Grading Council Criteria for Guest Houses

Guests should be aware that that the Tourism Grading Council has variable criteria when grading an establishment.  There are four categories when it comes to grading - B&B, Guest House, Lodge, Hotel - and the criteria are different for each.  The requirements for a 4-star hotel are quite different for those of a 4-star B&B.

Guests are advised to check in which category the establishment they propose to stay has been graded.  Green Gables, for instance, has been graded as a 4-star Guest House; this means that apart from anything else, all our rooms have queen size beds and the lounge, dining room and kitchen are for the exclusive use of our guests.  If you are staying in an establishment which is graded as a 4-star B&B,  the lounge, kitchen and dining room are all rooms which are part of the family home and are used communally by the family.

In addition, there is no regulation over the size of an establishment or its name.  A Guest House can call itself a lodge or a boutique hotel.  An establishment can call itself a B&B, be graded as a guest house and have more than 50 rooms.

Green Gables adheres to the Grading Council criteria, that guests are staying on someone’s private property, where the owner is still living on the property.