Veterans thanked with free bed and breakfast stays

by Tom Johansmeyer on

If you’ve served your country, there’s a bed and breakfast waiting to serve you.

Many B&Bs already give military discounts of 10 percent to 20 percent, but a Shinnston, West Virginia innkeeper is about to up the ante. Kathleen Panek has gotten more than 525 inns in 48 states (and two in Canada) on board with her plan give rooms away to active and retired service members on November 10, 2010, the night before Veterans Day.

Panek got the idea two years ago, and started with her own inn, Gillum House. Last year, it spread to a total of 10 in West Virginia, and this year, it has obviously surged.

Part of the reason for the success is that Panek has kept her expectations reasonable. USA Today reports:

Since most B&Bs are small, “we only ask inns to give one room,” Panek says, and about 25%-30% of participating establishments – including all those in Georgia, Missouri, Washington and several other states – are already full. But, she adds, “we’re getting new places signing up every day.”

Do you plan to do anything for Veterans Day? Leave a comment, and let us know!

[photo by Beverly & Pack via Flickr]

Four New England family packages for summer

by Tom Johansmeyer on

The school year is coming to an end, and summer vacation plans are starting to pop up. With heat poised to sweep the nation, the cool New England air (at least relatively cool) makes it an attractive destination. There are plenty of deals out there at the region’s inns and resorts, so you’ll have plenty of options at your disposal.

1. New England Aquarium Family Package
Do you need a reason to stay at Boston‘s Fairmont Copley Plaza? It’s a great property right in the Back Bay, and parents who love martinis will want to run downstairs to the Oak Bar for a drink. In addition to the fantastic accommodations, you’ll pick up four tickets to the New England Aquarium (two adults and two kids). Prices start at $239 a night (not bad at all for this property) and are good through the end of the year.

2. Family Fun Package
Get away to Kennebunkport, Maine for four nights (with a water-view room) at the Nonantum Resort’s Carriage Inn. The package includes a full breakfast every day, dinner one night in the 95 Ocean restaurant, a poolside lunch one day and an overflowing Nonantum beach bag. You’ll also score tickets for the Intown Trolley, a scenic boat ride, bottled water, an in-room welcome basket, Kennebunk Beach Pass and resort coupons. Rates start at $1,249 for a family of three, with each additional adult costing $359 and each extra kid $100. The deal is available Sunday through Thursday from June 20 to September 2, 2010.3. StoryLand All-Inclusive Family Vacation
Visit with a bit of help from the Eagle Mountain House & Golf Club in Jackson, New Hampshire. This package includes a two-night stay, breakfast and dinner daily and a free nine-hole round of golf. You’ll also get tickets to StoryLand for every family member for one day. Rates start at $509 and are available from June 25 through October 10, 2010.

4. Catch Me if You Can
Visit Catamount Adventure Park, a new ropes and zipline canopy tour, and stay at The Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. To help you get through the experience, you’ll receive a backpack with bottled water and trail mix for two upon arrival – and breakfast the following day. Rates start at $405, available from May 31 through September 16, 2010.

New Hampshire inn wants you to get dirty this spring

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Winter’s starting to turn into spring up in New England, which means pristine white landscapes turn into a brown slop. What do you do with it? The answer might be to smear it all over your body? Well, that’s what The Wentworth by the Sea has in mind. This New Hampshire inn has put together a great package that makes the most of the muddy season.

Head on up to New Castle, New Hampshire, and you’ll receive breakfast for two every morning, a 50-minute organic mud wrap and a sea facial with a bubbling mud back treatment (which sounds absolutely fascinating). Of course, a molten chocolate cake after the treatments in the relaxation room sure doesn’t hurt!

The tab isn’t too bad – only $289 a night (two-night stay Sunday through Thursday required), as long as you use promotion code P42.

B&Bs publish self-serving silver lining

by Tom Johansmeyer on

A new survey by BedandBreakfast.com says that inn-goers are continuing to travel, despite news of an economic crisis and a drop-off in travel spending. North of 96 percent of respondents replied that they had stayed in a hotel in the past two years, and 85.5 percent reported staying in a bed and breakfast. A whopping 75 percent claim to be planning two to four getaways through September 30, 2009.

And, the numbers just get rosier.

More than half of the respondents are planning to take as many trips as they did last year, and 25 percent are anticipating even more. Surprisingly … (add a little sarcasm here) … 84 percent said they’re going to stay at a B&B on trips between now and the end of September. Of course, only 10 percent would admit to plans for a two-star hotel, with 46 percent ‘fessing up to three-star hotel plans. Imagine that, from a B&B site that polls subscribers!

Peer pressure’s a bitch.

Seventy-three percent are planning trips within 150 miles of home, and 62 percent are shooting for longer distances (with multiple trips between now and September 30, there’s room for some overlap).

The best part – and this comes straight from the horse’s mouth (i.e., the press release) – “BedandBreakfast.com survey respondents embrace the value represented by B&Bs.”