What to Include in an Airbnb Guidebook (Tips & Examples)
An Airbnb guidebook empowers hosts to highlight their local expertise, foster trust with prospective guests, and save valuable time otherwise spent on individual recommendations for each inquiry.
Continue reading to find out what to include in your Airbnb guidebook, the benefits of providing one, and step-by-step guidance on creating them for the Airbnb platform.
Table of Contents
Ideas for Your Airbnb Guidebook
In your Airbnb guidebook, consider incorporating recommendations for:
- Dining and Refreshments: This includes the finest restaurants, quick-bite options, charming coffee shops, convenience stores, supermarkets, delis, pharmacies, bars, and pubs.
- Entertainment: Highlight nightclubs, live music venues, karaoke nights, cinemas, comedy clubs, bowling alleys, art galleries, museums, and libraries.
- Activities: Suggest local beaches, hiking trails, parks, playgrounds, sports equipment rentals, one-of-a-kind sports lessons and activities, shopping centers, water parks, theme parks, and circus performances.
- Sightseeing: Feature historical and cultural landmarks, as well as unique attractions.
- Events and Festivals: Include details on local markets and day festivals.
Do you want a hand in crafting the perfect Airbnb welcome book for your guests? Check out my Airbnb guidebook services.
What is an Airbnb Guidebook?
An Airbnb guidebook is a personalized digital guest book and travel guide created by an Airbnb host. Its purpose is to provide guests with a comprehensive understanding of the local area and offer recommendations for nearby events, activities, dining options, and entertainment. Developing a welcome book or guest manual is an effective way for Airbnb hosts to streamline their suggestions into an easily accessible and digestible document for their guests’ convenience.
Here’s a quick guide on what to include in an Airbnb guest manual.
Why Should Hosts Create an Airbnb Guidebook?
Creating an Airbnb guidebook not only saves time but also enhances the guest experience in your vacation rental. Rather than sending personalized recommendations to each guest, you can consolidate all information into a single accessible document.
When guests feel they’ve fully enjoyed their stay, they are more likely to leave positive reviews that reflect your attentiveness and helpfulness as an Airbnb host. This boosts your overall rating, resulting in more bookings.
Moreover, creating a guidebook for Airbnb showcases your in-depth knowledge of the local area, bolstering your credibility as an exceptional Airbnb host. Over time, this allows you to command higher prices for your short-term rental.
Learn how to attract more guests to your Airbnb rental.
What to Include in an Airbnb Guidebook
In your Airbnb guidebook or welcome book, it’s essential to provide thoughtful recommendations for local dining, entertainment, activities, sightseeing tours, and events or festivals. To offer truly exceptional guidance to your guests, ensure you’ve personally visited these places and experienced these activities yourself. Strive to equip your guests with the insights of a local, transcending conventional tourist hotspots.
Learn how to create a unique Airbnb Experience for your guests.
Dining and Drink Recommendations
Share insights about underrated restaurants or bars in close proximity. Why not introduce your guests to unique cafes, outstanding culinary experiences, and exceptional pubs or breweries in the vicinity? Your guests will greatly value these local suggestions, especially when faced with an array of choices in your area.
For example:
“At the time of writing, there are five pubs on the local high street, all serving traditional English pub food. My wife, Julie, and I particularly love the Red Lion pub (next to the Co-op) for a hearty Sunday lunch and a fantastic range of ales. They are reasonably priced and just a short walk from the property.”
Entertainment Recommendations
Tailor your entertainment recommendations to suit your typical clientele. Consider suggesting great bars, live music venues, nightclubs, or even karaoke events that might align with your guests’ preferences. Thoughtfully catering to their interests builds trust and rapport.
Activities Recommendations
Airbnb hosts can offer a myriad of activity suggestions. From directions to the nearest beach to recommendations for sports equipment rentals or unique local experiences, your guests will appreciate your guidance. If the area is known for a fantastic circus, waterpark, or theme park, be sure to inform your guests!
Find out what to include in your Airbnb house manual.
Sight-Seeing Recommendations
Consider recommending captivating sightseeing day trips and tours to enrich your guests’ experiences. If your property is near sites of historical or cultural significance, highlight these attractions. Your guests may not have fully explored all that the area offers before booking with you.
“Stonehenge, a one-of-a-kind prehistoric monument and World Heritage Site, is just a 20-minute drive from The Cottage. Visit the website for more details about booking tickets or a tour with an expert in European pre-history.”
Discover the key to crafting the perfect pre-booking message for your guests.
Events and Festivals Recommendations
Inform your guests about local festivals and events throughout the year. Include an up-to-date schedule with times and dates for nearby markets, festivals, or fun gatherings. This, along with providing fantastic Airbnb experiences, is one of the best ways for your guests to feel like they are ‘living like a local’.
By creating a comprehensive Airbnb guidebook or welcome book, you enhance your guests’ experience, cultivate trust, and ultimately boost your vacation rental’s occupancy rates.
Crafting an Exceptional Airbnb Welcome Packet
Creating a memorable Airbnb welcome pack requires a thoughtful approach. It should be personalized for your guests, concise yet informative, and kept current at all times. Your welcome packet should feature personal recommendations, highlight unique attributes, and showcase captivating photos to help your guests discover the local activities and events.
Tailor it to Your Guests
Tailor your Airbnb guidebook to suit your ideal guests. If you typically host families, consider recommending local daytime attractions like theme parks and beach equipment rentals. For couples, provide suggestions for scenic hiking trails or romantic spa days. And if your guests are often groups of young adults, include a list of the best bars and nightclubs in the area.
Personal Recommendations Only
Be sincere in your recommendations. Only include places and activities that you genuinely endorse to avoid eroding the trust you’ve built with your guests. For instance:
For example:
“I have been attending the local waterpark with my two young children every year since they were born; the diverse range of slides suits all age groups and creates truly wonderful days out all summer long!”
Keep it Short and Sweet
Ensure your Airbnb welcome pack is concise and easily digestible. Employ tools like a table of contents, page numbers, short paragraphs, bullet points, and images to break up the content. This allows guests to quickly locate essential information when browsing. You might also consider categorizing recommendations by guest type (e.g., families or couples) or event type (e.g., dining, outdoor activities, or sightseeing).
Include Stunning Photos
Engage your guests by including high-quality photos of the suggested activities and locales in your Airbnb guidebook. Captivating visuals make the content more appealing. For unique and creative layout ideas, consider using templates from free websites like Canva.
Here are 7 tips to write irresistible Airbnb photo captions.
Maintain Up-To-Date Information
Lastly, maintain the accuracy of your guidebook by keeping it up-to-date. Providing outdated information about opening hours, events, or locations could lead to negative guest reviews. Regularly review the content every few months and make necessary adjustments. For details that may change frequently, such as opening hours, direct guests to official websites for the most current information.
For example:
“The opening hours of the fantastic local park and playground frequently change according to the seasons and variation in demand. Please take a look at this website for the up-to-date opening hours during your stay.”
How to Create a Guidebook on Airbnb: A Step-by-Step Guide
Follow this step-by-step procedure to create or edit an Airbnb welcome pack on your Airbnb account:
Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create or update an Airbnb guidebook through your Airbnb account:
- Navigate to ‘listings’ and choose one of your listings.
- Select ‘info for guests.’
- Click on ‘pre-booking details.’
- Locate ‘guidebooks’ and click ‘edit’ next to it.
- Choose ‘Create.’
- Edit the title and cover of your guidebook, and select the relevant listings.
- Click ‘add to guidebook’ to insert your recommendations.
- Once you’ve completed it, click ‘Done.’
You can learn more information here.
Summary of Airbnb Guidebooks
We hope you’ve discovered valuable tips, fresh ideas, and practical examples to enrich your guidebook for Airbnb. As we’ve explored, there are numerous advantages to creating such a guide. In brief:
Your Airbnb guidebook can include recommendations for local dining and drinks, entertainment, activities, sightseeing, and events and festivals. Keep the guidebook concise, personalized for your ideal guest, and up-to-date. Don’t forget to include some captivating photos and that it’s propertly formatted to make it easy to read.
Need help crafting the perfect Airbnb listing description or guidebook? Get in touch to find out more about my professional Airbnb guidebook services.