Introduction to the First edition
Like many people( including you, as you have picked up this book), we had toyed vaguely on and off over the years with the idea of opening a B & B. It seemed a good way of financing and“ justifying” a beautiful house in an attractive location. But we never did anything about it – until, for job reasons, we found ourselves having to move from our long-time Sussex home to the unspoilt little Abbey town of Sherborne in deepest rural Dorset.
We ended up buying a 300-year old house whose 21 rooms and 4,000 square feet was more space than our family of four needed. We had two or three spare bedrooms, and as the house had recently been a hotel and restaurant they were all en-suite. Now, if ever, was the time to put our pipe dreams into practice – and we did.
We learned a lot in our first year, and more in our second, and much of it the“ hard” way. We wished that we had started with the benefit of a practical guidebook based on hands-on experience, so that we could learn from others’ mistakes rather than having to repeat them ourselves. Now we have written that book, and this is it.
When we set out to become B & B hosts, we had never done it before, and had all sorts of worries and doubts. Would we find our way through all the confusing and conflicting red tape and regulations? Would we make enough money to justify the work, and help pay for the house? How much work would it involve, and would we cope? How would it affect our family life? What would it be like having a succession of strangers in our own home? Would they be friendly, or over-demanding? If you are considering opening a B & B for the first time, you must have a similar list of anxieties.
One of our aims in this book is to answer those questions and allay those doubts. And because we started recently enough to remember“ day one” as B & B virgins, we have tried to write the book that we would have wanted then. It is too late for us to avoid the pitfalls and mistakes we made – but, if you have bought this book, we will guide you through the minefields using the personal experience we have picked up.
One question is worth answering right now, before we get going with Chapter One: you are probably wondering whether the experience has lived up to our initial hopes and expectations. Has it been worth it, after all? Would we, knowing what we now know about the day-to-day reality of running a B & B, recommend it? The answer is yes. We have helped finance the house we wanted, in a place people from around the world choose to visit for its beauty. We have met lots of interesting people, most of whom tell us they envy us our home and our home town. Yes, we have had problems, and it can be hard work at times – especially if your lack of inside knowledge and experience makes it harder than it needs to be. But it won’ t be as hard for you – after all, you’ ve got the book we wish we had been able to buy.