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How Busy is Busy? What's your typical occ% in your busy season?

So many innkeepers are terrified of getting negative TA reviews that they allow manipulative guests to walk all over them. I bend my rules when I feel it's appropriate, but refuse to be blackmailed, so I have 2 negative reviews. I just wanted to share with all of you how important a weapon your...

So, I get an online reservation and under dietary restrictions, she puts "no butter, no lard, no oil, eggs beaters only". Sure, no problem. I seem to get more dietary restrictions than most other places...I tear my hair out, but I get through it. They check in, and they turn out to be a young...

We have 4 rooms (1 room, 2 suites, 1 cottage). Right now we have honeymooners in 2 rooms (just married last night), Anniversary celebrants in the other two. The love vibes are palpable...life is being celebrated here. Kinda nice Now I get to go back to work so they can keep the illusion that...

That's coming out of my ears because I'm so T'd OFF?????????? GGGGRRRRRRRRR!!! My occupancy for a few days is overflowing...normally we have 8 guests, but there is a family of 4 in the cottage, so I'm feeding 10 adults. I have one person who is allergic to any nuts, one who is diabetic, and one...

We are currently on our 5 year exit strategy. On Wednesday we found what we hoped would be our retirement house...yesterday we learned that our bid was accepted! If everything goes well and the deal closes, we plan on renting the house out until we're ready to move in to it after we sell in a...

When you find a new recipe, do you test it out first on your family or do you go ahead and cook it for your paying guests? I find that I'm pretty conservative when it comes to this and I almost always will try the recipe out first. This morning, I only had 1 room for breakfast and they were the...

Last night I received a reservation request that I knew was coming at some point, but I was dreading. We have guests that have stayed a couple times a year with us since 2000 in our Cottage. They come here to totally get away. They bring their food, so after we greet them, they go into the...

I just received this e-mail. A new B&B just opened about 1/2 hour from me and this is the first contact they have made. I was really put off by it. First, the e-mail wasn't addressed to me personally and I'm sure it was sent to more than just me (the directions she gives are wrong from my...

Now, don't worry. I'm not here to beat a dead horse about the merits or lack of, in the gift certificate program. That's been hashed to death. I have opted for many reason to not take them. In the past few weeks I have gotten no less than 4 phone calls where people start to make a reservation...

Bree's new paint got me thinking. Do most innkeepers live in quarters that are sub par? Rate your innkeepers quarters

How are you tracking where a guest found you? If you are just asking them, or having them click on webervations how they found you. FOR GET IT!!! A few years ago I started using SuperStatz which tracks my Webervations reservations from the beginning of where they found me, all the way to their...

We have a wonderful couple that has stayed with us a few times. They are a younger couple who work really hard with the developmentally disabled and have to live very frugally. They have one car between them. They save up to stay here and call it their "happy place" because they can get away...

Are you able to change things on your website yourself or do you have to pay someone to do it?

No, not what you'd want for your last breakfast on earth! What was the breakfast you served this morning? If no guests this morning, what was the menu the last time you had guests?

My husband and I are discussing the merits and drawbacks of adding a separate page to our website about our breakfast. My concern is that if we list the different entrees and food items on our website, people will start to request specific foods they see listed. I want to stay away from doing...

Since I'm a newbie around here, I don't want to break any rules or standards. This is not an attempt to get any free marketing/publicity, I'm actually very interested in feedback from other innkeepers. I have started (with a partner) a new aspiring innkeeper seminar which is much needed in the...