The Airbnb welcome book, reinvented for every guest
A great Airbnb welcome book answers the questions guests ask before they think to ask them. Where is the Wi-Fi password. How does the door lock work. What time is checkout. When it lives in a shared link instead of a dusty binder on the counter, every guest opens it the moment they arrive, and your phone stops buzzing with the same five questions.
What is an Airbnb welcome book?
An Airbnb welcome book is the guide you give guests to help them settle in and enjoy the area. It usually covers arrival instructions, Wi-Fi, appliance how-tos, house rules, checkout steps, and your personal recommendations for food and things to do. The printed version has been a hosting staple for years. A digital welcome book does the same job through a link you text or add to your listing, so it stays current and reaches guests before they even walk through the door. If the term is new to you, the what is a digital guidebook explainer is a good starting point.
What to put in your welcome book
Keep it short and honest rather than exhaustive. Cover these well and you will answer the large majority of questions before a guest ever messages you:
- Check-in and check-out details, including door codes and parking
- Wi-Fi network and password, front and centre
- How the space works: heating, hot water, the coffee machine, the TV
- House rules written warmly, so they read like guidance
- Local recommendations: the coffee you would walk to, the dinner you would book
- Emergency contacts and the fastest way to reach you
The local recommendations are where a welcome book earns its keep. Guests can find a generic list anywhere. What they cannot find is where the host actually eats. A few honest picks, each with a line on why, do more for a review than a page of tourist links.
Digital vs printed welcome book
A printed book looks lovely on the table and needs a reprint every time your lockbox code changes. A digital welcome book updates once and reaches everyone, it works offline once saved to the home screen, and it can translate itself into a guest’s own language. For most hosts the digital version pays for itself in the messages it quietly prevents. There is more on the tradeoffs in the native app trap.
How to make one with guidely
Add your property details, drop in your Wi-Fi and check-in steps, tag a few local favourites, and publish. You get one link to share in your listing, your booking confirmation, or a quick text before arrival. Guests open it on any phone with no download required, and can save it for offline use. You can start a free digital guidebook before you decide anything.
An Airbnb welcome book is your arrival guide and local knowledge in one place. As a link it stays current, opens instantly, and reaches every guest. Nothing to print, nothing to download.