Which part of ......?

[agoodman]

I agree 100%

... I am not sure if you were misunderstanding my post, but I was referring to the statement that they would only call if they were not going to make it at the expected time. I am VERY flexible on my check in times, more than most much to the horror of some Innkeepers here that feel that "Inns like mine" make it bad for everyone else.
Gawd I would like to think "we" had such influence .... If I am home and the room is ready I check the guest in. I have NEVER had an issue. I have NEVER had a guest "expecting" a room at 7am / 8am / 9am / 10am. If I have an early check in request they are advised of check in time, they are advised they can "check in" and use the facilities but cannot "guarantee" before 2
I know many of you will "jump on me" and you say you have Guests "expecting" to get into their rooms early, again I have never had an issue. I think it depends on the type of Inn, the type of guests (families?) the proximity of the Inn to local attractions that guests may be coming to, the reason for the visit (wedding, need to get ready ..) so EACH TO HIS OWN as I always say but I have NEVER NOT ONCE had a guest "demanding" or even "expecting" an early room.
I am laughing cause today's arr called me at 1 and said they would here in an hour, I said "great see you then" and they said "oh you mean the room is ready for us to check in?" as if they had been made to wait at other places.

 

[Breakfast Diva]

I agree 100%

... I am not sure if you were misunderstanding my post, but I was referring to the statement that they would only call if they were not going to make it at the expected time. I am VERY flexible on my check in times, more than most much to the horror of some Innkeepers here that feel that "Inns like mine" make it bad for everyone else.
Gawd I would like to think "we" had such influence .... If I am home and the room is ready I check the guest in. I have NEVER had an issue. I have NEVER had a guest "expecting" a room at 7am / 8am / 9am / 10am. If I have an early check in request they are advised of check in time, they are advised they can "check in" and use the facilities but cannot "guarantee" before 2
I know many of you will "jump on me" and you say you have Guests "expecting" to get into their rooms early, again I have never had an issue. I think it depends on the type of Inn, the type of guests (families?) the proximity of the Inn to local attractions that guests may be coming to, the reason for the visit (wedding, need to get ready ..) so EACH TO HIS OWN as I always say but I have NEVER NOT ONCE had a guest "demanding" or even "expecting" an early room.
I am laughing cause today's arr called me at 1 and said they would here in an hour, I said "great see you then" and they said "oh you mean the room is ready for us to check in?" as if they had been made to wait at other places..

nope, I think I understood what you were saying. I would want to call ONLY if I were going to be late.

 

[agoodman]

ah ok my issue with that is the following: Guest says I will be arriving between 2 and 6 pm, at 5.30 guest calls and says "oh I am running about an hour late" (or in the case of Don he is not sure how far out he is so it may be 2-3 hours ... only kidding Don) so you have waited all that time when you could have been going to the store, the PO etc. Again I am not saying any one way is wrong, just being devils advocate here

 

[Breakfast Diva]

ah ok my issue with that is the following: Guest says I will be arriving between 2 and 6 pm, at 5.30 guest calls and says "oh I am running about an hour late" (or in the case of Don he is not sure how far out he is so it may be 2-3 hours ... only kidding Don) so you have waited all that time when you could have been going to the store, the PO etc. Again I am not saying any one way is wrong, just being devils advocate here

.

ah ok my issue with that is the following: Guest says I will be arriving between 2 and 6 pm, at 5.30 guest calls and says "oh I am running about an hour late" (or in the case of Don he is not sure how far out he is so it may be 2-3 hours ... only kidding Don) so you have waited all that time when you could have been going to the store, the PO etc. Again I am not saying any one way is wrong, just being devils advocate here

Yes, and I moan, groan and complain about it all the time as I'm waiting. It's one of the worst parts of innkeeping....hurry up and wait. Where we differ in our approach is that I don't want the burden to be put on the guest or make them resent that they chose to stay at a b&b instead of a hotel because they feel like they're being micro-managed or that they feel guilty that they have inconvenienced us.
The reason a lot of us don't accept early arrivals is that we take that time between cleaning after check-out and 3:00 to run to the store and back. Sometimes, that's the only time you can do it. I do get really irritated when I rush to get back and then they don't show up until late, but again, it goes with the territory.
To paraphrase JB, get over it....it's just part of the job description.

 

[gillumhouse]

ah ok my issue with that is the following: Guest says I will be arriving between 2 and 6 pm, at 5.30 guest calls and says "oh I am running about an hour late" (or in the case of Don he is not sure how far out he is so it may be 2-3 hours ... only kidding Don) so you have waited all that time when you could have been going to the store, the PO etc. Again I am not saying any one way is wrong, just being devils advocate here

.

ah ok my issue with that is the following: Guest says I will be arriving between 2 and 6 pm, at 5.30 guest calls and says "oh I am running about an hour late" (or in the case of Don he is not sure how far out he is so it may be 2-3 hours ... only kidding Don) so you have waited all that time when you could have been going to the store, the PO etc. Again I am not saying any one way is wrong, just being devils advocate here

Yes, and I moan, groan and complain about it all the time as I'm waiting. It's one of the worst parts of innkeeping....hurry up and wait. Where we differ in our approach is that I don't want the burden to be put on the guest or make them resent that they chose to stay at a b&b instead of a hotel because they feel like they're being micro-managed or that they feel guilty that they have inconvenienced us.
The reason a lot of us don't accept early arrivals is that we take that time between cleaning after check-out and 3:00 to run to the store and back. Sometimes, that's the only time you can do it. I do get really irritated when I rush to get back and then they don't show up until late, but again, it goes with the territory.
To paraphrase JB, get over it....it's just part of the job description.
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Let's face it, if we want them to arrive, just go to the bathroom or pop out for a quick errand. Works almost every time!

 

[Alibi Ike]

ah ok my issue with that is the following: Guest says I will be arriving between 2 and 6 pm, at 5.30 guest calls and says "oh I am running about an hour late" (or in the case of Don he is not sure how far out he is so it may be 2-3 hours ... only kidding Don) so you have waited all that time when you could have been going to the store, the PO etc. Again I am not saying any one way is wrong, just being devils advocate here

.

ah ok my issue with that is the following: Guest says I will be arriving between 2 and 6 pm, at 5.30 guest calls and says "oh I am running about an hour late" (or in the case of Don he is not sure how far out he is so it may be 2-3 hours ... only kidding Don) so you have waited all that time when you could have been going to the store, the PO etc. Again I am not saying any one way is wrong, just being devils advocate here

Yes, and I moan, groan and complain about it all the time as I'm waiting. It's one of the worst parts of innkeeping....hurry up and wait. Where we differ in our approach is that I don't want the burden to be put on the guest or make them resent that they chose to stay at a b&b instead of a hotel because they feel like they're being micro-managed or that they feel guilty that they have inconvenienced us.
The reason a lot of us don't accept early arrivals is that we take that time between cleaning after check-out and 3:00 to run to the store and back. Sometimes, that's the only time you can do it. I do get really irritated when I rush to get back and then they don't show up until late, but again, it goes with the territory.
To paraphrase JB, get over it....it's just part of the job description.
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Yes, and I moan, groan and complain about it all the time as I'm waiting. It's one of the worst parts of innkeeping....hurry up and wait.

This is why, in our minds anyway, between 3-7 is 'guest check-in time'. We don't plan to do anything that takes both of us off the property at this time. If it's not done prior to 3 PM, it waits until after. If the guest is now going to be after 7 PM, they do a self check-in. We explain this on the phone when they call and it's in the mostly unread policies.
It's a newish plan but it worked well last year. But it does absolutely mean no unnanounced early check-ins. That sweet spot between 'cleaning is done' and 'guest check-in' is ONE hour. And it's mine. There is not a single guest who understands this because I'm here. Why the hell can't I put down the box of bon bons and let them in???

 

[JBloggs]

See that is the whole thing, sure right now I have one room booked in and it is not difficult (but we are working upstairs on maintenance issues and were up til midnight putting new artwork up and door knobs back on etc), then vacuuming and re-cleaning the rooms we used while painting...and moved everything to another room for that new job today...
okay what was I saying? Oh yeah, see that is the thing, everything IS DONE for check in, NOT BEFORE. There are days when I cannot EVEN GET THE ROOMS FLIPPED in time for check in, so I cannot answer the phone, I am surely not waiting around for them to call and give me an ETA. I barely wipe the sweat off and put on something more presentable for check in "TIME."
I wonder if I am just way slower than most at cleaning and flipping rooms...I mean it takes it ALL OUT OF ME. I do not have extra. Thinking about making dinner and that laundry that is going 8am to 9pm every single day for months...

 

[Alibi Ike]

See that is the whole thing, sure right now I have one room booked in and it is not difficult (but we are working upstairs on maintenance issues and were up til midnight putting new artwork up and door knobs back on etc), then vacuuming and re-cleaning the rooms we used while painting...and moved everything to another room for that new job today...
okay what was I saying? Oh yeah, see that is the thing, everything IS DONE for check in, NOT BEFORE. There are days when I cannot EVEN GET THE ROOMS FLIPPED in time for check in, so I cannot answer the phone, I am surely not waiting around for them to call and give me an ETA. I barely wipe the sweat off and put on something more presentable for check in "TIME."
I wonder if I am just way slower than most at cleaning and flipping rooms...I mean it takes it ALL OUT OF ME. I do not have extra. Thinking about making dinner and that laundry that is going 8am to 9pm every single day for months....

It's not just you. It's most of us. I was just thinking last night how much more effort my partner puts in than I do. He goes straight from 5:30 AM to around 6 PM. He sits down to have lunch when the rooms are cleaned and then gets up to do some laundry and shopping and then sits down again around 6. I do a lot more sitting with answering the phone and waiting for guests, but he goes non-stop.
It takes two of us, working non-stop, 4 hours to flip all the rooms. If we have to answer the phone or the door it sets us back at least 20 minutes. And I don't want to answer the door with sweat pouring off me, all flushed and with dirty sheets in my hands. I cannot will myself to smile.

 

[Morticia]

See that is the whole thing, sure right now I have one room booked in and it is not difficult (but we are working upstairs on maintenance issues and were up til midnight putting new artwork up and door knobs back on etc), then vacuuming and re-cleaning the rooms we used while painting...and moved everything to another room for that new job today...
okay what was I saying? Oh yeah, see that is the thing, everything IS DONE for check in, NOT BEFORE. There are days when I cannot EVEN GET THE ROOMS FLIPPED in time for check in, so I cannot answer the phone, I am surely not waiting around for them to call and give me an ETA. I barely wipe the sweat off and put on something more presentable for check in "TIME."
I wonder if I am just way slower than most at cleaning and flipping rooms...I mean it takes it ALL OUT OF ME. I do not have extra. Thinking about making dinner and that laundry that is going 8am to 9pm every single day for months....

Everyone knows my fishbowl of a dining room that people peering in the door can see us moving around and how I've hidden when someone rings the bell. You'll all be proud! We bought a new door that has blinds built in. I can snap those puppies shut and clean at will.
It takes us 3-4 hours to clean 7 rooms and we are beat when we're done. If you figure most days we try to start before 11, it isn't always that bad. But a lot of days we can't start until after 11 and we're frantic at 2 PM because the doorbell has been ringing for at least 2 hours at that point. Many of those guests call us from the door when the ringing hasn't produced anyone. (Even with the sign, Catlady, even with the sign!)
Having guests calling us at 10 AM to say they're an hour away would not alleviate the stress at all. I think doing that (calling ahead) gives them the impression it is then fine to check-in when they arrive at 11 AM. Why else would I want them to call other than so I'm ready for them?

 

[gillumhouse]

See that is the whole thing, sure right now I have one room booked in and it is not difficult (but we are working upstairs on maintenance issues and were up til midnight putting new artwork up and door knobs back on etc), then vacuuming and re-cleaning the rooms we used while painting...and moved everything to another room for that new job today...
okay what was I saying? Oh yeah, see that is the thing, everything IS DONE for check in, NOT BEFORE. There are days when I cannot EVEN GET THE ROOMS FLIPPED in time for check in, so I cannot answer the phone, I am surely not waiting around for them to call and give me an ETA. I barely wipe the sweat off and put on something more presentable for check in "TIME."
I wonder if I am just way slower than most at cleaning and flipping rooms...I mean it takes it ALL OUT OF ME. I do not have extra. Thinking about making dinner and that laundry that is going 8am to 9pm every single day for months....

Everyone knows my fishbowl of a dining room that people peering in the door can see us moving around and how I've hidden when someone rings the bell. You'll all be proud! We bought a new door that has blinds built in. I can snap those puppies shut and clean at will.
It takes us 3-4 hours to clean 7 rooms and we are beat when we're done. If you figure most days we try to start before 11, it isn't always that bad. But a lot of days we can't start until after 11 and we're frantic at 2 PM because the doorbell has been ringing for at least 2 hours at that point. Many of those guests call us from the door when the ringing hasn't produced anyone. (Even with the sign, Catlady, even with the sign!)
Having guests calling us at 10 AM to say they're an hour away would not alleviate the stress at all. I think doing that (calling ahead) gives them the impression it is then fine to check-in when they arrive at 11 AM. Why else would I want them to call other than so I'm ready for them?
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People in town look at this building as my home - they forget it is a business and come over ehenever they need to. (Sometimes it is to c0-sign a check for one of the organizations I am in or the lady I give knitting lessons to) On the flip side of that, when I was in SC a lady did not see the car for a few days and called to see if all was OK and a phone with too much busy signal got DH checked on by the PD with a simple text message to the right person.
When my door gets knocked on, we cannot NOT answer. Unfortunately, it usually is NOT a guest.

 

[Don Draper]

and if you are "not going to make it" do you just expect that the Innkeeper should now change THEIR plans because yours have changed?? I would consider that very inconsiderate especially since you know what its like to have waited around and / or planned their day around you.
and I should probably add that since you are "large" you probably have more staff than most of us do which gives you a little more flexibility in being able to change plans.

Sorry, think I may have missed something in my original post, but I would definitely let the innkeeper know WELL ahead of the arrival time if we would not be there during the expected check-in time (like probably the DAY ahead). I was just pointing out that I would find it an inconvenience to be made to call "an hour out"...I would probably forget, or would have no clue when I was actually an hour away. I am on vacation and want to be able to have no schedule.
We are blessed with housekeepers to do our daily cleaning but other than that have zero staff for anything else. So we are in fact very well-versed in the excruciating WAITING for 9 rooms to check in every day, and being subjected to the whims of travel of those same folks. We have learned to adapt by simply NOT making any plans during our check-in hours, so we don't need to change them. We schedule everything for after 6 pm.
I'm certainly curious as to why my posts in particular seem to ignite such a combative tone in your responses agoodman. Folks are here to learn and to share, there's no need to be defensive if someone does something differently, we all do what works for us and I especially like to hear WHY it works for folks, so I go to lengths to explain MY "why's" to others.

 

[JBloggs]

So the guests called they want to check in (1pm), I said sure.
Will they write a bad TA review as DH is banging around in another room upstairs, pulling things apart and prepping to prep the walls to paint (and possibly close off that adjoining door). Should I have told them reg check in time? Perhaps. I will remind them of reg check in time and since they are here early entry, but DH is working up there, and sorry about that.
I will let you know if this bites us!

 

[Don Draper]

So the guests called they want to check in (1pm), I said sure.
Will they write a bad TA review as DH is banging around in another room upstairs, pulling things apart and prepping to prep the walls to paint (and possibly close off that adjoining door). Should I have told them reg check in time? Perhaps. I will remind them of reg check in time and since they are here early entry, but DH is working up there, and sorry about that.
I will let you know if this bites us!.

Just tell them what is going on. Guests here LOVE to know about the inns and outs of maintaining an old house. I'm sure it won't be an issue, and then you will have your afternoon to yourself after you get them settled!

 

[Copperhead]

So the guests called they want to check in (1pm), I said sure.
Will they write a bad TA review as DH is banging around in another room upstairs, pulling things apart and prepping to prep the walls to paint (and possibly close off that adjoining door). Should I have told them reg check in time? Perhaps. I will remind them of reg check in time and since they are here early entry, but DH is working up there, and sorry about that.
I will let you know if this bites us!.

There is just so much that we can do to make it apear we have fairies fluttering about that do all the dirty work. Hope these guests feel you are extending a nice courtesy to them so they can go out on the town early. As for us work must go on.

 

[Alibi Ike]

So the guests called they want to check in (1pm), I said sure.
Will they write a bad TA review as DH is banging around in another room upstairs, pulling things apart and prepping to prep the walls to paint (and possibly close off that adjoining door). Should I have told them reg check in time? Perhaps. I will remind them of reg check in time and since they are here early entry, but DH is working up there, and sorry about that.
I will let you know if this bites us!.

We have had 3 calls today about weddings over the summer. They all want to come today to 'look around'. No guests right now so everything is torn apart. I told them that. Will they remember that I told them that or will they think, 'I hope it's not this dusty, dirty, messy, noisy all the time!' The furnace guy is traipsing in and out so it is also cold.
Reminds me, the plants are drooping, too, have to go water them!

 

[JBloggs]

So the guests called they want to check in (1pm), I said sure.
Will they write a bad TA review as DH is banging around in another room upstairs, pulling things apart and prepping to prep the walls to paint (and possibly close off that adjoining door). Should I have told them reg check in time? Perhaps. I will remind them of reg check in time and since they are here early entry, but DH is working up there, and sorry about that.
I will let you know if this bites us!.

Just tell them what is going on. Guests here LOVE to know about the inns and outs of maintaining an old house. I'm sure it won't be an issue, and then you will have your afternoon to yourself after you get them settled!
.

Just tell them what is going on. Guests here LOVE to know about the inns and outs of maintaining an old house. I'm sure it won't be an issue, and then you will have your afternoon to yourself after you get them settled!

All is well. So if they hear a bump in the night, it's DH.

 

[Samster]

Sorry, but it would rub me the wrong way as a guest to have to call the innkeeper 30-60 minutes before my arrival. Give me a check-in time frame and I'll be there or I'll call as soon as I realize I won't actually make it in that time frame..

I am with you. I want a time frame to check in as a guest.
Most of the time I send a quick e-mail a couple of days before to tell them we are looking forward to their visit and if they need anything just give us a call. That reminds them and lets them know we are here if they need us. I also remind them very nicely that check in is between 4 and 6 and if they are coming late please let me know.
I try to keep it very short because they won't read a ton of things.
I found this is a great way to remind them. I would be afraid if I did it the day of they would be gong already and not always able to check the e-mail.
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I did pretty much the same thing. My rez system allowed me to set up reminders so I'd schedule a reminder to send another confirmation a 4-5 days prior to their arrival date. It basically had all their reservation info again and I had a line or two in there about emailing or calling if they weren't going to arrive as scheduled. It worked very well.
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I will be doing this now to show the deposit has been taken. And to ask about any add ons for the upcoming stay.
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Yes! I had started added something in there too about it not being too late to order any of our packages or add-ons. GREAT idea!

 

[Samster]

See that is the whole thing, sure right now I have one room booked in and it is not difficult (but we are working upstairs on maintenance issues and were up til midnight putting new artwork up and door knobs back on etc), then vacuuming and re-cleaning the rooms we used while painting...and moved everything to another room for that new job today...
okay what was I saying? Oh yeah, see that is the thing, everything IS DONE for check in, NOT BEFORE. There are days when I cannot EVEN GET THE ROOMS FLIPPED in time for check in, so I cannot answer the phone, I am surely not waiting around for them to call and give me an ETA. I barely wipe the sweat off and put on something more presentable for check in "TIME."
I wonder if I am just way slower than most at cleaning and flipping rooms...I mean it takes it ALL OUT OF ME. I do not have extra. Thinking about making dinner and that laundry that is going 8am to 9pm every single day for months....

Nope...you are definitely not alone. On the 4 days a week when I didn't have my part-time housekeeping help, I was always tense about whether I could get all the rooms done in time, get everything in the rooms that was supposed to be there, remember their special occasion on greeting them (did I note it on the rez?), a thousand other details. We had to set our check-in at 3PM to be aligned with the other B&Bs and the nearby hotel.
Seemed like we rarely had our guets get out of here before 11 am check-out.
It was a juggling act to plan the days when I could run errands between check-out & check-in. Fortunately, my dh was always willing to make a grocery store run after work from his full-time job.
There were many days when I would have loved to even have one more hour to try to get everything finished.....much less sit down for lunch or a cup of coffee.

 

[JeannineIrish]

I am READY all the time, I have a 2nd job where I work from home so I am barely out of the house. Who in this day and age cannot tell when they are approx an hour out? It's got nothing to do with being ready, it's common courtesy since we all have "errands" we all would like to plan a few minutes of downtime (I say plan cause I don't get much). B&B's are not like hotels where if one person is gone there are 2, 3, 20, 200 other "staff". And I have coded locks on my front door so absolutely I can just give them the code and tell them to "self check in" but part of MY common courtesy is being there to welcome them..

Guests arriving is one of the most frustrating things about being an Innkeeper "hands down". We do ask guests when making a reservation (both on our on-line booking and phone call) as to the approximate time that they will be arriving. If they don't know we state that our check-in time is 3-6 PM. This little statement on our Reservation Confirmation has helped drastically toward lessening frustration. We have found that most of the time people will call.
WE ARE A SMALL B&B. WE DO NOT HAVE A FRONT DESK AND WILL BE PLANNING OUR DAY AROUND CHECK-INS. IF YOU FIND YOURSELF RUNNING EARLY OR LATE IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU UPDATE US WITH A CALL TO BE SURE WE ARE AT THE B&B TO GREET YOU WHEN YOU ARRIVE.

 

[JBloggs]

Speaking of annoying people...my dentist has this new policy that they call and you have to return their call to confirm your reminder with them that you have an appt.
The orthodontist calls - it is prerecorded mssg and boom, there you have it. The dentist x 4 in our family every 6 months so this = 8-12 calls per year, we have to call them back, wait on hold, tell them the name and date, "Oh hang on my screen is messed up" etc etc Talk about wasting everyone's time!!! We were away early last week, so they called here, then called DH's work, then called his cell phone. Three days away from an appt, and required a call back.