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Complimentary copies of the Iowa Bed & Breakfast Guild Directory are available at all Iowa Welcome Centers and Iowa Bed & Breakfast Guild Member's properties.

You may request a copy by calling or writing to:

Iowa Bed & Breakfast Guild

9001 Hickman Rd., #220

Des Moines, IA 50322

Phone: 800-743-4692

FAX: 515-278-0245

E-Mail: mailto:ibbg@netins.net

We appreciate hearing about your experiences at member inns and B&Bs! Please feel free to call, write, or E-Mail us at the numbers listed above.

Considering a biking trip?

Bed Breakfast and Biking lists bike-friendly B&B's and inns along or near the bike trails and byways through-out the state of your choice. The innkeepers along the bike trails offer hospitality and respite for travelers. They will be happy to help you plan a trip using their B &B as a base or as one of several stops on your biking (or hiking) vacation.

Traveling in Eastern Iowa? For information, please visit www.easterniowatourism.org

Traveling in Central Iowa?

For information, please visit

www.iowatourism.org

Traveling in Western Iowa?

For information, please visit

www.traveliowa.org

Traveling beyond Iowa? Please visit International Bed and Breakfast Pages: An award-winning bed and breakfast travel guide offering travelers their choice of over 1600 rated, inspected or reader reviewed accommodations
located around the world.

Thanks to Western Iowa Tourism Region, Central Iowa Tourism Region and Eastern Iowa Tourism Region, TRICOR Insurance, and The Iowan Magazine for sponsoring the Iowa Bed and Breakfast Guild's 2008 Annual Spring Conference for Iowa B&Bs.

B&B A Directory of Iowa Bed & Breakfast Inns B&B

See Below for Articles About Associate Members,

Sponsors, & Friends of the Guild

Associate Members offer innkeeping-related products and services to Iowa Bed and Breakfast Guild member properties. These businesses, often small business entrepreneurs like innkeepers, are committed to providing quality products and services to assist and improve the bed and breakfast industry. The Iowa Bed and Breakfast Guild does not necessarily endorse Associate Members, but we do encourage you to contact them and ask that you remember to tell them that you are a member of The Iowa Bed and Breakfast Guild. Associate Members are provided Preferred Vendor status at Iowa Bed and Breakfast Guild Conferences, in newsletters, and in the annual Iowa Bed and Breakfast Guild Directory.

Sponsors and Friends of the Guild assist in the promotion and support of the Iowa Bed and Breakfast Guild and the bed and breakfast industry. Their interest, support and concern are greatly appreciated.

Associate Members

Harvest Moon Innkeeping

Michelle M. Bliss, Interim Innkeeper

700 5th Ave SW

Altoona IA 50009

515.967.4103 (hm) 515.689.8915 (cell)

E-mail: michellebliss55@hotmail.com

www.harvestmooninnkeeping.com

IBBG Committee

Harvest Moon Innkeeping – an Interim Innkeeping Service

My name is Michelle Bliss and I have Harvest Moon Innkeeping – an Interim Innkeeping service.

For those of you who are not familiar with me, or my business, I am happy to take this opportunity to give you a little background on both.

I am an Iowa girl, born and raised in Des Moines. Dirk and I have two grown children and a beautiful new grandson. My educational background is in the Health and Human Services field. I worked for many years with the Des Moines Public Schools as an Educational Interpreter for deaf and hearing impaired students. When I left the school district I went to work for the Polk County Attorneys Restorative Justice Program and Polk County Victim Services. There I worked with victims of violent crime. After a few years I left the county and went to work for Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa. It was during this time that I became enamored with all things "Bed and Breakfast".

Dirk and I had gone on a little trip to the north shore of Minnesota and happened upon a beautiful B&B that looked out across Lake Superior. I was ready for my work in the world to take a less stressful path so when we left there fully relaxed; I started to think seriously about the Bed and Breakfast industry and did some research. We attended the PAII conference for aspiring innkeepers in Chicago and when we returned home I picked the brains of the Innkeepers at the Butler House and The Cottage. I then did an internship with The Cottage and ended up working there a little over two years. I gained a tremendous amount of knowledge and all kinds of experience. I do believe every Innkeeper could write a very entertaining book!

Initially I had entertained the idea of having our own B&B. Then I read an article in the PAII newsletter about Interim Innkeeping. I took a real interest in this much to Dirk’s relief. Since I had never had a B&B of my own it was important that I have the right training and credentials, including insurance. PAII offered an Interim Innkeeper certification program that I completed, then Dirk and I spent a week in Colorado in a very intense Interim Innkeeper training. I felt very confident and suited to this profession when we left there. To add to those feelings, on the drive home there was a harvest moon and that is how I arrived at the name.

Many of you have seen me at the IBBG or the IBBIA conferences marketing my business and some of you have used my services more than once! Good for you! Being an Innkeeper is a demanding lifestyle and it is important for you to schedule time for yourselves away from the Inn, quality personal time. I know during quiet periods, many Innkeepers just close their doors to get away. As you are aware, the B&B market is very competitive – being unavailable, at any time is risky and potentially costly. Guests will understand if you are booked, but will take their current and possibly future business

elsewhere if you are closed. My services provide that continuity and protect the income stream for your B&B.

I recently asked a few Innkeepers what value they realized in hiring an Interim Innkeeper. They ALL spoke of "peace of mind in knowing that things were being well cared for and the guest experience would not be compromised". Next were; "no loss in revenue and no loss in bookings". This is a big one. Innkeepers often think they cannot afford to hire an Interim Innkeeper, I would say sometimes you can’t afford not to! I spent the month of March working at a B&B in Galena, Illinois and booked over $6,500 in reservations for them. They were thrilled and I was too! It is my goal to provide you with my professional services at a price that is mutually satisfying.

The next time you need a break for whatever reason, consider calling me. I will spend some time talking with you about your B&B and learn what your specific needs are. If you decide you want to use me as your Interim Innkeeper I will come to you, at my expense, for a day of getting to know you and your B&B. I will leave you my Interim Innkeepers Manual, which is an in-depth questionnaire about your Inn, its mechanics and working operations. It is my "go to" book and comes in very handy.

Harvest Moon Innkeeping has been in business a little over two years now and I have loved every minute of it. I am very proud to work in this industry as a professional and serve the wonderful Innkeepers here in Iowa. It is all I hoped it would be and then some! I am very grateful to many of you who have mentored and supported me along the way.

I wanted to leave you with a testimony of my services from Annie Medrano of Annie’s Garden Guest House in Amana:

"What a pleasure it was to leave our home and guests in Michelle’s quite capable hands while we attended a wedding last fall. After meeting Michelle I knew that she was more than qualified to handle the business aspect and day to day running of our bed and breakfast. But further to find her professional and detailed attention to taking reservations, answering phone questions, fielding emails and resetting rooms for repeated guest turn over to be beyond my highest expectations and left us completely at ease. Our guests left the most glowing messages praising the delicious breakfasts and how much they had enjoyed Michelle’s friendly welcome. We had the extra treat of enjoying some samples of what Michelle had prepared for breakfast that morning an apple strata which was absolutely delicious. I recommend Michelle very highly!"

I hope you will take a few minutes to visit my website at: www.harvestmooninnkeeping.com . You can email me at: michellebliss55@hotmail.comT or call 515.967.4103. My best to you all! Michelle

Consulting Services

· Seminars · Workshops

· Innkeeper Consulting for Aspiring and Current Innkeepers

Avis Pohl, Consultant

2116 Country Club Blvd., Ames, IA 50014

515-451-6007

www.campusbandb.com/training

TRICOR Hospitality Insurance Program

Chuck Andracchio

P. O. Box 1810

500 Iowa Street

Dubuque, IA 52004-1810

Email: candracchio@tricorinsurance.com

www.tricorinsurance.com

800-556-5441 or 563-556-5441, Ext. 1444

The TRICOR Hospitality Insurance Program provides innkeepers many options for commercial and personal insurance needs: general liability, property, Work Comp, commercial auto, umbrella, etc. As an independent agency, we use national, regional and mutual insurers and can provide competitive rates and comparisons. We will work hard to earn your trust and business.

Iowa Gaming Association

Wes Ehrecke, CAE, President

4401 Westown Parkway, Suite 209

West Des Moines, IA 50266

1-888-327-0384 515-267-9200

wese@iowagaming.org

The Iowa Gaming Association represents 16 riverboat and racetrack casinos. IGA is an advocate for the industry being a viable part of Iowa's economy and adding value to the state's entertainment and tourism industries. As Iowa's largest tourist attraction with nearly 20 million visitors annually, the gaming industry also:

· Employs nearly 9,400 people

· Annually purchases over $182 million in products and services from Iowa vendors

· Pays $288 million yearly in state, county and local taxes

· Contributes millions of dollars to thousands of charitable causes each year

· Purchases millions of pounds of beef, pork, poultry, eggs and milk for patron consumption.

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Sponsors:

Danish Countryside Vines and Wines

1397 280th Street
Exira, Iowa 50076
712-764-2991
Located near the Danish communities of Elk Horn and Kimballton. Come see us and enjoy our Danish hospitality.
Tues. - Sat. 10:00 - 6:00 and Sun. 1:00 - 5:00
Closed Mondays
Mar. - Dec. also closed Dec. 1st - 8th

Open by appointment or reservation only for the months of Jan. Feb & Mar. http://www.danishcountrysidevinesandwines.com/