Distinguish your rooms with Référence®.

Bed and breakfast “Chambre d’hôtes Référence®”

In the absence of star-rating for B&Bs, ADN Tourisme (= the national federation of tourism institutions) has introduced the Chambre d’hôtes référence® brand, enabling non-labeled B&Bs to guarantee the quality of their services to their customers.

What is the Chambre d’hôtes référence® label?

This voluntary qualification attests to compliance with criteria primarily related to comfort, predefined by Offices de tourisme de France at the time of the visit, and is awarded for five years. It is not based on an examination of compliance with specific standards applicable to the activity, which it cannot therefore guarantee. This qualification is neither a government label nor a certification.

The Chambre d’hôtes référence® qualification process is subject to a fee (€60 for a double or family room + €15 per additional room, or €70 for a suite). The fee includes a review of your application, a visit to your chambre(s) d’hôtes, a visit to the commission, and the dispatch of documents relating to the award. The cost of the visit is payable regardless of the decision of the award committee. The purchase of dedicated signage is independent and voluntary, and can be obtained once the qualification has been awarded.

The commission meets at least twice a year.

Bed & breakfasts must be registered with the town hall using cerfa n°13566*03.

cerfa n°13566*03

The number of bed & breakfasts is increasing in all tourist destinations, and it is difficult for customers to know whether the service they are about to purchase will be of high quality. With a view to enhancing the quality of the tourist offer, the institutional players in the tourism sector (Tourist Offices and departmental tourist structures) are highlighting accommodation that meets the commitments of a standard and has passed an inspection visit. Chambres d’hôtes référence® fully meets these requirements.

Chambre d’hôtes référence® is not intended to replace labels, but to be a solution for operators who wish to qualify their offer but do not wish to join a label.

Chambre d’hôtes référence® does not establish a scale of value according to the service provided, but it does guarantee that the guest will be well received.

How to become a Chambre d’hôtes référence®?

1 – Contact your local Tourist Office and check that the services you offer meet the definition of a chambre d’hôtes.

2 – Read the “Operator’s Guide”. It contains, among other things, the definition of a chambre d’hôtes, all the details on qualification, the criteria to be met, the visual identity…

3 – Complete and sign the “Request for visit” file, including your general information, the list of documents to be supplied, the descriptive statement, and the commitment charter. Send the completed application form, your receipt for the Town Hall declaration and your payment to your Tourist Office.

4 – The Tourist Office will contact you to arrange a date for the visit.

5 – The visit is carried out by an authorized, trained person. The purpose of the visit is to check that your bed and breakfast(s) meet(s) the criteria of the related standards, its location and the services provided to customers. During this visit, you’ll present your service as you do it for your customers: beds made, breakfast served… This visit is also an opportunity to discuss and advise on your business.

6 – Once the visit has been carried out, the complete visit file will be forwarded by the person who carried out the visit to the departmental award committee, so that it can decide whether or not to award the Chambre d’hôtes référence® qualification. This procedure guarantees the neutrality of the decision-making process.

7 – If the decision is favorable, you will receive by post a certificate ofqualification, as well as information on the means of communication linked to Chambre d’hôtes référence®. If a reservation is expressed, the award committee will send the operator a letter indicating the discrepancies to be corrected. The operator has one month in which to submit a correction (with photos and invoices).

NB: If the operator changes, the qualification is automatically lost.

Your local tourist office will be happy to discuss your accommodation project with you.

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