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By Marsha Larsen
B&B is not a drink, and it’s
not a polite description of what
the Dallas Cowboy
Cheerleaders have to offer.
Rather, it’s a new way for
Americans with less and less
discretionary income to travel,
have their bed and eats with it,
too.
Bed-and-breakfast accomoda
tions are springing up all over
the country. Even in Manhat-
My husband and I decided to
try it. We wanted to go to New
York, but hotels there had
become too expensive. How to
combine these two realities
became an exercise in creative
problem-solving. Could we stay
with friends? (Out of the ques
tion. We have no friends in New
York.) Camp in Central Park?
(Probably illegal.) Hide the
subway all night? (Were we
kidding?) At last we discovered
the B&B alternative'in New
York magazine.
The bed-and-breakfast refer
ral service, The B&B Group, we
found in the magazine acted as
our broker. Like a stockbroker,
these services consider the
amount tourists want to spend
and help them get the most
from their investment. They do
this with a brochure listing all
their client homes. The listings
give a little information about
the hosts, the accomodations
themselves, and the cost.
For example: ‘Pediatrics
nurse & computer sales hus
band, both ski & white water
enthusiasts, offer double
bedrm, w/pri. bath in
downstairs of their duplex apt.
(a converted loft). Apt. has
Jacuzzi & upper bedrm., reach
ed via captain’s ladder as well
as conventional stairs. Located
in City Hall area (old New
York). . .10 min. walk to SOHO
& Greenwich Village. $3O/Single
$45/Double.”
Or, for a splurge:
“Extraordinary, posh, self
contained rm. suite
(kitchen & private bath), Mid
dle Eastern decor in 3 story
brownstone offered by couple in
interior decorating field, who
run their own catering service
as well. $75/night (W. 40’s off
Fifth Ave.). They’ll fix a
candlelight dinner for two or a
larger cocktail party at an ex
tra fee.”
We chose a “duplex con
verted loft which doubles as
studio and living quarters of
costume designer and film war
drobe artist.... Walk to
Greenwich Village, SOHO.” The;
reservation was haiidled entire
ly through The B&B Group by
telephone. We mailed them our
deposit, then they gave us the
details name, address, and
telephone number of our host.
We arrived bv train (another
“deal”—buy one full-price Am
trak ticket, and the spouse goes
half-price) and called our host,
Ken, from Penn Central Sta
tion. He was expecting us and
had arranged to be home early
from work that Thursday to
greet us.
We pulled up in a cab before
an old soot-stained mercantile
building, and I began to have
second thoughts. We entered
the building and caught the
rickety elevator. At the en
trance to the apartment on the
dingy fourth floor, I was ready
to turn and go find an
outrageously expensive hotel
room. At least it would be de
cent.
My husband, ever the op
timist, insisted we see the
place, so we followed the in
struction taped to the
metal double doors to
“KNOCK LOUDLY.”
The sound of our arrival
clanged throughout the
area, mixing in with
> die hot salsa music
and chatter of Puerto
Rican workers in the Lucky
Toy Co. down the hall.
“We pulled up in a cab before an old soot-stained mercantile
building, and I began to have second thoughts. ’ ’
Water trickled from a leaking
pipe behind us.
When I stepped inside, I felt
like Dorothy Gale felt in the
Wizard pf Oz when she opened
the door of her house blown
from black-and-white Kansas to
the technicolor world of the
Munchkins. It was a tastefully
decorated, colorful artist’s loft,
and the host was young and
attractive. The place was
funky, granted, but that only
added to its charm. The fur
nishings were an eclectic mix,
all circa 1947. The walls
displayed interesting soft
sculpture art painted in vivid
colors.
B&B in this instance meant
“Bed-and-Budweiser.” Ken in
vited us to share anything in
the fridge. We saw beer inside
plus two cans of cat food, a jug
of cold water, and a one-lb. can
of Cuban coffee. Just as well.
We are not breakfast eaters but
love a cold brew after a hectic
day of New York sightseeing.
We found this sort of flexibili
ty to be one of the major attrac
tions of B&B-ing in New York.
Don’t eat breakfast? Have a
beer instead. Your train doesn’t
leave until 5:00? Okay, stay
here those additional three
hours after checkout.
Of course, there’s meeting
nice people, too. Ken was an at
tentive, but not intrusive, host.
He provided us with a city
guidebook and good advice
about transportation, budget
shopping, and inexpensive
restaurants. And with his pre
planned weekend activities, he
gave us a lot of time to share
the spacious loft.
B&B lodgings are a bargain.
B&B’s have been a familiar
part of travel for generations of
visitors to Europe. But, only in
the last seven or eight years
has this idea been practiced in
the United States.
A recent article by Gloria
Levitas in The New York Times
attributed the mushrooming
B&B trend to several factors:
the state of the economy, the
sterility (and expense) of
motels and hotels, and
Americans’ desire for more
human contact in our increas
ingly technological, alienated
culture.
If you like absolutely private
lodgings, B&B’s will not suit
you. But if you like to travel,
must travel on a tight budget,
enjoy meeting interesting peo
ple in their own homes, and
don’t mind “winging it,” then
consider this sleep-cheap alter
native.
When you make your reserva
tion, tell the agency as much as
possible about yourself. For in
stance, do you smoke? Do you
have special dietary needs, or
require facilities for the han
dicapped? Any children or pets
in your party? The agencies
generally approach these prob
lems with a sense of
challenge. They want your
business, and they and their
hosts can be flexible in ways
hotels and motel chains can’t.
Nothing broadens like travel,
nor flattens the pocketbook so
quickly. B&B’s can help.
Contact:
The B&B Group
(New Yorkers at Home), Inc.
301 East 60th Street
New York, N. Y. 10022
212/838-7015
House Guests, Cape Cod
85 Hokum Rock Road
Dennis, Mass. 02638
(House Guests can also put you
in touch with referral agencies
that service other parts of the
U. S. the West, Southwest,
Deep South, New England.)
Send for:
“Bed and Breakfast Ser
vices—United States”
$1 and self-addressed stamped
envelope to:
Sweet Dreams & Toast, Inc.
P. O. Box 4835-0035
Washington, D. C. 20038
“The Bed and Breakfast Direc
tory”
$3.50 (covers cost & mailing)
to:
Posey Publications
P. O. Box 2512
Fairfield, Calif. 94533