Experience is the heart and driving economic force of our special segment of the hospitality and tourism industry. If we can all agree on this statement, in some form, our success should be based on the ability to expand and elevate the experience of guests as they start the research and booking process, through their time on property, and then as we work to continue a connection that drives repeat bookings and a steady clip of referrals. Of course, this concept is often discussed and the realities of our daily lives have a way of creating barriers to steady, ongoing development.

We posed the following question at a recent gathering of Select Registry owners and operators at the Association of Lodging Professionals Conference and Marketplace:  

What was the best thing you did in 2022 to elevate the guest experience? 

While the answers were varied, they reflected the need to evolve or else be judged against properties far inferior to the ranks of the independent and established Inns, B&Bs, and unique lodging properties that define our industry. Four answers rung out amongst the list that may inspire you to plan or reconsider your next improvements and the impact they will have on your guests wellbeing in the short and long term. 

Property #1 upgraded their Wi-Fi. 

Even before the so-called age of the mixed business and leisure travel (“Bleisure” being the latest portmanteau to describe this trend), the importance of strong and steady wireless internet connectivity was key. It still boggles the mind that certain hotel chains charge a fee for a signal that supports HD streaming capabilities. 

Property #2 gutted and upgraded all 10 of their guest baths. 

Notwithstanding the swift return on investment and the ability to command and defend a substantial rate increase, experience in our daily lives starts and ends in a grand soaking tub, spa shower, feet touching radiant heated tile floors, as we ready ourselves for a day of adventure in business or in purely pleasure-seeking pursuits. When was the last time you packed an overnight bag and laid out your toiletries to embody your guest’s experience in the space you are recommending to them in the highest possible terms? Considered improvements to your guest rooms and bathrooms should occur on a regular schedule. A particularly successful, long term owner renovated rooms on a three year schedule and, when the time came to sell, the focus on business growth supported the price they desired and left little room for potential purchasers to nickel and dime.

Property #3 added a complimentary guest ice cream fridge. 

How many of us constant travelers seek “the best” and “most local” food-driven experiences? At times this requires significant forethought and planning but, in other cases, owners can bring the local hits into their respective properties and, in doing so, become true ambassadors to their communities and provide the best and most local way to stay. This was a practice of a particular hotelier during the pandemic who saw the need to comfort guests with a famous local ice cream brand. We have also seen this play out in myriad Vermont Inns that offer hyper local craft beers, ciders, and health tonics on an honor system. How do these properties afford such complimentary or trust-based amenities and services? Consider the overall quality of the experience you are offering, the cost (rates) required to support your ongoing work and the constant improvement to the asset, and the fact that your guests should, in the best case, be clearly aligned with your brand. These key ingredients should provide you with ample opportunity to enhance your brand and its connection to your local market while working to improve the top and bottom line. 

Property #4 shared a guest preference survey. 

When your best laid plans for improvements and procedure for satisfying guests are not landing as they should, your past, current, and future guests are your greatest resource. Enlightened hospitality experiences are, at their core, created by guests feeling seen and heard at every stage of guests booking and experiencing your property and individual approach to hospitality. Your recognition of their position as travel experts in their own right will create an even stronger sense of connection and should provide you with data to inform your ongoing enhancements and support your success personally and professionally. 

Now, since we presume our readers include some of the most driven and capable operators in this industry, we will pose this question to you:

What improvements or enhancements are you considering as you work to elevate the guest experience at your property? 

Thanks for listening and sharing your thoughts that will carry us all into the future, 

Eben Viens

While the changes may appear inconsequential on the surface, they are a clear response to the monumental shift in the way guests engage in the booking process, offering options for longer stays and a streamlined process for booking extended stays to multiple destinations.

Airbnb Categories. The first update focuses on broadening the perspectives of travelers in the discovery stage. This development promises to drive bookings outside of established destination locations, using categories such as amazing views, bed and breakfasts (!), creative spaces, design, iconic cities, tiny houses, and more, to challenge users to book properties that were not otherwise on their radar.

According to the press release, “Airbnb Categories organize homes by what makes them unique, which helps people discover places they wouldn’t have otherwise found. This can help alleviate over-tourism by redistributing travel to new locations beyond the same popular destinations.”

AirDNA’s April 2022 Market Review notes that demand is up 25% over 2019, Average Daily Rates (ADRs) are up 33.9% over 2019, and Revenue is up 67.4% over 2019. While occupancy is the one statistic that is down, this has been linked to an increase in the nightly supply of rentals in destination/resort markets and small cities, not from systematic weakness in demand. At the same time, inventory is clearly limited in markets, with many owners of vacation rentals using them more frequently. This is a clear case of keeping the consumer’s gaze fixed on the platform to protect and nurture the company’s revenue stream.

Split Stays encourage guests to “discover more” of a particular market or region. This feature was clearly data-driven, with Airbnb noting that “in the last three months, nearly half of nights booked on Airbnb were for trips of a week or more.” This nudge, which is also driven by the new Airbnb Categories, seeks to inspire longer travel.

In reading this segment, I was reminded of the growing appeal of “146 Routes du Bonheur, itineraries to discover the world“, the concierge and benefit-driven program of Relais & Chateaux. One of these itineraries, “New Englands Most Beautiful Spots”, transports guests from Bedford, New York, through the Connecticut countryside, up to Woodstock, Vermont, and concludes with sea views and fine dining at Castle Hill Inn. Like member Inns, Innkeepers all have different tastes, standards, and styles, and our individual “Roads to Happiness” should be discussed with like-minded professionals and Innkeepers. Maybe there is an opportunity for collaboration before the journey ends.

AirCover is Airbnb’s “comprehensive protection included for free with every booking.” Without getting into the details (there aren’t many) or sparking a heated debate around the merits of the program, it is enough to state that AirCover is a catch-all confidence booster with the desired effect of driving bookings heading into the summer season.

According to the release, the package protects guests from last-minute host cancellations, misrepresented accommodations, the inability to check in to your hosting property, and access to a 24-hour safety line “if you ever feel unsafe.” While these are very reasonable and welcome protections, it’s important to note that protections are often (always?) created in response to clear and present danger, not as a preemptive act.

These musings are not meant as a criticism of what has effectively become the world’s largest hospitality collection (with over 7 million listings worldwide), but rather as a recognition of the way that tech companies are analyzing consumer habits and harnessing that knowledge to shape the future of travel.

While consumer spending was up approximately 1% in April driven by demand and inflation, a review of 2022 financials across hospitality segments shows continued growth over previous years, but, in most cases, stabilization from the heights of 2021. The current climate has kept this James Garfield quote top of mind in recent months:

“I have seen the sea lashed into fury and tossed into spray, and its grandeur moves the soul of the dullest man; but I remember that it is not the billows, but the calm level of the sea from which all heights and depths are measured.” 

Happy Memorial Day to all and best wishes for busting bank accounts as we continue our march through 2022!

Eben Viens

It’s a common trend in our industry that the overarching macro news obscures counter trends among niches or segments of the larger picture. While it has been difficult to ignore the tell-tale signs of a red-hot real estate market during Covid times, there are critical nuances that require interpretation in the Inn and Bed and Breakfast industry.

First off, the Inn, Bed and Breakfast, and boutique iteration of hospitality remains a vibrant segment of the greater hospitality industry. The increasing interest in the market of tech driven hospitality groups is a clear indicator of the opportunity that truly independent properties offer both guests and owners.

At the start of the pandemic, the larger hospitality market was faced with publicized declines in occupancy and average daily room rates. (Hotel and resort properties rely heavily on business meetings and business travel.) The falloff in activity is complicated by a record number of rooms coming online due to expansion planned in a flourishing pre-pandemic world.

Metro area and airport hotels suffered the greatest economic turbulence at the height of Covid, with a veritable tsunami of closures that touched some of the highest-flying brands. The developments of New York and Los Angeles iterations of NoMad were difficult to ignore.

It’s a different story for Inns, B&Bs, and independent properties, in particular those properties in reach of active metro areas. With international travel out of the question consumers sought readily available alternatives. A Tuscan retreat was replaced with an extended trip to the Hudson Valley, Costa Brava became coastal Maine, North Carolina, or California’s Lost Coast. It is clear that the convenience and economy of “drive to” vacations versus “fly to” luxury trips became an undeniable trend over the last two years. For those Inns able to capture and curate experiences desired by weary, pandemic-worn guests, the economic benefit was palpable.

The general report from Inns and B&Bs in 2021 was positive with most well-marketed properties experiencing record income and occupancy. Inns we engage with on a regular basis report booking pace in 2022 that shows continued growth in both occupancy and average daily rates (ADR). One explanation for growth – in addition to the ongoing ‘pent of demand for travel’ – is the virtuous cycle of repeat business that has been a long-term driver of occupancy in our market.

At the same time, millennial travelers seem to have discovered Inns during the pandemic, and many are intrigued, if not enthralled, with a model that speaks to their unrelenting desire for the authentic, the subjective, the unique, the shareable. Of course, peer review sites (Google/TripAdvisor) remain the gateway for guests, ensuring that they are investing in an experience that supports their worldview. Forget ornamental expression and exposition – guests want facts and personal contact with Innkeepers and other likeminded individuals. And when their needs shift in a different direction, they want recognition of that fact. Remember, the majority of good review focus on Innkeepers (and so do the bad ones).

Other factors bode well for Inns and their owners. The focus on romantic travel of yesteryear has given way to interest in activity, adventure, education. Guests want a menu of opportunities that speak to their personal interests and stretch their limits in like kind. Smart Innkeepers are developing packages and marketing experiences, visually and otherwise, that reach beyond roses and champagne and focus on connecting with guests on a personal plane. The time is now for Innkeepers to continually push the bounds, reaching younger demographics while appealing to the needs of all travelers for the new. We all need to talk about what that constitutes – far more than we are today.

All of this points to a very bright future for our segment of the hospitality industry – far brighter than the threadbare prognostications of the greater industry that is just now sharing notes of optimism as travelers “learn to live” with Covid and its related ills.

There remains positive news for both aspiring Innkeepers and those long-term residents of the industry who are looking towards retirement or other ventures. While the Fed will continue to raise interest rates to stave off inflation, they remain at a very bankable level, offering an open window to Buyers who are serious about making the jump into the Innkeeping lifestyle. For Sellers, a lack of inventory of viable Inn business puts emphasis on any property that is well established, well marketed, and defensibly priced.

While the simple answer is that we are operating in a Seller’s market, a benefit of entering and inhabiting our industry is that reason comes into play in even the most fantastical real estate markets. Numbers must be put to perceptions and banks remain the backstop, helping to separate the facts of business lending from the folly of greater market trends.

Whichever side of the fence you are on – and especially if you are straddling the spikes – we are here to provide support and share in the heights and depths of our evolving industry.

Thanks for listening,

Eben Viens

The two questions most resounding in my life since late last year: Where have you been? And what do you envision for the future of The B&B Team®?

From a distance, the first question can be answered plainly. I have not sat still over the course of the pandemic. In fact, even before I took over the reins of The B&B Team® in December, my work with current and aspiring Innkeepers led me from California to Michigan to Florida to Maine (with quite a few stops in between).

While all my conversations during these trips were colored by the pandemic, most were surprisingly familiar in nature. There were Innkeepers driven by the age old “grandparent syndrome” looking to gracefully trade their career in hospitality for unadulterated time with family. Others were simply looking for a temperature check on their business in an effort to improve their profit margins. A turn to Virtual Seminars in early 2020 led to one of our most active years of aspiring Innkeeper workshops, with well over 150 attendees joining us for this new iteration of our long-time entrée into the world of Innkeeping. Clearly, the appeal of the Innkeeping lifestyle (at least in its theoretical form) was only buoyed by the pandemic.

With a few exceptions, we found that there was a pervasive positive energy driving most current and future Innkeepers through the perils of the pandemic and keeping their focus on the constant stream of guests seeking care at their Inns.

Les yeux qui ne voient pas, the eyes which do not see the beauty of individual, selfless acts of hospitality will never truly recognize how bright and bold the future of our industry should be!

An Innkeeper in Maine recently described her small coastal community as a town of true iconoclasts. The comment was well taken, and I believe reflects most members of our tight knit coalition of Innkeepers and hospitality professionals. At their best, we fit some similar, yet indistinguishable mold of craftspeople, caretakers, cooks, cleaners, healers, designers, spiritual guides, and marketing mavens. And in this highly choreographed scramble of our daily lives, we somehow remain highly attuned to the needs and desires of others. These acts of transcendent hospitality make hospitalitarians (to quote restaurateur Danny Meyer) out of former teachers, attorneys, pilots, nurses, professors, accountants, engineers, senators, builders, and beyond. Seeing these acts unfold is what makes our lives as guests and Innkeepers so profoundly rewarding.

As with all lasting works of architecture, the future of The B&B Team® is based upon historical practices driven by integrity, honesty, and a quality approach to all of our work on behalf of aspiring and current Innkeepers. We plan to build upon this strong foundation to not only guide the transition of Innkeepers and hospitality owners in our community, but to do so in a way that moves our industry forward and keeps the conversation around the Innkeeping trade vital, self-possessed, and enticing to the droves of travelers seeking authentic, subjective, shareable, and safe experiences.

Bigger has never equated to better in our industry and there are thankfully thousands of aspiring, current, and emeritus Innkeepers and professionals that give cause for constant celebration.

I look forward to carrying forward the mantle of The B&B Team® and our affiliate organizations and continuing the conversations that will ferry us all into the future.

Kindest Regards,

Eben Viens

There have been many articles with the subject title ‘cycling is the new golf’ in the last year or so. Is cycling the new golf? I was curious so I did some research. This is what I found.

• According to the National Golf Federation
  • Number of golfers in the US between 2005 and 2013 down 5.7%
  • Number of rounds of golf played in the US between 2000 and 2013 down 10.2%
• According to USA Cycling the number of people taking out cycling licenses from 2002 and 2013 increased 76%

To a golfer, which I am, and to a cyclist, which I am not, this trend is an interesting one to look at. Also to look at the reasons why?

Let’s look at some recent consumer lifestyle trend stats that may shed some light.

• “According to Mintel flagship report American Lifestyles 2015, a comprehensive look at American consumer markets, over the next five years total sales are forecast to increase by 21.9 percent. Nonessential categories, including vacations and dining out, are expected to see the greatest gains with projected five-year increases of about 27 percent each.”
• “The vacation and tourism market is supported by relatively wealthy Baby Boomers who are taking more vacations as they retire from the work force, as well as Millennials who are increasing spending in the category.”

Spending more on ‘vacations’ and ‘dining out’. Great news for innkeepers. Add the increased cycling trend and I think we have a winning package here.

With the increase in cyclists there is bound to be an increase in the cycling tours. The Shoreham Inn in Shoreham Vermont has been hosting cycling tours for many years. It is one of the stops for cyclists experiencing their slice of Vermont paradise.

“Tidy apple orchards, grand views of Lake Champlain, fields of grazing sheep and cows, and the classic beauty and simplicity of the surrounding towns and villages with vistas of the Green Mountains and the Adirondacks.”

I have been to Shoreham and this describes the area beautifully. The countryside is magical and what better way to experience it than on a bike.

Shoreham Inn’s 3 Day/2 Night Bike tour package with Discovery Bike Tours includes more than just riding from one point to the next. It is truly all about ‘experiential tourism’, with the dining included.

• Day One: Arrive at the Inn for a family style dinner at the Inn’s ‘Gastro Pub’
• Day Two: Cycle from Shoreham to Middlebury and visit and sample Otter Creek Brewery and the Woodschuck Cidery and explore the town. Then cycle to the University of Vermont’s Morgan Horse Farm before easing our way back to the inn.
• Day Three: Follow quiet country roads to the pretty village of Orwell and then visit Norton’s Gallery where he has on display his ever popular whimsical wood carvings. From here we cycle down to the shores of Lake Champlain to Larrabees Landing before winding our way back to the Shoreham Inn.

Now I still love golf and will continue my unrelenting path to improve my game but…this tour is definitely enticing. A lot to see and do with the bonus of burning calories!

That is another reason that cycling is trending upwards. It is a fitness activity that not only can be measured in burned calories, heart rate with devices like jawbone but…it is an activity paired with experiences. And food too. Check this out, The Shoreham Inn in the UK Times. “Just rustic enough and just chic enough, it’s the best gastropub you never found in the UK, with ambiance and food to match” The Times, September 2015

If you are an aspiring innkeeper that is looking forward to providing your guests with authentic experiences and good food, consider the Shoreham Inn for sale. Yes, cycling tours are a successful segment of their business but the ideal Vermont location plus the authentic New England hospitality provided in the lodging and casual dining is the heart of the Inn’s business.

And if you are a golfer, don’t worry. Vermont is known for their good courses with some of them nearby.

Thanks for Listening,

Janet Wolf