Hosting in rural areas — what are your tips?

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

We’re looking for tips from hosts with listings outside of urban areas. Rural travel is becoming more and more popular to guests who are looking for unique, authentic experiences, or maybe just some peace and quiet.

Hosting off the beaten path however, does have its challenges, such as providing WiFi connectivity (or not), transportation and logistics, and the availability of amenities like grocery stores.

What’s your key advice to others hosting outside of urban areas? How do you attract guests, overcome the unique challenges of rural hosting, and use your location to your best advantage?

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Deborah82]

*I’ve mentioned that I can and will collect people from the train station in the nearest town.
*I also created a local Guidebook on AirBnB so that visitors new to the area, would know what was available. In some instances, I had to add the shops/parks/tourist attractions to Google (I already had an account with Google) so that I could add them to the guidebook. This meant taking photos too.
* Being clear that there is no reception of any kind. (Phone/TV/internet). That there is a tv but only a few DVD’s are available, inviting guests to bring their own if they so desire, and that there is USB access on the TV as well..
* No scheme water, only bore for bathing and rain for drinking. 
Basically, I make sure that my guests know exactly what they will or will not have before they get here. City folk quite often don’t think about things like internet access or town water, because it’s so freely available. If there are no ‘surprises’ or preconceived ideas, then they cannot be upset or disappointed. So far (touch wood) I’ve had the most marvellous guests stay with us. It’s been fabulous.

[Mike-And-Helen0]

We are very rural but not off-grid except for a septic tank. We have a sign in the bathroom about what not to flush.

Sat nav works to get here but people are often shocked that you ring for a taxi and they're all booked.

Guests love the peace and quiet.

[Manasui0]

talk your guest of a concept with out online services and provide the with transportation and extra charges??(for any thing that is cause by luxury)

[Katelyn20]

What is considered rural? 

[Stephanie365]

In general, what most consider rural is areas where most properties have acreage even if homes are smaller, no planned subdivisions, areas zoned "agricultural", low population density and low development. Where I am, we have well and septic, limited internet options, satellite TV and per zoning regulations, if anyone subdivides a farm, the lots can be no smaller than 3 acres, although the corrupt Board of Supervisors is attempting to change that at the behest of developers (aka bribing) who want to encroach on our rural peace.  You will have to drive several miles to reach a gas station or grocery store and you're generally 10 miles or more from the nearest center of town. Where you measure distance to your nearest neighbor in 1/10ths of a mile vs inches or feet. 🙂

[Patti4]

Stephanie, I can relate.

[Susan1028]

Mobile reception is unreliable here, so I'm very clear about directions and have received complements.

I add mile markers, local signage and landmarks, and remind folks it's really dark after sunset.

I also add specified markers to guide folks in from the main road past other driveways that branch off to neighboring properties, were and when to slow down, and describe what it will look like as they find the house.

I also remind folks to look and take photos, but not to directly interact with (or feed) the wildlife.

[Stephanie365]

I emphasise that my location is off the beaten path surrounded by farms. I also mention that while I do have Wi-Fi, it's not unlimited nor high speed. 

My biggest issue is AirBNB's "location" rating which often penalizes those of us who are not centrally located but neither are we located in a fabulous "retreat" setting such as Fred has on his island.  We're just rural. And because we're nothing special, and the nearest grocery is 8 miles away, we don't merit a 5* location rating.

[Fred13]

I wonder if the word 'Location' should be replaced with 'Sorroundings', if Airbnb is hell bend to keep this category.

  Better yet,  Airbnb should have Icons for listings to convey to the potential guest what type of settings (or Amenities) quickly, are to be found there (replaces those silly 'Highlights', which , require more reading). 

  Imagine when people see a listing, and immediately see an icon of a beach, a tractor (rural), and island, and also of Wi-Fi, etc. 

  This would lessen the need to have to read a listing thoroughly to make sure one doesn't miss something of importance.

[Suzanne268]

My place is on the highway but in a rural area -- it's a half hour to nearest food or gas -- so, I advise guests in of this and ask them to contact me if they want suggestions as to where to eat or purchase food on the way.

My location includes the Lat/Long and which highway kilometer markers it lies between. I find this is a lot easier on folks than giving them Google Maps info or other "soft" references, or too much detail too soon. 

If they book and then write with further questions about directions, that's when I start giving more play-by-play (since I will also know which direction they are coming from). 

[Florence293]

Appreciate this conversation. We are relatively new hosts. Our rural home is surrounded by cornfields and on a septic but within 5 miles of suburban area. We have great WiFi but google maps doesn’t recognize our property. So we supply extra directions. Every guest has been here for a different reason but they all seem to enjoy the quiet.

[Patti4]

I replied to John near the top of the thread but wanted to post here too. My location is in the northeast U.S., a 15-minute drive from the nearest city (50k pop) which is a college town in a growing tourist destination, so not terribly remote. It's a guest suite in my home, with a well and septic in a rural agricultural setting. Fortunately, WiFi is reliable on most networks here and guests can easily navigate with Wayz, Google Maps, etc. I've been hosting here since 2012.

I alert guests to the well and septic in a pre-approval message, pre-arrival message, printed house manual, and a sign in the bathroom. I have custom saved messages for Newbies vs Experienced guests to emphasize certain points. My listing description has this info as well as House Rules. I also give driving times to the nearest gas station, grocery, etc. 

This can be rather lengthy for them to read, but my aim is to manage expectations. Urban and suburban guests need to be explicitly cautioned at every opportunity how to treat waste and water in areas where basic municipal services do not exist. They also need to be cautioned about deer and other wildlife on the roads after dark. Most of my guests are enthusiastic and cooperative, and many agree with water conservation methods. I provide filtered water for guests in attractive bottles because the well water has a high iron content. 

I just had my septic system replaced (it was very old). Sorry to be gross, but the contractor said there were condoms clogging the baffle — definitely from guests! So now my bathroom sign lists condoms at the top of a list of the things that should never be flushed, like tampons, cotton swabs, cleansing cloths, coffee ground, etc. I think you have to spell it out. The sign is on the wall as you face the toilet, so the men will see it!

I also have a Guest Guide in a notebook which I leave open on the table before they arrive. The first page describes all of this plus wildlife and keeping cool without AC. Whether they read it is something I can't police but I am on-site so I greet most guests, call it to their attention, and check in with them daily. They do not have a kitchen sink so I wash their dishes. I collect the dishes when they are out, which they know is going to happen during their stay, giving me an opportunity to make sure nothing is damaged and the door is locked.

Hope this is useful. Best,

Patti

[John1080]

@Patti4, good idea on the condoms. Always learning new ideas on these threads! 

In general, I haven't had any serious issues, but the one I am working on is trash. No trash can be put outside because of wildlife and we are currently looking at animal/bear proof bins to locate outside, which will allow guests to get trash out of the cabin during their stay, yet prevent wildlife from getting to it. 

My housekeeping does not go to the cabin when guests are there for safety, trust and liability issues. So far, most of my guests have been relatively short stays of 4 days or less, but I have had a few longer-one for two weeks and the current for 6 days. 

So far, I have alerted both of these guests that they can drop off any excess at the landfill, which is conveniently located on the way to town. I have drawn a Google map and share it with them, also alerting them that the cost is $2 for a large bag, but I don't feel totally great about asking them to pay for their trash disposal or asking them to do it themselves. 

Any thoughts or feelings on this would be greatly appreciated. 

[Sarah977]

@John1080   I can understand why you wouldn't feel totally great about asking guests to take their trash to the landfill and pay for it, but to me, one of the most effective ways for humans to reduce the garbage they produce is to deal with it themselves- when they have to deal with it themselves, as opposed to just putting it out for the garbage collectors (where it just magically "goes away"), and especially if they have to pay for it, they tend to change their wanton garbage producing habits.

Is there a recycling depot anywhere near your listing? If so, and you or your cleaners are willing to make recycling runs from time to time, this could reduce the amount of garbage  your guests produce. You'd have to impress on the guests that containers to be recycled must be thoroughly washed, so as not to attract critters, a list of what can be recycled, and have some bins that they can put the recyclable items in. If they can eliminate cardboard,  glass, metal and recyclable plastics from their trash, they will be left with very little to haul away with them. A step further is to research compost bins that are animal-proof, which adds one more thing that doesn't need to go into the garbage. 

I literally end up with no more than 1 or two small plastic shopping bags of garbage per week, even when I have a guest, by dealing with all my waste like this.

[John1080]

@Sarah977

 Thanks for your input and yes, I agree with you completely. In most cases within this context, and generally in life, most people will waste if they perceive someone else is paying-utilities, food, etc.  

As far as I’ve seen or heard (we only get to visit about once a month), the guests haven’t produced much garbage, but for longer stays, they’ll probably have more. The current group has a newborn, so they were mostly asking with regards to dirty diapers. 

The one other guest was there for two weeks in summer heat, so needed to do something about half way through. The cleaning staff indicated they could go out to pick it up if it were outside, but without a metal container, that isn’t an option due to wildlife. 

It is a very rural area and there really isn’t any recycling to speak of, but I have considered a bin for them to put recyclables if only to reduce space being taken up in the trash can itself. 

I’m thinking I’m going to just have to go ahead and invest in an animal-proof bin, although they’re expensive, but will be worth it in the long run.