How to Make a Vacation Rental Welcome Book That Impresses Your Guests

The right vacation rental welcome book lets guests know how to treat your home, putting them on the path to leaving a five-star review that boosts your property’s performance and sets you apart from your neighboring competitors.  

According to our experts, these resources are so expected in today’s travel market that guests are more likely to feel frustrated if you don’t have a welcome book than to celebrate when you do. So, while your book may not be mentioned specifically in reviews, not having one can look like guests calling you more often with simple questions, complaining that they couldn’t get amenities to work, or feeling uncertain about house policies. And none of that leads to a good experience — for you or your guests.

That’s why we made a free, downloadable guest book template that makes it easy to provide travelers with all the info they need. Keep reading to learn what the essential components of an effective book are — and how each one supports your business.

Download Our Free Vacation Rental Welcome Book Template

In This Article:
What Is a Vacation Rental Welcome Book?
What to Include in a Vacation Rental Welcome Book
Create Your Vacation Rental Welcome Book

What Is a Vacation Rental Welcome Book?

To set the foundation for a great guest experience, think of your Airbnb welcome book as a guide to your property and area — from how to use the thermostat to where (and when) to go for the best coffee.

In short, the best welcome books:

• Help guests use your important amenities (like the TV and hot tub) correctly
• Give local recommendations that encourage guests to fully experience the location
• Provide hospitality with helpful resources and contacts that show guests you care

Our free template makes creating a vacation rental welcome book quick and easy. It gives you a framework to fill in all the right details that hit on each of the above points in a way that can ultimately reward your business.

What to Include in a Vacation Rental Welcome Book

As you learn how to make a welcome book for Airbnb, Vrbo, and other top sites, be sure to include the right, relevant features that help guests enjoy your book, home, and neighborhood. That said, it’s important to keep everything focused and brief, so guests aren’t overwhelmed or intimidated with too much to read. Here’s what should go in your welcome book.

Personal Welcome Note

Your book functions as your personal greeting to guests, so you don’t have to be there to do it yourself. Whether you simply celebrate their arrival or tell them your rental’s backstory, stand out from the competition with a warm and unique welcome. You could even include highlights your guests may have missed during booking, like eco-friendly features or your favorite fun facts about the interior design. 

While this note should be at the very front of your guest book, you also want to include the property address and contact information for your local support person or team. These details need to go at the beginning in an easy-to-find spot, so critical info is never missed by your guests.

When you work with Evolve, you’re set up for a hospitality home run that always makes guests feel supported. We create an accurate, descriptive listing, tackle pre- and post-stay guest communications, and encourage post-stay reviews that build your reputation.

Table of Contents

Speaking of easy-to-find details, a well-designed table of contents makes your Airbnb welcome book feel organized and approachable. In addition to giving guests a preview of what the book is as soon as they open it, it also helps them find the information they care about or need most at any moment.

Remember: there’s no need to go into detail here. Simply outline your book and be clear about what each section provides for the guest.

Important Emergency Information

When traveling, guests don’t always have the resources they’d typically have at home. They’ll feel more at ease if they know you have their safety in mind.

In addition to the local support team contact information you provided earlier, give accurate details (including phone numbers) for your property’s: 

• Nearest medical clinic and/or hospital
• Fire department
• Police department

On the same page, we recommend putting your property address again so guests can easily access it without needing to flip through pages. You should also add a disclaimer to call 911 in case of emergency.

Property Policies

When guests book your home, they may encounter policies in your eye-catching listing, pre-stay emails, and even friendly text communications. But by the time they arrive, they may have missed or forgotten the details.

Reiterating your house policies and rules in your welcome book can help resolve common rental issues — or keep them from happening in the first place.

To help every stay go smoothly, be sure to outline your:

• Check-in and check-out instructions
• House rules (like smoking, quiet hours, and pet policy)
• Neighborhood or community rules, including parking guidelines

That’s why Evolve’s comprehensive revenue strategy takes them into account right alongside industry trends, daily rates, and more — all to put as much money in your pocket as possible.

How-To Instructions

Even if your property maintenance is up-to-date, learning how to use new systems and amenities can be complex. Providing helpful how-tos upfront can help avoid any feelings of frustration that could sour a guest’s overall experience.

We recommend including:

• Property access instructions (like lockbox, garage, and gate codes)
• WiFi access and passwords
• Thermostat location and details
• Hot tub, pool, and fireplace guidance
• How-tos for appliances
• TV, sound system, and/or remote control directions

An in-home reference guide like this will help guests understand how to enjoy your home and leave it in good shape. Plus, you’re way less likely to find broken or misused items after they leave.

Nearby Activities and Attractions

Share your local insights or do some digging to unearth the best community hotspots. With your advice on hand, guests can take full advantage of the neighborhood, city, and surrounding area, which may even warrant a return visit.

Your highlights could include:

• Convenient grocery stores
• Fun boutiques or shopping centers
• Dining and nightlife (think top coffee shops, restaurants, and bars)
• Area attractions, indoor activities, or even national park destinations

As you create your list, provide additional recommendations for vacation rental guests based on who may be visiting your home. This could include local to-dos for families if your home has a higher occupancy allowance, or four-legged destinations if your home is pet-friendly.

How to Get Around

Writing out transportation advice and guidance can be an extra perk for guests who don’t know how to get around a new-to-them destination.

Your insights could help them navigate local:

• Car sharing or rentals
• Bike or scooter sharing
• Taxi and shuttle services
• Bus routes
• Airports and train stations

This is also a good place to provide a few brief directions to important locations, like the airport, so they know exactly where they’re going.

Create Your Vacation Rental Welcome Book

With a blank welcome book (and a lot of ideas), this task may feel intimidating. But our free Airbnb welcome book template can get you started with all the essentials already outlined. Download it below to get designed pages ready for your: 

• Welcome note
• Emergency contacts
• Important how-tos
• And more!

We made it easy to fill in and print out — with templated examples to help guide your writing — so your guest book will be ready to enhance your hospitality in no time.