Guidebooks put us on the map

MY DAY Geraldine Duignan:MY HUSBAND Eddie and I set up the BB 11 years ago. I had been working in the hospitality sector in Dublin before I married and came down here to live. When this property came on the market we jumped at it.

I’ve always loved old stone houses and this is an 18th century former maternity hospital. I also knew it was a great location overlooking the river beside Trim Castle.

I’m up at 6.30am to organise the set-up for breakfast, putting out the jams and milks and cereals.

I get a lot of guests heading off to the airport early and most overseas visitors like to get a very early start on their day’s touring, whether to Newgrange or the Hill of Tara, so I’ll start cooking breakfast for them.

I get a lot of wedding business too and my Irish guests will come down around 10.30am for theirs.

I have three staff so, once the breakfast is finished, I’ll oversee the cleaning up of the kitchen and the bedrooms while I check out the guests, asking them about their stay and giving directions for the next leg of their route.

I’ve to check my emails then because the vast majority of my enquiries come online. We’re really lucky in that, 18 months after I opened up, Rick Steves, the US guidebook writer, arrived on the doorstep and subsequently gave me a great write-up.

He comes every year now and always lets me know he’s coming.

We're in other guidebooks too, Rough Guide, Lonely Planetand Michelin, but you never know when they're going to call, so it keeps you on your toes. Guidebooks have been the backbone of my business.

There’s a quiet time then before the day’s new guests start arriving. I like to greet them all and offer tea, coffee and scones when they get settled.

Most of my guests will have pre-booked but some might turn up at the door, guidebook in hand. If I can’t accommodate them I’ll always find another B&B for them.

Everyone gets a key and, because my husband and three kids live in our own quarters, in an extension we built, I never hear them coming in and out at night.

In the evenings I might go out myself. I’ve a great circle of friends and am very sociable. I’m also lucky in that I can get to bed at 2am and still be up at 6.30am. I don’t need very much sleep.

In fact, the only time I had sleepless nights was when we were thinking of buying the B&B.

I was a little worried about committing myself seven days a week to it, but it turned out to be the best decision we ever made. I love it.

highfieldguesthouse.com

In conversation with Sandra O'Connell