What are b&bs shit at?

Does he have much experience at running a b&b OP? Or has he done the thing often seen on the Hotel Inspector of taking this on with no experience?

Another who thinks really lean into the grey pound. The poster who suggested things like afternoon tea offer is a good one. I used to work in the tourism sector and worked with a lot of coach companies (I worked for a tourist attraction). The grey pound, (particularly the coach trip grey pound) likes experiences tied in with holiday, so the coach companies would advertise "3 day trip to x, tea and coffee and cake on arrival at Z hotel, bed, breakfast and evening meal at Z hotel, day ticket to A on y day". Quite a few of the smaller boutique bnbs and hotels did similar things too.

Coach companies like to fill their coaches, so they generally want somewhere with about 30 rooms (assumption that coach is a 62 seater and most of the people travelling are in couples/ sharing with a friend). This allows 1 drop off and pick up location. This is especially the case if the day ticket to A requires a pick up and drop off. Although coach companies generally pick a day trip that is walkable so the coach doesn't have to hang around.

What I would do is try and get in with travel agents around 90mins to 2 hours drive away. If they can get a package together that would be great. Perhaps speak to local tourism venues and see if there are any deals. For example where I worked you could get a multi attraction ticket if you purchased through the local visitor centre. I know one of the small local boutique hotels (6 rooms) would do stay at their hotel, coffee and cake on arrival, visitor centre multi ticket for x and y attraction, then they would do an afternoon tea one afternoon and bundle it as a "mid week getaway".

Also make sure the website is clear, easy to use and have instant booking available but also a phone line to ring and book.

I would try and steer away from contractors, they often want rock bottom prices, self catering options and in some cases are not the cleanest or most considerate guests.

The website needs to be his priority.

You have shared a link in here and constantly say it's different, it's better, it's not a true reflection.

The website is awful. No one would book based on that and then if the guest house is genuinely better than what is shown he is losing potential customers.

He needs the website, Facebook, etc all working and now. It's Easter weekend, schools have been off and people may have looked and scrolled on by.

As the kids go back retired people are looking for a few days away as the sun starts to come out. He is literally losing customers every day the website it poor

The first step of getting any booking is online. People don't turn up looking for vacancies any more

We watch the Hotel Inspector.too. lots of ideas he could take from that about making rooms more attractive, making money with a coffee machine.

I wouldn't consider a monitor for children in bed and parents downstairs. Does he have a license to sell alcohol? I don't know any parent that would leave their kids in this way.

Some retired people like entertainment - maybe a bingo or a quiz or similar. If they are traveling alone they need company.

Google maps does him no favours either. Not one space for a car outside, the parking looks crammed. No parent wants to be driving up and down praying for a space to become free, then potentially walking a distance to then navigate those front steps with a buggy.

Clean and nice decor shows me the owner is serious about maintaining their property and looks after it. It doesn't need to be modern but it needs to be fresh and suit the property even if that's a vintage style.

Warm hosts is a nice thing. And a good breakfast is my favourite part of staying away.

Comfy beds with spare pillows and blankets in the room for you to use if you need them.

Things I've appreciated staying with ds before- one place provided a little pop up play pen in the room (lone parent so this was helpful for showering). One place left a little soft towel and bath/shower goodies for children in a little gift basket which ds was delighted by. Child friendly options on the menu that aren't just chips and [insert frozen food here]. I get why these are crowd pleasers but ds is a good eater and the last time we went away I found it really difficult to find a kids menu that included a vegetable.

Having a kettle and fridge in the room is always really useful.

Information in the rooms of things to do nearby and some bnbs near me have agreements with some local attractions and will give a do a discount on tickets.

Somewhere to play outside, secure and with some kids toys/ swing/ slide.

If he's hosting families then it means he needs to be thinking about how soundproofed the rooms can be. Last time we stayed away the guests in the room next to us were up chatting and laughing until 3am. They weren't excessively loud but the walls were obviously thin which made it hard for me and ds to sleep. Similarly I wouldn't want to be next door to a crying baby.

Is it worth him doing local surveying of tourists - do they want dog friendly, no dogs, family friendly, child free etc to see what the market actually is.

Does he do any entertainment or specialist hosting?

A quick glance at the booking dot com reviews suggest he is a bit arsey in replies to people who leave (very mild, considering the 4.9 overall rating) criticism. No one can be bothered with bolshy comebacks, so he might be giving off a 'difficult' vibe which doesn't chime with 'relaxing holiday'.

I know it is Chemenger, you're absolutely right. I'm speaking from 10 years experience in the business, with an AA 4* B+B. You couldn't pay me enough to set up and promote a 'family friendly' B+B. Plastic plates... access to a kitchen... toys in the garden... over my dead body. 😂
We had lovely clean rooms, all en-suite, nice toiletries, white bedding and towels, comfortable seating in the rooms, a lovely garden with seating, no hen or stag parties. If a wedding party wanted to book they had to take the whole place. We had great occupancy rates as a result.

Op - if you are using this as market research for your friend, maybe just bear in mind that the mums here are telling you what they would like from a child-friendly B+B, not suggesting things that would bring in more income for your mate.

There isn't a great demand for child-friendly B+B's - that's why you don't see a load of adverts for them.

Advertising a child-friendly B+B is going to put a lot of potential customers off booking. People like B+B's to be relaxed, peaceful places where they get a great night's sleep and a wonderful breakfast.
Even if your friend were to uncover an amazing source of families who would use the B+B - they will mostly use them during the schoool holidays. So what would happen during term time? Older people, people working away from home etc will be put off the place by the child friendly advertising and book elsewhere.
Look at who use B+B's most and concentrate on making the place attractive to them.

I keep reading the title of this thread as “what are babies shit at?” and thinking “most things, but cut them some slack, eh” 😭

He’s competing with literally hundreds of hotels and b&bs within 1 square mile. Plus travelodge and premier inn came a couple of years ago so it’s a tricky place.

BUT

he could

do some deals with the snow centre, tram, cable cars, magic bar, mini train, parisellas ice cream for free tickets for his guests.

some kind of shuttle service to bodnant garden / snowdonia / zip world if he owns a mini bus

american’ type breakfasts for kids - waffles, pancakes, fruit etc as an alternative to fry ups.

He needs to make sure he has really good photos on his website, modern furniture and stays himself in some of the successful b&bs and takes notes

Yes! Those giant connect four games.

Rather than what’s bad about b&bs, the thing I love and that should be promoted IMO, is (if he does this), no buffet breakfast, cooked to order breakfast, so you can say things like “fried egg but well done”

He needs to do a bit of customer research among local visitors. While 'kid friendly' might attract families, they will tend to be mainly booking during the holidays. However, speaking for myself, I would never book anywhere promoted as 'kid friendly' regardless of whether I wanted to stay in the holidays or not. I wouldn't even pause to think about it, I'd just scroll by. So he could be reducing the number of bookings he would get during term time.
P.S. I used to run a 4* B+B with several staff. We all much prefered 'older' customers to families of kids. Far less trouble and less likely to disturb other guests during the night. Bottom line is that you want the rooms fully occupied. I suspect that in this location your friend would do much better by targetting a slightly older market. Also think about people who might be working in the area weekdays.

If he’s going to aim for families then I’d probably suggest ones with older kids.

I have small children and wouldn’t choose a BnB because evening meals are tricky.
The children want to eat early and then go to bed, so either a hotel where we can get room service/eat in or self catering work better for us.
With small children it’s also really helpful to have basic laundry facilities available (either a washing machine in self-catering or a laundry service in a hotel). I also look for somewhere with a fridge in the room for storing pumped breast milk and toddler snacks/milk/juice.
BnBs also don’t tend to work for us because they’re usually a single room which means we have to sit silently in the dark from 7pm when the kids go to bed and everyone gets woken up in the night if the baby wakes up.

I don’t want to be negative, but I would seriously consider whether aiming at a family market is his best option. Especially because it would probably put off his older guests and adults without kids.

If he really wants to aim for the family market I’d suggest:

• Really good blackout curtains in the rooms
• Simple child friendly breakfast options
• Child equipment that is high quality and in excellent condition (with pictures available on the website so you know the travel cot isn’t a manky, death trap)
• Communal areas and rooms that are simple, hardwearing, clean and safe (I don’t want to spend my whole holiday trying to stop my child fiddling with delicate nicknacks or trying to navigate the pushchair around a load of cluttered furniture)
• I’d definitely be more likely to book somewhere with a nice outdoor space where they can play (again, safe and good condition toys/equipment)
• Decent soundproofing between rooms (I don’t want my kids woken up by a hen party coming in at 3am, and other guests probably don’t want to be woken up by my toddler having a tantrum because I won’t let him watch Paw Patrol at 5am 😂)

The Hotel Inspector also did an episode a few years ago based on exactly the OP'S premise: making a B & B more family friendly.

He’s not getting many bookings and those he gets are generally elderly
What's wrong with elderly guests?😒 I bet they are a lot less trouble than having to toddler-proof your B&B.

Another one with young children who wouldn't book a BnB. We tend to book self catering caravan or holiday cottage.

I book self catering cottages and caravans for the space, the kitchen, the fact that we can put the children to bed in a separate bedroom and not have to sit in the dark/ in silence. Not having to worry about cleaners in the room or feeling like we have to be out most of the day.

I need flexibility for meals. DD is a picky eater and a grazer. Sometimes all she wants for tea are simple bits like toast and beans, spaghetti hoops, sandwiches and fruit and veg sticks ect, all which can be made at home for 1/10 of the price of going to a cafe and can't be made in a BnB without a kitchenette. I also need somewhere and somehow to wash and sterilise baby bottles. DD drinks milk at bedtime still and doesn't like UHT milk.

A separate bedroom is a huge help as otherwise the children go to bed at 8 and me and DH have to sit in the dark/ in silence and even then because we are there DC do not sleep and instead find 30000000 reasons to stop up longer. Many bnbs cram the beds in 1 room, no- one sleeps well because every time someone goes to the toilet the whole room is disturbed, DD will get up at 5 (really not other guest friendly) and put the TV on or start crashing about with toys - again waking everyone up. Then be raring for breakfast at 6 - again not BnB friendly.

Then there is the cleaning/ room service aspect where most bnbs expect you to have breakfast and then be out for the from around 11am so turn rooms round. My youngest naps at 11.30 till 1 and then 4-5. Sometimes if they get up early they nap 9-11 so we are often in the room. Eldest is then often stuck in with cabin fever whilst youngest naps, we usually book either a beach side family hotel or a caravan on a caravan site so DD can go to the park/ beach to burn off some steam whilst youngest naps.

Similarly space, BnB family rooms are generally cramped so play space is limited.

Personally I would advise your friend to stick to the adult market. Look at what everyone else is doing, serve food quality nice breakfasts, if they want to stand out go quirky but adult focused.