
Lodgify
Magpie iHospitality is a Web-based system that integrates your website's bookings into single source of inventory with visibility on popular sites like Orbitz and Priceline. It is a complete solution for hospitality management....Read more
Guest Tracker by TCS Hotel Software is a standalone property management solution designed specifically for the hospitality and lodging industry. This end-to-end system offers a full suite of add-ons tailored to your needs....Read more
Base7booking is a cloud-based property management program designed for the hospitality industry. The solution is accessible from any mobile device. The program is suitable for running a single property or multiple locations simult...Read more
Amadeus' LinkHotel CRS maximizes the reach of hospitality companies by distributing rate and inventory information across multiple sales channels, as well as offering reservation and rate management....Read more
Newhotel Software’s Cloud PMS is a flexible Web-based hotel management system that features a graphical reservation calendar, multiple report types and point-of-sale (POS) integration....Read more
InnKey PMS is a cloud-based hotel management system for small and midsized hotels. The system includes functions for reservations, front desk, POS, inventory management and accounting....Read more
Designed for large hospitality companies, Fidelity PMS is a hotel management system that includes flexible features to manage reservations, check-in and check-out, guest profiles, point-of-sale and accounting functions....Read more
Dormito.re is a hotel management system that provides hoteliers with an online booking system, social media integration, front desk features and a guest information database....Read more
eZee Absolute from eZee Technosys is a cloud-based hotel management system with a website booking engine, a channel manager, a point-of-sale system and reporting features....Read more
Recent forecasts show the travel industry shows no signs of slowing down: U.S. consumer spending on travel is projected to grow by about $1 billion every year through 2022.
As a manager of a bed and breakfast (B&B), you have an opportunity to seize a portion of these bookings with a unique and personal experience, and software is necessary to compete in today's digital landscape. However, navigating the hundreds of options available for lodging providers can be overwhelming.
Hotel management and property management solutions offer a lot of value, but it's important to find vendors that can provide a specific set of functionality designed for the challenges of operating a B&B. This guide is designed to help you understand the features, benefits and other considerations of bed and breakfast software before you start evaluating.
In this guide, we'll cover:
What Is Bed and Breakfast Software?
Common Features of Bed and Breakfast Software
Benefits of Bed and Breakfast Software
Key Considerations
B&B software has, as you may expect, many of the same features as a traditional hotel management system, and with the same goal of running an efficient, clean, profitable lodging business that can reach hundreds of thousands potential guests across the globe.
Managing reservations, scheduling cleanings, completing transactions, curating how your property is marketed online and other functions are core features of B&B software. Full hotel management systems usually include more features, like maintenance management work order systems or advanced analytics.
An example of an online booking engine, provided by innRoad
Smaller companies may not need these features, but you can choose to add more functionality as you grow. Modern hospitality management vendors capabilities are designed to help companies scale with additional modules for more sophisticated management.
B&B software shares many of the same features as hotel management systems to accept reservations, handle front desk activities, manage housekeeping and track information about guests. Vendors can offer a customized system with a combination of the following features:
Reservation management and front desk |
Provides a color-coded calendar view to manage and edit bookings and check guests in and out. |
Online booking engine (OBE) |
Allows guests to book reservations at your property directly from your website. |
Housekeeping management |
Manages any housekeeping staff, assigns tasks and tracks the status of each room or unit. |
Collects contact, payment and preferences about guests for use in marketing strategies. |
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Allows B&Bs to complete transactions for bookings, food and drinks, room service, retail or other incidentals. |
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Manages any maintenance staff, assigns work orders and tracks completed work. |
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Website management |
Allows users to customize their website and OBE with brand logos and colors, as well as specific landing pages. |
Reporting |
Generates reports regarding revenue, booking or customer data to reveal trends or problems. |
Bed and breakfast software provides many of the same time and cost-saving benefits as a standard hotel management system, including:
When evaluating bed and breakfast software vendors, it's important to understand a couple of key factors that can make a significant impact on the system's long-term value and affordability:
Mobility capabilities to remotely manage property. Software vendors for nearly every industry are introducing native mobile apps or web-based versions of their systems for smartphones and tablets, and hospitality is no different. If you tend to be away from the property or have multiple properties to manage in different areas, you can use your mobile device to keep track of important changes in real-time, no matter where you are.
Deployment options for varying levels of control. Cloud-based software changed the way companies buy and use technology, but it's not preferred for all businesses. When reviewing products, inquire about how the vendor services cloud-based systems and decide whether you need to keep your data on-premises. For most hospitality companies, a cloud-based system is a common choice for flexibility and lower upfront cost.