@Christian3129
your property and sweet house look amazing from the outside! people should be so lucky to stay there. Your place is an absolute dream and in the right hands you could have something truly outstanding.
but first....a bit of a large overhaul is needed.
photos need much improvement. only take daytime photos, with the blinds open, have the fire going on one of the photos. perhaps add a few things on the table like a book and glass of wine. Remove repeated images. Your best photos are the drone shot and one of the living room with fireplace, put those first. I really love the washroom off the kids bathroom, this would be such a great feature if the whole house was styled well. @Huma0 check it out, original funky 60s? 70s? tiling. I'd personally lean into that colour palette of the mustards and botanic prints, it's very much in right now so easy to get decor, and there'll be plenty of 2nd hand stuff around too.
"have you ever seen such a beautiful sofa?" this is a weird question because yes, I've seen better.
The kitchen looks bare, if you supply a kettle and coffee maker, include a photo of it *unless they are old and ugly. No toaster?
master bedroom, only one bedside table? only 2 pillows? the bed looks like a teenage boy made it, it is not welcoming at all. Is it actually 2 single beds pushed together? You say you bought new linens, I would have chosen neutral duvet covers.
Not sure I'd use "dormitory" to describe the kid's space as it makes me think of school camp. Perhaps call it the kids rumpus room, or bunk room. That space does look great, but needs better photos cos it's giving me dungeon vibes. There's a typo on one of your photos where you spell "angle" as "anckle"
You haven't got a cohesive plan for the overall aesthetic of your house.
So, go to Pinterest and type in "1970s home decor" and get some decor ideas. Pick a look and then stick to it, this is how you create a cohesive look and you don't need to spend a lot of money! you can slowly upgrade the property each month, chose carefully. I'm sorry but the things you've spent money on are probably a waste as they don't help tell a story. That's why having a plan of the look you are trying to achieve is a good idea, so when you see something on sale, or searching on Marketplace, you know what to choose and what to ignore - knowing what NOT to buy is a big part of design, don't be tempted by cheap things that don't suit your place, pick a colour palette - to be safe I'd chose a few colours and stick to those only, and not red btw, that's not a vibe. you have the sofa, that's fine, but no more red. As you can tell, I really love doing design on a budget, is there no one else in your family who loves doing renovations and styling to give you some tips?
DESCRIPTION
I'm a firm believer in setting expectations accurately, and underpromising - over delivering, but you really are underpromising ! and lecturing guests before they arrive. Is this a cultural thing that is acceptable where you are? My hubby is Dutch South African so i'm fine with this level of brutal frankness, but not all europeans are like that, and certainly not int'l guests.
By the reviews you need to devote more time to cleaning. Who is doing the cleaning? obviously it's not good enough, and you can't seriously be telling people not be concerned about dust in the corners and then suggest they brought it in themselves. If you want to aim for parents with kids, they are going to expect your place to be clean. Previously your boy party groups didn't notice and didn't care, but if you're trying to aim for a different level of client (and eventually push your prices up) then you need to increase your standards.
FIREPLACE
having just been through winter, there is no way I would ask guests to empty the fireplace. Perhaps in your part of the world people are used to doing this, but it's too messy a task to ask a guest to complete.
DON'T BREAK THINGS?
This is really unfriendly. Guests do break things from time to time, that's going to happen, and you are implying here you'll charge someone for a broken coffee cup. I actually let guests know that a broken glass isn't an issue at all, it happens, we have all at one stage in our lives broken a glass. That way they won't feel the need to lie to me, nor feel they are walking on eggshells the whole time. Families with kids are bound to do some minor damage from time to time. Now if they break a window, sure they have to pay for that, but there's no need to write this into the description. Put it into your guest manual.
SPRUIKING FOR GOOD REVIEWS ... in the description? just, NO. take that out. Make a guest manual with all this stuff.
Under "extra things to know" you can put:
electricity charging situation
firewood limitations
breakages policy
quirky old house has uneven surfaces and hard to clean nooks and crannies, etc. Rustic vintage home has unique challenges when it comes to cleaning but all efforts are made to do a thorough clean between guests.
Well that's a start! You have an amazing property and I hope you come back and share any improvements you have made with us.