A Plug-And-Play Airbnb House Manual Template Guests Follow
But the moment they sit down to rest, they realize they have a bunch of questions about your property.
From explaining how the thermostat works to laying down some ground rules, the Airbnb house manual is your property’s bible. It’s the toolkit every guest needs for a smooth, happy stay. So how do you make sure your Airbnb house manual is ticking every box?
Our plug-and-play house manual template will take the guesswork out of writing a stellar guide to a comfortable stay in your STR property.
If you’re a new host who needs help creating your house manual or even a well-established host who wants to make sure your manual is actually getting read, this guide is for you.
We’ll break down each section of the manual and show you how to add it to your online travel agency (OTA) listing. At the end of this guide, you’ll find the full free template for you to use as you see fit.
Want an Airbnb house manual guests will actually read?
What’s the purpose of an Airbnb house manual?
An Airbnb house manual is a guidance document designed to help your guests get the most out of their stay. It’s also known as a guest manual or guestbook.
A good house manual guest book should be a one-stop shop for your guests to find information about your property and the local area. That way, they don’t need to contact you every time they have a question. You can add the guest manual to your Airbnb host checklist to remind you to keep it up to date and ready for every guest.
Pro tip: A house manual is slightly different from Airbnb house rules, which you add to your listing to give guests an idea of what to expect before they book. Your house manual is usually provided after the booking stage. It can include house rules, but it has a lot of other useful information too.
What are the benefits of making an Airbnb house manual?
Anticipating your guests’ needs and creating a sense of personal connection will make you stand out as a host, encourage referrals, and win repeat bookings.
Here’s how a house manual guest book can help provide a truly memorable guest experience:
- Make your guests feel welcome
- Build excitement about their stay
- Ease any anxiety they have about the property
- Build a personal rapport between guest and host
- Give your guests everything they need to make the most out of their stay
But that’s not the only reason to include a digital guest book guide. There are also a few ways it’ll make your life as a host easier:
- Establish ground rules
- Protect your property from misuse and damage
- Reduce time spent answering questions
Pro tip: if you’re a local area expert you can also add a digital guest book guide to your Airbnb listing. You never know, you may have your recommendations, and your listings, featured in Airbnb Neighborhood guides.
How to add a house manual to your Airbnb listing
Adding a house manual to your Airbnb listing is very simple. Here’s how:
- Firstly, go to your Listings and select a listing
- Then, click ‘Info for guests’
- Find the guest manual section under ‘Post-booking details’ and click ‘Edit’
- Edit the guest manual and click ‘Save’.
Now you’ve added your house manual guest book to your Airbnb listing, why not add it to your hospitality app, too?
Traditionally, hosts like to print a hard copy of their house manual and leave it somewhere visible inside their property. But who knows if it’s ever going to get read that way?
Add your digital guest book guide to a hospitality web app like Operto Guest to be sure it will actually get read. Your guests can access the web app from their iPad or smartphone, and you can schedule automatic messages to remind them to read it before their stay.
That way, rather than gathering dust in a corner of your Airbnb, the manual will be right in your guest’s pocket whenever they want to take a look.
Want to see what a house manual can do for you?
How to make an Airbnb house manual
To keep things really simple, you could just write your house manual in Microsoft Word or Google Docs and print it out. But that’s not the way to get guests interested.
Your digital guest book guide will be much more engaging if it’s nice to look at. You could use free software like Canva to help create an appealing design, which has a lot of useful templates and designed options. The only downside of Canva is that it doesn’t necessarily have host-specific templates.
Operto Guest can help you create a polished house manual with easy-to-use templates and creative design options. If you have your own direct booking website, you can also customize your Operto Guest house manual to match your branding. You can host your house manual guest book within the Operto Guest app, so it’s easy for guests to find. And you can schedule an automatic message to remind them to take a look before check-in.
Tipe for creating a good Airbnb house manual
Here are some useful tips for crafting the perfect Airbnb house manual:
- Get a proofreader to make sure everything is spelled correctly and makes sense
- Use images like photos or illustrations
- Add hyperlinks for ease of navigation
- Make it personal with friendly greetings and local area insights
- Add vouchers for any shops, restaurants or attractions you’ve partnered with
A digital guide in the Operto Guest portal
What to include in your Airbnb welcome book
A quick introduction
Check-in and check-out
When you’re a busy host, you can’t afford unexpected changes to your schedule. This is why you need to remind your guests of the check-in and check-out instructions. The house manual is also a good place to offer late check-out.
Pro tip: boost revenue by upselling late check-out for a small fee when your schedule allows.
Parking instructions
How to get into the house
Every house is unique and sometimes getting inside needs a little explanation. Be sure to give your guests access instructions ahead of time.
A hospitality app can help with this, especially if you offer keyless access to your property. The app will automatically generate an access code and send it directly to your guest when they want to check in. You can use the house manual to remind guests that they can find their access code and how to request a new one.
Wifi details
House rules
Setting some clear house rules is a must for any host. It will protect you from troublesome guests and help keep your neighbors on-side. You should include your house rules on the listing itself, but reiterate them in your welcome guide too.
Pro tip: the key to writing rules your guests will actually follow is to use clear, concise language and resist the temptation to list too many rules that your guests won’t read.
How to use amenities
Many Airbnb guests like the flexibility and homeliness of using vacation rental amenities. It’s part of what makes a short-term rental more appealing than a hotel.
But your guests must know how to use your amenities if you want them to feel at home. Give clear, detailed instructions on how to use your appliances, and this should reduce the time you spend answering questions during their stay.
Meanwhile, hospitality apps like Operto Connect can integrate with your smart devices, like thermostats, meaning you can automatically cool or warm rooms before arrival and ensure the comfort of your guests’ stay.
Local insights
Sightseeing
Emergency information
Contact information
You can choose how you would prefer your guests to contact you. Some hosts advise using the messaging services in their OTA only, while others like to give a phone number in case of any urgent queries.
We recommend encouraging guests to use a hospitality app like Operto Guest, where they can message you directly, purchase additional services like late check-out or local area tours, and even access temperature controls if you have smart home technology.
Pro tip: guest communications are faster and more efficient when you use an app that can consolidate your inboxes across OTAs, schedule personalized messages, and send automatic replies to answer popular queries.
Reviews
Finally, it’s time to talk about reviews. You know how important 5-star reviews are to your Airbnb business, but it’s easy for guests to forget about this part of their stay. Put a quick note in your house manual to remind guests how to leave a review.
Plug-and-play Airbnb welcome book template
In this section, you’ll find the complete, free template for your Airbnb house manual. You can adapt this to suit each of your properties. If you like, you can add more detail than we have, but remember to keep things simple and concise for your guests to understand.
Dear Guest
Welcome to Cozy Apartment near La Sagrada Familia! We’re so happy to have you.
It’s always such a pleasure to welcome travelers like yourself to stay here. Your hosts, Sofia & Alex, grew up in this neighborhood. That’s how we know that this is a great spot to explore the city from, especially if this is your first time in Barcelona! We’ve added some tips for sightseeing and local insights to this manual, just in case you need them.
This manual has everything you need to enjoy a comfortable stay in our apartment, including instructions for how to use the appliances (and the all-important Wi-Fi code). Towards the end of the manual, you’ll also find our contact information in case you need us during your stay. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Enjoy your time in Barcelona!
Best wishes,
Sofia & Alex
Check-in and check-out
Check-in is from 3:00 pm on the day of your arrival. Please check out promptly by 11:00 am so that we can prepare the apartment for our next guests.
If your plans change and you would like late check-out, we may be able to accommodate this for a small extra cost. Let us know via Airbnb or your guest app and we’ll do our best to arrange it for you.
Parking instructions
We have a small drive to the left side of the property, which you will spot when you arrive. Please feel free to park here for the duration of your stay.
While there is free on-street parking at the weekend in Barcelona, it gets very busy and can be difficult to find. We recommend you leave your car at home and get around using the metro!
How to get into the house
We hope you have a safe journey to the apartment. When you arrive, you should be able to spot the building quite easily as it has a red front door and is located next to a pharmacy. Go through the main entrance and climb the stairs to the first floor.
To enter the apartment, you will need your unique access code. You should already have received this during check-in. Check your messages in your guest app to find the code and enter it into the keypad on the front door. You should hear a click and see the light turn green. That’s your sign, you can go in!
Wi-fi
House rules
We want you to have an amazing stay, but we also ask that you respect our property and the neighborhood. Please follow these house rules.
- Please respect the check-in and check-out time
- Please do not share the access code with unregistered guests
- No parties or large gatherings allowed
- Please keep noise to a minimum between 10:00 pm and 10:00 am
- No illegal substances or activities allowed
- No smoking anywhere in the apartment
- No pets allowed
- Please be careful not to damage the furnishings or ornaments
- Please turn off the air conditioning when you go out
- Please take care to close windows and lock the door securely behind you when you’re not in
- Please wash your dishes
- Please take out the trash when you leave
How to use appliances
TV
There is a TV remote on the coffee table. We have a smart TV with streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video already downloaded. Please feel free to log in to your own accounts and enjoy your favorite shows. Don’t forget to log out again before you leave!
Air conditioning
There is a thermostat in the hall next to the shoe rack. You can adjust the temperature using the arrow buttons next to the display screen. Please remember to turn the A/C off at night and when you leave the apartment as it’s very expensive to run.
Coffee machine
Help yourself to coffee pods which are in the blue tin next to the coffee machine. We use recyclable pods, so please don’t put them in the main garbage bin. Leave them in the clear bag provided and we’ll make sure they get recycled.
Washer and dryer
The washer/dryer is located under the kitchen counter next to the dishwasher and you are welcome to use it during your stay. It’s quite straightforward, but if you get stuck, the user manual is in the bottom drawer.
Dishwasher
Please make sure the dishwasher is full and set to ‘Eco’ before you turn it on. There are dishwasher tablets in the cupboard under the sink. The full cycle takes around one hour. We would appreciate it if you would load the dishwasher and set it to run at the end of your stay.
Local insights
Transport
The best way to get around Barcelona is to use the metro. You will also enjoy walking around this city as many of the neighborhoods are pedestrianized.
The apartment is well connected by metro and bus. The closest metro stop is “Dos de Maig” (Blue Line – L5). From there, you can get to Paseo de Gracia in just 3 stops (7 minutes).
Food & drink
In the morning, we recommend you visit Pastisseria Mendieta, which is an artisanal bakery offering coffee and delicious pastries to keep you going while you explore!
You are also within walking distance from Casa Mariol, which is an authentic wine bar with delicious tapas. It’s a great spot for wine lovers.
Grocery stores
You can find a Mercadona supermarket on Calle Valencia for picking up supplies.
Sightseeing
You’ve made a good choice to stay in L’Eixample because you’re right in the heart of the city near many famous attractions. From here, you can walk down Av. Gaudí towards La Sagrada Familia, one of Barcelona’s most stunning landmarks.
Head past La Sagrada Familia into Dreta de L’Eixample to find Bar Mediterráneo, a hotspot for free live music.
Please be careful while traveling around the city, as tourists can be targets for pickpocketers. Don’t worry, if you keep your personal belongings close and be aware of your surroundings, you shouldn’t have any issues.
Emergency information
There is a fire extinguisher in the hall by the door. In the case of a fire, you should evacuate through the main entrance.
Please respond to any emergencies quickly and safely, and contact the local authorities at once.
The emergency phone number is 112. Call this number for the police, the fire department, or an ambulance.
Contact details
We hope you have everything you need for the perfect stay.
If you have any questions, you can find information about your stay in your guest app, including local area recommendations and video guides for using the appliances.
Otherwise, please feel free to contact us there. We’ll be glad to answer any questions you have!
Parking Instructions
We love to hear about your stay, and 5-star reviews help other guests find out about our property. If you enjoyed your visit, we’d be delighted if you would leave us a review on Airbnb. Let us know which local restaurants or sights you liked best!
Once check-out is complete, Airbnb will prompt you to leave a review and give a rating out of five stars. You can also leave us private feedback if you think there’s anything we can do to improve for our next guests. We’d love to hear from you!
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