Short notice bookings – are you prepared?

Short notice bookings can happen

Some owners assume that there won’t be any last minute bookings. They might not have their unit “ready to go” for a guest or even forget to check their notices. Fact is that matches and bookings can happen at any time. Guests with a flexible schedule might decide at the last minute to spend a few days away from home. In the busier periods, the likelihood for last minute bookings is the highest.

Is your vacation home ready for last minute bookings?

How to prevent a short notice surprise

If you do not want to be caught off guard with a booking for tonight or tomorrow night, you should block off those two nights to prevent a short notice surprise match. Nights should also be booked if you only accept a certain minimum number of nights, and have less that this number of nights left to your next rental.

Embrace and prepare

The opportunity to rent your vacation home at the last minute should be something to embrace as it can significantly increase your revenues. Most listing sites have Last Minute Deal sections where you can try to fill any vacancies for upcoming nights at a discounted rate. Guest do expect that Last Minute rentals are discounted, and their flexibility should be rewarded with a better than usual rate.

Also make sure that your home is always ready to be rented out so that you can take advantage of short notice opportunities. That means it is cleaned, everything laundered and set up (beds, kitchen etc.) and the property cleaned depending on season (snow cleared, leaves cleaned, yardwork done and lawn mowed). Enjoy!