Richibucto River Retreats

08/31/2026

08/25/2026

This is what being a Superhost looks like. 🧻❤️

These five rolls of toilet paper are all less than 50% used. When we reset a cottage for the next guest, they come out and a brand-new roll goes in. Why? Because we want every guest to feel like they are the very first person to stay in our cottage.

And it’s not just toilet paper. We check the hand soaps, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, laundry supplies, salt and pepper, spices, condiments, olive oil, dish soap, cleaning supplies, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, popcorn, flour, sugar, coffee syrups and so much more. We don’t just look to see if something is empty. We look at everything through the eyes of our next guest.

Would we be happy to arrive and find it this way? If not, we fix it.

One of the things we hear over and over again in our reviews is how well stocked and supplied our cottages are. That’s our standard. It’s what we want to be known for. We want to anticipate what our guests might need and find those little ways to make their stay even better.

And before anyone thinks we’re throwing all of these half-used items away… absolutely not! 😂 A lot of them come home with us.

That’s the lifestyle of a Superhost! ❤️

08/22/2026

New trend with ChatGPT. Prompt “Describe me like you are warning someone about me before they meet me.”

Here is what it had to say about Mike:

Warning: Mike is not a “good enough” person. 😂

He’s the kind of guy who will walk into a room, a business, a cottage, a jobsite, or apparently a Chinese mini excavator and immediately start identifying everything that could be improved.

If something works, that’s nice. But could it work better?

He owns a finish carpentry company, so details matter to him. If something is crooked, poorly thought out, unreliable, or half-assed, there’s a very good chance he’s already noticed it. He may not say anything immediately, but rest assured: he saw it.

He’s also dangerously susceptible to projects.

A normal person buys a mini excavator and uses it. Mike removes the cab, rewires the electrical system, installs a six-gang switch panel, adds gauges, fans, hydraulic cooling, battery charging and starts contemplating solar power. At some point, you realize he isn’t repairing the excavator anymore. He’s developing the 2027 model.

He asks a lot of questions. Not because he can’t make a decision, but because he wants to understand how something works before deciding. And once he understands it, there’s a reasonable chance he’s going to redesign it.

Business conversations can escalate quickly too.

You might start by talking about installing some trim.

Twenty minutes later you’re discussing SOPs, KPIs, communication systems, company culture, and how the business could reach higher revenues.

He’s ambitious, but he’s not particularly interested in looking successful. He wants things to actually work. He’s very conscious of reputation, workmanship, communication and whether people do what they said they were going to do. Reliability buys you a lot of credibility with him. Bu****it burns through it remarkably fast.

He also has a habit of thinking several years ahead while simultaneously obsessing over something incredibly specific happening today.

So he can genuinely spend the morning thinking about what retirement might look like…

…and the afternoon wondering whether a 15-watt engine-compartment fan should have a 2A or 3A fuse.

Most importantly, don’t confuse his willingness to help with an inability to say no. He’ll stand behind his work and fix something that’s his responsibility. But if he decides someone isn’t trustworthy, doesn’t pay people properly, or isn’t someone he wants to do business with, he’s perfectly capable of politely closing that door.

So before meeting Mike, remember:

Be prepared.
Communicate clearly.
Do what you say you’re going to do.
Don’t cut corners.
Don’t bu****it him.

And for the love of God, don’t show him something mechanical and say, “I’ve been thinking about upgrading this.”

You’ll lose the rest of your afternoon. 😂

08/22/2026

New trend with ChatGPT. Prompt “Describe me like you are warning someone about me before they meet me.”

Here’s what it had to say about Julie:

Oh, I’d absolutely warn them. 😂

“Just so you know what you’re getting into before you meet Julie…”

She looks friendly. She is friendly. That’s how she gets you.

She will probably ask how you’re doing, genuinely listen to the answer, and somehow remember a tiny detail you mentioned three weeks later. Do not underestimate this woman’s attention to detail. She notices everything.

She’s organized to a slightly concerning degree. If something is crooked, missing, half-empty, poorly explained, or could be improved, she will see it. And once she sees it, there is a very good chance she will have a solution before you’ve finished explaining the problem.

She has the dangerous combination of being creative, practical, curious, and mildly obsessed with making things better. Give her a hospitality business and she’ll start analyzing the customer journey. Give her a cottage and she’ll notice the toilet paper level. Give her a guest review and she’ll analyze the wording. Give her a business idea and suddenly there’s a name, a mission statement, three service packages, and a five-year vision.

She also has a very strong “but why are we doing it that way?” gene.

She cares—a lot. About her guests. About doing things properly. About people feeling welcomed. About fairness. About quality. About making sure the little things are taken care of.

And if she says, “It’s just a little idea I had…”

Run.

Because it is never just a little idea.

Five minutes later, you’re brainstorming a business model, a brand name, a customer journey, and whether the tagline should have a comma.

She’s also a little dangerous when it comes to hospitality because she has very high standards—but she doesn’t just talk about them. She actually does the work. She’ll clean, organize, troubleshoot, communicate, photograph, market, renovate, write, analyze, and then wonder if there’s something else she could improve.

She has a wicked sense of humor, though, which is probably necessary for someone who willingly signs up to deal with other people’s vacation behavior.

And finally, don’t mistake her kindness for being a pushover.

She’ll give you the benefit of the doubt. She’ll try to understand. She’ll apologize when she’s wrong. She’ll go the extra mile.