Raising prices for special events

[Jamjar]

Would be interested to know if other small B & Bs raise their room rates if special events on in the area. I am fairly new to this (got star rating last June so still waiting for the Inspector's 2nd visit). I do hike my tariff for Glastonbury Festival; they get a lot more for their money & I wait on them hand and foot for the period.
However I just wonder if I could charge a little more when other big events are on - what do others do please ?

[_Sharpe]

We do raise our rates but only by £10 per night but I have recently become aware that The Premier Travel Inn is doubling their room rates to £117 per night which does not include breakfast or any amenities. This has made me rethink the whole issue.

[Raincliffe1]

I remember getting into a bit of a disagreement with a fellow hotelier who thought I was being quite naive in that I did not increase my prices by at least 25% at special event weekends/bank holidays etc. My defence was that people know they are paying premium money and that you are blatantly making more profit out of them. I wondered whether customers would return if they thought you were basically getting more money out of them so to speak - sort of losing customer goodwill. The other hotelier told me that that is why you are in business (to make money) and if people did not like your rates then there would be plenty of others who would book on busy weekends despite the inflated price - market demand.

Maybe it still boils down to the fact that you must always offer value for money, I do not charge anything that I would not pay myself if I were staying in my hotel rooms at any time of the year. Our tariffs actually vay very little over the course of the year and you do have to wonder would people go back to the Premier Travel Inn at £117 per night if they had the choice?

Katherine

[greenbarncottages]

We're not a B&B so I can't comment from an owners' perspective, but as a self catering owner we pitch our prices according to likely demand, so August is much higher than February (when our expenses are higher, of course!), and Christmas & New Year rate is as high as August - that's pretty much the norm for holiday rental properties, it's simple market forces and supply & demand, and not remotely related to the cost of providing the product.

I don't really know what the norm is for B&B, and I'm sure it's very different from the possible 3:1 ratio of peak to low for holiday rental rates, but looking at your B&B from the perspective of a guest:

Would I actually know that you've increased your rate because of a major event?
Would I be surprised to know that you had?
How badly do I want accommodation in your area at that time, and how much availability is there to choose from?
Will your rate be significantly higher than someone else in the area offering a similar standard?

And of course, from your viewpoint as the business owner - if I decide to book elsewhere because I think you're too expensive for that period (assuming I can find anything), will you fill your accommodation anyway?

[_Sharpe]

Raincliff,
pPeople don't go to a Premier Travel Inn for anything other than the price. It's not a destination but rather a cheap place to go.

We were making a huge mistake in that we are closer to the venue and offering a much better accommodation but not charging for it. We will be increasing our prices for major events. Demand will win overall. That's the nature of commerce.

[Der Alte Fritz]

Would be interested to know if other small B & Bs raise their room rates if special events on in the area. I am fairly new to this (got star rating last June so still waiting for the Inspector's 2nd visit). I do hike my tariff for Glastonbury Festival; they get a lot more for their money & I wait on them hand and foot for the period.
However I just wonder if I could charge a little more when other big events are on - what do others do please ?

Yes you do have a special rate for a local event. By and large your normal business will stay away, any new business will be different people who are only interested in the event and unlikely to come back at other times. If you can sell a room 5 or 6 times over, you should raised your prices. Everyone wants a deal and a discount in Jan and Feb, so this is the other side of the coin. But do advertise the rate widely and in plenty of advance, to avoid the look of profiteering.

During the volcanoe crisis when we were deluged with customers from Gatwick airport we kept our prices at normal rack rate as did most of the rest of the hotel trade. But if people are paying £100+ a ticket then I am entitled to make some moeny as well.

[Jamjar]

Thank you everyone, interesting and differing takes on this point. I am on very steep learning curve here (am pleased t0 report I was awarded my 4th Star at my 2nd year's inspection last week). I think at present I will stick with same prices (which I keep the same all throuygh the year apart from Glastonbury) but maybe for some big event weekends I will stipulate bookings of 2 nights or more.
As I am not in a specific holiday area and there are very many nice B & Bs around me, I am not particularly busy (in fact no bookings at all from Sept.onwards) so I don't want to discourage people with higher prices.

[Sue: White Horse Walking Holidays]

Personally I wouldn't raise my prices but if the special event is held over several days, I would stipulate a minimum number of nights to tie in with that.
Well done on your 4th star. :-)

[Jamjar]

Sue thank you for your message, that is the way I will play it