Lay My Hat

Does anybody advertise their B&B with Home and away or Brittany ferries, your feed back would be most helpful.

Thanks for reading.

I advertise with Brittany Ferries on commission and get a few enquires/bookings. If you wish to join them please do let me refer you as I get a voucher towards a crossing.

I tried a year when we started with homeaway but didn't get any enquiries. I got the impression that people looking on homeaway were looking for holiday let's rather than B&Bs. I hate to say it, but booking.com works the best for us... though another fairly good one is chambres-hotes.fr

If you want to fill your rooms quickly then booking dot com will do that for a fee of 15-25% of the rate you put the room on for depending on how much commission you are prepared to pay for exposure on their site.

Many thanks for your help JaneS, Ecosse & Rosie much appreciated.

Hi, I have tried to sign up to b.com as it is our 1st year.
We cannot offer credit card facilities and b.com say they will pay us the 15th of the following month. We have only 1 room so not sure if they will accept us. How does their payment system work?

BC don't take our payments - we collect the money directly from guests and once a month (I think... might be every couple of months) they automatically take their commission from our bank account. The wanted to take our payments, dressing it up as 'easy', 'practical ' etc. but we felt the money was better earning interest in our account rather than theirs.

We didn't have a credit card machine when we signed up either... it didn't seem to be a problem for them.

I wouldn't worry about only having one room, either - certainly around here, BC take on all sorts of properties. After the initial setting up, it doesn't cost BC any time or money to list you, so it's all extra money to them.

Are you in France, Happy Days? If so, you can hike your prices up on BC's site to cover their commission. I'm amazed how many people are happy to pay the extra - even when it's been pointed out to them - just for the perceived security of booking through a big site!

Hi ecosse,
Thank you for your reply. A few weeks ago I decided to sign up to b.com but decided during the sign up our photos were not good enough, now after sunshine and better photos I thought I would log back in to signing up and find they will only pay us monthly.
I have not finished signing up, maybe this can be changed when we are accepted. I have increases the price which is now high to cover the 15 % plus vat. I don't think you can advertise a b & b without breakfast in france. The payment system worries me as we have to give a rib bank to complete sign up.
Also can you advise if renting a room will affect tax fonciere, I have registered with the Mairie but I did not ask this question.
Thanks for you advice.

Happy days
I only have one bedroom, have been with booking.com for just over 3 years now, guests pay me but they offered the payment from them last year but I prefer to receive the cash or cheque from guests on the morning they depart.
As for tax fonciere, it hasn't changed because of the B&B, I also registered with Marie and tourist office, I also have a siren number but it seems I didn't need to do that, advised from another B&B in my area to do that, but it hasn't effected me tax wise as I don't earn enough apparently.
I was looking for another booking site but seems this is the best, it just seems a lot of dosh 15%.
Good luck with your venture.

Hi yer 'tis,
Well I have bit the bullet and signed up to booking.com.
Now have to wait and see what happens next. How long do they take to review your info?

Will they phone me or e-mail would appreciate your reply.

I wish you all well with booking and I have no doubt that they will fill your rooms. However, I have parted company with them because I feel they have a stranglehold on the market. They will always want free cancellation for their guest, even if the guest is sitting in the car outside the house - a Frenchman's lady friend stood him up, one nighters ceased there and then - even if the guests have paid a deposit. Hence their popularity with guests.

I found I was taking all the risks e.g. holding a room for 9 months only for the guest to cancel a couple of days before arrival with no commitment from the guest. I have had no-shows having waited up for guests to arrive with no response to calls or emails sent via booking or from booking when I requested help in getting in contact with a guest whose phone number was false. I also felt that the pressure from booking to give the guest free cancellation was too much.

The impression I have from them over a 2.5 year period was that they were not interested in me, who paid the commission to them, but only the guest. So I said goodbye.

Happy Days wrote:Hi yer 'tis,
Well I have bit the bullet and signed up to booking.com.
Now have to wait and see what happens next. How long do they take to review your info?

Will they phone me or e-mail would appreciate your reply.

It was a phone call, I wish you well ''Happy days'' I also advertise with bedandbreakfast.com but the enquiries from them are few and far between now, at the beginning I was with them and Owners direct but feel booking.com have taken over from them, its very difficult to decide who to advertise with but booking.com take commission which is hefty but they do put heads in the bed.

I also agree with everything JaneS has stated and feel booking.com put more and more obstacles in the way for owners.

Hi yer 'tis,

I received an email yes I was approved yesterday.
However, I have not signed up yet as they say they will take full payment and charge commission plus fee for payment. I will receive the payment to my account the 15th of the following month. Dreadful to think you do all the work and not receive the payment on day of the room is used. I have e-mailed and said I need payment sooner so we'll wait and see. I now have a contact phone no but thought I would wait until tomorrow to telephone them
I think they are so bill they feel they can dictate what they want!!!

What do you mean when you say commission plus fee for payment, I pay 15% commission only!!

I agree with you totally JaneS. I refuse to go with them, although watching the competition joining up all the time is a bit scary. I cannot believe that people think they are getting a good deal when others have said on here that they have hiked their rates to cover the high costs. Someone told me that B.com tell you cannot show a lower price on other sites, but not sure if this is the truth. If I hiked my room rates up to cover their commission I would be making us far too expensive. We are what we are, a homely comfortable B&B. Just do not like the way they are taking over and other small sites are becoming affiliated to them or accepting their advertising. Would love to return to the old days of advertising .... if only!!