When we closed on the resort, we thought we had about a month to get our ducks in a row before our first guests would be showing up. Well, that was wrong!
Paizley, our neighbor, texted us that she had six guys who wanted a place to stay for six nights. These guys all have property other places in the Bay Islands and once or twice a year come to Guanaja for a short stay. We, of course, said “absolutely.” Privately we said, “oh shit!” But paying customers are paying customers and we need them. So here we go.
Laurie and I had returned to the States to take care of some things and I had not planned on returning for two weeks. George had gone to the States to (among other things) deposit his rather large check so he wasn’t around to help. We had some things to figure out.
My initial response was that I needed to return to the island to help Elizabeth since we haven’t a clue what we’re doing. We have a website that’s barely functional, we have no business account yet (and Lord knows when we will–3rd-world banks) and we don’t even have any way to take a deposit or payment. And Elizabeth hadn’t yet been at the resort when there’s been more than two guests.
Ultimately, our guest’s itinerary changed and the six-night stay became a three night stay. The guests didn’t want to pay for a meal and drink package, and they didn’t seem like they wanted to do much diving. So, after much discussion, we decided to throw Elizabeth to the wolves by having her manage it on her own. My spending a thousand dollars to return just didn’t make sense.
One thing Elizabeth had working in her advantage is our small 4-person staff is just wonderful. They have been here a long time and they really want us to succeed. They know what to do and how to do it. They made things as easy as one could expect by taking so much off Elzabeth’s plate.
One of our big concerns was—and still is—food and cooking because George was the person doing and managing it. Yajaira, who does the housekeeping and a little cooking had told us she wants to cook. We were all for that, but we also didn’t know how much cooking she was capable of doing at this time. Well, it turns out, she can really cook. She had been helping George cook for several years and it quickly became obvious that she was really paying attention. Yay!
When the guests showed up, Elizabeth made her first rum and coke ever. She then couldn’t make them fast enough to keep up with the six guys. Once the drinking slowed down, they turned their attention to chips and salsa (Yajaira makes great salsa). Elizabeth had no idea how much chips and salsa 6 grown men can eat. She thought she had enough salsa to last three days; it lasted three hours. Some things ya gotta learn the hard way, but everything worked out as they were nice folks.
So, the staff allowed Elizabeth to focus on what she needed to focus on—managing everything while being a gracious hostess. She did a great job! She’s her mother’s daughter. The reports were all positive, and yes, there were a few hiccups, but the guys were very understanding and everyone seemed happy and I expect they will stay with us again when they return to Guanaja.
One response to “Our First Guests Have Come and Gone”
So glad everything went well! Good job Elizabeth. It will get easier as you go along. 😍