What is a bed and breakfast app?

A bed and breakfast app, also known as a B&B app or short term rentals app, is a tool that allows a property owner to run their accommodation from their smartphone or mobile device.Bed and breakfast apps are many and varied, from simple tools that help you to create digital welcome guides for your guests, to fully featured bed and breakfast booking apps that bring the functionality of a property management system to your smartphone, like Little Hotelier’s mobile app.

The power of Little Hotelier in the palm of your hand

Little Hotelier's app grants property owners the ability to control their property from wherever they might be, communicating with guests, managing bookings and processing payments on the go.

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Why use a bed and breakfast app?

As any bed and breakfast owner will know, sitting down at your office desk can be a rare treat, as it’s more or less your job to be pulled in all directions. That can lead to a number of important tasks being neglected: admin falling by the wayside, delays in guest communication, rooms being double booked.

When you arm yourself with a quality, feature-rich B&B app, you grant yourself the ability to run your property on the go. You can check the vital signs of your business, communicate with guests, and process bookings and payments instantly and accurately.

The best bed and breakfast apps are also perfectly simple and intuitive to use. You won’t need to be an IT expert – if you can use a phone, you can use a well-built app.

The development of short term rentals apps

Short term rental apps have been around for years. The most popular are the likes of Airbnb, Vrbo and Pulse by Booking.com, which allow property owners to manage their online presence within specific booking platforms.

But most B&Bs offer their rooms through multiple booking channels, which has led to the rise of OTA-agnostic bed and breakfast apps like Little Hotelier. These apps allow a user to connect to all the different channels they accept bookings through, and control every listing through a single app.

This type of B&B app brings a wealth of other functionality too. In the case of Little Hotelier’s mobile app, it represents an extension of the Little Hotelier property management system, and brings all of the most important features of the desktop version to your smartphone.

bed and breakfast app

How does a bed and breakfast app work for hosts?

What exactly can you do on a bed and breakfast app? It depends on the app. In the case of the Little Hotelier mobile app, you’ll enjoy extensive functionality:

Track key info

Enjoy easy access to all the most important booking and operational information. Check an overview of all your daily bookings. View property performance metrics, from reservations to finances. You can even set up push notifications to be notified whenever a new booking is made or a current booking is changed.

Adjust room availability

Little Hotelier offers deep integration with 450+ OTAs and booking channels, and this connectivity extends to the app. When you close off specific rooms on specific dates through the app, these changes will be automatically made across all your OTA listings – one click and it’s all done! You can also create and edit reservations directly from the app, saving you the hassle of going back to your desk.

Process payments

Effortlessly process deposits, payments and refunds straight from the app through your payment service provider. Little Hotelier also allows you to send payment requests to guests, anywhere, anytime.

Check guests in and out

Update your systems and your team on guest status while you’re on the go – check guests in and out through the app, remotely and without the need for paper.

Communicate with guests

The Little Hotelier mobile app lets you easily communicate with your guests via email, keeping them up to date with check-in and check-out information, or to offer extras throughout their stay. You can also call them directly by simply clicking on their booking!.

What are the benefits of using a bed and breakfast app?

Why implement a B&B app? The benefits are many and varied, but a few of the most compelling include:

Save time

No more running back to the office or reception desk to do simple tasks: no matter where you are, you can take your phone out of your pocket and get jobs done in a couple of taps.

Save money

Time is money in the world of B&Bs, and with Little Hotelier saving you as much as 35 minutes every booking, you’re freed up to focus on higher value tasks, while potentially saving money on staffing costs.

Enhance the guest experience

When you use a B&B app to help you run your property smoothly and efficiently, your guests will enjoy a similarly smooth and efficient experience, which can lead to better reviews and ratings.

Generate more revenue

A quality app grants you total control over rates and availability so you can maximise the revenue you generate from your rooms. The guest communication feature also allows you to send through tempting offers on extra and upgrades throughout a guest’s stay to drive up the value of every booking.

Enjoy the best bed and breakfast app available

The best app for bed and breakfast businesses is one that offers full functionality, placing the power of a property management system in the palm of your hand. It will be simple to implement and use, and will save you time while helping you make more money.

An app that ticks every one of those boxes? Little Hotelier.

  • Ultimate control: View, accept and edit reservations, including direct bookings, through a mobile channel manager. Adjust rates and availability, monitor operations and more.
  • Unmatched flexibility: Little Hotelier’s Mobile App works across iOS and Android smartphones and tablets, and offers a wealth of third-party apps that can be integrated to further expand functionality.
  • Instant access to all the info: Keep track of all the most important numbers from wherever you are, through simple, clear and customisable dashboards.

Built for small, independent hoteliers, choosing Little Hotelier’s Mobile App means more revenue, more control and more support.

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By Dean Elphick

Dean is the Senior Content Marketing Specialist of Little Hotelier, the all-in-one software solution purpose-built to make the lives of small accommodation providers easier. Dean has made writing and creating content his passion for the entirety of his professional life, which includes more than six years at Little Hotelier. Through content, Dean aims to provide education, inspiration, assistance, and, ultimately, value for small accommodation businesses looking to improve the way they run their operations (and live their life).