We speak with Esther at the Wellington Willows Boutique B&B in Wellington, Ontario about what it takes to be an award winning B&B, and some advice during this challenging time.
Q: Your property has consistently won Trip Advisor's Certificate of Excellence, as well as the Traveller's Choice award. Tell us what it takes to win this award and consistently achieve such highly rated reviews?
Having travelled extensively for business and leisure ourselves, we know what we like when we stay at hotels or B&Bs. With this in mind we set out to create a space that’s aesthetically pleasing, with the little touches that guests would appreciate. The personal touch is what’s really important, you have to connect with your guests and do your best to help them enjoy their stay, not only at your property, but in the area. Great food doesn’t hurt either.
Q: Tell us a little more about your property, and who is your typical clientele?
Wellington Willows Boutique B&B is located in the quaint village of Wellington in Prince Edward County, Ontario. The farmhouse dates back to around 1868. We lovingly renovated the building and offer four elegant suites, all uniquely designed and beautifully appointed, offering guests a truly memorable stay.
Our guests are mostly couples, we have a lot of folks who come to celebrate special occasions like anniversaries, birthdays, retirements etc. Prince Edward County is also popular with cyclists, so we get a lot of guests who come to cycle and explore the area that way. South East Ontario is also popular with foreign travellers so we host quite a few International guests.
Q: As an independent property, what are some of the challenges you face?
One of our challenges is standing out in the vast sea of accommodation providers on the various platforms, we’ve had to adapt our advertising strategy along with allocating a budget that gets us effective results.
Q: What advice would you give to those in the hospitality industry, especially during this challenging time?
Small B&Bs and Inns have a unique offering, repeat guests would be more likely to come back to your property, so targeting that clientele could reap future business. Now is the time to rethink our business and possibly reinvent our offerings. It’s also great to network and keep in touch with other businesses in the industry, including restaurants, wineries, tour operators etc., as we will all need to work together to rebuild the tourism sector in Ontario.
For more information on the Wellington Willows Boutique B&B, please click the link below.