How to Furnish a Vacation Rental Home

Purchasing a vacation home can be a great investment that pays off for many years to come. You may decide to rent out your property via Airbnb, work with another leasing company, or handle bookings entirely on your own. In all cases, one of the keys to successfully hosting happy, fulfilled guests is figuring out how to furnish a vacation rental home properly. Whether you’re furnishing your Airbnb to attract more renters online or believe your home will speak for itself, you need to consider the following things when coming up with vacation home designs for your rental property.

Consider Your Location

Cities, beaches, mountains, and popular attractions are very common destinations. Wherever you’ve purchased your vacation home, know that your guests will have chosen that destination for a reason. That’s why the best furniture for your rental property will work to immerse your visitors in their surroundings.

Beach Homes

Consider neutral and light coastal styles for your summer home furniture. The weathered looks, natural tones, and sea-influenced elements are befitting of beach houses. Position beds and chairs in ways that make it easy for guests to get a great ocean view while they relax. Cottage, casual, and bohemian pieces can also be used to achieve the same effect.

Don’t forget to put out lounge chairs and create relaxing sunbathing spaces for your guests around the property. Your floors need to be able to handle guests tracking sand in and out on a constant basis. Consider going with stone or wooden floors, which can be maintained easily and quickly cleaned when preparing for your next set of guests. You can also minimize the amount of sand that is tracked around the house by placing durable yet comfortable area or hallways rugs near entryways that lead in from the beach. These rugs should be used to tie the entryway into the overall theme of the house.

Mountain Homes

Most mountain retreats take advantage of outdoor luxury or a spartan style. If you select the luxury route, consider adding plush leather couches with animal print accents around the home. Place lush comforters on the bed to suppress any chill that comes through the area at night. Even sparser room designs can look great when you accent with natural wood furniture and well-placed fabrics like wool or flannel. Mixing in glass and steel accents at various points can add a nice contrast to your rooms.

If your vacation home is located near snow, your guests may want to participate in skiing, snowboarding, and other winter activities. Your vacation home furniture, flooring, and fabric should be able to stand up to melting snow, heavy boots, and snow equipment. Make sure you have sturdy floors and rugs that are capable of handling the weathered traffic while making your guests feel relaxed and comfortable after a fun day outside.

Desert Homes

Try incorporating the colors of the desert at sunrise and sunset around your home. That allows you to dispel the misconceptions your guests might have about the supposed blandness of a desert environment. Go with reds, yellows, and blues in all shades throughout your vacation home. For even more color, consider working in native art and rugs throughout the rooms.

Combine natural textile fabrics like burlap, leather, and cotton. The desert sun can quickly fade out even the brightest fabrics, so make sure your windows are covered by using a mix of different drapes and blinds. Add comfortable furniture with warm blankets outside so your guests can enjoy looking up at the open, star-filled sky when the sun goes down.

Think About Your Guests

No matter where it’s located, your vacation home needs to accommodate the types of visitors you’re looking to attract. Families bringing small children would appreciate having toys or other unique furniture designed for children. You can also plan out large family rooms with big sectionals that provide enough seating for everyone. Think about adding special touches, like having TVs in each room with a DVD or Blu-Ray player, wireless internet, and even video game systems.

These additions also work for large groups looking to celebrate events in their lives. If your vacation home has space outside, make it possible for groups to hold weddings or family reunions by having canopies, chairs, and other furniture available for special occasions.

Have Fun With Your Theme

Be consistent if you decide to stick with one theme throughout your home. Your living rooms, bedrooms, and kitchen should all complement each other. Radically altering the look of a room so it contrasts with the rest of the vacation home can be off-putting. Stick with a specific color palette to keep your rooms harmonious in look and feel.

Changing Things Up

Another way you can make your home stand out from others is by deliberately changing up your bedroom designs. You could style one bedroom as a winter wonderland while going with a rose garden look for another. Include the variety of themes as a selling point when advertising your vacation home.

Don’t feel compelled to go over your budget. It is possible to create fun designs for your rooms with affordable home furnishings. Many furniture stores provide various turnkey furniture package options that mimic more expensive fabrics and woods, so your rooms can look great while fitting into your budget goals.

Make Your Home an Experience

You want your guests to come away from their visit to your vacation home with positive feelings. Be attentive to their needs and respond quickly to any issues. Follow up with them for feedback and use it to improve the experience of your vacation home for your next set of guests. The impact of your home combined with excellent customer service leads to positive word of mouth and, hopefully, a steady stream of new visitors.