Hosting in rural areas — what are your tips?

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Hosting in rural areas — what are your tips?

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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


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74 Replies 74
Fred13
Level 10
Placencia, Belize

(Trust I am reading your questions correctly Lizzie)

   

   'Rural' could mean many things conceptually, meaning in one offering it could mean a roll back to a simple and 'past' form of living (aka wood burning cabin in the woods) which is a form or role-playing when you think about; in another the offering is simply getting away (a detached peaceful setting) but with 'enough' comforts for guests not to have to make too much of a transition 'physically'.

    I have a place that falls squarely in the latter example. So the only thing I have to ask of the guest,  is to be concious of the amount of usage (power/water/provisions) but not how they do so (ie. the shower will work the same way as 'home').

   The only way to meet the challenges of being so 'different' (i.e. being off grid for example) is that the host must be knowledgeable and self-reliant as to maintenance, because calling someone from the Yellow Pages to instantly be there to fix anything usually will not be an option.

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Funny you should raise this about the word 'rural' @Fred13, it's focus in this content is around those listings are those which are slightly more remote than say those in a built up large city. It's flexible though. 🙂

 

I know from when you have previously talked about your island, that you have a bit of a food store room now from what guests have left, do you find that your guests ask a lot about local shops before they stay and how they get it over?

 

 

 

 


--------------------


Thank you for the last 7 years, find out more in my Personal Update.


Looking to contact our Support Team, for details...take a look at the Community Help Guides.

Yes, they do Liz; they tend to want to make sure they can get what they need. The stock in the island always surprises them, since we are a bit vague about it, if we weren't they won't bring anything!  🙂

Alexandra316
Level 10
Lincoln, Canada

@Lizzie I think that logistics is my greatest challenge in hosting. I host kind of off the beaten path in an area with many vineyards and little in the way of public transportation or cabs. Most people are visiting to go on wine tours or attend special events.  People visit from the city, and don't think about how they're going to get home if they go to a wedding or go out for dinner and have a little too much to drink. The way I combat that is by making that information available on my listing, as well as proactively letting people know about it if they say they're specifically visiting for a special event or meal. I also do keep a stack of cards for the most reasonable option for getting a safe ride home in clear view so people can pick one up on the way out the door. I also have a general idea of how much the various transport options cost, so I can advise the guests if they ask what option is best.

 

The other challenge that goes hand-in-hand with that is that although various local attractions look walkable on paper, it's not terribly safe to do so. There are no sidewalks, by and large, and few street lights: it's a rural area. Although it may be a safer walk in the daytime, walking it in the dark when you've had a few glasses of wine is not safe. Again, although restaurants are close by, the guests don't have a sidewalk to walk on (although I walk there all the time and don't have an issue, we've been downgraded on location because of it). Again, I just try to make it as clear as possible in my listing and if people talk about leaving the car at the Airbnb I mention it.

 

Finally... more on the hosting side than an issue for the guest... none of the pricing tools seem to work effectively in my area. They're not comparing apples to apples, because there is very little in the way of direct competition. Listings are few and far between in my immediate market.

 

As for using the location to my advantage... it just kind of sells itself. People are coming to our area in droves to visit the wineries, and there aren't many accomodation options. It's a really beautiful area, and I love the fact that it's still a bit off of the beaten path. One day, it won't be like that anymore, because we're making the best wines in Canada and people are starting to figure that out more and more.

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Yeah, I think measuring distances of places is always quite tricky, here in London I walk everywhere, but in the countryside I find that you have to plan a little more. 

 

Do you have difficulty with things like wifi in your area @Alexandra316?


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Thank you for the last 7 years, find out more in my Personal Update.


Looking to contact our Support Team, for details...take a look at the Community Help Guides.

@LizzieNo, luckily we don't. My home was previously dual use: it was a family home, but they also ran a business on site, so they paid quite a bit of money for a T1 fibre line to be installed. Our internet is amazing. 

Hi Alexandra, 

 

Thanks for sharing. I am having a truly hard time with people who book because they are looking to utilize peace and quiet, then telling me that it is too rural for their liking. I try to send people the physical address soon after the booking is made, as well as having it in the listing. Any suggestions besides that? Our property is in Co. Kerry, Ireland, and the house has a vast amount of walking/hiking trails, beaches, and scenic driving/biking/horse trekking roads, which is typically the draw, but people seem not to look at the address. On the converse side, I don't want to send the address too early for security reasons. I feel like I am really caught between a rock and a hard place! 

 

Thanks, 

 

Erin 

Hi Erin, I know you asked Alexandra, but permit to make a comment. Looks like you are fairly new to hosting. I looked at your profile, curious to see your listing and what you might do to manage guest expectations. Is your listing "Charming 300 year old house in the city centre"? If so, "city centre" gives the wrong idea if it's truly a rural location.

 

My space is 15 minutes drive from the small city, a college town in the NE US. I emphasize this in the description in every possible way so guests know they need a car and it is a 15-minute drive into town. I also give driving times to the nearest gas station, restaurants, the college and university, and grocery store. Guests do not see the exact address until booked. Feel free to follow my profile to my listing to see what I have done.

 

Best wishes,

Patti

John1080
Level 10
Westcliffe, CO

@Lizzie My cabin is in a very rural county in Colorado, but in this day and age, with modern communications and transportation, there aren't too many very remote and desolate places remaining.

 

We are located on a gravel road about 20 minutes from the nearest town, which has a population of about 1,200 but luckily we found a great cleaning service and have pretty reliable Internet, which helps immensely. 

 

Some of my advice would be (many of these could apply in urban areas as well): 

 

~Give very detailed directions including mileage points for each turn.

~Highlight in the listing and advise guests before confirming of any amenity limitation such as hot water.

~Educate guests about wildlife and weather issues.

~If one lives in a dry area, advise heavily about fires and smoking.

~Perhaps advise guests of distances, which will be longer in rural areas. I had one guest say something (not too negatively) about the 20 minute drive to the grocery store, which seems quite short to me, but apparently coming from the city he thought it long. But, you might mention to them to get gas and groceries before coming, that sort of thing.

 

If hosting remotely in a rural area:

 

~Make sure you first and foremost find a good, reliable cleaning service that can also look out for things like leaks or other issues with the home.

~If Internet is available:

~Install a heating source or thermostat which you can control remotely in the winter to avoid pipes freezing.

~Install a smart lock.

~Install a security camera, to check number of guests, pets and for security.

 

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

I just had a look at your listing @John1080, it is really lovely and what a view. I am surprised you can get your guests to leave. 🙂

 

Great tips here. Do you normally have templates to include all these details on? 


--------------------


Thank you for the last 7 years, find out more in my Personal Update.


Looking to contact our Support Team, for details...take a look at the Community Help Guides.

@Lizzie Thank you! We have been really booked up all summer, so we haven't been able to spend much time there ourselves, but will be spending more time there this winter, which is my favorite time to be there anyway. 

I am new!!! Great advice!!!

@John1080Thank you for sharing the advice.  My husband and I have a couple semi-rural(unincorporated town) homes we rent.  We email our guests a 4-5 page information sheet with some of the advice you listed.  I do, on occassion, still get guests who feel they need more information.

@Kim590 I would be interested to see what is in 4-5 pages of information. Any major ones, I have left out in my post that you would recommend?