Vacation Rental Owners

Optimizing Your Vacation Rental for Large Groups (Increase Bookings)

A Guide to Optimizing Your Vacation Rental for Large Groups

You might think that welcoming large groups to your vacation rental property can lead to a larger chance of property damage. But as long as you require a security deposit and have a good rental agreement in place, there’s no reason not to reap the benefits of welcoming large groups to your vacation rental!

What Are the Benefits of Optimizing Your Vacation Rental for Large Groups?

Optimizing your vacation rental property for large groups comes with many benefits, for both guests and yourself as the property owner. For guests, it’s much more affordable to stay in a vacation rental as a group, in comparison to a hotel. When staying in a hotel, large groups must book several separate rooms and pay for all of them. Meanwhile, the cost of a vacation rental can be split evenly between everyone, saving a lot of money.

Another advantage for guests is that they can cook at the vacation rental, rather than going out to eat for every meal as they are likely to do in a hotel. Overall, staying in a vacation rental property is much cheaper and more convenient than staying in a hotel, and it still offers an amazing guest experience.

Another plus for guests that are part of a large group is that staying in a vacation rental makes for a comfier and more communal experience. It provides many more opportunities for connection and togetherness than the average hotel does. Plus, staying in a vacation rental allows guests to adopt the “live like a local” mindset, rather than feeling like tourists in the area.

For you as the owner of the vacation rental property, there are plenty of advantages to optimizing your rental for large groups to stay there. First, you’re expanding your market to a new group of potential guests and opening up opportunities for repeat guests and positive reviews. Large groups are also likely to take advantage of various upsell options if you provide them; the cost of an upsell, especially when split between the group, is very low compared to the convenience it adds for them.

How to Optimize Your Vacation Rental for Large Groups

How to Optimize Your Vacation Rental for Large Groups

The following suggestions include some small changes you can make to your vacation rental in order to optimize it for large groups.

Stock the kitchen

First, make sure your kitchen is fully stocked and equipped! As mentioned above, large groups often choose vacation rentals partially because they’re able to cook for themselves, rather than spending ludicrous amounts of money on going to restaurants for every meal. Therefore, it’s important to make sure that guests have all the supplies they need to cook. This ranges from appliances to cookware to utensils, pots and pans, and dishware. Lots of wine glasses for an adult group are sure to be appreciated as well. You can even offer grocery delivery as an upsell to up the convenience factor even more.

Provide a working washer and dryer

The ability to pack light and wash their own clothes is another reason why many large groups opt for vacation rental properties over hotels. To be certain that your guests can do their laundry as needed, ensure the washer and dryer are working properly. Stock the laundry area with detergent, fabric softener, dryer sheets, and stain remover. An iron and ironing board, as well as a lint roller, are also nice to have.

Make sure there are plenty of places to sleep

One of the most important changes to make to your vacation rental property is ensuring there’s enough space for everyone to sleep comfortably. Bunk beds, trundle beds, pull-out couches, and blow-up mattresses are all options to increase the number of guests who can stay at your vacation rental. However, try to avoid putting bunk beds in every room; while children are often happy to sleep in bunk beds, adults typically prefer to steer clear of them.

Include a variety of entertainment amenities

What’s more fun than playing games and enjoying entertainment with the entire group you’re traveling with? Simple entertainment amenities like classic board games and a few decks of cards can go far with a large group of people. Providing a bin with books and DVDs is also a great idea. Ensure your TVs are equipped with streaming services and a DVD player.

Include a variety of entertainment amenities

Want to really go above and beyond? A game room with foosball, ping pong, pool, and other games is nearly guaranteed to win you great reviews.

Invite everyone outdoors

If you have an outdoor area for guests to enjoy, make it as conducive to large groups as possible by providing plenty of seating. Supplying lots of lawn chairs is a great way to do this. Groups who are traveling as a group generally look forward to exploring the area together and spending plenty of time enjoying each other’s company. Outdoor games and toys like frisbees and footballs can be a lot of fun as well.

Give lots of group-friendly recommendations

In your welcome binder, be sure to note plenty of suggestions for group activities, dining, nightlife, and more. You can even ask your guests in advance what types of things they plan on doing and cater your recommendations accordingly. Another thing you’ll want to provide in the welcome binder is emergency resources. These should always be a part of your welcome binder, but when you have a large group getting together, the probability of an accident happening is slightly larger. Put everyone’s minds at ease by clearly lining out emergency contacts and important locations, like the hospital.

Strategies for Marketing Your Vacation Rental to Large Groups

Now that you’ve optimized your vacation rental for large groups, learn more about the best ways to market your property to your target guests below.

Check local laws and regulations first

Always check your local laws and regulations to ensure there’s no problem with letting large groups stay at your vacation rental property.

Have a discussion with the neighbors

It’s wise to have a chat with your neighbors about your plans to invite large groups to stay at your rental property. You might want to ask them if there are certain “quiet hours” they’d like your guests to adhere to, or if there are any specific guidelines on parking to make sure your guests are aware of.

Decide what kind of large group you’d like to target

Decide what kind of large group you’d like to target

There are multiple types of large groups. Do you want to appeal to multi-generational families attending a reunion? Maybe groups of friends? Corporate team-building trips? Or what about sports teams, adrenaline hunters, festival-goers, or bachelor and bachelorette parties?

Adjust your listing to fit your ideal guests

Once you’ve identified what types of groups you’d like to welcome your vacation rental property, adjust your listing accordingly to appeal to them. Use descriptive language in your heading, especially adjectives like “expansive” and “spacious.”

Stage your photos to showcase the experiences large groups can enjoy

You’ll want to stage your photos to show off all of the amenities and features that appeal to groups. Potential guests should be able to picture themselves enjoying your vacation rental. A few examples of great photos to include in your listing are your dining table set for a dozen people, tons of lounge chairs around the pool, all of the beds and places to sleep.

Offer incentives to potential guests

To get an edge over competitive vacation rentals that also host large groups, you could offer guests various incentives. Maybe you could promote a money-off coupon, a kids-go-free initiative, or free tickets for a nearby event.

Use social media marketing to your advantage

Social media marketing can really make a difference in your vacation rental business’s success. Promote your group-friendly vacation rental on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Pinterest is also an underrated social media platform and search engine that many people use to plan their vacations. Aside from photos of your vacation rental property and recommendations for local activities, you can also share testimonials from past groups on social media.

Welcome pets to your property

Considering pets are often thought of as part of the family, it’s no surprise that many large groups prefer to bring their pets along on their travels. While being pet-friendly isn’t the right choice for every vacation rental property, it does have plenty of advantages. Allowing groups to bring their pets can improve the entire guest experience and earn you positive reviews.

Main Takeaways

Here are several ways to optimize your vacation rental for large groups:

  • Stock the kitchen.
  • Provide a working washer and dryer.
  • Make sure there are plenty of places to sleep.
  • Include a variety of entertainment amenities.
  • Invite everyone outdoors.
  • Give lots of group-friendly recommendations.

Market your vacation rental to appeal to your ideal guests by following these tips:

  • Check local laws and regulations first.
  • Have a discussion with the neighbors.
  • Decide what kind of large group you’d like to target.
  • Adjust your listing to fit your ideal guests.
  • Stage your photos to showcase the experiences large groups can enjoy.
  • Offer incentives to potential guests.
  • Use social media marketing to your advantage.
  • Welcome pets to your property.
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