Summer is here, and it’s time to spruce up your vacation rental for the upcoming busy season. Here are some tips to prepare your vacation rental for summer to attract more guests and optimize your revenue. Use these, along with the Airbnb hosting tips, to garner more and more popularity for your vacation rental and make it successful.
This blog will talk about some simple ways to make your property more inviting during the summer season and some strategies that will help you increase your revenue and occupancy.
Update the details of your summer-ready vacation rental
You might have put in warm lights, warm shades for your linen, and cozy throw blankets around the property to set the mood for winter. Now that it is summer, one of the first tips to prepare your vacation rental for summer is to brighten up the place with more lights, plants, and brighter curtains.
The second thing on your to-do list should be to update the photos of your rental on Airbnb and Vrbo or whatever booking platform you use. If you want to add new amenities or activities exclusive to the summer season, update the same in the listing.
Guests are less likely to book a summer rental that gives off winter vibes.
See what others are doing using PriceLabs Market Dashboard and Neighborhood Data
Identify the ongoing market trends and compare your listings’ performance with the market. You can use PriceLabs Market Dashboard and neighborhood data to analyze the dominant practices in your market. For example, some graphs indicate future prices vs. occupancy, cancellation policies vs. bookings, booking window vs. length of stay data, weekly and monthly discounts, etc., in the PriceLabs Market Dashboard. It will give you a sense of what policies and practices are prevalent in your market and how to set pricing customizations to make the most of these trends.
Neighborhood data will show you the occupancy and per-night rates of the nearby listings.
Set minimum stay with PriceLabs
Once you know the influx of travelers in your market, you can set your minimum length of stay restrictions using PriceLabs if you don’t want a new guest every day. Having a guest every day can lead to added maintenance and administration costs. Also, let’s not forget the extra cleaning and stocking of supplies you’d have to do to prepare for a new guest every day.
PriceLabs offer multiple customizations under Minimum Stay Restrictions that help you set different limits for far-out bookings, orphan days, adjacent bookings, last-minute bookings, and much more. By selecting a minimum night stay for more than one day, you can at least ensure that your rental is not being booked for parties. (who wants to clean that mess?)
Adequate Lighting
Dim lights are for winters, and bright lights are for summers. Lighting sets the mood and also livens up a space. Make sure all the bulbs and lighting fixtures are working. Also, ensure outdoor lighting to make your guests feel comfortable and safe.
Declutter and Deep Clean
If you are giving out your property for rental, it should be spotlessly clean, and there should not be any visible clutter. Especially after the pandemic, this has become one of the most important tips to prepare your vacation rental for summer and every other season. Take some time to clean the property and declutter the furniture deeply. You can follow the Airbnb cleaning checklist to ensure no corner is dirty.
In addition, there should be ample walking space around the rooms as they make the house look bigger and breezy.
Also, ensure no defective furniture is in the room, as it hampers the property’s appearance.
Display the position of AC and cooling systems in the rental
Summers mean extra dependence on cooling systems. Ensure that it is easy for your guests to use the property’s air conditioners and cooling systems. Place the remotes in a visible location. If there are any specific instructions for using or adjusting the cooling system, keep them in an area where it is easy for the guests to find them.
Provide Extras
Everybody likes extras, and your guests will surely leave you good reviews if you stock up the bathrooms and kitchen pantry with extra supplies for your guests. For example, you can provide the guests with extra toiletries like shampoo, conditioners, face wash, dental and shaving kit, body wash, lotions, etc.
Placing food supplies in the kitchen for the guests will be highly appreciated. With the ongoing pandemic, many guests prefer to cook their food, and your providing them with the necessary means will surely be appreciated.
Preparing a Vacation Rental is incomplete without caring for your pool and jacuzzi
Summertime is usually equivalent to pool time for many people. People love soaking in pools in the summer. If your vacation rental has a pool, ensure it is clean and has all the safety equipment, like a ladder and floating devices. It will help to place protective fencing around the pool according to local regulations if the guests have kids.
If there is no pool, but a jacuzzi, ensure it is properly functional. In case of showers, then check the taps and the water pressure. Everything should be up to date. You don’t want your guests struggling for a good shower or bath when the sun is scorching outside.
Provide Entertainment
If you are one of those hosts who anticipates all the needs of their guests and provides them with the necessary service and supplies, you are definitely on your way to becoming an Airbnb superhost.
Take care of your guest’s entertainment by providing them with brochures or a list of places they can visit in your vicinity.
Some guests might prefer to stay indoors more because of the pandemic. You can ensure their entertainment by providing them with board games, a deck of cards, books, television cable, etc., that they can use when bored.
Internet and workstation
Airbnb recently reported that 60% of its bookings are received by working travelers who are given added flexibility due to work-from-home policies. It will be wise to cater to the needs of these travelers as they will most likely be your potential guests. You must provide them with good wifi, a proper workstation, a study table, and a chair. You will realize the importance of broadband in your vacation rental once you do this.
Plenty of Bedding
The bedding is an essential part of any bedroom’s aesthetics. You should add comforters and blankets to your bedrooms. In addition, you can make your bedrooms more inviting by adding plush cushions and extra pillows. Make sure that every bedroom has at least two sets of pillows. Keep extra linen, blankets, and pillows in the cupboards.
Safety guidelines in case of emergencies and first aid kits
Ensuring rental safety is another critical step toward preparing your property for summer guests. It’s a good idea to provide first aid kits and numbers to nearby hospitals and doctors in case of emergencies. Keep them at a location where the guests can easily find them.
Also, provide safety guidelines for when a common natural disaster in your vicinity strikes (hurricanes, earthquakes, etc.). You don’t want your guests to be clueless in case of a catastrophe and endanger themselves. They are living on your property; their safety is your responsibility.
You should also provide instructions on where to find fire extinguishers and the number of fire stations in case of a house fire.
Create a pricing strategy
Price is among the most critical factors guests see when choosing a vacation rental. You don’t want to overprice yourself and discourage bookings from potential guests. However, you don’t want to under-price your rental and miss out on the potential revenue.
Your best bet is to have a pricing strategy to help you set the correct nightly rates for your rental. First, choose a dynamic Airbnb pricing strategy for low and high-demand days. You can automate this process using PriceLabs Dynamic Pricing Solutions. PriceLabs provides you with data-driven automated pricing software that you can use to analyze the performance of your competitors and see their occupancy and nightly rates.
Another important aspect of your pricing is setting a suitable Airbnb cleaning fee. You want to charge a cleaning fee that pays for preparing the rental for your next guests. Many people use the cleaning fee to discourage shorter stays. However, you don’t want to set it too high that it will dissuade bookings. You can use PriceLabs Market Dashboard to see what your competitors are doing and what cleaning fee is getting the highest bookings.
Ready to Provide a Memorable Experience to Your Guests?
These tips to prepare your vacation rental for summer are straightforward and stepping stones to giving your guests a great experience that will make them return. Analyze the market trends and set the right pricing and other customizations to maximize summer season demand.
Also, be a great host and anticipate the needs of your guests in advance and provide them with all the necessary supplies and information to help them have a great experience at your property. After all, you need good reviews to ensure the success of your vacation rental.
