Strict Policies

[gillumhouse]

No matter what, the room rate needs to be match the amenities and location of the inn.
What does the establishment have on offer to expect guests to pay their going rate? Does the B&B have an atmosphere cohesive for those rates or is it just a room?
We sometimes cringe when we see $79 a night and realize that is what it is where they are. When we looked at buying in the White Mountains of NH we were appalled at the room rates, I mean unless it was 5 star you had so much competition the rates were low. Yet at the same time many there rent out their own rooms and when the peak season hits it hits!.

A bit disheartening to read you "cringe" at a $79 rate. Our rates could be more competitive with the area and I could charge $120/night, but I would not get the same amount of business. April 2010 was one of my busiest months in th 58 months I have been open and my average nightly rate was $77. Many guests have written very positive reviews on trip advisor and as I have mentioned I have been blessed with gifts, friendship and more than money can buy. The only reason I had 3 days in a row off in April was because of a volcano in Iceland and my guests from Germany could not come. Thank goodness many b&b goers are able to afford to stay in a welcoming home in a tough economy when everyone is watching the wallet.
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I would not "cringe" at a $79 rate, but I do wonder why you are willing to do an average rate of $77 per night if you could charge more? My expenses have gone up since I opened in 1996 and I have creeped my rates up a few dollars a year to keep up with it. I want to be paid commensurately for what I offer and what I do. I remember just a couple yeras ago saying - I could never get over $100 per night here. I am now getting $129 per for my room with private bath. And I am going to take some measurements to see if I can fit a queen into the rooms with doubles. If I can, those rooms will be seeing a rate increase as will the room with private bath - because if I make the move with one room, a king will be coming in.
Please, I am not criticizing, just pointing out that if you CAN charge more, you should. Raise the rates by just $5 and see if your bookings go down. You may find they do not change at all. Make the change during the busy season - now. You are worth more. I am in Podunk and I was charging $77 per about 10 years ago.
I know it is a tough economy, but it is tough for you also. I have 5 room nights coming this weekend - all at full rate. No one asked for a discount. I have a lady coming on June 1 for 2 nights during the week who sounded like she really wanted a room with 2 beds because the kid is coming with (a teen) so I offered her my Easter Egg Hunt Special - she will choose an egg on arrival to see what her discount will be. This is 2 rooms for 2 nights during the week. I am helping her economy - but during a time when I would normally be empty. Had it just been no kid, there would not have been any mention of a discount.
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I offered her my Easter Egg Hunt Special - she will choose an egg on arrival to see what her discount will be. This is 2 rooms for 2 nights during the week. I am helping her economy - but during a time when I would normally be empty. Had it just been no kid, there would not have been any mention of a discount.

What a fabulous special!
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She will get a minimum of 10% up to a max of 50%. The majority of the eggs have 20 or 25%. Having traveled with kids, I know how nice it is for everyone to have that second room.

 

[Innkeeper To Go]

No matter what, the room rate needs to be match the amenities and location of the inn.
What does the establishment have on offer to expect guests to pay their going rate? Does the B&B have an atmosphere cohesive for those rates or is it just a room?
We sometimes cringe when we see $79 a night and realize that is what it is where they are. When we looked at buying in the White Mountains of NH we were appalled at the room rates, I mean unless it was 5 star you had so much competition the rates were low. Yet at the same time many there rent out their own rooms and when the peak season hits it hits!.

A bit disheartening to read you "cringe" at a $79 rate. Our rates could be more competitive with the area and I could charge $120/night, but I would not get the same amount of business. April 2010 was one of my busiest months in th 58 months I have been open and my average nightly rate was $77. Many guests have written very positive reviews on trip advisor and as I have mentioned I have been blessed with gifts, friendship and more than money can buy. The only reason I had 3 days in a row off in April was because of a volcano in Iceland and my guests from Germany could not come. Thank goodness many b&b goers are able to afford to stay in a welcoming home in a tough economy when everyone is watching the wallet.
.

I would not "cringe" at a $79 rate, but I do wonder why you are willing to do an average rate of $77 per night if you could charge more? My expenses have gone up since I opened in 1996 and I have creeped my rates up a few dollars a year to keep up with it. I want to be paid commensurately for what I offer and what I do. I remember just a couple yeras ago saying - I could never get over $100 per night here. I am now getting $129 per for my room with private bath. And I am going to take some measurements to see if I can fit a queen into the rooms with doubles. If I can, those rooms will be seeing a rate increase as will the room with private bath - because if I make the move with one room, a king will be coming in.
Please, I am not criticizing, just pointing out that if you CAN charge more, you should. Raise the rates by just $5 and see if your bookings go down. You may find they do not change at all. Make the change during the busy season - now. You are worth more. I am in Podunk and I was charging $77 per about 10 years ago.
I know it is a tough economy, but it is tough for you also. I have 5 room nights coming this weekend - all at full rate. No one asked for a discount. I have a lady coming on June 1 for 2 nights during the week who sounded like she really wanted a room with 2 beds because the kid is coming with (a teen) so I offered her my Easter Egg Hunt Special - she will choose an egg on arrival to see what her discount will be. This is 2 rooms for 2 nights during the week. I am helping her economy - but during a time when I would normally be empty. Had it just been no kid, there would not have been any mention of a discount.
.

I offered her my Easter Egg Hunt Special - she will choose an egg on arrival to see what her discount will be. This is 2 rooms for 2 nights during the week. I am helping her economy - but during a time when I would normally be empty. Had it just been no kid, there would not have been any mention of a discount.

What a fabulous special!
.

She will get a minimum of 10% up to a max of 50%. The majority of the eggs have 20 or 25%. Having traveled with kids, I know how nice it is for everyone to have that second room.
.

Very cool.

 

[JBloggs]

No matter what, the room rate needs to be match the amenities and location of the inn.
What does the establishment have on offer to expect guests to pay their going rate? Does the B&B have an atmosphere cohesive for those rates or is it just a room?
We sometimes cringe when we see $79 a night and realize that is what it is where they are. When we looked at buying in the White Mountains of NH we were appalled at the room rates, I mean unless it was 5 star you had so much competition the rates were low. Yet at the same time many there rent out their own rooms and when the peak season hits it hits!.

A bit disheartening to read you "cringe" at a $79 rate. Our rates could be more competitive with the area and I could charge $120/night, but I would not get the same amount of business. April 2010 was one of my busiest months in th 58 months I have been open and my average nightly rate was $77. Many guests have written very positive reviews on trip advisor and as I have mentioned I have been blessed with gifts, friendship and more than money can buy. The only reason I had 3 days in a row off in April was because of a volcano in Iceland and my guests from Germany could not come. Thank goodness many b&b goers are able to afford to stay in a welcoming home in a tough economy when everyone is watching the wallet.
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Allnations the cringe is for you as the innkeeper. The cringe is for the amount of work, the overhead involved to have a rate of $79. I know the costs to operate a B&B, and even if you flip the room constantly you have to pay, so the income from the room at $79 is not large. I am in no means saying that guests don't appreciate the rate, and that they are not receiving an abundance in return. In fact, I know that they are, from what you have written here.
You are doing a lot of work and as the saying goes "Work smarter not harder." If your rates were higher and you booked them less you pay less in costs and might actually make more.
Please understand I was not insulting the $79 rate, just saying it is hard to pay the bills as the innkeeper on that low of a room rate and the ovrehead is still the same. But when in Rome...

 

[domsmom]

No matter what, the room rate needs to be match the amenities and location of the inn.
What does the establishment have on offer to expect guests to pay their going rate? Does the B&B have an atmosphere cohesive for those rates or is it just a room?
We sometimes cringe when we see $79 a night and realize that is what it is where they are. When we looked at buying in the White Mountains of NH we were appalled at the room rates, I mean unless it was 5 star you had so much competition the rates were low. Yet at the same time many there rent out their own rooms and when the peak season hits it hits!.

A bit disheartening to read you "cringe" at a $79 rate. Our rates could be more competitive with the area and I could charge $120/night, but I would not get the same amount of business. April 2010 was one of my busiest months in th 58 months I have been open and my average nightly rate was $77. Many guests have written very positive reviews on trip advisor and as I have mentioned I have been blessed with gifts, friendship and more than money can buy. The only reason I had 3 days in a row off in April was because of a volcano in Iceland and my guests from Germany could not come. Thank goodness many b&b goers are able to afford to stay in a welcoming home in a tough economy when everyone is watching the wallet.
.

Allnations the cringe is for you as the innkeeper. The cringe is for the amount of work, the overhead involved to have a rate of $79. I know the costs to operate a B&B, and even if you flip the room constantly you have to pay, so the income from the room at $79 is not large. I am in no means saying that guests don't appreciate the rate, and that they are not receiving an abundance in return. In fact, I know that they are, from what you have written here.
You are doing a lot of work and as the saying goes "Work smarter not harder." If your rates were higher and you booked them less you pay less in costs and might actually make more.
Please understand I was not insulting the $79 rate, just saying it is hard to pay the bills as the innkeeper on that low of a room rate and the ovrehead is still the same. But when in Rome...
.

Thank you for the clarification. Actually I did raise my rates on booking.com in May and have seen a significant drop in business. As the economy stabilizes, I will do as you suggest.
Thank you.

 

[domsmom]

No matter what, the room rate needs to be match the amenities and location of the inn.
What does the establishment have on offer to expect guests to pay their going rate? Does the B&B have an atmosphere cohesive for those rates or is it just a room?
We sometimes cringe when we see $79 a night and realize that is what it is where they are. When we looked at buying in the White Mountains of NH we were appalled at the room rates, I mean unless it was 5 star you had so much competition the rates were low. Yet at the same time many there rent out their own rooms and when the peak season hits it hits!.

A bit disheartening to read you "cringe" at a $79 rate. Our rates could be more competitive with the area and I could charge $120/night, but I would not get the same amount of business. April 2010 was one of my busiest months in th 58 months I have been open and my average nightly rate was $77. Many guests have written very positive reviews on trip advisor and as I have mentioned I have been blessed with gifts, friendship and more than money can buy. The only reason I had 3 days in a row off in April was because of a volcano in Iceland and my guests from Germany could not come. Thank goodness many b&b goers are able to afford to stay in a welcoming home in a tough economy when everyone is watching the wallet.
.

Allnations the cringe is for you as the innkeeper. The cringe is for the amount of work, the overhead involved to have a rate of $79. I know the costs to operate a B&B, and even if you flip the room constantly you have to pay, so the income from the room at $79 is not large. I am in no means saying that guests don't appreciate the rate, and that they are not receiving an abundance in return. In fact, I know that they are, from what you have written here.
You are doing a lot of work and as the saying goes "Work smarter not harder." If your rates were higher and you booked them less you pay less in costs and might actually make more.
Please understand I was not insulting the $79 rate, just saying it is hard to pay the bills as the innkeeper on that low of a room rate and the ovrehead is still the same. But when in Rome...
.

Thank you for the clarification. Actually I did raise my rates on booking.com in May and have seen a significant drop in business. As the economy stabilizes, I will do as you suggest.
Thank you.

 

[EmptyNest]

No matter what, the room rate needs to be match the amenities and location of the inn.
What does the establishment have on offer to expect guests to pay their going rate? Does the B&B have an atmosphere cohesive for those rates or is it just a room?
We sometimes cringe when we see $79 a night and realize that is what it is where they are. When we looked at buying in the White Mountains of NH we were appalled at the room rates, I mean unless it was 5 star you had so much competition the rates were low. Yet at the same time many there rent out their own rooms and when the peak season hits it hits!.

A bit disheartening to read you "cringe" at a $79 rate. Our rates could be more competitive with the area and I could charge $120/night, but I would not get the same amount of business. April 2010 was one of my busiest months in th 58 months I have been open and my average nightly rate was $77. Many guests have written very positive reviews on trip advisor and as I have mentioned I have been blessed with gifts, friendship and more than money can buy. The only reason I had 3 days in a row off in April was because of a volcano in Iceland and my guests from Germany could not come. Thank goodness many b&b goers are able to afford to stay in a welcoming home in a tough economy when everyone is watching the wallet.
.

Allnations the cringe is for you as the innkeeper. The cringe is for the amount of work, the overhead involved to have a rate of $79. I know the costs to operate a B&B, and even if you flip the room constantly you have to pay, so the income from the room at $79 is not large. I am in no means saying that guests don't appreciate the rate, and that they are not receiving an abundance in return. In fact, I know that they are, from what you have written here.
You are doing a lot of work and as the saying goes "Work smarter not harder." If your rates were higher and you booked them less you pay less in costs and might actually make more.
Please understand I was not insulting the $79 rate, just saying it is hard to pay the bills as the innkeeper on that low of a room rate and the ovrehead is still the same. But when in Rome...
.

Thank you for the clarification. Actually I did raise my rates on booking.com in May and have seen a significant drop in business. As the economy stabilizes, I will do as you suggest.
Thank you.
.

I don't know where your place is located...but in my mind...no room should ever be under $100. Perception is everything. Low price??? well...you get it.

 

[Copperhead]

One of the strictest policies that I find on most B&B websites is the length of time for the cancellation policy. We had so few cancellations here with only 5 rooms and had a 72 hour policy. I think that there are probably folks who aren't booking at B&Bs because of these 7-14 day cancellation policies for just regular bookings. I'm sure the flak will fly over me posting that..

I still think that absence of proof is not proof of absence in this case. You have no idea how many people are leaving your site because of a lengthy cancellation time. I know that I'm definitely one of them and I've never had to cancel a B&B rez yet. jmvvho.
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But if they have an occupancy rate where they want it to be - it doesn't matter how many move on. IF they have all the business they are comfortable with.....
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That's very true. But increased demand means higher room rates. With higher room rates, you can be even slower if you want to be. The key to getting both the occupancy and the room rate to where you want them to be is always always always always increase demand.
Innkeepers can turn folks away if they want to keep occupancy down. Close rooms off. But restrictive booking policies decrease demand and thus decrease room rates. Never a good plan. IMHO.
Make them want to book so the rates can make whatever occupancy you want to run sustainable. All the profit is in the daily rate so it just, to me, makes no sense at all to do anything that lowers it longterm.
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But revenue reaches a point in an area where it will not fly - no matter what you do. I was referring to the absence of proof. If i had a lot of cancels but that number went down after I instituted a more restrictive cancel policy BUT my rez numbers stayed up there, I would look at it as a winner. In my area, I believe higher rates would hurt me more than help. I have raised them over the years to what I believe is my price point now. I am higher than the local chains but then, I have always been very flexible for my guests and their comfort so I get it. I rarely get a cancel either. Right now the rez I took this morning is hoping the saturday rez I took yesterday cancels because he wants ALL rooms for 2 nights. He and I are both going to lose that one. (2 nights revenue instead of 1 - sigh!)
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Most biz guests won't accept a long cancellation period. If a place offers flexible cancellation for them, then that would fly.
Here's the thing: If you're so busy that you're turning away guests, than why would you have a cancellation time frame that is lengthy? You should be able to fill your rooms on a moment's notice. I think innkeepers that hold out on this will lose a segment of the traveling public that they want to convert - the higher end hotel crowd. Just my 2 cents after listening to rants from plenty of friends that travel a lot and will never stay at B&Bs because of their cancellation policies for leisure travelers. I guess if it's working for folks and their occupancy is consistently way up there, that's great. More flak will come my way, I'm sure. haha!
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Again, it really depends on your location. If you're not in a city or metro area, cancellations can kill you. Our reservations are not usually last minute. People plan for their trips here. If someone cancels even within a few days, I will not typically be able to fill that room again even though we have have a high occupancy rate. People who come to my area in peak season plan their trips in advance. If they didn't, they very often wouldn't be able to get any room last minute. When you're off the beaten track, you depend on your website for reservations, not drive bys or referrals.
We don't have biz travelers, but if I were in a city, I would have a biz rate with a biz cancellation.
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Again, it really depends on your location. If you're not in a city or metro area, cancellations can kill you. Our reservations are not usually last minute. People plan for their trips here. If someone cancels even within a few days, I will not typically be able to fill that room again even though we have have a high occupancy rate.

Breakfast Diva, you're totally right that much depends on the location. For a remote inn, last minute bookings may not be convenient in and of themselves if the innkeeper can't get out to buy food/supplies. There are lots of reasons that remote inns may have different requirements.
But even though there may be good reasons for a longer cancellation policy and even though it would mean that you would occasionally get a cancellation you couldn't rebook, I still think most inns would benefit from a 3-day cancellation policy. Shorter if possible.
Some guests just won't book if the cancellation policy is restrictive. By not getting all the guests you could, you're restricting demand. While there are some limits as to how far rates can be raised in a given area, even a small increase can help the bottom line significantly.
I'm not saying all inns should do this. Again, some remote inns have good reasons for their policies.
But most inns would, over time, make more money with a shorter cancellation policy than with a lengthy one.
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Again, it really depends on your location. If you're not in a city or metro area, cancellations can kill you. Our reservations are not usually last minute. People plan for their trips here. If someone cancels even within a few days, I will not typically be able to fill that room again even though we have have a high occupancy rate.

Breakfast Diva, you're totally right that much depends on the location. For a remote inn, last minute bookings may not be convenient in and of themselves if the innkeeper can't get out to buy food/supplies. There are lots of reasons that remote inns may have different requirements.
But even though there may be good reasons for a longer cancellation policy and even though it would mean that you would occasionally get a cancellation you couldn't rebook, I still think most inns would benefit from a 3-day cancellation policy. Shorter if possible.
Some guests just won't book if the cancellation policy is restrictive. By not getting all the guests you could, you're restricting demand. While there are some limits as to how far rates can be raised in a given area, even a small increase can help the bottom line significantly.
I'm not saying all inns should do this. Again, some remote inns have good reasons for their policies.
But most inns would, over time, make more money with a shorter cancellation policy than with a lengthy one.

I am with Diva. I am located in a fairly busy area but I am remote enough that I do not (typically) get the walk-ins or last minute bookings. It is a rarity to get even calls for 2-3 days prior - i.e. spontaneous getaways. Changing my cancellation policy would not benefit me in the least, my pockets would be missing some padding.
NOW I will be watching for this to change as GPS systems are quickly changing the traveling public. And while I did just say I don't typically get last minute bookings - I did get 3 just this last week. (Yes, I was and still am shocked.) So while I do still agree with Diva, I am watching the changing trends and if these 'fly by the seat of your pants' travelers start calling more often, I will be willing to be more lax on my policy, but until then it stands!
And BTW I do have a less restrictive biz travel policy which seems to work well, but unless they are coming in from across the big pond, most are booking close to their travels anyway.