If your Instagram feed or local press is full of posts about Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice and Best of the Best award winners right now, you’re not alone. I’ve been genuinely delighted to see so many of my past course attendees featured—rightly recognised for their hard work, attention to detail, and exceptional hospitality.

They’ve done brilliantly by building a B&B around a clear vision and delivering consistently great service to the guests they most wanted to welcome. It’s always lovely to see that kind of focus and care being recognised.

But not every B&B owner wants an award—and not receiving one doesn’t mean you’re falling short. If you're just starting out, seeing all the awards posts can feel a bit overwhelming. You might start wondering whether you're doing enough or if you’re getting it all wrong.

The truth is, there's no such thing as a universally perfect guest experience. What one guest calls “the best B&B in the world” might leave another quietly disappointed.

And if you’re already running a brilliant B&B but haven’t picked up one of these awards, it might simply be down to not having enough Tripadvisor reviews. This can happen when your booking engine directs guests to a different platform—most guests won’t leave reviews in more than one place.

🔗 Want to encourage more positive reviews for your own B&B? Read my blog on how to get more great guest reviews

Why No Single B&B Can Be the Best for Everyone

Have you ever been recommended a book by a friend who swore it was the best they’d ever read, only to start reading it and wonder what they were on about? Or maybe you’ve reread a book you loved 10 years ago, expecting to really enjoy it, only to find yourself struggling to get past the first few chapters.

I had exactly this experience the other day—I really wanted a comfortable read that I knew I would enjoy, so I went back to an old favourite I remembered loving, and I had to give up a quarter of the way through. And it really left me wondering—why?

I came to the conclusion it's because our tastes, needs, and values change. A book that resonated with you when you were a busy professional or juggling young children (not literally I hope) might not hold the same appeal years later when life looks very different.

And it’s not just books—my taste in accommodation has changed too. We used to love staying at family-friendly resorts like Almond Beach Village in Barbados (one of the perks of airline staff travel!). It was ideal at the time, with loads for the kids to do. But these days, it wouldn't be very high up my list of hotels to book.

That said, there are plenty of guests who are still looking for that kind of experience—especially those travelling with young children or grandchildren. If you enjoy hosting families, a child-friendly B&B can be a brilliant fit.
🔗 Read: Should You Run a Family-Friendly B&B?

My daughter and I share a similar taste in books and usually enjoy the same ones, but sometimes one of us will love a book while the other can't finish it. This may have a lot to do with the different stages of life we’re in. She’s a young, busy working mother with a toddler in London, while I work for myself and live in the countryside.

And while we can often enjoy the same holiday accommodation, our holiday needs are different—while they look for dog and child-friendly stays, we prefer adult-only retreats, unless we're all travelling together of course.

It’s the Same When It Comes to Running a B&B

When setting up a bed and breakfast, you need to think about the kind of guests you want to attract. Some B&Bs focus on being child-friendly with large family rooms and play areas, while others create an adults-only retreat for guests looking for a quiet getaway.

Just like choosing the right holiday accommodation, guests are looking for different experiences, and your B&B should be tailored to match your vision and the kind of guests who will appreciate it.

You only have to spend five minutes scrolling through Tripadvisor reviews to see wildly differing opinions. One guest will declare a B&B “the best we’ve ever stayed at,” while another, staying the very same night, will grumble that it wasn’t quite what they expected.

🔗 Struggling with how to respond to reviews? Here's how to use ChatGPT to reply to Tripadvisor reviews

This happened to me once. I had two sets of guests staying—one couple had spent two nights in a particular room but moved to another to make way for guests who’d pre-booked that room. The next morning at breakfast, the two couples got chatting. The guests who’d moved rooms said, “Gosh, isn’t that bed the most comfortable you’ve ever slept in?” The new arrivals replied, “No, not really—I didn’t sleep well at all.”

Same bed, same room—completely different experiences.

What makes a bed and breakfast perfect for one person might make it entirely unsuitable for someone else. A quiet countryside retreat with no WiFi, phone signal or TVs in the rooms might be perfect for a guest looking for total relaxation—but a disappointment for a single guest travelling away on business. A stylish boutique B&B with an Instagram-worthy breakfast might thrill some guests but leave others longing for a simple, hearty fry-up and a more traditional feel.

Some guests may feel more comfortable when they’re around people who are at a similar life stage or have similar interests. A B&B filled with young couples on romantic getaways might feel a bit awkward for an older solo traveller—or vice versa. It’s not about excluding anyone, but about creating an atmosphere that naturally appeals to the people you most want to welcome.

Why Defining Your B&B Style is Crucial When Starting a B&B

This is why it’s so important to be clear from the very start about the type of B&B you want to run and the kind of guests you want to attract.

The more you try to appeal to everyone, the harder it becomes to give the right experience to anyone.

For example:

• If you welcome dogs, you’re likely to put off guests with allergies or those who simply don’t want animals in the house.
• If you cater for children, families will appreciate it—but you may lose couples looking for a quiet, adult-only break.
• If you allow flexible check-in at all hours, you might appeal to business travellers, but it can make your own evenings unpredictable and exhausting.
• If you offer one-night stays, you’ll increase occupancy—but you’ll also increase your workload and running costs through constant turnarounds.
• If you go for a boutique, design-led feel, you might attract a style-conscious guest—but that could be off-putting to someone looking for a more homely, traditional vibe.

None of these decisions are right or wrong—they just shape who your B&B will naturally appeal to. And that’s a good thing.

Running a B&B: Why Your Business Should Reflect You

When I ran my B&B, I set it up as a relaxing rural retreat. For much of the time, it was a three-room B&B—and at one stage I ran four rooms. But with the size of the rooms and the level of service I was offering, I found four was simply too much to manage on my own.

Each set of new guests got a whole, freshly baked lemon drizzle cake and homemade shortbread in their room, which I topped up if it ran out. Some guests ate the whole cake on the first evening! Add to that cooked breakfasts like pancakes or eggs benedict, and keeping the rooms spotless, and it quickly became clear that running more than two rooms on my own just wasn’t realistic if I wanted to keep the standards where I wanted them.

It was at the higher end of the local market. I welcomed dogs but didn’t accept children or one-night stays. Most of my guests were couples celebrating special occasions.

They’d arrive during set check-in hours (between 4–7pm), and often stayed around during the day enjoying the peace and quiet, the views, and the chance to watch the birds. I didn’t offer evening meals, but I did offer platters for those who didn’t want to go out again after arriving.

My occupancy was lower than it could have been because I didn’t allow one-night stays—so I’d often have a night free between bookings—but that gave me a bit of a break and meant I wasn’t constantly doing full changeovers.

Just a few miles away, another B&B owner ran a completely different setup. Their B&B was on a long-distance walking route. Their guests usually stayed for only one night, they provided evening meals, and served early breakfasts so guests could get out walking. Guests arrived on foot, so check-in times had to be more flexible.

They had higher occupancy, but also higher running costs. Turning the rooms around every day meant more frequent linen changes, longer cleans, and generally more wear and tear. Cleaning started early, so they had more of the day free—but they were tied up most evenings cooking and hosting.

In the end, we probably both earned roughly the same—but the way we worked, and the way our days looked, was very different.

Why Marketing is Essential for a Successful B&B

Your B&B marketing plays a huge role in shaping the experience your guests expect before they even step through the door. It’s not just about attracting any guests—it’s about attracting the right guests.

Your website, photos, social media presence, and even the language you use in your descriptions all help potential visitors decide whether your B&B experience is what they’re looking for.

High-quality imagery, engaging storytelling, and clear messaging about your unique selling points will ensure you appeal to guests who will love what you have to offer.

Your B&B Vision May Change Over Time

Just like our book preferences change, your vision for your B&B might shift over time too. When I first started out, I accepted one-night stays, cooked evening meals, and even did laundry for guests. Gradually, I realised it wasn’t sustainable—and not how I wanted to spend my days. I dropped evening meals, stopped the laundry, and introduced a two-night minimum stay. That one change alone made a huge difference to my workload and helped attract guests who were looking for a slower, more relaxed experience.

Our dog policy changed too. When I first opened, our old dog didn’t get on with other dogs, so we didn’t allow guest dogs to stay. But when Mitsi and Murphy came along, it turned out they were perfect B&B dogs—friendly, great with guests, and good with other dogs too (they'd back off and pretend nothing was happening if the guest dogs got too feisty). I started accepting dogs, and it was honestly one of the best business decisions I made.

🔗 Thinking of welcoming dogs to your B&B? Here’s how to run a dog-friendly B&B without the stress

Then Saffy and Ralphie arrived—and let’s just say it got a bit more complicated. They weren’t quite as chilled around other dogs, and that was one of many reasons (a story for another blog post) why I eventually decided to stop offering B&B.

The point I'm trying to make here is that what works at one stage in your life or business might not work forever—and that’s perfectly normal.

You might start off as dog-friendly and later decide it’s not for you. You might begin by offering weekend breaks and realise mid-week bookings suit your lifestyle better. The key is to stay flexible, keep checking in with what’s working, and make changes when you need to.

Running a B&B isn’t about setting everything in stone from day one. It’s about being willing to review what’s working (and what isn’t) and making changes as your life, your guests, and your priorities shift. The more flexible you are, the more sustainable—and enjoyable—your business will be.

The Best B&B? It's the One That Works for You

The process of defining your ideal B&B begins right at the start of my B&B First Steps Mini Course and is explored in much greater depth in the first two modules of my main B&B course. These modules help you flesh out a vision for your bed and breakfast that not only attracts the right guests but also fits seamlessly with your lifestyle and long-term goals.

So instead of chasing the dream of creating the “best B&B in the world,” focus on building the best B&B for you—and for the guests who will love what you have to offer.

When you build a business around clarity, consistency, and great guest experiences, the recognition often follows naturally. Many of my course attendees have gone on to win awards because they focused on getting the fundamentals right—not because they tried to appeal to everyone.

That’s where the real magic—and long-term success—happens.