How to succeed with the guests of your tourist apartment?

If we say that the competition among hosts of tourist apartments is increasing, you'll think it's a truism. When a market becomes saturated, suppliers must stand out to capture more demand. That's why impressing your tourist apartment guests is key to maintaining a source of income for your business.

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Informing guests about your vacation rental

Whether you've just started your vacation rental business or you're already a SuperHost, informing your guests is a complicated challenge. Even more so is getting guests to read (whether it's your check-in instructions, checkout, or house rules).

Today we're trying to solve a problem that any professional who works with clients suffers from: phone calls from stressed clients for X or Y reasons.

Reduce guest stress

Surely this situation sounds familiar to you:

4:45 PM You've just checked in with your guests. You've shown them how the air conditioning, TV, and heating work. You've also informed your guests about which restaurants are the area's favorites. You can say they're ready to enjoy their stay at your accommodation.

7:35 PM Your phone starts ringing. Good grief! Nobody calls today unless it's something urgent, right? You answer the call with a mini-heart attack... It turns out they didn't know how to open the patio door.

You can avoid these stressful situations (both for hosts and clients) if you inform your guests. Remember that for communication to be established, the recipient (your guests) must correctly receive the information from the sender (you). In other words, you must ensure that clients read what you tell them.

How you can inform your guests

We have four ways to inform guests about your vacation rental:

1. Rely on the rules of your vacation rental
2. Print your accommodation manual and distribute it throughout the property
3. Convert it to PDF and send it to them via email
4. Inform your guests through a welcome book digital

Let's analyze the advantages and disadvantages of these ways to inform guests:

TypeAdvantageDisadvantageHouse Rules on Airbnb> Already in your Airbnb ad> Guests don't read it
> Easy to find> Time to consolidate
> Hard to update remotely
> Complicated to use if you don't use a good format
> Easy to send> Easy to update> Not available on all devices
> You don't have traceability of what your guests read
> Easy to navigate> Easy to update remotely> Depends on an internet connection
> Guests need to remember how to access

Find the solution that best suits your needs

Of course, the way(s) you decide to communicate with your guests will be those that save the most time. Both for you as a host and for your clients.

For example, printing your 37-page manual and leaving it on the coffee table in the living room may be the quickest option for you. However, if from page 3, your guests stop reading - and really do - and call you to resolve that doubt... We don't solve the problem.

Host manual, rulebook or Airbnb house rules

When you face the design of your rulebook or Airbnb house rules, a mantra should prevail: it is made so that your guests read it with pleasure - only then will you have informed them correctly.

You must prioritize the information you show and prioritize it (the most important, first). According to the Survey on Tourist Rental by the friends of Cohosting, these are the most common requests from guests. In short, these are the topics you should prioritize when informing your guests.

The survey data shows that the most requested information by Airbnb guests is:

• Information about check-in and check-out – especially early check-in and late check-out–
• WiFi and internet connection
• Tourist accommodation rules

In addition, it is quite useful to offer your guests information about nearby points of interest:

• Nearby supermarkets or shops
• Pharmacies
• Banks

Offer local recommendations

Although it is not included in the previous analysis, the next most obvious step - once we have informed guests about the house rules and basic points of interest - is to start offering local recommendations.

Recommending your favorite bistro or restaurant in the neighborhood is one of the best ways to impress your guests. Some digital guest book options offer your guests the possibility to book directly from their apps or websites:

• Takeaway food
• Transfer to airport or station
• Babysitting services
• Gyms

What is important for Airbnb guests?

This time we bring you five facts that all Airbnb guests love, which will make you get better reviews and be able to become a Super Host quickly. In addition, satisfied customers are more likely to return to your tourist apartment if they are back in town.

Offer services that your guests don't expect

In addition to listing all the services you offer in your Airbnb accommodation profile - this is very important! - you can delight your hosts by offering extra services such as city tours, museum tickets or tourist attractions or personal recommendations for restaurants or bars. These details make the difference between just another accommodation and being an excellent host - or Airbnb Plus.

Set the right price for your tourist apartment

While Airbnb (or any of the promotion and reservation platforms) recommends an estimated price for your apartment, it is really key that you do a small market study of the prices of apartments with similar characteristics to yours.

Search on Airbnb and filter by your area, the services you offer and the characteristics of your accommodation (number of bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen, etc.). Copy the price of the results into a spreadsheet for at least two date ranges: your high season and your low season. That will serve as a basis for deciding the price of your Airbnb!

Be flexible with your guest

Flexibility as a host is key and should permeate your entire relationship with your guests... even before booking! Respond quickly and concisely to the questions that your potential guests may have regarding your accommodation. In this sense, did you know that you have a 90% chance of booking if you respond to your guest in less than a minute?

Speed and precision are fundamental elements. In addition, to become an Airbnb Super Host, you need flexible and extensive check-in and check-out times. Most Airbnb hosts choose to automate check-in through smart locks for tourist apartments, which frees up a lot of time - which they dedicate to providing higher added value services to their guests.

Leave reviews on their profile

Always, always, always, always: Leave reviews on your guest's profile! Especially if they are positive. It is recommended that you write the review two days after your guest checks out: Why two days? Airbnb will send you, both guest and host, an email the next day asking for these reviews.

On the second day, once you complete your review, the platform will send a reminder to your guest letting them know to complete theirs. Two days is the perfect moment!

Be honest

It is much better for the relationship between guest and host if you are transparent with them. For example, if your accommodation profile includes accepting pets... Don't say later that you don't accept dogs over 10 kilos! These small clarifications - after the reservation - erode your reputation as a host.

If you discover something you think your guest should know, then you most likely need to check it out right away.

4 ways to leave your guests open-mouthed

Offer sold-out tickets to your guests

Imagine that your tourist apartment is near the Canal Theatres. Wouldn't it be great to position your Airbnb as a perfect accommodation to enjoy the shows of this Madrid theatre? Moreover, wouldn't it be even better if you could sell tickets to shows that are already sold out to your customers? That will impress your guests and you'll gain points for an excellent review!

Doing something similar on your Airbnb - not just with shows, but with tourist attractions - will give you popularity among potential guests and will be a great way to differentiate yourself from the competition.

Welcome gift with charm - and local!

In the blog of the tourist apartment manager, we usually insist that the typical client seeks to immerse themselves in the local atmosphere. The best way to surprise or impress your Airbnb guests is to offer them a small welcome detail that reflects the local character of your accommodation.

Some ideas to impress them with this type of gift are:

• Cookies or assortment of sweets from local bakeries
• Bottle of wine or cava from nearby wineries
• Local fruit or nearby fresh juice

By offering some kind of detail you will be able to impress your Airbnb guests and... again, improve their opinion about your tourist accommodation!

Offer VIP access

Who doesn't like to feel like a VIP when they're on vacation for a few days? If your tourist accommodation is located in a place known for its nightlife, consider building a relationship with the owners of nearby clubs.

It's a good way to surprise your Airbnb guests. In addition, if you communicate this extra service well in the title of your ad, you can get more clicks - and therefore bookings - from your target audience.

Checklist to impress your Airbnb guests

There is no doubt that creativity is an essential element to stand out from the competition and impress your Airbnb guests. Think out of the box. What would surprise you when you arrive at a tourist accommodation? Any element that adds value to your services will be worth it!

Find ways to surprise that fit within your budget and make your guests feel special. As for what elements should be in a tourist accommodation, you can take a look at our tourist apartment decoration checklist.

How do you impress your Airbnb guests? Tell us in the comments!