LUMSDEN, Sask. – Three years ago the Saskatchewan Bed and Breakfast Association changed its name from the Country Vacations Association to recognize that the province also has urban guest homes.
However, the 90-member group still projects a country image with its black rooster logo.
Although the group has existed in some form since 1973, the longest established members, David and Janet Schwab, have been with the association since 1990. They operate a bed and breakfast on their Simmental ranch near Big Beaver in southern Saskatchewan.
The group has an accreditation system with regular inspections to ensure standards for cleanliness, safety, comfort and hospitality, said executive director Bryan Tudor.
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He said the average bed and breakfasts customer in Saskatchewan is from within the province and travelling for weddings, family reunions and community get-togethers.
Other customers are business travellers or couples on romantic getaways. Tudor said personal service is the biggest selling point for bed and breakfasts. Also, “people like the quietness of the country.”
Visitors to urban bed and breakfasts prefer them to hotels because they are more like home.
Most members operate year round. Summer is busiest while fall brings hunters and winter brings snowmobilers. The average nightly charge is $75, which supplements farm or off-farm income. Few could live on only bed and breakfast earnings.
Saskatchewan bed and breakfasts are run mostly by couples, but Tudor said women are more involved than men. He joked that he doesn’t have a bed and breakfast himself because “I don’t have the ambition to keep the house that clean.”
He said the biggest challenge for operators is lack of information. Tudor often hears people say they have stayed at bed and breakfasts in Nova Scotia or Newfoundland, but they never think to look for them in Saskatchewan.
Tudor said Saskatchewan doesn’t play up its agritourism features. For example, people call him asking if they can tour an elevator during their stay, but few grain companies allow this.
The association lists its members in the annual Tourism Saskatchewan accommodation booklet. It also prints tens of thousands of brochures with the same list and places them in logical tourism and information spots.
People can also check the list at www.bbsask.ca.
