< < < < < < < < < < < < GRESHORNISH HOUSE / B&B PROFILES


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finishes when the last guest retires to bed. We are both very hands-on. We are involved in admin, catering, staff training, housekeeping, laundry – in short making sure that every aspect of our fully licenced, VAT registered, 4* “Guest Accommodation” runs smoothly with a minimum of seasonal staff.


As time passes - and we add to


our grey hairs - we have tried to restrict our opening hours so that we can enjoy more of the pleasures of island living and maintaining contact with our increasingly scattered off-spring. With 10 acres of gardens and grounds to maintain and a kitchen to supply, we also have plenty to distract us when time allows...


Is running a Bed & Breakfast exactly what you thought it would be?


Having been involved in the


running of boarding schools for a good many years, we had a pretty good idea of the likely demands. (Trip Advisor did not then appear on the school curriculum …!)


If you could go back to the beginning is there anything you would do differently?


Finding staff and budgeting for


them. Finding suitable staff has become ever more difficult, particularly in this part of the world where businesses


tend to run on a seasonal basis. When we started, we relied on a steady supply of English-speaking staff interested in the work that we were doing (mainly from SA. Australia and NZ); now, most hospitality staff


tend to come from


closer to home, have varying degrees of language skills - and perhaps more interested in their pay packet than in the service they provide! Budgeting for staff and meeting


their expectations has also become increasingly demanding for a small business.


What is the main piece of advice you could give to run a successful B&B?


of guests


Enjoy meeting a wide variety from all over the world


and be prepared to go the extra mile to exceed their expectations. Don’t underestimate the demands of the day!


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