Women love bed and breakfasts

In our 10 years as innkeepers, we’ve seen one wonderful trend develop.  More than ever, women are having a girlfriends getaway with old friends, sisters and co-workers, as well as with moms and daughters. We’ve answered that call with a Girlfriend Getaway special that includes a massage, facial and sauna at Secret Garden Spa, along with two-day tickets to the Biltmore Estate. The response has been fantastic. It helps that we are one of the rare bed and breakfasts around Asheville with two rooms with twin beds.

Another phenomenon has been an increase in women business travelers. As hotel costs rise, B&Bs become an attractive alternative for businesspeople on a budget. But women, in particular, say they prefer the hominess, safety and peace they find at our B&B. We were quoted by U.S. News and World Report a few years back on women’s preference for B&Bs. What businesswomen were saying then still goes. In addition, we have wireless internet now.

One recent visitor was Mollie Silver, here to begin classes at the Center for Massage and Natural Health. Several seminar teachers at the school have stayed here as well. Like most other business travelers, Mollie says she plans to return sometime when she doesn’t have to eat and run.

-Dan

Biltmore Candlelight Christmas got easier

The folks at the Biltmore Estate have made it easier for us at Inn on Main Street to arrange Candlelight Christmas Tour tickets for our guests visiting the famous Biltmore House. We already offer two-day daytime tickets for less money than the cost for a one-day pass at the Biltmore gate. But if we wanted to get reserved Christmas Candlelight Evening tickets for our guests in the past, we would have to order them the same way you do over the phone, then pick them up and add on a surcharge to cover our costs.

This year, for the first time, we can bypass that cumbersome system and order our guests’ tickets through group sales. That saves us time and money, and we can pass the savings along.

Our two-day daytime tickets during the holiday season cost $53 each. Compare that to $55 to $59 at the gate for one-day tickets. To upgrade your two-day ticket to include a reserved Candlelight Christmas tour, add $20 per ticket, for a total cost of $73 per ticket. Compare that to $78 at the gate for a single daytime visit with candlelight tour.

If you aren’t sure you want to take the candlelight Christmas tour, you can upgrade your ticket yourself during one of your daytime visits if evening tour slots still exist. But be aware that most of the popular dates sell out early.

- Dan