Inns Magazine Issue 5 Vol. 17 2013 Winter Luxury Issue | Page 5

As some of you may know that I own a B&B and at it my husband and I host small weddings. In early December we hosted a wedding for 17 in our 1850 log home, we are becoming popular for these small gatherings.

It was a grand affair that included lots of decorating, lights and joy that went into making the occasion very special. Part of it I am sure is the log-setting which is a perfect backdrop for a winter wedding. The couple wanted to invite immediate family only, which translated into 13 adults and 4 children, a nice size. This was probably our 20th wedding and each one is unique and very special just like the people who come to be married here. I was overly excited about this one, as it was our first Christmas/winter wedding. The bride and groom were so happy, the ceremony and dinner and dessert were fantastic. Afterwards I sat in the living room where they got married and sat for a few minutes and let the importance of the day replay in my mind. I thought boy these people instilled a lot of faith in me, a B&B owner that created a memorable day for them, to me it was an incredible honor!

It struck me as to the role each of one of us as owners plays in our businesses and why people come to a bed and breakfast these days as it really varies. Today B&Bs are more of an intimate way of travel with caring hosts situated in unique places and offer an amazing breakfast each morning. What we don’t always know is that our guests to come to us for different reasons. Some of it is straight forward that we see in the reservation notes, anniversaries, honeymoons, birthdays, babymoons and so forth. But not every guest will tell you why they are coming and that’s ok but for some the getaway isn’t always transparent. For instance, a couple might come who needs time away to deal with a stressed relationship or another one might be a couple has been diagnosed with a serious illness and they want to get away before treatment begins, or even girlfriends come together as one is getting divorced and needs time out to be with her best friend. There are many reasons and no matter what, we all have to treat each guest as special as the next. For some of these guests their trip to a B&B means more than most. I never really stopped to think about the importance of what we do, and the roles we play in people’s lives’ that is so important. So you know the old saying about how in life we should assume the rolee of a teacher at times as well as a priest and a policeman well we should add another, a bed and breakfast owner and that may be all the above wrapped into one!

editors note

The Important role of an

Innkeeper