The Bed and Breakfast Experience
A Bed and Breakfast experience can
offer many of the features of a quality hotel, with the added pleasure
of making instant friends within a homey atmosphere in a new place.
What are B&Bs?
A B&B differs from a hotel in
that the innkeeper generally owns the property or at least resides
there. A property with six guest rooms is generally considered a
maximum to be considered as a bed and breakfast, rather than an Inn.
Most often B&B's will have only two or three guest rooms, and the
the hosts are able to provide very personal attention and a home-like
atmosphere.
Some large inns and even larger
hotels offer breakfast and advertise as themselves as a "B&B", but
an authentic B&B experience is one where you are guests in the
owner/operators home.
Successful B&Bs each have many
unique features, but all have one thing in common: the owners like
people and enjoy hosting travelers from around the world in their home.
Breakfasts
Most B&Bs are allowed to serve
only breakfast. Some serve a "Continental" breakfast, which consists of
coffee, juice and a choice of breads and pastries. Most serve a full
breakfast, including fruits, cereals, eggs and/or meat, breads, juice,
and coffee. To ensure that a B&B matches your food preferences, it
is always best to look for details about the kind of breakfast served
on the website of any bed and breakfast at which you are planning to
stay.
Bed and Breakfasts: choosing
the right one
When viewing a bed and breakfast's
website look for previous guests' comments, pictures of the B&B and
it's rooms and information on their rates and policies. Talk to the
B&B hosts before making reservations. Since you will be living in
their home it is important that you feel comfortable with the hosts
from your first telephone contact.
Smoking, pets and children are
always something that must be confirmed in advance. As most B&Bs
are run solely by the owners, and do not have a 24 hour staffed
"check-in desk", it is important to be aware of the check in and check
out times. Operators need time to clean rooms, go grocery shopping, do
their bookkeeping, sewing, minor repairs, etc. Avoid surprises for
yourself and your innkeeper by determining check-in times in advance.
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