Activities Archives | Kristi Dement

Category Archives: Activities

Mike’s Road Trip To B&B’s

Posted on July 4, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

Mike Shubic of Mike’s Road Trip is an outgoing man of adventure. He has been traveling on the road since 2010. Mike hosts and produces high quality videos for hospitality businesses such as bed and breakfasts, inns, restaurants, and other “hidden gems of the road.” He has been featured in USA Today Travel, Rand McNally Best of the Road, The Travel Channel, and more.

Check out Mike’s Road Trip’s Intriguing Inns and Beautiful B&B’s videos from YouTube. I highly recommend him if you would like entertaining and professional videos made to highlight the unique strengths of your bed and breakfast. From his website, Mike gives several reasons why your bed and breakfast inn should have a video:

If a picture is worth a 1000 words, how many is video worth?
Video builds trust with your prospects. Trust equals paying guests.
Videos attract attention and help set you apart from your competition.
Video is important for SEO (search engine optimization). Google is ranking pages with video higher for the same search terms.
Video is not a fad. Four billion hours of video are watched each month on YouTube alone.

Mike makes these suggestions to bed and breakfast owners:

Have a professional overview video of your B&B/Inn produced. Be sure to include the owner/innkeeper in front of the camera. Let prospective guests know what makes your inn special and memorable.
Guest testimonial videos can be very powerful. This allows the viewer to hear what the experience is like from varying viewpoints. Your guests may talk about things they liked that you never even thought about!
Informal videos for your social network can be a great way to showcase area events and/or activities at your inn while keeping in touch with past and future guests.
The visual impact of videos gives them a long shelf life. Trust and interest can be earned as long as the video is live on the Internet. You can be media friendly and share your videos with local media.

Professional and informal videos can be put on your website as well as shared on social media websites including Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube! Mike is a well-spoken promoter of bed and breakfasts on his road trips all across America. I recommend Mike Shubic of Mike’s Road Trip to all my Bed and Breakfast Blogging clients.

Posted in Activities, Blog and Social Media, Events, Promotion

Blue Mountain Bed and Breakfast

Posted on April 29, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

Innkeepers Brady and Elaine Anderson-Wood love showing hospitality to their guests at Blue Mountain Bed and Breakfast in Missoula, Montana. Missoula is said to be “the best small town under 100,000 people” in America. With breathtaking views of the mountains and Bitterroot River as well as beautiful gardens and wildlife to watch.

They relish sharing their mountain, home, and Montana history with others from around the world. Meeting people from every walk of life is a real treat for them. Guests come for a variety of reasons including: visiting their kids at University of Montana, fishing, relaxing between visits to Yellowstone and Glacier Park.

Guests have visited from every state but Delaware as well as the countries of Israel, Bolivia, Jacarta, Mongolia, Honduras, Namibia, South Korea, and Romania. One couple from France comes every year to enjoy Blue Mountain Bed and Breakfast and the surrounding area. Brady and Elaine’s biggest surprise as innkeepers has been to see how people with very different view points are able to come together, share breakfast, and take away an appreciation for each other.

Elaine, who takes professional pictures, says she has always adored taking pictures because of her deep love and connection with nature. The animals that can be found outside their B&B include: woodpeckers, humming birds, hawks, eagles, bears, bunnies, deer, wild turkeys, elk, chipmunks, and much more.

Because of her background in history and education, Elaine was able to take more classes (including classes specifically oriented toward the bi-centennial of Lewis and Clark) to become an official tour guide. There are so many lovely walking trails in their area.

Blue Mountain B&B is open year round and guests can stay for just one night if that is their desire. Some choose to have one night escapes from Missoula, Helena, Great Falls, and other places. There are fun things to do all year long in Missoula. The benefit of their particular location is that they are close to town, yet secluded. Blue Mountain Bed and Breakfast is on twenty acres of registered wildlife habitat next to National and State forest land. The home was designed by their family and the room decor reflects their Swedish family heritage as well as their ranching backgrounds.

Their most loved breakfast dishes include their asparagus gratins, macadamia-crusted French toast, and Aebelskivers (a Dutch stove top doughnut). Brady and Elaine would love to have fellow innkeepers as guests so they can enjoy the beauty of nature, do fun area activities and/or just relax, and taste their awesome breakfasts as well as share fellow inn-keeping experiences!

Posted in Activities, Food

Wine Lovers

Posted on February 14, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

Red grape in a vineyard Royalty Free Stock Photos Wine tasting Royalty Free Stock Images Hdr sunset on a vineyard Royalty Free Stock Photography

Is your bed and breakfast located in wine country? If so, do you invite wine lovers to your bed and breakfast for private wine tastings and tours of vineyards? Perhaps offer a Wine Lovers Package and assist your guests in arranging their wine-tasting itinerary depending on the date and the time of year they visit.

Recommend some wine-related activities that you think your guests will love! Perhaps pair the wine with cheese or even chocolate. Seasons play a role in the events that are offered, but there may be something ‘wine-related’ that is always happening nearby your inn. Your guests could experience an exceptional wine tasting at some of your region’s premium, award winning wineries.

Whether your guests are a wine aficionados or just want to try a new experience, they will discover the complexities of the vineyard, the artistry that takes place in the cellar, as well as the joys of tasting the end result: elegant wines for every taste!

If they are leaving your bed and breakfast for their wine tasting, provide a tour guide and/or chauffeur to help them experience some of the premium wines your local area has to offer. Give your wine lovers the best wine tour they will ever experience!

Posted in Activities, Food, Guests, Promotion

Yoga Retreats

Posted on February 13, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

Does your bed and breakfast offer yoga retreats? The bed and breakfast owners who do, emphasize the peacefulness of their quiet location, the beauty of their scenic nature, and the transformation in body and mind that can come with yoga.

You can encourage guests of all experience levels to challenge themselves in your safe and comfortable setting. Highlight the benefits of their coming: a place for them to strengthen and relax their body, free themselves from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, and grow in creativity.

You may designate specific times of the year for these retreats. Some B&B owners offer weekend yoga retreats. You can put together a yoga retreat package for your guests.

If no one on staff is an expert yoga instructor, you could find a yoga professional in your local area who is willing to conduct these retreats and pay them a reasonable fee per participant.

Be sure to promote your yoga retreats on your website, in your blog, and through social media. You may be attracting a whole new clientele of guests to your inn.

Posted in Activities, Blog and Social Media, Events, Guests, Promotion

Murder Mysteries

Posted on February 6, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

Do you know that you could host a murder at your bed and breakfast? Not a real one of course! Many bed and breakfasts invite guests to participate in a who-did-it type murder mystery.

The variety of murder mystery options include any of the following:

Using written kits with script booklets.
Assigning roles ahead of time and provide each guest with lines.
Some of the murders occur in previous eras such as the 1920′s.
Providing wardrobe options including outfits, hats, and scarves.
Hosting a meal during the mystery.
Having participants look for clues in pairs.
Encouraging guests to take pictures to prove their alibis.
Having your staff act as characters in the mystery.
Spreading the scenes of the mystery out over the weekend.
Solving the mystery in one evening.

Advise your guests:

Arrive in plenty of time to settle in and participate.
If applicable, to bring their scripts.
They can bring clothes and props for their roles (if they know it ahead of time).
Inspire your guests to question or point to others with motive and opportunity.
Assure your guests that you will not let them fall out of character.

You can market your murder mystery weekend(s) on your website, in your blog, on social media, and through your associations. Some bed and breakfast owners even offer a promotion code for guests to get a discount on their room. Your bed and breakfast does not necessarily have to be historical or haunted in order to offer this type of event. The bottom line is that your guests thoroughly enjoy themselves in the process of solving the murder mystery!

Posted in Activities, Blog and Social Media, Events, Promotion

Bed and Breakfast Spas

Posted on January 31, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

French manicure with pink orchid on the white Stock Photos Woman getting facial massage . Royalty Free Stock Photography Beautiful woman in spa salon getting massage Royalty Free Stock Photos

Your guests like to receive special treatment. Your bed and breakfast may have a spa right on the premises to deliver just that. An easy alternative is to schedule massage therapists to visit your guests’ rooms at your bed and breakfast.

Reasons for Spa Services:

Beauty treatments
Cleansing
Detoxification
Exfoliation
Improve complexion, circulation, and flexibility
Relaxation
Relieve aches, pains, and tension
Youthful appearance

Services:

Aromatherapy: relaxing with enjoyable aromas
Facials: including masks, exfoliating scrubs, acne treatments, etc.
Hair removal: waxing any unwanted hair
Manicure: finger nails and hands given royal treatment
Massage: such as deep tissue, Swedish, prenatal, etc.
Pedicure: toe nails and feet given ultimate attention
Sauna: hot and steamy relaxation
Stones: strategically placed stones–hot to relax or cold to heal

Packages include a combination of services done on the same day. Some B&B’s let their guests decide for half day or whole day treatments. They can be pampered all day long! Couples love couples massages. All guests will love receiving care from the outside in!

Posted in Activities, Amenities, Guests, Promotion

Bed and Breakfast Tea Rooms

Posted on January 30, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

Several bed and breakfasts in America have tea rooms. Their tea room can be open to the public or limited to their own bed and breakfast guests. Tea rooms are great for small gatherings and often they serve brunch and lunch. Each tea room has their own hours or they serve “by reservation only.”

Menu options can include:

Croissants
Quiche
Salads
Sandwiches
Scones
Soups
Sweets (like cookies and cakes)
Tea (bottomless usually costs extra)

Hours:

Regular year round hours
Reservation only
Seasonal hours
Sunday brunch

Events:

Baby shower
Birthday party
Bridal shower
Club meeting
Girls’ get together
Group meeting
Private parties

Some sell items such as:

Antiques
Jewelry
Tea
Tea cups
Tea pots

Marketing opportunities:

Blog: great fresh content for your website
E-mail marketing: send out information to those on your e-mail list
Photos of your bed and breakfast, tea room, food, and guests (with their permission)
Social media: Facebook fan page, Pinterest pins, Twitter updates, etc.
Website: you can have one of your main headings labeled “Tea Room”

When thinking of ways to increase your business, if you do not already have a tea room, this could be a great idea. For those who do have tea rooms, are you promoting them online? Kristi Dement of Bed and Breakfast Blogging is happy to help you with this.

Posted in Activities, Amenities, Food, Kristi, Promotion

B&B Guests: Sports Spectators

Posted on January 26, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

Basketball Tournament Royalty Free Stock Image Golf Professional Stephen Gallacher Royalty Free Stock Photography NASCAR - Neck and Neck Racing! Royalty Free Stock Photography

Your bed and breakfast guests could be staying with you because of local area tournaments and games or even major sporting events like hockey or racing in a nearby stadium. Your guests may not play the particular sport, but they sure do enjoy watching it live and in person.

You can offer tickets to local sporting events and tournaments as part of a sports spectators package. Your sports package entices more guests to visit your bed and breakfast. You can even offer extras such as T-shirts and sweatshirts with your bed and breakfast’s name on it. They could even be seen wearing your B&B’s apparel at the televised sporting event they attend!

Posted in Activities, Guests, Promotion

B&B Guests: Sight Seers

Posted on January 24, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

If your bed and breakfast is near a major tourist attraction like the Grand Canyon or even a college campus, you will have guests who want to visit them. You can find out from local college campus when certain events, like Parents Weekend, are being held.

Knowing , for example, that Grand Canyon National Park may have some free dates of admission (or more importantly, the facts about the attractions near you) can help you plan and promote your bed and breakfast marketing.

Remember that your website, blog, and social media presence are a big part of getting the word out to potential guests and will lead to more booked rooms!

Posted in Activities, Events, Guests, Promotion

B&B Guests: Shoppers and Antique Lovers

Posted on January 23, 2014 by kdement Leave a comment

Group of female shoppers Royalty Free Stock Photo Shopping mall Stock Image Stamps Royalty Free Stock Photos

Some guests visit your bed and breakfast because of the terrific shopping available in your area. Whether it is special boutiques, retail outlets, flea markets, or antique dealers, their mission is to find some great buys. Some come as collectors to attend conventions for valuable items such as stamps, dolls, and cars. Whatever their reason, your website and blog can promote these opportunities and events.

Posted in Activities, Events, Guests, Promotion

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