Local Area Guides: Help Guests Plan the Perfect Trip
Food, activities, and popular sights are three of the most important
components of any noteworthy vacation.
While most travelers are well aware of the power of preparation, they’re
usually too busy packing or taking care of last-minute tasks to worry about
researching their holiday destination. Regardless of how incredible a
person’s accommodation is, the outcome of this poor organization is almost
always an underwhelming trip.
As a professional property manager, you can avoid this occurrence through
thoughtfully designed local area guides and
vacation rental email templates. Read more to find out the benefits of digital destination guides and how
to create your very own in just a few minutes!
With RueBaRue, you can create a custom destination guide your guests will
love within minutes. Book a demo
personalized to your rentals to see the platform in action.
There’s so much information online—why bother creating a local area guide
for your vacation rental?
A local area guide is a set of recommendations that guests can use to find
the best restaurants, essential services, experiences, and attractions in
the area. It helps visitors maximize their time while also ensuring that
they have an authentic and memorable stay.
Even before guests step foot in your rental, they’re probably already
envisioning themselves sharing an exquisite bottle of wine in a
picture-perfect ambiance at the end of their first night. However, reality
doesn’t always play out that way.
More often than not, guests will be exhausted from their travels and will
decide to “have a look around” after various unsuccessful and rushed Google
searches. Nine times out of ten, this results in falling for below-average
tourist traps and starting their trip on the wrong foot.
Credit: Tim from Pexels
You might argue that there’s plenty of information on search engines that
your guests can use but this mindset is flawed for several reasons:
-
Your guests will waste valuable time. Vacation is meant to be a
relaxing getaway where guests can temporarily disconnect from their
responsibilities. Sifting through Google and Tripadvisor for
restaurants, must-see attractions, and nearby convenience stores
quickly becomes a job of its own and takes up time that should be
spent exploring.
-
You’ll receive fewer bookings. If guests are unimpressed with the
area, they’re unlikely to return in the future or recommend it to
friends and family, regardless of how happy they were with your
rental. An area guide helps travelers feel local and increases the
likelihood that they will revisit.
-
You’re missing out on an opportunity to connect with guests. Going
the extra mile and providing an area guide is a wonderful way to
add a personal touch to your business. This simple addition boosts
customer loyalty and strengthens your relationship with visitors.
Area guides usually form part of a larger
vacation rental welcome book
. With a guest communication tool like RueBaRue, you can also take
advantage of features like SMS automation,
Extend Guest Stays
, and guest SMS messaging.
Should you opt for a digital or a physical destination guide?
From convenience to aesthetics, there’s a lot of reasons why our society
continuously shifts towards technological advances. Property managers
should opt for digital destination guides because they are:
-
COVID-safe: Digital solutions have skyrocketed during the pandemic
to reduce the transmission of the virus, resulting in many
touchless substitutes (like
contactless check-in for vacation rentals
!). That said, instead of guests using the same physical
destination guide as previous visitors, they can rest easy knowing
that they’ll be able to access information through their own mobile
devices.
-
Sustainable: Printing out area guides requires a lot of paper,
especially if you’re managing several properties and constantly
updating information. Aside from that, a physical guide can be
easily damaged or lost, which multiplies trips to the print shop.
-
Always accessible: As previously mentioned, a digital destination
guide can be accessed from your guests’ personal devices. This
means that they can look through information even when they’re not
in the rental, making it a much more useful resource.
-
Easy to update: Is there a new restaurant in town that’s all the
rage? A digital area guide allows you to quickly update and edit
information within minutes so that your guests are always in the
know.
Credit: Erin Li from Pexels
The benefits of creating a local area guide with RueBaRue
Aside from enhancing your guest experience and boosting your
vacation rental reviews
, RueBaRue’s local area guide has a plethora of benefits that you’ll enjoy.
Its features are:
-
Branding with logo and colors. Using your brand logo and colors
sets your area guide apart from others and makes it come across as
much more professional.
-
Personal tips. Have any secret tips that you’ve learned over the
years? Surprise your guests with insider info and they’ll feel much
more at home.
-
Automatic updates. RueBaRue’s search algorithm constantly updates
information when changes are made online. This includes hours,
Google reviews, websites, phones, addresses, maps, and directions.
-
Automatic sharing. You can schedule the guide to be sent to guests
automatically through email or text so that they don’t miss out on
anything.
-
Automatic distance calculation. Instead of figuring out whether to
walk or drive to certain destinations, guests are automatically
given the exact distance so that they can make decisions right off
the bat.
-
Tags. If you’re managing several vacation rentals in the same town,
tags make it easy to send automated messages with specific area
guide links.
-
Mobile and desktop friendly. No app is required to use RueBaRue’s
area guide and guests can access it directly from their mobile
devices or desktop computers.
-
Guest bookmarking. If guests are drawn to certain restaurants or
activities, they can bookmark them and create a list of their
favorite places.
-
Print edition. Is one of your rentals located in a remote area with
limited internet access? To avoid any complications, you can print
your destination guide and always have a copy available on the
property.
-
Embed area content. Take your website to the next level and embed
the local area content so that potential guests can also get an
idea of what to look forward to.
-
Analytics. Keep track of how many times your area guide is viewed
to understand whether improvements need to be made.
What to include in your local area guide
A remarkable local area guide should cover all of the recommendations that
your guests might need during their stay. This includes:
-
Restaurants
-
Nearby activities (hikes, markets, watersports, etc.)
-
Popular sights and attractions
-
Essentials (such as grocery stores, pharmacies, gas stations, etc.)
Preview of restaurants in local area guide
Bonus tip: to go above and beyond, add some niche categories like
pet-friendly activities, the best places in town to take pictures, and bike
rentals. Remember to focus on your target market and brainstorm the things
that they would be interested in.
Preview of rentals in local area guide
How to create a local area guide with RueBaRue
Creating a local area guide with RueBaRue requires just a few steps. All
you have to do is:
-
Log into your RueBaRue account
-
Click on Guides and then Destination Guides
-
Tap on Add a destination guide and type in your address
-
Once the search algorithm does its job, you can delete or edit
suggestions
-
At the top of the page, you’ll find buttons to add your own
suggestions, text, events, or even upselling opportunities
-
At the top right corner of the page, you’ll find the option to
Share, Embed, or View the guide as a guest
-
Once you’re shared the guide, you’re ready to go!
Preview of RueBaRue’s Local Area Guide Feature
And there you have it—the benefits of creating a digital area guide and how
to create one for your vacation rental! With the right amount of attention
(and insider tips!), it’s just a matter of time before your guests start
sharing their appreciation for this fantastic resource.
With RueBaRue, you can create a custom destination guide your guests will
love within minutes. Book a demo
personalized to your rentals to see the platform in action.