walk ins - rooms available, but not ready

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four at four forty four

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just curious what other do in this situation...
when people knock on your door in the afternoon looking for a room. you actually have rooms available, but they are not ready for whatever reason. do you turn them away? tell them you'd have sometime available in an hour? etc?
Thanks!
 
I have had this happen. She wanted to see the rooms. I told her I would have rooms available after 3PM but we were not ready to show rooms at this time. She did not return - but I was ready at 3PM.
 
Money is money if you have them avail it is hard to turn them away. But alas I rarely answer the door and have a note saying check ins begin at...
 
We have this happen all summer. Walk-ins start around 11 AM when other guests may just be leaving. I show the new guests photos of the rooms that are available, take their cc info, give them a key and ask them to return after 3 PM when the rooms will be ready.
Almost everyone is ok with that. Those who do not want to wait or tell us it doesn't matter if the room is clean, etc are told other places they can try.
 
thanks everyone...
but what happens if it's after 'check in' time ... and for whatever reason you still don't have your available rooms clean and ready.
i'm the only one at my b&b ... so sometimes, when i have 'free time' i may use it to accomplish other things rather than cleaning rooms i don't 'need' at the moment.
..... or maybe my first priority, no matter what, should be getting all available rooms cleaned?
this situation doesn't happen a lot, but usually happens when i'm least prepared. i'm a target sign for murphy's law. haha.
 
I would say it is up to you. If you want to rent the room tell them it is not ready yet and to come back later...whatever your time frame is.
If you don't want to rush around cleaning a room and you don't need the income .... tell them "sorry, I don't have anything available." And say goodbye:)
 
I get this with phone calls. Most of the time, the room just needs a dusting. But for those other times...
IF they are calling to book the room (i.e., they're giving me a cc deposit on the phone) I often tell them what I'm doing and how much time I need to have the room ready (e.g., if I'm canning, they usually get I canNOT drop everything to accommodate them). Most times I'll have a different room ready, but not the one they want. If they book the other room, and I can get their preferred room ready in time, I'll give them the choice.
If they just want to look and aren't prepared to commit on the phone, then I am not inclined to drop everything to ready a room they may just decide not to stay in. I will usually tell them a better time they can come by.
 
We generally don't take walk-ins, but we have from time to time in the off-season. But we absolutely do not do tours! Our rooms are not on approval. You don't get entry to my home without a reservation. The room isn't available at the moment, there are guests in the room or the room has not been cleaned and worker's safety won't allow guests while a room is unmade.
If you want the room, here are the forms to register. We will need your credit card number and your identity papers. Amazingly, those who want tours... disappear, they won't part with their credit card info. Money is too precious for them to spend. They just want a free look. That's why we have a website.
 
deja vu ... this happened to me sometimes flying solo ... i'd have the rooms ready i needed to have but i'd say i'm tired, i've got 4 rooms ready ... and i figured i'd do the other 4 'later' because it was quiet, walkins not likely, then boom, walk-ins.
IF i wanted the bookings and usually i did, i'd take their money right then and there ... hand them a key and say 'give me an hour and your room will be ready for you' the reason i did this was because, continuing with murphy's law, if i said 'come back in an hour' WITHOUT getting the commitment to take a room, then rushed around cleaning, most of the time, they didn't come back!
and for a booking NOW for an 'unready' room, i learned to do a few things that helped me.
i stripped all rooms at once. whether or not that room was due to be occupied ... so there were never dirty linens or towels in a room.
i also pulled all trash out of the room, put up the toilet seat and flushed,
and opened a window or two before going to the next room.
this way ... 'unready' was a lot closer to presentable.
 
thanks everyone...
but what happens if it's after 'check in' time ... and for whatever reason you still don't have your available rooms clean and ready.
i'm the only one at my b&b ... so sometimes, when i have 'free time' i may use it to accomplish other things rather than cleaning rooms i don't 'need' at the moment.
..... or maybe my first priority, no matter what, should be getting all available rooms cleaned?
this situation doesn't happen a lot, but usually happens when i'm least prepared. i'm a target sign for murphy's law. haha..
OK, for a situation like yours...we also went thru this at the beginning when we just could NOT get all the rooms cleaned by 3 PM. We did the ones we 'needed' and 9 times out of 10 we'd get a walk-in! So, we always did one extra room. (Now we can get them all done, but not if it was just one of us!)
So, here's what I'd say...if you can't totally clean all the rooms when you think you won't need them, at least do this: strip the bed & bath linens out of the room. Put the new linens in the room, ready to go (this will also help you for the next day!). Empty the trash. Adjust the curtains, etc.
Then, if you get a walk-in you can say, 'I do have a room but I need a few minutes to tidy everything up. If you would sit here (give them a cup of coffee or tea and a snack) I'll be done in a jif.' You can still show them pix of whatever room is closest to being ready.
I don't think I'd tell them the room is not clean unless they say, 'Oh anything's ok,' or some other 'don't bother dusting' sort of thing.
 
thanks everyone...
but what happens if it's after 'check in' time ... and for whatever reason you still don't have your available rooms clean and ready.
i'm the only one at my b&b ... so sometimes, when i have 'free time' i may use it to accomplish other things rather than cleaning rooms i don't 'need' at the moment.
..... or maybe my first priority, no matter what, should be getting all available rooms cleaned?
this situation doesn't happen a lot, but usually happens when i'm least prepared. i'm a target sign for murphy's law. haha..
four at four forty four said:
thanks everyone...
but what happens if it's after 'check in' time ... and for whatever reason you still don't have your available rooms clean and ready.
i'm the only one at my b&b ... so sometimes, when i have 'free time' i may use it to accomplish other things rather than cleaning rooms i don't 'need' at the moment.
..... or maybe my first priority, no matter what, should be getting all available rooms cleaned?
this situation doesn't happen a lot, but usually happens when i'm least prepared. i'm a target sign for murphy's law. haha.
Do what you can do, and that is all you can do. You are the only one who can prioritize your day, if cleaning rooms johnny on the spot destroys your joy (which it has been known to do) then do what you enjoy and pace yourself and do what you can do. We wish we had cleaning fairies, but we don't. Live your life, don't be a slave to this business. I look at it this way, if I can't take the time to do the things I enjoy, then this job really SUX! Life is too short...
But - #1 it sometimes can be good incentive to move super fast and get the room ready, esp if partially done (ie stripped and ready to make up again) if someone shows up - gives you that Martha Stewart burst of adrenaline, or #2 you just say you do not have a room available. :)
 
thanks everyone...
but what happens if it's after 'check in' time ... and for whatever reason you still don't have your available rooms clean and ready.
i'm the only one at my b&b ... so sometimes, when i have 'free time' i may use it to accomplish other things rather than cleaning rooms i don't 'need' at the moment.
..... or maybe my first priority, no matter what, should be getting all available rooms cleaned?
this situation doesn't happen a lot, but usually happens when i'm least prepared. i'm a target sign for murphy's law. haha..
four at four forty four said:
thanks everyone...
but what happens if it's after 'check in' time ... and for whatever reason you still don't have your available rooms clean and ready.
i'm the only one at my b&b ... so sometimes, when i have 'free time' i may use it to accomplish other things rather than cleaning rooms i don't 'need' at the moment.
..... or maybe my first priority, no matter what, should be getting all available rooms cleaned?
this situation doesn't happen a lot, but usually happens when i'm least prepared. i'm a target sign for murphy's law. haha.
Saturday after my sister left, I decompressed a bit. Then I went up and stripped all beds and tossed down sheets and towels (I do not carry linens down stairs). Then I replaced towels in both bathrooms and put sheet sets in each room and made the bed in the room most rented. Then rest of the day was doing laundry and putzing around - UNTIL the phone rang @ 3:30 asking about prices & availability for 2 nights. AND he was only 10 miles away! I told him check-in was 4 PM. He had GPS and said he was going to finish up the work he was doing and come to "look" at the place. INCENTIVE! I made one more bed (still have to go make the last one) since I did not know which price he wanted and the less expensive was the one needing made, cleaned both bathrooms and finished the cleaning in an hour. He did not show, but now, except for flowers and fruit, I am ready for my Wednesday inncoming. All that to say, I usually strip and remake beds, remove all linens and replace with clean, remove shower curtain liner, make sure toilet is flushed, and remove trash. With that done, I can whip it together fairly quickly when pushed.
I also believe in enjoying the day if I have a nice one. You never know when surprises (pleasant ones like friends asking to get together) will pop up. Grab it when it happens. I am this week!
 
TURN AWAY WALK-INS???!
whattha.gif
WOW! What a luxury!
If I have rooms available for people and it's technically after check-in time, you bet your sweet boots that I have at least ONE ready!! We ge walk-ins here all the time. Am I going to let a room sit dirty and unoccupied? No way, Jose! Sorry, but I've got bills to pay.
I have turned away late-night callers (I've never understood calling a B&B at 10pm and asking for a room for that night. At that point, it's just not worth it to me to ge up out of my jammies and get ready to check someone in. Now, if you know they're coming later, then that's another story.
 
TURN AWAY WALK-INS???!
whattha.gif
WOW! What a luxury!
If I have rooms available for people and it's technically after check-in time, you bet your sweet boots that I have at least ONE ready!! We ge walk-ins here all the time. Am I going to let a room sit dirty and unoccupied? No way, Jose! Sorry, but I've got bills to pay.
I have turned away late-night callers (I've never understood calling a B&B at 10pm and asking for a room for that night. At that point, it's just not worth it to me to ge up out of my jammies and get ready to check someone in. Now, if you know they're coming later, then that's another story..
Aussie Innkeeper said:
TURN AWAY WALK-INS???!
whattha.gif
WOW! What a luxury!
If I have rooms available for people and it's technically after check-in time, you bet your sweet boots that I have at least ONE ready!! We ge walk-ins here all the time. Am I going to let a room sit dirty and unoccupied? No way, Jose! Sorry, but I've got bills to pay.
I have turned away late-night callers (I've never understood calling a B&B at 10pm and asking for a room for that night. At that point, it's just not worth it to me to ge up out of my jammies and get ready to check someone in. Now, if you know they're coming later, then that's another story.
Yes, there is only so much energy in a day. If you have hired staff to help or a spouse, but being a solo innkeeper as stated has its pitfalls, you just cannot be all things to all people. You have to either survive or burn out or go hungry. LOL
We all share from our perspective, if you are in a high walk in traffic area things are different to what this innkeeper has shared.
 
We are fortunate to have housekeepers, but with 9 rooms if we only have 1 of them it is still a lot to try to get done, so we will often "roll" rooms to the next day when there will be 2 housekeepers.
We really don't care for walk-ins anyway, they don't tend to be our best guests. I like people who plan and give some consideration to their vacation.
I hate the attitude of "Oh, but the money..." Sorry, but if you let that drive your life you are guaranteed to be a very unhappy person. Run your business, don't let it run you. You win some, you lose some. Tomorrow's another day. Cliches, but true!
 
We live here... sometimes we need time off and sometimes we just don't feel comfortable with a last minute arrival.
The other side of it is that it also creates cachet. A limited supply. Next time, they will plan ahead. I think it really helps in getting your rooms booked and booked well in advance. You have a very limited supply of rooms. The more unique the rooms, the better... they fight to get the one they want.
 
We only have two rooms, but dh is also running wine tours and I'm still working outside the business for another year.
That said, when we get walk ins in our area they are usually problem people. Usually not B&B people, and frankly not worth a last minute rush to ready the rooms. Our sanity is worth more.
And like was said before, will force them to think ahead hopefully.
We seem to be getting people trying to pull one over on us who won't book ahead. I have had reservations for six night stay starting today since November 2010. Yesterday afternoon I got a call to check reservations (this has maybe happened twice in three years?). They were not sure which name the res was made. I had no such reservation. I told him the names that had booked. Not them. I asked if he had a confirmation "no, I just printed it off your website" I asked if he maybe had the wrong inn "Is there another Arcady?" no...I asked when he made the booking "two days ago". So I told him I'm not sure what happened, but my booking system would not have allowed him to even pull up the reservation request form to fill out, much less send.
DH thinks he does not understand we are not a hotel and thought he could get us to think we made an error and come up with a room for him.
RIki
 
We only have two rooms, but dh is also running wine tours and I'm still working outside the business for another year.
That said, when we get walk ins in our area they are usually problem people. Usually not B&B people, and frankly not worth a last minute rush to ready the rooms. Our sanity is worth more.
And like was said before, will force them to think ahead hopefully.
We seem to be getting people trying to pull one over on us who won't book ahead. I have had reservations for six night stay starting today since November 2010. Yesterday afternoon I got a call to check reservations (this has maybe happened twice in three years?). They were not sure which name the res was made. I had no such reservation. I told him the names that had booked. Not them. I asked if he had a confirmation "no, I just printed it off your website" I asked if he maybe had the wrong inn "Is there another Arcady?" no...I asked when he made the booking "two days ago". So I told him I'm not sure what happened, but my booking system would not have allowed him to even pull up the reservation request form to fill out, much less send.
DH thinks he does not understand we are not a hotel and thought he could get us to think we made an error and come up with a room for him.
RIki.
Maybe he was trying to get the info about who booked? Looking for a wayward spouse?
 
We only have two rooms, but dh is also running wine tours and I'm still working outside the business for another year.
That said, when we get walk ins in our area they are usually problem people. Usually not B&B people, and frankly not worth a last minute rush to ready the rooms. Our sanity is worth more.
And like was said before, will force them to think ahead hopefully.
We seem to be getting people trying to pull one over on us who won't book ahead. I have had reservations for six night stay starting today since November 2010. Yesterday afternoon I got a call to check reservations (this has maybe happened twice in three years?). They were not sure which name the res was made. I had no such reservation. I told him the names that had booked. Not them. I asked if he had a confirmation "no, I just printed it off your website" I asked if he maybe had the wrong inn "Is there another Arcady?" no...I asked when he made the booking "two days ago". So I told him I'm not sure what happened, but my booking system would not have allowed him to even pull up the reservation request form to fill out, much less send.
DH thinks he does not understand we are not a hotel and thought he could get us to think we made an error and come up with a room for him.
RIki.
Maybe he was trying to get the info about who booked? Looking for a wayward spouse?
.
Alibi Ike said:
Maybe he was trying to get the info about who booked? Looking for a wayward spouse?
Nope the guests coming are two couples who are friends traveling together. He was looking under his name or his girlfriend's name. And he said he booked two days ago and the rooms are booked already so he could not have done so. I was thinking that he had the wrong B&B.
But usually when people are in the right they are more insistant that they are booked. He backed down immediately. And said he had no confirmation. At one point he did say maybe they had cancelled...but I would have found him in a search in my email if that were the case. My bookings go to my email and neither name came up.
RIki
 
We only have two rooms, but dh is also running wine tours and I'm still working outside the business for another year.
That said, when we get walk ins in our area they are usually problem people. Usually not B&B people, and frankly not worth a last minute rush to ready the rooms. Our sanity is worth more.
And like was said before, will force them to think ahead hopefully.
We seem to be getting people trying to pull one over on us who won't book ahead. I have had reservations for six night stay starting today since November 2010. Yesterday afternoon I got a call to check reservations (this has maybe happened twice in three years?). They were not sure which name the res was made. I had no such reservation. I told him the names that had booked. Not them. I asked if he had a confirmation "no, I just printed it off your website" I asked if he maybe had the wrong inn "Is there another Arcady?" no...I asked when he made the booking "two days ago". So I told him I'm not sure what happened, but my booking system would not have allowed him to even pull up the reservation request form to fill out, much less send.
DH thinks he does not understand we are not a hotel and thought he could get us to think we made an error and come up with a room for him.
RIki.
Maybe he was trying to get the info about who booked? Looking for a wayward spouse?
.
Alibi Ike said:
Maybe he was trying to get the info about who booked? Looking for a wayward spouse?
Nope the guests coming are two couples who are friends traveling together. He was looking under his name or his girlfriend's name. And he said he booked two days ago and the rooms are booked already so he could not have done so. I was thinking that he had the wrong B&B.
But usually when people are in the right they are more insistant that they are booked. He backed down immediately. And said he had no confirmation. At one point he did say maybe they had cancelled...but I would have found him in a search in my email if that were the case. My bookings go to my email and neither name came up.
RIki
.
I only mentioned the wayard spouse because you said you told him the names of the people who really are staying.
 
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