Gift Certificate News
Many innkeepers have questions about BedandBreakfast.com
Gift Certificates and The Bed and Breakfast Card. Please take a minute to
review the
program information, and to
read the FAQ. To redeem either cards or certificates,
log in to your Home Base and click on Certificates/Cards, then
Redeem Certificates/Cards and click the appropriate button. If you’re
not yet participating, you can sign up through the same link on your Home
Base.
Click here to read detailed instructions for redeeming gift certificates
and cards. Questions? Please contact us at 800-GO-B-AND-B (800-462-2632) or
Support@BedandBreakfast.com.
 The
Bed and Breakfast Card is being sold in Costco locations for the
holidays. With prominent placement on the end caps of aisles, the words "bed
and breakfast" are sure to stick in consumers' minds!
The Bed and Breakfast Card is also available in more than 2,500 Wal-Mart
locations, 1,800 Brooks Eckerd stores,
and about 100 Schnucks stores.
Many lucky folks will be receiving a BedandBreakfast.com Gift Certificate or
Card for Christmas. Very soon, they'll be looking for a B&B at which to use
it! If you're not already participating in the program, it's not too late!
Simply
log in to your Home Base and click on Gift Certificates/Cards in
the table.
For your protection, whenever you accept a gift certificate or card as
payment, log in to your Home Base and check the balance on each
certificate/card. Always get your guests' credit card information to pay for
incidentals and/or the balance of the stay. Our gift certificate line is
answered 24 hours a day. Just call 800-GO-B-AND-B (800-462-2632) and press
1.
"I will be anxious for our children to use their gift
certificates and see what results they encounter. I believe
it will be a good one. I plan to use your site in the future
for my own personal needs. My husband and I enjoy staying at
B&Bs. We have done so with groups of friends. We'll look to
using you for our next group get-together. " -- Mary N.
"I liked it a lot! I was stumped on what to get the couple
who has everything. This is the perfect gift. What could be
better than a gift that makes memories?" -- Stephanie G.
"Great idea. We wanted to give a night at a B&B but couldn't
figure out the logistics of how to do it. This makes things
much less complicated." -- Eileen S.
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Read thousands of
live, unedited customer comments.
Travel Trends
Online travel spending up: “comScore Networks reported that
in the third quarter of 2006, online non-travel spending increased to $23.1
billion (up 23%), while
travel spending reached $18.2 billion (up 9%). Overall, total online
spending by consumers reached $41.3 billion in the third quarter,
representing a 16% increase versus the same period in 2005. “Through the
first three quarters of 2006, total e-commerce spending rose 19% versus last
year. Online travel spending increased 13%.”
What travelers are most interested in:
- Enrichment travel: 56% of travelers said they were currently
interested in taking an educational trip where they and/or their family
can learn something.
- Spa vacations: 54% of travelers
- Children-friendly destinations: more than 35% of travelers
- Spiritual vacations: 25% of travelers said they were currently
interested in taking a spiritual vacation (e.g., religious retreat,
pilgrimage).
- Volunteer vacations: 24% of travelers said they were interested in
taking a volunteer or service-based vacation
- Weekend getaways: “The idea of a quick weekend getaway increasingly
appeals to Americans, with 225 million such trips taken last year, an
increase of more than 10% in just five years, according to data from the
Travel Industry Association.”
High-end rooms rates rise rapidly: Higher-tier hotel rates worldwide
have
increased at a much faster rate than those in budget sectors, and major
cities around the world continue to show double-digit growth in room rates,
according to a hotel survey released recently by HRG.
The survey showed that room rates increased proportionally to the star
rating of the hotel. Five-star property rates were up 15.2% over 2005,
compared with a 4.8% increase for budget properties.
Hotels add more amenities: Over the past five years, the world’s most
luxurious lodgings are
increasingly offering more extravagant amenities. “Helipads, undersea
restaurants, and expanses of gold leaf are some of the details that
exclusive hotels are offering to woo jet-setting business travelers and
wealthy tourists.” A representative of PriceWaterhouseCoopers’ Hospitality &
Leisure division says that the lodging industry is very healthy right now,
and in the U.S. alone, hotel industry profits are expected to rise to $29.7
billion by 2007 – up from $25.2 billion in 2006. Construction is also up;
"in 2006, there were approximately 127,708 room starts, up from 77,549 in
2005."
Boutique hotels are inexpensive and all over: “Boutique hotels –
typically 300 rooms or fewer – more and more are
targeting young business travelers. At $150 or so per night, they offer
“cool design, cutting-edge technology and hip social scenarios. For this you
can thank half a dozen new hotel chains, some with enigmatic names such as
Element and NYLO.”
Common features among the new boutique hotels include “a casual,
multi-purpose lobby, where Internet-savvy guests work, socialize, drink, eat
and relax. Food service is mostly grab-and-go at all hours.” The hotels pair
affordable rates with modern amenities and stylish décor.
Hotels fastest growing segment online: “According to a new report
from PhoCusWright Inc., next year for the first time transactions on the
Internet will account for over half (54%) of all U.S. travel bookings.
“Suppliers (e.g., airlines, hotels and car rental agencies) have been
outperforming online travel agencies (e.g., Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz and
Priceline) since 2000, but growth rates for the two channels will converge
by 2008. For years, suppliers have enjoyed an advantage over online travel
agencies, due to their control over their own inventory and the relatively
inexpensive task of acquiring online customers from their own offline
channels. But, the suppliers’ online advantage is disappearing as the
majority of travel transactions move to the Web.” Another insight from the
study: “Hotels
will be the fastest growing segment online, surpassing air travel, which
until 2006 had long been the fastest growing product segment.”
People go online for reviews: “A recent survey commissioned by Yahoo!
and conducted by Harris Interactive® indicates that 33% of Internet users
have used a Q&A site, and, of these, half (52%) say that information
from a Q&A site has influenced a decision they have made.
“The survey shows that online adults have searched for various types of
information, including current and breaking news (96%), reviews of consumer
electronics (83%), advice on travel or trip planning (82%),
restaurant or hotel reviews and recommendations (75%), and
do-it-yourself home improvement tips (74%).
“Regardless of the type of information they are looking for, the majority of
online adults would prefer to get many responses from a group of individuals
rather than an individual response from a close friend or family member.
Online adults also indicated that they would be more likely to turn to the
Internet for answers to specific questions if the service was free (81%),
they could get answers in minutes (79%), they needed an answer to something
their friends or family aren’t familiar with (77%), or they could get
individual answers from many people (43%).”
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This Month's Sponsor
Gift Certificates
"Great idea. We wanted to give a night at a B&B but
couldn't figure out the logistics of how to do it. This makes things
much less complicated." -- Eileen S.
To join
the inns that participate in the gift certificate program, just
log in to your Home Base, or
click here
for more information.
You can earn money by selling our gift certificates on your
website! Earn 5% with our
affiliate program.
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logged in, click "Membership," select "Change Password," and choose another that's easier to remember.
More information
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instructions...It is nice to get customer service that is understandable and
courteous." -- Penny, The Mooring B&B, Georgetown, ME
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Innkeepers' Info Center
Need more
info? You’ll find lots of educational
articles on our site for your convenience.
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