A vacation rental welcome book is either the most-used object in your house or a binder gathering dust next to the router. The difference is how it's built. After years of watching what guests actually flip to (and what they text us about anyway), we've stripped ours down to what works. Here's what belongs in a welcome book, what doesn't, and why a good one quietly protects your reviews and your maintenance budget.
The first page does most of the work
Guests open the book when something isn't working or they can't find something. So page one is not a welcome letter. It's:
- WiFi network and password, in large type.
- Our phone number and hours, and the after-hours emergency line.
- Where the circuit breaker, water shutoff, flashlights, and first-aid kit live.
- Thermostat basics in two sentences.
- Trash day and where the cans go.
If a guest reads nothing else, this page prevents most of the calls we'd otherwise get. And the calls you don't get at 10pm are the ones that keep your manager, or you, sane.
Then, how the house works
Every home has quirks. The book should own them honestly. At The Weekender, the wood stove needs the damper opened before you light it, and the book says so with a photo. At Wildwood Basecamp, the hot tub cover has straps and a specific way to fold back. At Puffin Lane, the cedar hot tub takes a bit longer to reheat after the cover's been off. Short instructions with pictures beat paragraphs every time. Cover: heat and fireplace or stove, hot tub use and rules, appliances that aren't obvious (induction cooktops, fancy coffee makers, smart TVs), locks and alarm if any, and parking.
House rules, stated like a human
Guests skip rules written like a lease. They read rules written like a note from a friend. Ours cover quiet hours, occupancy, dogs (welcome, off the furniture, waste picked up), smoking (outside only, if at all), hot tub safety, and checkout steps. Explain the why when it helps: "Please keep the hot tub cover on when you're not in it; it keeps the water hot and your neighbor's power bill low." People cooperate with reasons.
Local knowledge nobody else has
This is where the book earns its five stars. Not a list of every restaurant in town; a short, opinionated list from someone who actually goes. Our Neskowin book says which cafe to hit for breakfast and when the tide is low enough to see the Ghost Forest. The Mt. Hood book says which grocery store in Welches is worth it and where to find chains if you forgot. The Manzanita book says how far to walk down the beach before the dogs thin out. Five to ten recommendations, updated once a year. Guests tell us in reviews that this is the part they loved.
Safety and the boring essentials
Not exciting, but include: emergency numbers, the address in a form you can read to a 911 dispatcher, nearest urgent care and hospital, tsunami evacuation route for coast homes (Oregon requires signage, and guests appreciate the plain-language version), what to do in a power outage, and where the fire extinguisher is. On the coast, add a note about sneaker waves and logs in the surf. On the mountain, a note about chain requirements and TripCheck.
Checkout, in five lines
Guests want to know exactly what's expected. Ours: start the dishwasher, bag trash and set it out, towels in the tub, windows closed, door locked. That's it. Don't ask guests to strip beds or vacuum; it produces worse outcomes than doing it yourself and it annoys people who paid a cleaning fee.
Digital and printed, both
Keep a printed book at the house for the guest whose phone is dead or whose cell service faded on the last mile (common on the coast and the mountain; see our connectivity post). Also send a digital version in the pre-arrival message so guests can read it in the car. Guests use both; the printed one gets used more than you'd guess.
What to leave out
- Long welcome letters. Two sentences, then move on.
- Every restaurant in a 30-mile radius. Pick your favorites.
- Legal boilerplate. That belongs in the rental agreement, not on the coffee table.
- Anything you won't update. Stale info is worse than none.
Why this matters to your bottom line
A clear welcome book reduces support calls, prevents damage from misused equipment (hot tubs and wood stoves especially), improves reviews, and gets guests out the door on time so the cleaner can turn the house. We build and maintain one for every home we manage as part of our management fee; it's listed with everything else on our owners page. If you're thinking about handing off your home and want to see what a well-run house looks like from the inside, ask for a earnings review and we'll show you ours.