A Few Words While Returning From Vacation - February 2021
It was a chilly Sunday morning about halfway through our vacation. Well, let’s be honest. It was chilly by New Orleans’ standards for a winter morning – but I was outside on the back porch of our rented apartment drinking my coffee. As I lazed in the sunshine and warming air, I perused the Lancaster Newspaper for news from back home about the impending snowstorms, just to gloat a bit. Then I came upon the article, and my mood immediately changed.
It was titled “Getting Creative” and talked about the plight of the 150 or so Bed and Breakfasts in Lancaster County Pennsylvania, and the effect that Covid-19 has had on our very existence. Read the entire article here.
My heart sank as I read the interviews with my Innkeeper Colleagues – many of whom we know personally. At least three B&Bs in the County have already closed their doors. Currently there are no less than a dozen on the market for sale – about double the normal number. Of the Innkeepers who have remained open – many have taken on part-time jobs to help defray the cost of the lost revenue – up to an 85% decline in some cases.
The Osceola Mill House has not been immune to the effects of the pandemic. Like everyone else we have changed the very methods by which we have welcomed our guests over the past 15 years. “Deep cleaning” and regular disinfecting are now the industry norm. We no longer have the luxury of enjoying the company of our guests at breakfast for lively conversations as we now serve everyone socially distanced all over the house. Our separate Cottage remains our most popular room where guests can isolate entirely. But still, as the past year dragged on, entertainment venues and restaurants remained closed, and our occupancy rate plummeted.
As we sat alone in the house with no guests, we decided to do something that we had always wondered about. We closed up the house, asked our Amish neighbors to watch over her, and ventured out on a road trip south toward our beloved New Orleans to try out the “snowbird” thing. We stopped in Roanoke Virginia for a return trip to Black Dog Salvage and picked up a few new treasures there. We even got to meet Mike Whiteside, one of the owners, and managed to slip him a card for the B&B. After spending MLK Day in Birmingham, AL, the seat of the civil rights movement, we moved onto beautiful Laurel, MS, home of Ben and Erin Napier of Home Town fame. Our Innkeeper showed us where they actually lived, and we stalked them for a couple of days in an effort to see Ben taking out the garbage or something – with no luck.
Then it was onto the Crescent City to visit with family and to celebrate the socially distanced Mardi Gras with no parades. We’ve been in NOLA about a month now, and have had a blast exploring areas that we’ve never had the time to visit before. We’ve eaten our fill of Gumbo and Po’boys, and honestly, we’re now looking forward to returning home to Lancaster.
As Spring approaches (ignore that stupid Pennsylvania Groundhog), we are hoping that with the reopening of the theaters and restaurants, the resurgence of the Mud Sales, and with the vaccine on the horizon for everyone, occupancy will rise again when we reopen the weekend of February 26. There are already a few reservations for February and March, but of course we’re hoping for more. Spring is always a busy and beautiful time in Lancaster County, and we are all praying for a true renewal in this new world of ours.
Stay safe and healthy, and we will see you soon.
