roll into the shower side walls.
The tough part is running the water/sewer lines. You can build a chase in a hallway and insulate it to keep the noise down.
Just ideas. You might find you get a lot of families and that's how I would try to sell the rooms for your first few months. Parents & kids or adults traveling together. You can also do one room at a time at a higher price.
I have a room with the bathroom across the hall. It's a tough sell in the off season. In peak season it sells because it's $20 less than the next room. But, I have reviews warning other guests that we have 'shared bathrooms' and they (the next guests) should make sure they ask us so they don't get 'stuck' with the shared bath!!! (None of those reviewers stayed in the room with the bath in the hallway, they were just idiots running their mouths over something they knew nothing about and didn't bother to ask about!)
.

Thanks so much, Madeline. Your input gives me a lot to think about. I just didn't realize that the private bath was so important, but I hear all of you, loud and clear. The extra bath may not happen this year but I will start considering my options. There is a second full bath on the ground floor that will have to be mine. It's too bad that this is the bathroom with the claw foot tub (which I hate - I like showers!) Maybe I could move it upstairs at a later date. I'm thinking.
.

Thanks so much, Madeline. Your input gives me a lot to think about. I just didn't realize that the private bath was so important, but I hear all of you, loud and clear. The extra bath may not happen this year but I will start considering my options. There is a second full bath on the ground floor that will have to be mine. It's too bad that this is the bathroom with the claw foot tub (which I hate - I like showers!) Maybe I could move it upstairs at a later date. I'm thinking.

You have come to the right place Kate. Take it all in, everyone here has an opinion, and many on based on many years of experience in innkeeping. You have not taken any aspiring innkeeper courses as of yet, or now they would be perspiring innkeeper courses. I would recommend a start with that, and also visiting other B&B's as a guest gives you a good feel. You could even ask the other guests their opinions.
The reason we are so passionate about it, is you have come this far and overlooked a very important feature/amenity for your B&B. Sure you can have shared baths, you can also have empty rooms and bills to pay!

 

[Generic]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I have shared bath and do well with them. It's all in the pricing and marketing.
.

I have shared bath and do well with them. It's all in the pricing and marketing.

You are not in the U.S. You are in a metro area. You are in a wonderful fun metro area. You do not apply.
I knew you would say that Sugar B. Now the waters will be muddied.
If this new B&B is in a major city like Vancouver or Montreal or Paris or Rome, etc then that changes everything.
.

Also, sometimes people are forgiving when it may be their only chance to ever visit a special property, century old homes, etc.
.

Don't try to "pump it up" so much Sugar Bear. You are in a totally different environment. Of course, we don't know where Kate's Cottage is but the same goes for your place. If I came to your city, and I could not get a private bath at your place, I would not be staying there.
.

There are very few B&Bs that offer private bath in our city. Most of us are in homes that weren't even plumbed when they were built. I considered it, but realized I would have to ruin the character of the house to do it.
We actually have more trouble from the PB guests than the shared bath guests, to be 100% honest.

 

[Breakfast Diva]

Here's one of the tiniest bathrooms I've experienced. I'm short (5'5") and my knees hit the wall in front. It was obvious that this area had been a closet originally. The tiny shower was to the right of the toilet. The wash basin, mirror and plugs for hair dryer were in the bedroom area. We laughed about how they built it, but were perfectly happy staying here because it was en suite.

 

[KatesCottage161]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I have shared bath and do well with them. It's all in the pricing and marketing.
.

I have shared bath and do well with them. It's all in the pricing and marketing.

You are not in the U.S. You are in a metro area. You are in a wonderful fun metro area. You do not apply.
I knew you would say that Sugar B. Now the waters will be muddied.
If this new B&B is in a major city like Vancouver or Montreal or Paris or Rome, etc then that changes everything.
.

Also, sometimes people are forgiving when it may be their only chance to ever visit a special property, century old homes, etc.
.

Don't try to "pump it up" so much Sugar Bear. You are in a totally different environment. Of course, we don't know where Kate's Cottage is but the same goes for your place. If I came to your city, and I could not get a private bath at your place, I would not be staying there.
.

There are very few B&Bs that offer private bath in our city. Most of us are in homes that weren't even plumbed when they were built. I considered it, but realized I would have to ruin the character of the house to do it.
We actually have more trouble from the PB guests than the shared bath guests, to be 100% honest.
.

Thanks for that. I'm thinking.

 

[gillumhouse]

Since you have a shared bath, one of your packages could be the option to be the only room. Charge more, they get their private bath and everybody's happy..

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.
.

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.

Kate - I have BEEN THERE!!! My first 10 years I was 3 with shared. My house was built in 1912, I am next to a rail-trail so figured bikers/hikers will not care. THEY DO!!! What I was able to get by with in 1996 will NOT fly in 2014 - especially with all the new hotels that have opened since then. You will not make enough money with renting one room to pay your expenses. I know what insurance and ads cost.
I had 4 rooms and a bathroom upstairs. It took me way too long to figure out HOW I could add the bathroom. I am STILL kicking myself for not figuring out what to do with the original bathroom when I created the en suite to have 2 en suite and one down the hall. It I COULD have kicked out walls to enlarge the original bathroom, cut a door for the adjoining room and still had a third bathroom that would have HAD to be a "down the hall". It made a $5000 difference in revenue the first year!! I would still have had a storage room albeit much smaller but I was too stupid to think of it.
I do have the option of a private bath rate for the room I finally figured out how to fit a queen into. I then do not rent the third room. In November I become a 2-room B & B for my B & Bs For Vets so each couple has a queen bed and a private bathroom. The claw-foot tub that was original to the house was moved into the en suite bathroom and was heavy as lead. It was replaced by a 60 inch shower.
I want you to succeed - both for you and for the industry. We do not need any more bad-mouthing than the B & B industry already gets. I have had a private bathroom since 2006 and I am still being listed as shared baths. PLEASE, please listen about this issue. Do it before you open - get private bathrooms. This is not like the gurus of my opening era who were spouting whirlpools and Jacuzzis as a must. This is something that will make or break you. I speak as someone who has suffered from it AND as someone who in the days of traveling searched for shared bath as it was cheaper - NOT doing that today. Older people NEED a bathroom IN THE ROOM for reasons a young person would not understand and will not be discussed publicly.
Added - I am in West Virginia and lived in Ohio for almost 15 years - and even in West Virginia they want private.

 

[KatesCottage161]

Who is your target market?
Extras to offer:

• Tickets to museums (no worries about them being 'sold out')
• Boat excursions
• Babymoon
• Shopping with dinner and a movie
• Tea for Two
• Welcome basket of local products
• Skiing
• Massage
• Wine & cheese tray

I don't like doing the romance pkgs with flowers, etc as I end up spending the whole amount of the pkg on the damn flowers and the rest of it is basically on us. Flowers are prohibitively expensive here. (Unless I drive 40 miles to Whole Foods.).

Thanks, Madeline. I was actually looking for suggestions of things I can offer for a fee in addition to the room rate. I have only two guest rooms with a shared bath. There is only so much I can offer. We are a small village full of antique and boutique shops with some things to do within driving distance from here, but I think the res fellow was thinking more along the lines of package deals to upsell the inn, and add on things like chocolate covered strawberries for a price, etc. I'm coming up blank.
.

Oh..shared baths...didn't anyone tell you....no one wants shared bathrooms these days. Are you getting any guests? I recommend any way you can do private baths....DO THEM!
Do you have a local massage therapist who will come out to do massages or offer couples massages at their location.???
.

I haven't opened yet. Projected opening date is in April. I wish I could have private baths, but I cannot rebuild this house! There just isn't any place to add another bath. There is a local massage therapist only a block away. I'll check into that. Good idea. Thanks.
.

Take a good hard look around...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere. You will be the last place to book with shared bathrooms. I have to tell you. If I were looking in your town and saw shared...I don't care what you had to entice me...you would not get my business. And lots of people feel the same way. Sorry to be a downer, but that is the way it is today.
.

...there usually is a way to cram a small bath somewhere.

I stayed at an award-winning B&B in a circa 1820 house in England and below is how they added a bathroom into my room. They took just 3.3 feet from one end of a room that was 15 feet wide. It wasn't nearly as cramped as it looks in the scale drawing below. It was quite functional with toilet, small lavatory, and shower, and MUCH preferred over having to get dressed and go down the hall to a bathroom, and much much preferred to sharing with strangers. They also managed to get plenty of shelves and storage in there. It CAN be done!

.

This is a thought. Thanks. I'm looking at my smaller br which overlooks the back deck and is next to some attic space. I might be able to bump out the attic to adjoin a bath to this room. The other bath could connect to the bigger br by simply adding another door. Just thinking. Zoning and building is always an issue, especially with the older homes here in our historic Ohio village.
.

See you are thinking...that is GOOD.... I am from OHIO. Name the city and I may be able to tell you something. Small OH villages usually don't have too many zoning regs.
.

I am in Waynesville, Ohio, between Dayton and Cincinnati. You can "see" me on Facebook: The Sinclair House B&B. Since I've only just started on this venture I may coast this summer and see how things go before I start stirring up the zoning board. You may be right about the baths. Time will tell. Thanks for your input. What part of OH are you from?
.

I lived in London at taught at OSU in Columbus. Been to Waynesville many many times. Love the town! Where is the house? What part of town? Wonderful shops there. Oh you sent me down memory lane today. Is the big fabric store still there? Think I am remembering right

.

So funny! EVERYONE knows about that fabric shop! Yes, it is still here. We now have liquor in the village, too! I live at the top of town near the schools. Right at the top of High Street, to be exact. So you know the area attractions. I think it will be a nice little getaway weekend spot for out of towners. I have a little competition in the area (they all offer private baths

) but everyone I've spoken to here is excited for me to open. I've been to London twice. My husband was a fallen officer in 2010 and I came to the Academy for the honors ceremonies. Lovely town.

 

[KatesCottage161]

Since you have a shared bath, one of your packages could be the option to be the only room. Charge more, they get their private bath and everybody's happy..

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.
.

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.

Kate - I have BEEN THERE!!! My first 10 years I was 3 with shared. My house was built in 1912, I am next to a rail-trail so figured bikers/hikers will not care. THEY DO!!! What I was able to get by with in 1996 will NOT fly in 2014 - especially with all the new hotels that have opened since then. You will not make enough money with renting one room to pay your expenses. I know what insurance and ads cost.
I had 4 rooms and a bathroom upstairs. It took me way too long to figure out HOW I could add the bathroom. I am STILL kicking myself for not figuring out what to do with the original bathroom when I created the en suite to have 2 en suite and one down the hall. It I COULD have kicked out walls to enlarge the original bathroom, cut a door for the adjoining room and still had a third bathroom that would have HAD to be a "down the hall". It made a $5000 difference in revenue the first year!! I would still have had a storage room albeit much smaller but I was too stupid to think of it.
I do have the option of a private bath rate for the room I finally figured out how to fit a queen into. I then do not rent the third room. In November I become a 2-room B & B for my B & Bs For Vets so each couple has a queen bed and a private bathroom. The claw-foot tub that was original to the house was moved into the en suite bathroom and was heavy as lead. It was replaced by a 60 inch shower.
I want you to succeed - both for you and for the industry. We do not need any more bad-mouthing than the B & B industry already gets. I have had a private bathroom since 2006 and I am still being listed as shared baths. PLEASE, please listen about this issue. Do it before you open - get private bathrooms. This is not like the gurus of my opening era who were spouting whirlpools and Jacuzzis as a must. This is something that will make or break you. I speak as someone who has suffered from it AND as someone who in the days of traveling searched for shared bath as it was cheaper - NOT doing that today. Older people NEED a bathroom IN THE ROOM for reasons a young person would not understand and will not be discussed publicly.
Added - I am in West Virginia and lived in Ohio for almost 15 years - and even in West Virginia they want private.
.

Gotcha. I am not so young anymore either- 62, and I hear what you are saying. I guess a trip to the zoning board is in order. Thanks so much.

 

[gillumhouse]

Since you have a shared bath, one of your packages could be the option to be the only room. Charge more, they get their private bath and everybody's happy..

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.
.

Cute! I had considered that if I only have one room rented, then they have a private bath.

I do have a jacuzzi spa in the back yard, off the deck, which I was hoping would kind of compensate for the lack of a second bath. I didn't realize that private baths were that important to travelers. Shared baths have never presented much of a problem to me when traveling. I am examining my space to see if I could fit another bath upstairs. Don't know what the cost would be and I may try working with just the one bath for a while and see how that does.

Kate - I have BEEN THERE!!! My first 10 years I was 3 with shared. My house was built in 1912, I am next to a rail-trail so figured bikers/hikers will not care. THEY DO!!! What I was able to get by with in 1996 will NOT fly in 2014 - especially with all the new hotels that have opened since then. You will not make enough money with renting one room to pay your expenses. I know what insurance and ads cost.
I had 4 rooms and a bathroom upstairs. It took me way too long to figure out HOW I could add the bathroom. I am STILL kicking myself for not figuring out what to do with the original bathroom when I created the en suite to have 2 en suite and one down the hall. It I COULD have kicked out walls to enlarge the original bathroom, cut a door for the adjoining room and still had a third bathroom that would have HAD to be a "down the hall". It made a $5000 difference in revenue the first year!! I would still have had a storage room albeit much smaller but I was too stupid to think of it.
I do have the option of a private bath rate for the room I finally figured out how to fit a queen into. I then do not rent the third room. In November I become a 2-room B & B for my B & Bs For Vets so each couple has a queen bed and a private bathroom. The claw-foot tub that was original to the house was moved into the en suite bathroom and was heavy as lead. It was replaced by a 60 inch shower.
I want you to succeed - both for you and for the industry. We do not need any more bad-mouthing than the B & B industry already gets. I have had a private bathroom since 2006 and I am still being listed as shared baths. PLEASE, please listen about this issue. Do it before you open - get private bathrooms. This is not like the gurus of my opening era who were spouting whirlpools and Jacuzzis as a must. This is something that will make or break you. I speak as someone who has suffered from it AND as someone who in the days of traveling searched for shared bath as it was cheaper - NOT doing that today. Older people NEED a bathroom IN THE ROOM for reasons a young person would not understand and will not be discussed publicly.
Added - I am in West Virginia and lived in Ohio for almost 15 years - and even in West Virginia they want private.
.

Gotcha. I am not so young anymore either- 62, and I hear what you are saying. I guess a trip to the zoning board is in order. Thanks so much.
.

I guess a trip to the zoning board is in order. Thanks so much.
GET IT IN WRITING!!! Take nothing verbal

 

[JBloggs]

Kate are the rooms sizable? I ask I was recently at a B&B in Blue Ridge Georgia that added bathrooms INTO THE ROOMS. I wish I had more photos to share.
This was added after the fact and a little octagon in the room itself...the restroom to the right.