With membership topping 2000 across the U.S. and Canada.
(TRAVPR.COM) USA - February 19th, 2014 - (Austin, TX) – Evergreen Bed & Breakfast Club director Linda Mardi is pleased to announce that the cost-conscious homestays club her mother founded in 1982 is celebrating 32 years of continuous business this year with more than 2000 member locations now spread out over the U.S. and Canada.
“It’s incredibly gratifying to know that this little idea my mom had in the early ‘80s would be so popular with travel enthusiasts ages 50 and older that it would continue to grow and thrive 32 years later,” Mardi said. The concept is simple: Members host each other in their own homes by providing a clean and comfortable place to sleep, a hearty breakfast each morning and friendly, warm hospitality.
That “little idea” occurred during Evergreen founder Patricia Wilson’s travels in Europe during the 1960s and ‘70s. Eschewing hotels, she thoroughly enjoyed the casual bed & breakfast homestays prevalent throughout Britain at the time. These homestays didn’t require reservations. Instead, once she finished her day of sightseeing, she would simply meander along the main streets and look for small B&B signs in the windows of private homes. For an amazingly modest tab, she would get a good night’s sleep and enjoy a home-cooked breakfast the next morning.
Hoping to transplant this concept to the United States, Patty Wilson founded the American Bed & Breakfast Association in 1981. But instead of the quaint homestays Patty had enjoyed in the U.K., Americans soon turned their concept of B&Bs into antique-laden country inns with price tags to match.
In 1982, an article appeared in the AARP’s newsletter with information on how to turn spare rooms into cash. Soon Patty’s organization received over 10,000 inquiries from AARP readers. She took advantage of the opportunity to put simple, home-style B&Bs back on the map. She would create a club with an annual membership fee, members would handle their own reservations to keep costs down, and the daily tab for two, called a gratuity and payable directly to hosts, would be only $15 per night, including breakfast.
Today, the nightly gratuity for hosts is still under $25 and the club’s focus continues to be on the 50-plus demographic.
“Mom wanted to challenge people to remain lively and purposeful in their riper years by traveling and by welcoming fellow travelers into their own homes,” Mardi said. “My sister Mary came up with the name Evergreen to convey the message. The club is really about meeting new friends that you never knew you had. The fact that it’s also a very economical way to travel is frosting on the cake.”
Several of the club’s charter members are still with Evergreen while many more are celebrating over 20 years of membership. Helen Slusher of Arizona is one of the charter members. “After seeing what a great time her father and I were having with the Evergreen B&B Club, our daughter joined once she turned 50,” Slusher said. According to Mardi, “It’s not uncommon to see second generation members join now that the cub has been around for so long."
Although most bed & breakfast establishments in Britain have evolved into more sophisticated lodgings with matching prices, Mardi says her mother “has the pleasure of knowing that what she enjoyed about those quaint B&Bs back in the ‘50s and ‘60s is still alive and well throughout the US and Canada 32 years later.”
For more information on the Evergreen Bed & Breakfast Club, visit www.evergreenclub.com, look for the club on Facebook, or call 1-800-962-2392.
About the Evergreen B&B Club:
Established in 1982, the Evergreen B&B Club is the champion of the cost-conscious traveler. For an annual membership fee of only $75, it allows members to enjoy friendly hosts, comfortable accommodations in lovely homes, hearty breakfasts, and firsthand information about local attractions. Evergreen visits not only enrich the travel experience but also reduce travel costs by providing hospitality in private homes for under $25 a day. The members-only website allows members to access profiles of other members. They can browse the listings and plan their itineraries then contact prospective hosts directly to determine their availability. For more information visit www.evergreenclub.com.
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