The welcome booklet for short-term rentals is designed to accompany the tenant during his stay. In this article, we’ll show you what you need to create your own booklet!
However, before introducing you to what we can find there, it would be a good idea to write a welcome letter for your travelers, to be left at the entrance, so that they can understand the essential elements of your accommodation.
This letter will enable you to offer them a pleasant welcome, on the spot without you having to travel. Don’t hesitate to share the history and age of your rental and thank your guests for booking with you.
Now let’s move on to what you need to know about your welcome booklet.
1) Presentation of a welcome booklet
This Airbnb welcome booklet highlights your property and reassures the traveler that their stay will be perfect. Indeed, many travelers prefer short-term rentals to hotels, since they cost more, and the space of freedom offered by an Airbnb is much more appreciable.
This is whyyour rental’s welcome booklet contains all the instructions you need for your guests’ vacations.
This welcome guide will evolve over time as you add new information or messages. This home-made manual, so to speak, will have the advantage of avoiding bothering you or your concierge with questions that may be in your welcome booklet. You can send it in Pdf format with your rental management software.
So that your travellers feel at their best, remember to include the following information in the manual right from the start:
- Phone numbers: leave your phone number, the number of the nearest doctor, emergency numbers, anything to reassure them.
- The wifi code: this will obviously be necessary if they are to enjoy their trip to the full. Wifi is particularly popular with foreign guests.
- Digicodes: if there are electronic codes at your home, for example, in front of the gate or entrance. The driver may also appreciate knowing the access to the parking lot and whether it is privatized.
- A reminder of departure and arrival times : this can help avoid problems of disorganization, particularly with check-out and the arrival of cleaning staff for the next travelers.
We advise you to include all this information either in your welcome letter or, if you don’t have one, on the first page of your booklet.
Of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg! The quality of your book will be judged on the following pages… Read on and get some ideas on how to make it perfect!
The welcome manual will help improve the customer experience. It will contribute to your travelers’ positive comments on the rental platforms, setting up a virtuous circle for your adventure in the world of short-term rentals :).
It shows your guests how much attention you pay to the quality of your stay, and allows you to offer your travelers a genuine tourist experience.
This is why personal recommendations are so important, to show your sense of hospitality, while at the same time giving your guests personal freedom of choice.
2) Our advice on useful information to include in the welcome booklet:
a) Relay contact :
As already briefly mentioned above, the welcome booklet must include a number. We recommend several relay contacts, so that travelers can reach you in the event of a serious problem.
Here are some of the people you could mention:
- You & associates ;
- A trusted neighbor;
- The cleaning service provider ;
- Concierge service.
This makes your travelers feel at ease. No matter what the problem, whether it’s an appliance or keys left inside. It’s also a good idea to include other numbers such as :
– Nearest hospital and address;
– Firefighters, police and gendarmerie;
– Local doctor and address ;
The telephone number and address of your local pound may also prove useful – trust our experience!
b) House rules and detailed instructions :
Travelers must remember that there are rules and regulations, and must abide by them.
As such, they must comply with the list of instructions given. These instructions must also be followed by their guests.
Here are a few examples:
- No smoking, pets allowed or not, no noise at night;
- Reserved parking space ;
The instructions can also be of the order of :
- Linen management ;
- The minimum of housework ;
- Selective sorting at the residence ;
c) Necessary practical messages
The booklet has to meet very specific objectives, since it’s the transcription of knowledge and practical rules. For example, if we know how to use the radiator or television at home, our tenants may not be able to use them properly because of the different model. Similarly, for other appliances such as a hot tub, it would be a shame for them to spend 15 minutes trying to understand how it works.
So try to include the following rules and instructions in your welcome booklet:
- Access to your priority (different entry codes, garage or gate codes).
- Radiator operation
- Operation of jacuzzi, spa, fireplace, washing machine and tumble dryer…
- Rules for using household appliances
- Wifi codes (don’t forget important messages like where we can’t get reception on the property).
d) The guide to easy travel and tips
Good addresses: all the good addresses in the vicinity of your accommodation.
Don’t hesitate to expand this part, which your travelers love, especially if you don’t welcome them in person.
In this manual, your little tourists, like to explore the area and public transport guides would be a positive bridge. You should include useful contacts, routes and timetables. The transport section could include:
- Routes and buses
- Cab and shuttle services
- VTC driver services
- Pitches for car, motorcycle and bicycle hire
The welcome booklet will also take the headache out of choosing where to go and which tourist attractions to visit. You’ll be able to tell them about the best places to go for a walk, the incredible sights to see, and the opportunities to take advantage of the different seasons and events. You can also tell them about local restaurants and activities. All these tips contribute to a better experience. Even though they will certainly have already planned their stay, they can add your recommendations.
Don’t forget to include addresses and telephone numbers for each recommendation, and to tell them how long it will take to get there. For example, you could mention
- Grocery stores
- Restaurants
- Commercial zones
- Nightlife
- Various activities such as diving, boating, snorkeling, skiing, golf, bowling
- Cult places
- And various attractions such as museums, historical monuments, parks and beaches
It’s a good idea to recommend places you’ve already been, so you can get a taste of what’s on offer.
Some ideas for the welcome manual :
- Top 3 restaurants in town ;
- The 10 best things to do (culture, hiking, historic sites, theme parks, etc.);
- Top 3 places to relax and go out (wine bars, dance venues, spas, etc.) ;
- Useful addresses nearby (pharmacy, bakery, supermarket, hospital) ;
- Means of transport (bus line, train, telephone number for a cab, etc.).
3) Other guide formats: the digital welcome booklet
Of course, even if welcome booklets can be done by hand, what could be better than a digital welcome booklet? This can work with a link you send them, or a QRCode they have to scan to access it, or even a digital welcome booklet. These booklets provide better feedback and, above all, fewer questions.
The best thing would be for them to have a QRCode in a small decorative frame on the coffee table at the entrance, which they could scan at their leisure.
The digital welcome booklet also allows you to send information about your accommodation to your guests before they travel, so that they can organize their stay. What’s more, this digital welcome booklet accompanies your travelers during their adventure and after their stay, to guarantee impeccable customer care. You’re free to personalize it as you wish, and to add an aesthetic touch by following your graphic charter.
Driing, founded by Alexis and Jason, brings a new twist to the famous digital welcome booklet. Read our review of Driing, the digital guide that enhances the guest experience at your B&B, hotel or campsite.
The guest book: a complement to the welcome booklet :
The guestbook allows your guests to leave a review of their stay. Generally, only positive reviews are included.
Don’t hesitate to put it on, it will be social proof that you can showcase by photographing it and adding it to your Airbnb listings and website!
The suggestion book :
To help you improve, you can provide your travellers with a suggestion book to help them avoid future scoring disappointments!
First of all, this booklet will point you in the direction of negative points about your accommodation that you may not have thought of! At the start of your Airbnb adventure, it’s very, very useful.
Good ideas can come from your customers! But beware: some of them may be far-fetched or totally impractical. Take the one you find most relevant.
A notebook can be a vent or a fuse for your rental. Some people who didn’t enjoy their stay may leave bad comments in your notebook. Don’t take it personally, but as a positive point, either :
- or the public commentary on the platform will be less severe;
- or they won’t make them at all, which is even better!
