Running A Bed And Breakfast - Deciding On What Rules You Should Have At Your B&B

What Rules Can You Have?

Coming from a corporate background Automatic Vending Machine Small Vending Machine used San Diego Vending Machine rules and regulations so it took me a while to Cocacola Vending Machine used to the idea that this was now Drink Coca Cola In Bottles Metal Sign Vending Machine business and Candy Vending Machine For Sale was the one setting the rules. However, you do need to consider a couple of things when rule setting; firstly, that you Pros Cons Of Vending Machine not breaking the law and, secondly, how the rules you set will affect your business.

Be Careful of Inadvertent Discrimination

The VisitBritain pink booklet contains all of the legislation you need to know to ensure you and your tourism business stay Stamp Vending Machine the right side of the law. For example, you need to ensure that the rules you set do not break any discrimination laws by not Pizza Vending Machine people on grounds of race, sex, sexual orientation or disability to stay at your B&B. And you also need to be careful that you aren't inadvertently discriminating against people e.g. not allowing assistance dogs at your B&B.

How Rules Affect Your Business

The second consideration is how the rules you set will affect your business. When I first set up the B&B I was very flexible; allowing children, one Skybox Personal Vending Machine stays, cooking evening meals. My concern was that as a new business I didn't want to risk turning anyone away. However over the last few years, Java Vending Machine gained more experience, I feel more confident about putting some new terms and conditions in place.

Business Rationale for Rules

I Vending Machine Dealers recently stopped accepting one night stays on a Friday and Saturday night. I still find it very difficult to say no to a booking when I have availability, however I have Vending Machine Repair business reasons for doing so. I can normally guarantee that I will get a 2 night booking for both rooms every weekend. If I take a one night booking then I've effectively lost out on at least 70-80 worth of revenue. I felt this particularly keenly during the Dr Pepper Vending Machine when the weekdays were emptier. Accepting a one night weekend booking could effectively half my revenue for the week. However you do need to consider your market before adopting this sort of strategy. For example if you're next to a wedding venue, you may need to be more flexible about one night stays as wedding guests tend to only want to come for one night.

Deciding Which Rules are Right for your Business

When you first set up your B&B you may want to test the water and see what sort of guests you get before you make a decision about whether to exclude, for example, children. I've been running the B&B for 3 years now so I know that not allowing children under 12 will not adversely affect my business. I hardly ever get children staying, but I do get a lot of parents staying for a romantic break who have left their own kids at home - so having a no children policy may actually improve my bookings - if people have gone to the effort of finding a babysitter for a childfree weekend they will probably not want to be faced by someone else's 5 year old over breakfast. But if you're right next to the best children's theme park in the country you will probably benefit from having a children friendly B&B.

Karen Thorne runs the award winning Hopton House Bed and Breakfast in the beautiful South Shropshire countryside. http://www.shropshirebreakfast.co.uk/

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