To many of us, the life of an innkeeper seems like a dream... meeting interesting people, serving breakfast to them in the morning and changing some sheets... then relaxing with a good book in the afternoon.
In this ongoing series of articles, Eleanor Ames, co-owner of the Bluemont Bed and Breakfast in Luray, Virginia, writes about her experiences in locating and running a bed and breakfast. This is the second entry into "The Innkeeper's Diary."
The Search is On
by Eleanor Ames
Co-Owner of the Bluemont Bed and Breakfast in Luray, Virginia
Fifteen years of thinking, dreaming, and saving. I don't know of many people who could wait that long, but we had to and we did!
It's hard to believe but the saving is over. We now begin "the quest" for our bed and breakfast.
Over the years, as we stayed at B&Bs, we came up with our wish list. We knew what we would like to have, what we didn't want and how much we could afford. Well, that did change over the years... I soon learned that the market was outpacing our savings. Did we want to go deeply into debt after all? No, that wasn't an option. So it did limit us in what we were able to find.
We knew we wanted a tourist area, preferred a mountain-like region, one that had four distinct seasons (but a bit milder than Ohio), an area free from floods, tornados and hurricanes. We weren't asking much, were we?
Thank heavens for the Internet. I can't imagine how much time and money we would have wasted contacting realtors and traveling to various locations in our search.
My husband told me to do the legwork. I was to tell him when I found something I liked and would meet our needs. If I liked it, he probably would, too. Then we would actually go take a look. I did lead him on some wild goose chases, but we always came away learning something that helped us the next time.
You've heard the old adage, "If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is." Or something like that. Well, that's certainly the case in the B&B market. Buyer beware! Know what you are doing. If you don't, take someone with you who does. We've been told such wonderful stories about houses we went to see, only to discover nothing could have been further from the truth. One in particular stands out. I won't mention names because the house isn't even standing now!
I saw some wonderful photos of this house online and felt it might be just what we wanted. We made the six-hour drive. As we opened the door to the house, the realtor said, "Now you have got to have some vision with this house."
Right! I knew then something was wrong.
The pictures had been taken more than 10 years ago when the previous owners lived there. The current owner hadn't done any repairs or maintenance in the whole time he had the place. I could barely contain myself and the realtor knew very well how disgusted we were. Needless to say, after that episode, we were extra cautious in asking questions before we drove anywhere.
Everyone kept telling me, "You will know it when you find it."
After a frustrating search for a year and looking at more than a dozen homes, we were depressed at what we had seen and were almost ready to give up on our dream.
The Bluemont Bed and Breakfast in Luray, Virginia.
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Then, one day, after another depressing visit to another over-hyped home, we saw an ad on a Web site for a house about an hour away. We weren't sure it suited our needs, but we were already in the area, so why not. We called and made arrangements to visit. We drove the long lane up to the top of a small hill, where we were warmly greeted by the innkeepers. In an instant I knew, "This is it!"
I could hardly contain my enthusiasm but managed to play it cool. We stayed overnight and then were almost certain. Not wanting to appear too anxious, we went home, but within a week, after hours and hours of talking, called back to say we wanted to revisit and were interested in the house and made an offer.
As they say, the rest is history. My prayers had been answered. There is a God!
Now, it wasn't exactly what we had planned for, but it came so close to meeting our criteria that we had to say yes. So, today we are the proud owners of the Bluemont Bed and Breakfast in Luray, Virginia, and ready to embark on our dream of innkeeping.
Many thanks to Eleanor for contributing entries to The Innkeeper's Diary.
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