AUSTIN, TX  – BedandBreakfast.com today announces that Lisa Westlake Chen has been named  general manager of the company, after serving as head of global marketing for 18 months. She replaces Matt Laessig, who joins HomeAway, BedandBreakfast.com's parent company, as vice president of global business development.

                Chen brings more than 20 years of operational, digital, marketing and branding experience to the position. She has worked hand-in-hand with Laessig to re-establish BedandBreakfast.com as the world's leading directory of professionally run B&Bs and inns. Chen has expanded BedandBreakfast.com's role as the chief advocate for the B&B industry through initiatives including a new content leadership program and new media partnerships. By establishing robust educational resources and annual awards such as B&B Marketer of the Year and B&B Innovator of the Year, Chen has made great strides in support of the innkeeping community.

“While we have made exciting strides, there are many more opportunities to improve our business in order to keep up with today's competitive travel arena,” Chen said. “I feel very privileged to work in an industry about which I am fiercely passionate.”

                Before joining BedandBreakfast.com in January 2014, Chen was head of marketing for Forte Foundation and general manager of its website, which was recognized by Forbes Magazine in 2013 as a top website for women and entrepreneurs. Prior to Forte, she spent six years at The Walt Disney Co., where she led brand, marketing and consumer-strategy projects across Disney, ESPN and ABC business units. Chen has an MBA from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor's degree from Cornell University.

                Chen is an avid traveler and B&B enthusiast.  In 2010, she and her husband spent a year traveling throughout Asia and South America.  She has visited more than 30 countries and lived on five continents, and has stayed at hundreds of B&Bs along the way.

About BedandBreakfast.com

BedandBreakfast.com, based in Austin, Texas, is the most comprehensive global site for finding bed and breakfast properties, with more than 10,000 properties worldwide, representing nearly 75,000 rooms. BedandBreakfast.com helps travelers find and book the ideal B&B or small inn through informative descriptions, photos, and more than 300,000 consumer reviews.  BedandBreakfast.com offers convenient gift cards welcomed at more than 4,000 B&Bs in the United States and Canada, with no restrictions or blackout dates. BedandBreakfast.com is owned and operated by HomeAway, Inc., the worldwide leader in online vacation rentals, representing over one million paid listings of vacation rental homes in 190 countries.