Fireside Inn Cabins
by Mrs. Ludwig
(Pagosa Springs, Colorado)
My husband and I own and operate Fireside Inn, a 15-cabin business in southwest Colorado. The San Juan River borders the north side of our property. Hwy. 160, which runs between Durango and Pagosa Springs, borders the south side of the property.
The Fireside Inn cabins are open year round and we need a year round manager couple to move to Pagosa Springs.
Our main objective is to have a couple that can operate as we do in our absence or on days that we are busy with other projects.
Our staff consists of a manager couple, a daytime front desk/laundry person, and one housekeeper each day (occasionally we have two housekeepers working a heavy day if their work schedule allows), plus my husband and me. If any one of the day helpers are absent, the manager couple on duty takes over (seldom, but it does happen).
We are looking for a couple to work at Fireside Inn on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. My husband and I take the heaviest days of the week -- Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We are on site and around except when we take a day trip here or there, or decide to visit our children in Florida and Maryland. There are always cabin/property projects that we are involved in and we use Monday through Thursday to work uninterrupted on those extras. It also allows us to get out a little around our town area and enjoy the beauty of our land.
We all work together to keep the cabins super clean both inside and outside. The grounds are always manicured and abound in flowers in the summer months. In the spring, summer, and fall, projects inside and outside the cabins keep us and the managers busy on top of overseeing the daily operations of the front desk and housekeeping.
One aspect of the manager couple's workday is the stripping of each cabin upon departure and the inspection of the cabins after cleaning. We do this to see what shape the cabin is in after our guests leave and to insure that the cabin is as clean and fresh as it can be before the next arrival. We do not go into our cabins once they are rented out. Only upon departure do we go into a cabin to clean it for the next arrival.
After the day help is gone the manager couple on duty takes over for the evening. At this time we are usually waiting for our late arrivals and answering the phone. The apartment is adjacent to the office so while in your home you can pop into the office as needed. You do not need to be sitting in the office. We usually close our office around 9 pm and reopen at 8 am.
As a manager on duty, you would be responsible for all aspects in and around the cabins for your assigned days. The work days are not in concrete. We do trade off. Each year we encourage at least a one to two vacation, after spring break in March and before the first week in May, or in the fall just after hunting season is over and before Christmas.
We have busy days and months as well as slow times at Fireside Inn. Pagosa is very busy in the summer, late May thru October, and then again at Thanksgiving and Christmas, and then it is quiet. If we get good snow like this winter we will be somewhat busy on the weekends, but from January through May we may only have half of our 15 cabins rented 1 or 2 days each week. These slow months are when we take vacation, do special outside projects (painting, carpentry, planting), and just getting ready for the new summer.
The days are flexible and we are open to other ideas as far as work here at the Fireside. We keep our property in top shape and know that a good appearance both inside and outside the cabins will keep our guest coming back. With great staff, we seem to get busier and busier each year.
Between the manager couple members, you must be computer literate, detail oriented, be able to work well with the public as well as others on staff. A non-smoking couple with a positive, upbeat can-do attitude is desired. We need a couple who is not afraid to take and make reservations using our NiteVision computer program. We have lawn equipment, a tractor, and a truck with a snow plow that are our working tools, so mechanical operating skills are important. Repair and maintenance is done by my husband and staff, and occasionally an outside service, so our helper should have at least some light maintenance skills. The elevation is 7,200' so good health is a must.
In our main building we have our residence, the office and foyer, laundry room, and a 1-bedroom manager's apartment. The manager's apartment has access to the back deck facing the San Juan River. We offer the 1-bedroom apartment, including all utilities, cable TV, and phone, and a flat salary. The job allows time, even during your work days, for short town trips; we just ask that at least one of the couple remain on site so no one is left alone at the office without support. This would be a perfect job for a semi retired or retired couple. The job is year round and would require the couple to relocate to Pagosa Springs, Colorado
