Category Archives: Activities

Autumn Colors and Fall Foliage

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New England Fall Foliage

(photo above courtesy BedandBreakfast.com)

The autumn colors and fall foliage at bed and breakfasts can be remarkably beautiful to take in this time of year.  We would like to feature one B&B known for this season’s splendor, the appropriately named The Maple Leaf Inn of Barnard, Vermont.  They are ten miles north of Woodstock, Vermont on a beautiful lake.  It is an elegant Victorian style farmhouse nestled within sixteen acres of maple and birch trees.

The friendly owners, Nancy and Mike Boyle, welcome you to come anytime of the year since they are open year round.  In fact, four of their bedrooms are named after the four seasons: Autumn Woods, Winter Haven, Spring Hollow, and Summer Retreat.  They have seven guest bedrooms (six are pictured below) that are spacious and luxurious with all of the mattresses recently upgraded to king-size pillow top mattresses.  Five of the rooms have wood-burning fireplaces and four of the rooms have whirlpool tubs.

Autumn Woods Room                                                 Winter Haven Room

Spring Hollow Room                                                   Summer Retreat Room

Country Garden Room                                                 Morning Glory Room

Guests love the special and delicious three-course gourmet breakfasts at The Maple Leaf Inn.

A breakfast pizza on a white plate topped with fresh tomatoes, ham and an egg.Blueberry scones on a white plate with sliced strawberries and small jar of jam.

After enjoying a hearty breakfast each morning, guests can just relax or enjoy a variety of fun activities in their local area:

  • driving tours and hiking tours (especially beautiful in the fall)
  • golfing
  • biking
  • horseback riding
  • fishing
  • boating
  • winter activities like cross country skiing, ice skating, downhill skiing, and snowmobile riding

The anniversary package with yellow roses, chocolates, champagne and flutes.Romance package with red roses, champagne and flutes and Vermont chocolates.

The Maple Leaf Inn offers Special Occasion Packages for romance, birthdays, and anniversaries.  The packages include some of the following:

  • choice of champagne, wine, or sparkling cider in your room upon arrival
  • two Maple Leaf Inn keepsake glasses
  • a single rose bud, a bouquet of fresh flowers in a vase, or long-stemmed roses
  • a box of Vermont chocolates
  • a personalized Maple Leaf Inn birthday cake

Between the two of them, Nancy and Mike speak the following languages: English, Russian, German, and Italian. They enjoy conversations with guests from all over the world. Now is the perfect time to enjoy a fall vacation.  If you need to hire an interim innkeeper for your bed and breakfast, you should.  Nancy and Mike welcome everyone to their lovely and quiet inn set in a scenic area with lots of fun activities.  See them talk about The Maple Leaf Inn in the video below.

Posted in Activities, Guests

Fun Bed and Breakfast Retreats

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fun-bed-and-breakfast-retreats

I went online to BnB Finder to search for bed and breakfasts and to my pleasant surprise, I found some fun bed and breakfast retreats.  These retreats include a board game tournament, a night walk, private art classes, and a literary weekend.  Typically, most bed and breakfasts do not offer these kinds of special retreats which makes these bed and breakfasts all the more attractive. Read on for more retreat ideas that you can apply to grow your own B&B business.

In Saugatuck, Michigan (near where I grew up in Holland, Michigan) at Sherwood Forest Bed and Breakfast they offer a Monopoly Tournament from November through April.  If the entire B&B is booked, they promise to organize the “hippest” Monopoly Tournament ever played! The winner receives a complete set of Sherwood Forest Gear.  Lunch will be catered. This offer may expire at the end of this year.  Call for details at 800-838-1246. This reminds me of my Pinterest Board called Bed and Breakfast Games which features different board games and game rooms at various bed and breakfasts.

In the Saratoga Region of New York at Mariaville Lake Bed and Breakfast, they offer a Night Walk for a small extra fee.  This B&B invites guests to take a walk, guided by the innkeeper, to experience the full night sky. Guests will use a night vision scope and will be amazed at what they can see such as beavers working hard at their famous beaver pond. Advance notice is required and subject to availability and weather conditions. The offer may expire at the end of this year.  Contact the innkeeper for more details.

In the Hudson Valley Region of New York, at the Pine Bush House, they offer Stay and Paint private art classes with local artist Lana Privitera.  Originally from Spain, Lana graduated from the Fine Arts School of Zaragoza, where she majored in Fashion Design and Art History. Lana has won numerous art awards.  She is the current Art Curator for the Pine Bush Public Library.  A sampling of her work can be found on her website.

Currently, there are one day and two day Watercolor Workshops (four hours each) available and all tailored to suit individual needs, taste, and ability.  Supplies loaned by the instructor, but guests have the opportunity to purchase.  Guests receive one FREE double white mat and backing piece (plus an acetate sleeve to protect their “masterpiece”).  A list of art material suppliers as well as recommended art books will be provided.

Contact Lana Privitera at lanaprivitera@gmail.com or Barbara at barbara@pinebushhouse.com for detailed pricing! Discounts available if staying two or more nights.  This opportunity is available at least through June 20, 2015.

In lovely Vermont, The Governor’s House in Hyde Park offers Jane Austen Weekends full of literary-inspired diversions.  Quietly slip back into Regency England in a beautiful historic mansion.  Take afternoon tea.  Share your thoughts at a book discussion.  Attend an informal talk over desserts. Test your knowledge at the quiz brunch and possibly take home a prize.

Take a carriage ride or sleigh ride (depending upon the season).  Join every activity or simply spend the weekend watching the movies. Try English country dancing. Dress in whichever century suits you. Jane Austen fans unite!

Examples of bed and breakfast retreats, special packages, and events include:

Innkeepers are only limited by their imagination.  So get creative and think about what you have passion for. What interests, skills, experience, and talents do you have?  Innkeepers do not have to be the instructors.  In the Stay and Paint retreat example, the innkeeper has a professional artist and art curator coming to her inn. Arrangements can be made with the experts hosting the event if they are not the bed and breakfast owners or innkeepers.

If you are a bed and breakfast owner or innkeeper and have been successful with a particular retreat, package, excursion, or other event at your B&B, I would love to know about it.  Write about your successes to Kristi Dement below.  I promise to read every comment and reply when appropriate.

 

Image by Marcus Berg of Unique Angles Photography

Posted in Activities, Events

Mike’s Road Trip To B&B’s

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Mike's Road TripMike Shubic

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

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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

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wine-lovers-bed-and-breakfasts

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!

 

Image by Marcus Berg of Unique Angles Photography

Posted in Activities, Food, Guests, Promotion

Awesome Yoga Retreats

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awesome-yoga-retreats

Does your bed and breakfast offer awesome 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.

 

Image by Marcus Berg of Unique Angles Photography

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

Murder Mysteries

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murder-mysteries

Do you know that you could host murder mysteries at your bed and breakfast?  Not real ones 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 providing 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 historic 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!

 

Image by Marcus Berg of Unique Angles Photography

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

Bed and Breakfast Spas

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bed-and-breakfast-spas

Your guests like to receive special treatment.  Bed and Breakfast Spas deliver just that.  If your B&B does not have a spa, an easy alternative involves scheduling 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!

 

Image by Marcus Berg of Unique Angles Photography

Posted in Activities, Amenities, Guests, Promotion

Bed and Breakfast Tea Rooms

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bed-and-breakfast-tea-rooms

There are several bed and breakfast tea rooms in America.  Tea rooms 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.

 

Image by Marcus Berg of Unique Angles Photography

Posted in Activities, Amenities, Food, Kristi, Promotion

B&B Guests: Sports Spectators

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bb-guests-sports-spectators

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!

 

Image by Marcus Berg of Unique Angles Photography

Posted in Activities, Guests, Promotion
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