Take Advantage of Days Without Reservations

[This is from a conversation on the old forum:]

Yesterday we had our first day without a reservation since mid-February. I was thrilled. Since the housekeeper had the day off, I hung a note in the front door that said, “With no in-coming guests, the innkeeper has closed the inn for the day. Please call 362-3476 for assistance. Same day reservations may be made until 6 PM.”

I bought some DVDs from a local store, made a rice pilaf, roast duck with raspberry sauce, and a Pennsylvania Dutch cabbage dish (cabbage fried with bacon, onions, and apples).

I was just sitting down to dinner when the phone rang at 5:58 PM. I answered the phone and the next thing I know, I had 3 reservations for last night.

I checked the guests in, enjoyed my dinner and movie (in my apartment as opposed to the parlor), turned in early and made several breakfasts for 6:30 A.M.

With no in-coming guests I hung a note on the front door and went back to bed. I slept until noon and was roasting a leg of lamb with a side of potatoes Goulangere and sauteed baby carrots when the doorbell rang at 1 PM.

It turned out to be my pest control guy.

I have now taken down the “no vacancy” sign and I’m hoping that I’ll be able to make it through the day without any guests. I have even blocked off rooms with my on-line reservation agency, so we’ll see what happens.

Since I’m under no obligation to take guests without reservations, I could always just tell prospective guestst that we’re closed for the day. Unfortunately, I have a soft touch and knowing that there are limited accomodation facilities in the area, I tend to be very reluctant to turn dropby guests away. Then again, I also have to think about my business reputation. After working so hard to build up our rate of occupancy, I don’t want people to think that I’m turning away guests.

So today is my day off. Roast lamb au jus … YUM!