How to become a bed and breakfast and guest house owner or proprietor
Official title: Bed and breakfast and guest house owners and proprietors
Also called: Guest house owner, Guest house keeper, Guest house manager, Bed and breakfast provider
Bed and breakfast and guest house owners and proprietors plan, organise, direct and co-ordinate the activities and resources bed and breakfasts and guest houses.
Main tasks
- Welcomes and ensures physical comfort of residents/guests and makes special arrangements for children, the elderly and the infirm if required
- Provides certain meals for guests
- Maintains and cleans establishment
- Determines financial, staffing, material and other short- and long-term needs
- Markets business and finds new business
- Arranges for payment of bills, keeps accounts and ensures adherence to licensing and other statutory regulations
How to become one
No formal qualifications are required for entry. A range of relevant courses in hospitality and management are available.
Pay · Outlook
- About 14,200 people work in this job now, and about 14,700 are projected by 2035. (+3.6%)
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Questions people ask
How do I become a bed and breakfast and guest house owner or proprietor?
No formal qualifications are required for entry. A range of relevant courses in hospitality and management are available.
Is a bed and breakfast and guest house owner or proprietor a growing career in the UK?
Yes. Employment is projected to grow 4% by 2035, from about 14,200 to about 14,700 people (Department for Education).
Do you need a degree to become a bed and breakfast and guest house owner or proprietor?
Not always. 29% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher.
Sources
- Office for National Statistics: Annual Population Survey: employment by occupation (April 2025 to March 2026), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Office for National Statistics: SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions (2026-08-27 edition), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Department for Education: Skills Imperative 2035: employment projections by occupation (2021 to 2035 (Warwick IER / Cambridge Econometrics)), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
Updated 2026-10-03