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So, a couple of weeks ago, I activated my AirBNB listing - we just built an apartment in our backyard. Unfortunately, I don’t have a new host bump, because we’ve rented out our house for events in the past.
In two weeks, the biggest festival of the year is starting in Austin, and I have yet to get a single inquiry. I have several reviews, all five-star, and just moved up to the first page of search results, so I still think chances are good. My price is very reasonable for the location/dates. However, I find it hard to believe that people will be booking so close to the dates they will be here, knowing that people flood the city for this event.
What are others’ experiences? Do people book only a couple of weeks out even for big events?
Here’s my listing if anyone wants to provide constructive criticism
I think your place looks delightful. I don’t get a lot of people coming for events but I do have lots of last minute bookings. So if I were you I’d sit tight. Don’t lower your price. As the time approaches and the available places disappear you should get booked. Also, I’m sure you know already as you are an experienced host but raise rates now for ACL weekends and TX home football games if you haven’t already.
Oh, one event here is Sun City Music Festival. I had a booking then that couple canceled a few days before. I raised my price and the two days booked out to two separate couples one for Friday one for Saturday. One couple drove from Houston, the other from Dallas. So people do decide last minute.
Might be worth mentioning the festival in your listing. Something like 'Newly built guest apart in Crestview. Sleeps 4. Availability for XXX festival in Crestview".
I would also mention the town you are in.I have absolutely no idea what SXSW is - will your guests who want to stay in your area of Austin understand this reference?
Well, It’s likely the people will still be booking if it’s a good sized festival.
Here’s some suggestions:
Retake the exterior photo after removing the trash and debris from under the stairs.
Take another photo of the living room with the Murphy bed folded away.
Move the microwave from the cabinet above the refrigerator to the counter top or a small cart against the wall. It’s pretty inconvenient where it’s at now and a real safety hazard with guest reaching at an awkwardly high angle to get hot food and liquids.
Figure out how to get a TV in the living room. This doesn’t look easy with your current furniture, but 4 people that want to watch TV can’t do it in the 1 bedroom. Plus, having the only TV in the bedroom guarantees food/drink spills in the bedroom.
You should still get the new listing bump even with another listing. Did you redo an old listing when this unit opened?
Have you considered charging an extra guest fee for parties larger than 2? Surprisingly, that might help with your search rankings because it will emphasize your place when couples are searching. When parties of 4 search, I don’t think AirBnB prioritizes places with the second bed in the living room.
My area is a major tourist location. I have found that only a few seem to book far in advance. Most of mine seem to be within a week or 2 so far although I Did get one for the Folk Festival this summer already!
Wow, you got two new photos up fast! I didn’t see anything about a projector. Maybe take a photo with the Murphy bed folded away and the projector running?
What is the average age of the people that attend this festival? Younger people have grown up with the internet and don’t plan anything in advance anymore.
I learnt two things looking at your delightful apartment. I now know what a murphy bed is and about the “living wage”.
Agree you’ll get booked … SXSW everything sells out, and last minute people know they have to pay more. I open up my own home listing here in LA when nothing is going on, and wonder if I will get booked when we are going on a trip (we have one day after tomorrow, we’re gone for a week!) and I optimistically clean and ready the place and it never fails, someone books it day-of or the night before. I don’t operate this way (I am that person who books 6 months in advance to get that rare deal) but I’m amazed how many people do.
Good question, Poppy! Mostly young - it’s a music/film/tech event. Waiting to get a p!ace to stay til the last minute is just so foreign to me. Guess I’m just old
I got one booking for the beginning of the week, and another request to book at my “regular” rate. Um, no. Good thing I have you all to advise me, or I might have gone for it.
There seems to be a cadre of people who look to exploit new hosts. They might not realize you aren’t a new host that it’s simply a new listing There must be blogs out there on “travel deals” that advise people to look for new hosts, ask for a discount, take in extra people without disclosing and paying for them, stay a night or two and then get a refund because the wi-fi isn’t working and so on.
I might as well admit it, because I’ve done so here before, but I recommend to potential Airbnb guests that they might want to consider going with new hosts.
Not, I hasten to add, to exploit them or take liberties in any way, but because new hosts often set crazy low prices and offer above-and-beyond services and extras.
Someone has to do it. It won’t be me though. LOL. Too many stories of terrible hosts, misrepresented listings, etc. It’s way too much work to find an Airbnb to take a chance for me.
Off topic, I know, but largely because of reading so many anti-host posts and reading about how much of a performance it can be to get approved, I always look for hosts who use instant book.
And I have no problem with people exploiting my low prices and my desperate-for-a-review service…that’s part of the on ramp, right? So continue recommending that, Karma! The sneaking people in and other shenanigans I’ve heard about are what I’m trying to avoid. And thanks to y’all I know not to give in to bargain hunters. This forum really has been a huge, huge help to me.
Absolutely. My searches now start with IB, SH and “for work” category enabled. I usually enter a price range too. If there is nothing suitable then I turn them off one at a time.
