Gite and Chambre d'hote Owners chat

Hmmm - interesting Patricia... I pay 15% if it's booked directly through their website, and 3% (2.10 euro's a night) if guests book via their button on my website - works out about 50/50. You are right - you have no control over who is coming! It's a lottery of life!

Hello fellow renters. FYI. I have just enquired with booking.com It seems its free to join but they take 17% of all your bookings after the tennants have stayed. All bookings are made and confirmed through booking.com and you cannot refuse any bookings.
That is probably the one reason I probably would not go with them. I like to control who I rent to. I rent out a flat in Paris and they said that they take individual rentals not only hotels. They will send me all details if anyone is interested I can send them on.

yes. it's here...

https://admin.bookings.org/hotelreg/which-country.html?lang=en

it's not difficult? you need to become a 'partner' i think

you need to register your interest, they call you and then you fill in forms etc... you can't just 'add' a hotel

I tried to find a way to register with booking.com and did not have any luck. Is there a link on the main page to add your hotel?

Hello @ Sue Stanley

Re: booking.com and gites - i'm pretty sure you cannot advertise a gite - it's a site for (in theory) hotel rooms - i.e. BEDROOMS - if you were able to use your gite as a B&B in the down season and have any bedrooms with on-suites or their own bathrooms it would work - you'd have to go in and do breakfast of course!

We have a new section on SFN for rental properties, the first ad went live today, you can see how it looks here. They are accessible via the main navigation menu under RENTALS. The price of these full page ads is 99 euros per year, I am offering the first ten adverts at a introductory price of just 49 euros, all I need from you is your text and photos. If you would like to take advantage of this offer click here to pay via PayPal

Thanks

James

Teresa, I tried to Private message, not sure how to do it. Sorry. ButI have to ask, why are you moving? Your location is great, gites booked, from someone that just moved here, I would love to know.

My biggest concern for the future is getting in the system. It has been an awful lot of circles, back to exact same questions asked to the same people.

I will check out booking.com asap

I appreciate any advice, so thank you!

Hi Eva, had my B&B for 2 summer seasons now... we're in the Tarn in the ALbi, Toulouse, Carcassonne 'triangle'

We get 95% of our bookings from BOOKING.COM

I wish (knowing what i do now) i'd not wasted so much time on a great many rubbbish booking sites - homelidays, bed&breakfast, trip advisor, france voyage, 1st european, etc etc all hopeless for us. We DO have a website and a link to boooking.com on there, and we pay only 2.5% of our 70 euro night fee if they book through the websites, and 15% if it's direct through them.

The other 5% we get from local recommendations from the various local Mairies...

My B&B is closing as we're moving, but if we did it again i don't think i'd even make a website - I leave it all to booking.com, build their cost into my budget and let them manage all the bookings, paperwork, client contact etc

I hate to sing the the praises of a massive global company, and i really thought i could go it alone but in the end you have to face facts - my B&B has been booked out for most of the summer...

bonne chance - feel free to pm me for more info

Hi Eva, I have just checked out your B&B, it looks lovely you certainly have everything covered. I rent out a flat in Paris so I dont know what prices are in your area but 50Euros sounds like a very good deal. Maybe someone else can help you with average prices. Good luck with your business.

We tried to offer something a little different, and are one of the only one night stays offered with a pool. It has been a ton of work, but we did meet some fabulous cyclists through the region, and some came back on their way back. We are booking up with repeats from next year already, and that tells us we are either priced too low or the idea is a success.

I need advice where to list our rental. Anyone have a good suggestion?

Our apartment and Chambre d'hôte are both empty and we have a pool. Le Petit Platane for more details if anyone is coming south for a stay near Capestang. Breakfast is included for more than 1 night stays.

Happy an safe travels everyone!

Hi Eva,

We have been running our b&b now for 9 years now, and it's absolutely normal that bookings slow down after the first week of September. We are still "ticking over" nicely this month, but that is after several years of business and referrals.

We also opened our gite end of July this year, it was booked all of August, but empty since 1st September. So, have to think about this now as well. As the weather is still fantastic, pool still 26 degrees, it's a shame really to have this all sitting there empty

Hi All! My name is Eva. New to the group. New to France. Moved with 2 kids.

Like most have a rental on and in the house here in Capestang. Registered with the Marie. Le Petit Platane is the name.

Question??

We opened for business in June, and we were booked solid until last week, and now nothing until last weekend in September for 3 days booked in both our apartment and our Chambre d'hôte. Is this the normal season traffic or the exception ?

And I have a two bed gite free from the 21st August - again no pool at the house I'm afraid but there is one 5 mins walk in the town centre.www.haute-pyrenees-holidays.com No animals accepted I'm afraid due to our own animals as the gite is part of a complex.

Thanks for the referal Danny but are full next week.

Hi Patricia, If you cannot find anywhere, I do have a 2 bed gite free from tomorrow, a cancellation, in Southern Brittany but I do not have a pool unfortunately, but maybe better then nothing! Swimming pool is about 15 mins away. if interested my site is www.farmhousegites.com hope this might help/

Thanks Danny will follow up with Neil

Thanks Jackie your site looks great but we only have the week beginning Sun 19. You site looks fabulous I will bookmark it for next time.

Hi Patricia,

We have a cancellation from the 25 august to 1st September in our cottage in Auvergne. It has a pool (essential as it is soooo hottt at moment). check us out on www.laplatriere.co.uk and click on cottage on the side menu bar... :-) contact me direct if you want to take things further. :-)

Hi Patricia. Try SFN regular Neil Whitehead who has a lovely place with a pool in Béarn. If I think of any others I'll let you know :)