Guest Experiences: How to Create an Experience Your Guests Will Remember

I’m very active in Airbnb’s global Community Center, a moderated online forum for hosts from all over the world to come together, share experiences and best practices, and answer questions. Earlier this year they named me a “Host Champion” (!!) because so many of my answers had been marked as “excellent” in the forum! They asked me to write a short “Host Guide” about “Guest Experiences” and this is what I came up with. I hope you enjoy it!

By Elise Lauterbach, Superhost Ambassador & Volunteer Community Leader for the Central Virginia Airbnb Host Club— Nelson County, Virginia

When guests feel like they have discovered something extraordinary — a farm stand, a trail, a local craftsperson — it's one of the most meaningful things we can offer as hosts. Discovery helps our guests enter into the spirit of the place. They feel like they belong, and sharing that sense of belonging is the magic of hosting on Airbnb.

After thirteen years hosting in rural Virginia, here's what I've learned about making that happen.

Let your place tell you what to recommend.

I have strong opinions about the best local apples!

Let recommendations for local experiences flow naturally from the character of your property. My farmhouse sits on ten acres in Nelson County, Virginia — a county with one traffic light, a strong local food culture, and some of the best small wineries in the Blue Ridge Mountains. My recommendations reflect that. I point guests toward the orchard down the road, the potter in the next hollow, and the cidery that's been in the same family for three generations. 

Since I host families and pets, I have specific recommendations catering to both those groups, like which of many local breweries are the most kid and pet friendly, how to find the secret playground, and which historic sights will keep kids amused for hours (and which won’t). Think about what makes your corner of the world specific, and start there. Guests at a city apartment should be getting completely different advice. Recommend businesses that cater to the ethos of the guests who choose your place over other options.

Share your opinions.

I send my guests on driving routes that get them well off the beaten path, to find local treasures.

Everyone knows how to Google. But online reviews don’t assemble an experience, and they don’t help the guest find the best place to watch the sunset, the under-the-radar music venue, or the magic pie shop in the middle of nowhere. I want to prepare my guests to fully enjoy my area, and I want them to support the best local businesses.  I have a variety of day-trip suggestions mapped out for guests who are staying a week rather than a few days (my Airbnb’s Guidebooks are great for creating lists of recommendations sorted by place). I’ve crafted scenic driving routes, full of my favorite roadside stops, shops, and hikes. And my guidebook is full of opinions – and it’s funny, which keeps my guests reading (and they mention it in their reviews!)

Use Airbnb Experiences to extend the invitation.

Visitors handcraft incense on our farm, with many herbs we grow here.

One of the easiest ways to help guests go deeper is to connect them with local Airbnb Experiences. I regularly point my guests toward Experiences offered by makers, farmers, and guides in my area: a natural dye workshop, a guided foraging walk, a craft spirits tasting. I also host Experiences, like Wildcrafting Art Supplies, on my farm. Browsing Experiences in your area is also a great way to discover what's already happening locally that you might not know about. Your guests benefit, and so do other local hosts and Experience hosts in your community.

Your knowledge is an amenity.

Guests can book any house with nice linens and a good coffee maker. What they can't get anywhere else is you — your particular knowledge of your place, your relationships with local businesses, and your sense of what makes the area worth visiting. That knowledge, shared generously, turns a place to sleep into a trip they talk about for years. 

If this resonates with you, and you’d like to dig deeper, we can brainstorm together to figure out how to deepen the experiences guests have at your property. Helping hosts with these kinds of things is what gets me up in the morning! I’d love to set up a time to talk.