Training courses on how to run a B&B, in Eryri | Snowdonia, North Wales

Are you thinking of buying a B&B in the UK or have you already bought one and are now wondering how best to run it?

Owning a B&B can be both rewarding and profitable but there is a lot to consider and think about before you open your doors as a place to stay and we are here to help you!

DON’T PANIC!

We have been there too so we offer a bespoke, personalised residential course at our B&B in Eryri | Snowdonia, North Wales that will guide you through the day-to-day practicalities of running a bed and breakfast!

We have successfully run Crafnant House for over seven years now and can teach you on all aspects of running such an accommodation and hospitality business, from what to offer for breakfast to designing and creating your own website.

Courses usually run in our quieter months - from October to March - and are on a 1 to 1 basis (eg. one person or couple will attend each course).

Depending on when you join us, if we are ‘open’ to other paying guests then you are more than welcome to assist us in the day-to-day running of Crafnant House as a practical element, in addition to the more informational sessions listed below.

So the courses can be completely tailored to your precise needs eg. if you are a Michelin star chef who is not fazed by breakfast but need to know about website SEO or bed-making best practices that is fine!

Plus you get two nights away in beautiful Wales, so look at it as a short break with some added bonus learning thrown in!

Our typical training course in running a B&B!

Courses are designed to be run over three days / two nights and typically follow this timetable:

Day 1

• Arrive in the afternoon and have a welcome drink before a guided tour of Crafnant House, then you can settle in before joining us for a relaxed dinner and discussion about both our journey and your plans for your B&B!

Day 2

• Morning: Breakfast service and housekeeping (if we are open!), followed by a day spent covering the essentials of starting and running your B&B business, incorporating the areas listed below

• Lunch break

• Afternoon: Continuation of your training course

• Evening: At leisure! Explore our pretty village, Trefriw, and maybe head for the great pub next door!

Day 3

• Morning: wash-up session recapping what you have learnt so far and answering any final questions you may have!

What we cover on your B&B training course

We will aim to broadly cover the following areas during the course, but as we said at the start it can be completely bespoke and we will ask you at the time of booking what you wish to include or omit!

This is not a comprehensive list, but across the three days we will outline the following legal requirements and practical considerations that will probably apply to any B&B business you start:

Legal requirements when you open a B&B

• Council tax and rates

• Finance, tax and accounting

• Food hygiene regulations

• Fire safety regulations

• Music and TV licensing

• Business insurance

Practical considerations for your B&B

• Location

• Layout

• Fixtures, fittings, linens and furniture

• Decor

• Sustainability

• Accessibility

The day-to-day running of a B&B

• A ‘typical’ day

• Guests arriving and departing

• Breakfast - what to offer, how to cook it, using local produce and suppliers

• Housekeeping

• The ‘guest experience’ and how to anticipate things

• Local knowledge and information

• Problem guests?

• Maintenance

Finance, bookings, marketing and IT

• Pricing

• Turnover and profit

• Occupancy rates

• Offering extras and packages

• Knowing your competition

• When to open - seasonal or all year?

• Booking and cancellation policies

• OTAs (‘online travel agents’ - eg. booking.com, Expedia, Air BnB)

• How to drive direct bookings and avoid commission to OTAs

• Website hosting and design

• The importance of Google and SEO (‘search engine optimisation’)

• Marketing and advertising

• Social media

• Managing your bookings - IT and using a channel manager

• Reviews

• Networking and working with other local businesses

• Awards and accolades - including grading

This sounds like a lot to cover but we aim to give a broad overview of these areas, and remember this is just a starting point for your new career - you will learn even more once you are open and develop your own ideas, standards and practices.

Plus we are here to offer help, advice and support after your course - always at the end of a telephone line or just a text away if you need to ask something suddenly eg. what do I do in this situation?!?

Why choose us?

We know that starting your B&B journey can be daunting and there is a lot to learn - in 2017 we gave up our jobs, moved to Wales and were in a similar position!

Now, looking back, we have learnt A LOT over the years - and seen it all! - and are therefore in a position to share our passion and knowledge so YOU can start YOUR journey and ensure your new hospitality business is successful.

We passionately care about both Crafnant House and the guests who join us here, and this is reflected in the following:

• we have been rated 9.9 on booking.com for five consecutive years

• we have a 100% 5/5 rating on TripAdvisor

• we are rated 5.0 on Google with 80+ reviews

Whilst we also cannot emphasise enough the importance of good website design, SEO and using IT to drive bookings and make your B&B successful, and with this in mind:

• Stuart designed this website (and others) using Squarespace and manages both it and SEO on a daily basis

• our B&B website consistently appears on the first page of Google rankings for the most popular and relevant search terms for our area eg. “B&B Snowdonia”

• our direct bookings reached around 75-80% in 2024

Finally - when it comes to developing and undertaking training courses - we both delivered training packages around the world in our previous careers so we like to think we know what works well and what doesn’t when it comes to imparting useful knowledge!

Stuart & Jasmine x

The cost of our B&B training course and how to book

The cost of our course is £349 based on two people attending.

The price includes:

• 2 nights guest accommodation with us at Crafnant House

• meals: dinner on your first evening, a light breakfast on both mornings and lunch on your training day

• any relevant course materials and printouts

• full website assessment if required

• ongoing support and advice after your course!

To book your course please initially fill out the form below so we can find out a bit more about you and your requirements, or give us a call.

We will then be in touch to discuss potential dates and your specific requirements!