Being a host, our guests are our priority. It is always nice to know that we greet our guests with a warm welcome and an enjoyable stay at our property. To achieve this goal, Airbnb Welcome Book is a must. Why? It is not just a ring binder book full of information, an Airbnb Welcome Book is a friendly guide to our guests in making our guests feel right at home and easing their stay at utmost comfort. It is a book that offers guests recommendations at the best places to see, eat, and things to do around the area which creates amazing experiences.
Keep in mind the following before we go to a step-by-step guide in creating an Airbnb Welcome Book:
- Essential Information/Welcome Page
- Table of Contents
- FAQ’s
- House Rules
- Must-see local attractions
- Places to eat
- Things to do
- Local Transport Information
- How-To Instructions on Appliances and Electronics
- Weather (option)
Hand-Crafted Vs. Digital Airbnb Welcome Book
Planning an Airbnb Welcome Book does need to be well thought out. You might want to think about what would be best to provide to your guests? Would it be handcrafted or digital? And as much as Digital Airbnb Welcome Book is a great idea, there would few setbacks to consider such as:
- Age
- Tech-savvy
- Wifi availability
Probably, you are thinking handcrafted Airbnb Welcome Book could be a lot of effort but know that your guests will feel touched and appreciative of the thought you put into it.
Bonus Tip: When designing an Airbnb welcome book, take into consideration that the book visually appeals. Pay attention to your guests, whether they are a family with children, seniors, or a married couple that may make it easier for you to recommend places and suggest activities best suited to them.
10 Key Components in Creating an Airbnb Welcome Book
Ideally, when planning and creating an Airbnb Welcome Book, make sure it is well thought out and concise. You could design it yourself and consider the design aspect, writing style, and components of the welcome book, or you could easily download templates that save yourself hours. Though keep in mind, DIY welcome books make it more personalized and go a long way for the guests.
Now, if you do not have any clue as to how to create an Airbnb Welcome Book, here is a step-by-step guide that will help you along the way:
1. Welcome Page
It is always good to start with this page, greeting your guests with a warm welcome and a personalized note thanking them for choosing to stay at your property. This sets the tone for guests to feel welcome and right at home. It is also important that the first few pages of the book contain vital information such as:
- Your Contact Info and Rental Address
- Parking Information
- Emergency Information Numbers
- Guest Wifi Passwords
Keep in mind that even though they might not go through the entire book, it is crucial that vital information necessary is upfront otherwise guests would contact you for help.
Bonus Tip: It will be a great touch if maybe you added a little information about yourself and your connection with the property so that guests would know a little bit more about you on a personal level and the place they are staying in. And maybe your welcome book can have little notes for guests to add in the feedback of their stay and share it with future guests.
2. Table of Contents
It helps guests navigate to pages that they are most likely to be interested in and saves up their time. It is always good to know what pages contain what information, for example, if a guest is interested in what places to go to, rather than flipping all the pages, he/she would just likely go through the table of contents and navigate directly to that page.
3. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
On this page, you are likely to provide answers to any/commonly asked questions like:
- Check-in and Check-out Time
- Check-out Procedures
- Location of switches
- The proximity of restaurants, hospitals, grocery stores, bank/money exchanger counters, etc
- Security
- House Rules
Although you have already provided this information in your Airbnb listing upon arrival, it would be great to remind guests of your house rules on your property. This also helps guests to access it any time during their stay.
Bonus Tip: Always best to keep the rules simple and not go overboard with the rules. This might not entice guests to stay again at your property if there were 100 rules in the house.
4. Must-see Local Attractions
Mention the must-see attractions around the area such as:
- Museums and Art galleries
- Historical places
- Local attractions
- Theme parks
Ideally, this will entice guests with an opportunity to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience during their stay.
Bonus Tip: You could always approach and partner with other businesses that can provide guests with offers such as discount vouchers, etc. Recommendations will always be appreciated by guests.
5. Places to eat
Ideally, after a long drive or flight, most guests look for the closest places to eat. It would be great to recommend places or maybe share your top pick restaurants to eat around the area with a variety of food as well as types of restaurants whether it is casual to fine dining. Make sure you include addresses, contact numbers, and the website of the restaurants you suggested. At the same time, it would be appreciated if you provide information on the proximity or how long it takes to get to the restaurants and also whether you could go on foot or in the car.
Consider also offering delivery options if guests are too tired and might just want to stay in.
Bonus Tip: It would be great to add menu pamphlets on the book from a variety of recommended restaurants. Also maybe consider approaching restaurants that will offer guests discounts or have special offers.
6. Things to do
Normally, guests do have their own set of tour plans however it would still be great to offer recommendations of local things to do around the area such as:
- Day trips (depending on the location it offers)
- Local Parks
- Shopping centers, Spa, Markets
- Pubs, Bars, Cafes, Clubs
- Local events (Festivals and Fairs)
- Family-friendly spots (playgrounds, picnics)
Make sure you add in addresses, contact numbers, and the website of each activity provided for your guests to easily find them.
7. Getting Around
Mention on the welcome book, local transportation information such as:
- Recommended Taxi services with contact information
- Uber Services
- Car rentals in the area
- Nearby bicycle rentals
- Local trams, trains, and bus schedules and routes provided
- Airport or City Tour bus Shuttles
- Maps of the area and city
Bonus Tip: Leave them a note stating they are welcome to grab along the map with them. Highlight the location of your property on the map and the nearby places to get around by.
8. How-to Instructions on Appliances and Electronics
As a host, we always would want to provide our guests especially the elderly with the utmost comfort during their stay. In providing the best service, we should not assume that guests know how to use the appliances and electronics at home.
It would be always great to provide manual instructions on:
- Thermostat
- Water Heater
- Kitchen appliances
- Smart home devices (locks, lights, etc)
- TV Remote Control, DVD Player, and Netflix
- Wifi
- Washer and dryer
By actually doing this, you offer guests ease and avoid bad reviews at your property.
9. Weather (optional)
On this page, you could always provide information on the weather forecasts to your guests. This directly helps guests have an idea of what activities are suited for them based on the weather condition. Guests will also feel grateful for the thought of you thinking of them.
What can you Take Away from This?
Airbnb Welcome Book offers guests a lot more than you expect. It helps guests navigate their stay with great experiences and guides that will give them comfort. Add value to your property by being a great host in the long run and guests will not only come back but recommend your property to other guests.
Just a small pointer in organizing your Airbnb Welcome Book. As it comes in different formats, use a binder or scrapbook to keep all the pamphlets, menu cards, vouchers, etc. organized. Make little markers to highlight pages for guests to easily navigate. And lastly, place your Airbnb Welcome Book in a visible location for guests to see such as the coffee table or dining table
And as a suggestion, you could also encourage guests to post pictures of their stay whether it may be the property or experience itself on social media accounts and tagging your property.
