For the pleasure of living in such an idyll, tourists are willing to pay big money
As the BBC writes, the best of the best was Bindon Bottom in Dorset, located next to the famous "Jurassic Coast", where professional paleontologists and amateur collectors still love to wander in search of fossilized shells and fish. Its fame was shared by South Lodge Guest House in East Yorkshire, which came in third, Swallows Rest B&B in Northamptonshire (fifth), Thornleigh Guest House in the Lake District in Cumbria (eighth).
The British are convinced that "bed and breakfast" is exclusively their invention. It all began when the Romans conquered most of what is now England. During the empire, they approached the occupied territories with enviable thoroughness, and various officials, tax collectors, soldiers and their commanders actively moved around the conquered island.
The British Isles, of course, occupy a relatively small place on the world map, but still, to ride on horseback from, say, Dover to York (two fairly large Roman cities separated by more than 300 miles or 480 km) took more than a week, not to mention walking the distance. And where to spend the night? Under the spreading branches of yew trees? The Romans, by the way, lined all their roads with them, which in some places have survived to this day.
The enterprising local population began to earn extra money by providing travelers with rooms in their homes, promising to feed the traveler a good breakfast in the morning.
Do not think that the owners of English B&Bs have or had a habit of deliberately poisoning trusting customers. But do not forget that in general the British have never been distinguished by talents in the field of service. A true gentleman in the 18th or 19th century did not set off without stocking up on his own provisions and his own sheets, and with his own cook. If one could somehow do without a cook and food on the road, then without sheets – under no circumstances!
By the middle of the 20th century, most B&Bs had turned into highly dubious establishments, where one could stay only at one's own risk.
The famous British writer Roald Dahl in 1959, in his characteristic grotesque manner, expressed the nation's general attitude towards small hotels in a short story "The Landlady". In brief, the plot is that a young man travels around the country and decides to stay at a B&B, attracted by its cute appearance. He is greeted by a talkative landlady, who tells him how all her guests are absolutely delighted, some are still in the house, and that she loves to stuff her pets.
During the conversation, she treats the young man to tea, which emits a noticeable aroma of bitter almonds (cyanide, of course). The hapless traveler brings the cup to his lips, and then the story breaks off: we can only guess (with a high degree of probability) that the young man, having drunk the tea, will immediately give up the ghost, after which he will be stuffed and hidden in a chest of drawers.
In those few years when we had already moved to London but did not yet have British citizenship and children, we (in order not to bother with getting visas) traveled around most of the country, usually staying in such small private hotels. I cannot vouch for statistical accuracy, but still we have accumulated enough experience to make some generalizations.
Conclusion one: the best B&Bs are opened by former high-powered financiers, bankers and other sharks of capitalist business, tired of the "rat race" and wanting to spend the rest of their days in nature, communicating with smart and pleasant people. Their establishments are distinguished by stunning locations (as a rule, only such people have the means to buy a large house in some national park and convert it to receive guests) and exquisite cuisine (the hostesses, having swapped business suits for aprons, have all studied at cooking courses).
Conclusion two: the most unforgettable impressions remain from those places where the owner (for some reason it is always the owner, not the hostess) dislikes someone: the Scots or the Welsh, the English, the Irish, the French, Europeans in general, Americans, City workers, lawyers, cyclists, people with dogs, people without dogs, vegetarians, snobs, and so on.
Conclusion three: if at first glance something about this establishment does not please you, you need to turn around and flee under any pretext, because there will be no use anyway.
During this time, our favorite establishment became a small farm run by a husband and wife, our peers. The owner spent his free time developing computer games, and the young hostess, firstly, was a pleasant person in all respects, and secondly, was a graduate of a super-cool culinary school in Paris. We went there several times, and if there were no other guests, we spent pleasant evenings by the fireplace with glasses of whiskey.
The most unorthodox establishment was a huge house in Cornwall, in the village of Mousehole. Our acquaintance with the owner began with him sternly looking us up and down (he most resembled a veteran boatswain from a pirate ship) and asking through clenched teeth where we had come from.
Fortunately, I quickly noticed that the entrance was decorated with a black flag with a white cross, the flag of Cornwall, and said that actually we were from London now, but originally from Moscow. The owner softened right before our eyes, and even on his own initiative changed our room to a more spacious one with a sea view. The next day we witnessed how he angrily refused a place to a couple of hapless English people who dared to ask permission to first see the room and only then pay.
Traditional establishments are distinguished by the custom of gathering all guests in the living room in the evenings (voluntary, but why go against tradition?) and a certain family spirit.
The fact is that until recently, when some EU rules were extended to these establishments, opening a B&B required no education in hotel management, no permits, no licenses—nothing at all except two mandatory conditions: feeding guests breakfast and living in the same house.
Of course, you can take this business lightly, but given that the number of B&Bs is approaching 30,000 and annual revenue is £2 billion, perhaps it's not worth completely dismissing them.
The revival of popularity of such establishments began about seven years ago, after the start of the financial crisis. A fairly noticeable portion of Britons suddenly realized that it is cheaper and sometimes much more interesting. Especially since the current trend is that many owners are trying to turn their homes into small, exquisite hotels with impeccable decor, super-polite service, and expensive cosmetics and toiletries in the bathrooms. In such places, be prepared to pay up to £250 per night, with a mandatory minimum stay of two nights.
It would seem that nothing could be simpler: buy a big house, put a bathroom in each bedroom, and live happily. But is it really that simple?
"Before opening a B&B, thoroughly inspect your soul," advises Edward Miller, author of the book "How to Own a B&B and Not Lose Your Sense of Humor." "You must ask yourself: Do I love people? To what extent am I willing to give up my private life? Am I ready to work hard? Can I keep a straight face when asked if I've met Wordsworth (19th-century English poet) when he wrote 'The Song of Hiawatha' (written in the 19th century by American poet Henry Longfellow)? If you can do all that, then a wonderful life awaits you."
However, this "wonderful life" has its drawbacks. First, clients have become much more demanding. Second, the EU has required owners to comply with a whole set of rules, such as: a complete ban on having their own dogs and cats in the kitchen, mandatory expensive fire safety measures, and the obligatory presence of bath mats and unbreakable windows in bathrooms in case a client, God forbid, slips.
Yet, despite all the difficulties and drawbacks, it seems (and the TripAdvisor rating confirms this) that Britons have finally figured out how to enjoy making people happy. No one, of course, is immune to visitors who might, for example, demand that birds not sing in the countryside in the morning or that seagulls not screech in a seaside town. But you can't please everyone, can you?