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My weekend house - that I plan to rent - is located in a small town that probably no tourist ever heard of.
It is on the Adriatic coast, just above the beach, near the popular and well-known tourist cities (1 hr drive from each ). It’s actually attractive, less crowded than in those cities, but I’m concerned how can someone find it, because tourists usually search only stays in mentioned cities?
Should I try to submit the house as if it is in that city (is it possible?), is it a good idea anyway?
Any thoughts and suggestions are welcome, thanks in advance.
No because guests don’t read closely and they don’t look at the map. They will search for the city, be unhappy when they discover you are far from the city after they booked and then you will get a bad review or they will cancel their reservation.
Tourists who want to be in less crowded areas will know how to look for you. Also once most of the places in the cities are reserved Airbnb enlarges the search area to include more options. So you can appear in searches for those cities. If you can handle reservations without as much advance notice that can work for you.
We too are located well outside of a major city near a small town that is relatively unknown. We include in our description that we are well off the beaten path in a rural/agricultural area. We stress the nature around us ie birds, squirrels, clean air etc.
We have never been dinged for location and guests invariably say they pick us to NOT be in the city with it’s noise etc.
Funny, that is typically the type of listing I look for when I go to Europe. I like to be 30 to 50km outside of one or more tourist destinations. I make day-trips trips into the tourist areas and have nice quiet home-cooked dinners in the evening.
I have exactly the same set up. Do you have a choice? Some sites put me in the nearest city and others in the named coastal area. I rely on people looking in the area on the map. Nobody would ever search for me by the name of my village since even people who live in the area have never heard of it or just driven past the sign on the highway.
Yes if I have guests who say they are staying at my place and visiting Melbourne about 40km to outer suburbs and 100km to centre I point out I am 45km from the nearest rail line that takes over an hour to get in and is this what they were expecting? Usually they say exactly what they want for a couple of days to recover from jetlag/touring before hitting the Big City delights.
I’ve been dinged maybe half a dozen times out of 250 for location by people surprised there are no shops or cafes here. Information which I provide in the listing, the rules, “things you need to know” and the arrival email I send. I even went and bought one couple fish&chips from the nearest town 8km away and they still dinged me.
Focus on what you have rather than what you don’t have - some guests will go GaGa for a house that’s off the beaten track. Not everyone wants to stay in a big, busy city - and those guests are your target audience. It’s time to Sell, sell, sell!
“Stunning Adriatic Beach House Retreat - Rest. Relaxation and Perfect Seclusion”
Experience small-town charm in our beautiful home, perched above the beach.
There are sooooo many potential guests seeking to escape the rat race, so don’t view your location as a hindrance, see it as your USP!
You will need to employ clever marketing tactics here, you need to build your reputation as the place to go for a remote summer retreat. Get some great photographs of sunny skies and beautfiful sunsets and make sure your interior reflects your image as a chilled-out place to stay!
We have a just put together our new free marketing guide that will give you some great ideas. I would love to share the link but I don’t think I’m allowed here. Let me know if you would like to know more though.
