Bed & breakfast businesses lose guests as competition with Airbnb grows
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Since its introduction in 2009, Airbnb and eventually other similar companies have changed public lodging, as private property owners can easily list everything from a tent campsite to an entire house for short-term rental.
Travelers can find deals and property owners can make extra cash with the website acting as the middleman to screen both parties and handle the transaction aspects. For bed-and-breakfast owners, Airbnb disrupted their livelihood.
“The Airbnbs are a thorn in my side,” said Cookie Green, co-owner of The Comfort Zone Bed and Breakfast in Altmar. “There’s a number of them that have gone up here. The campgrounds have their own regulations, but everyone thinks they can put a bunch of trailers on their properties and that’s not always the case.”
She and husband Lenny have operated the B&B since 2009. Green resents that she must pay state and county taxes since her lodging operates as a standard B&B and that she must abide by regulations that Airbnb operators don’t.
Despite the competition from Airbnbs, Green said that her vacancy rates are low, as she and Lenny have built a clientele who primarily come to Altmar for fishing on the Salmon River and occasional guests who’ve come to the area for a special event. As for the anglers, “we have the same guys who come around the same time,” Green said. “Once people book a spot and like it, they stay. We’re not fancy but we’re clean and provide everything.”
Pets are welcome, which draws some visitors. Guests can enjoy a firepit, pavilion and grills outside.
One thing that The Comfort Zone doesn’t have is a robust online presence. Green said she and Lenny are “not very computer literate” and guests need to reserve a room over the phone.
Exposure is what spurred Ophelia Papworth Blakely to list Ophelia’s Garden Inn in Syracuse on Airbnb.
Blakely said that in the 22 years she has operated the B&B, she still hears from guests that they had never heard of her three-acre property on Tipperary Hill. Although she thinks that most of her guests come by word-of-mouth advertising, she hosts about six guests a year through Airbnb (although some may spot her on the app and choose to book directly).
“I know that it’s the way of the future,” Blakely said. “If you don’t join them, you’re being left behind. This is Syracuse. If they’re going to the Finger Lakes or a special little town, they’re more inclined to look for a B&B.”
The encroachment of Airbnb initially cut her business in half. Blakely saw other B&B owners lose their livelihood. As a retiree, she doesn’t rely upon the business.
Brad Ano bought The Bayview Marina in Pulaski a few years ago and listed his cabins on Airbnb, despite operating as a standard place of lodging. In addition to the increased publicity, Ano felt that Airbnb’s insurance policy helps protect the host.
“They have a website and it gives us some exposure to new clients,” Ano said. “Airbnb takes their credit card information so we don’t have to worry about the transaction. It’s convenient.”
It also helps guests screen places to stay since they can read unbiased reviews from previous travelers and hosts can check out the reputation of guests.
“I think most B&Bs are starting to list their places on sites like Airbnb,” Ano said. “It’s exposure to more clients. They have their options of a bunch of different places.”
Joshua Romero co-owner of Black Creek Farm Bed and Breakfast in Red Creek, Cayuga County, bought the property in 2017.
After the new business survived the quarantine, Romero decided he needed to expand the business to include event space. The property’s renovated barn has proven an ideal location for hosting events such as weddings. The B&B side of the business meshes well with the event space. Brides typically rent the entire B&B for the bridal party for the weekend so they can attend the rehearsal on-site Friday night, host the rehearsal dinner there and get wed the next day.
“Whatever guests are staying they have one more breakfast on Sunday morning,” Romero said. “We have one per weekend. We try to have them so they’re not back-to-back so the property can reset. Our magic number is a dozen a year.”
The house offers air conditioning. But the barn where the weddings are held gets too hot for weddings in August. That’s when the wedding season pauses.
Although families can check in to take all four rooms, they can also be rented individually. Romero doesn’t enforce a minimum stay requirement. A one-night stay is okay.
Romero said that his venue tried listing on Airbnb early in the B&B’s operation, “but it’s not our customer,” he said. “We make breakfast and when we rent out the house; guests often don’t have the entire house, like on Airbnb. We wait on you hand and foot and cater to what you need.”
Many Airbnb lodgings offer a place to stay, but little personal attention.
“When you drive in, there’s a welcome sign and your name on your parking spot,” Romero said. “Your room is labeled with your name. Everything is personalized and people like that. They drive onto our property and know exactly where to park and where their room is.”
