The complete Airbnb digital guidebook guide

What is a digital guidebook (and why bother)?

A digital guidebook is a small mobile website for your property that guests open from a link — no app to download. It typically holds your check-in instructions, house manual, house rules, WiFi details and local recommendations.

The payoff is concrete:

• Fewer repeat questions — the answers are findable before guests think to message you.
• Smoother arrivals — directions, parking and door codes in one place cut the “we’re outside, now what?” calls.
• Better reviews — guests rate the stay as more professional when information is effortless.
• A place to sell extras — late checkout, breakfast, firewood: a guidebook is where guests are already looking.

What to put in it: the 9 essentials

Resist the urge to write a novel. Guests scan; structure beats prose. These nine blocks cover ~95% of what guests ask:

1. 1Arrival & check-in — directions, parking, door code or key pickup, check-in time. The most-read page of any guidebook.
2. 2WiFi — network and password, near the top. This is the single most-opened item.
3. 3The house manual — how the heating, hot tub, stove, dishwasher and TV actually work. One short entry per appliance, with a photo.
4. 4House rules — quiet hours, pets, smoking, parties, pool rules. Stating them here is also your paper trail.
5. 5Safety info — fire extinguisher, first-aid kit, emergency numbers, address of the property (guests rarely know it!).
6. 6Local guide — your 5–10 favourite restaurants, walks and sights, with one personal line on why. This is what guests screenshot.
7. 7Practical local info — nearest supermarket, pharmacy, fuel station, EV charger, ATM.
8. 8Checkout — time, what to do with keys, rubbish and dishes. Keeps your turnover day predictable.
9. 9How to reach you — and when. “Message us in the app, we reply within the hour, 8:00–22:00” sets healthy expectations.

Writing it so guests actually read it

• Short pages, clear titles. One topic per page beats one long scroll.
• Photos over paragraphs — a photo of the thermostat with a two-line caption beats 200 words.
• Write like you talk. “The key sticks a bit — pull the door towards you” is perfect guidebook prose.
• Languages matter: international guests are the ones who can’t call the local plumber. A guidebook that auto-translates (hejGuide does 9 languages) removes that whole category of stress.
• Keep it current — a wrong code or closed restaurant costs more trust than no guidebook at all. Do a 10-minute review each season.

When and how to share it

A guidebook nobody opens is decoration. Timing is most of the battle:

1. 1At booking confirmation — a short version sells the stay and answers “what’s the area like?”
2. 2A few days before arrival — the moment guests actually plan; include check-in details prominently.
3. 3On arrival day — the same link again in your “welcome, here’s everything” message.
4. 4In the house — a small QR-code card by the entrance and one by the WiFi router catch everyone else.

Digital vs the laminated binder

The binder isn’t dead — it’s just demoted. Keep a one-page printed sheet for WiFi + emergency numbers (power cuts happen). For everything else, digital wins on the things that matter:

• Guests read it before arrival, not after they’ve already called you.
• You update it in one place, instantly — no reprinting.
• It translates; binders don’t.
• It can do things paper can’t: maps, links, online check-in, ordering extras.

Building one for free

You can build a complete guidebook on hejGuide’s Free plan — one listing, full guidebook with local guide, guest portal and automatic translation into 9 languages, no credit card and no time limit. If you later want the rest of the platform (channel sync, online check-in, automated messages), it’s the same login.

Want to see what guests see first? The live demo guidebook is open to everyone — no signup.

Frequently asked questions