The Airbnb house manual that stops the 11pm messages

What to include in an Airbnb house manual

Write it in the order a guest encounters things: getting in, getting comfortable, getting clean, getting out. If a guest has ever asked you about it, it belongs in the manual.

• Entry: door code or lockbox, which key opens what, building door
• Wi-Fi network and password
• Heating and air conditioning: where the controls are and the sane setting
• Hot water and the boiler — including what to do if it runs cold
• Kitchen: hob, oven, dishwasher, coffee machine, bin and recycling
• Laundry: washing machine cycle, detergent, drying rack
• TV, streaming logins and any smart-home devices
• Spare linens, towels, iron, hairdryer, cleaning supplies
• Windows, blinds, balcony and anything with a trick to it
• Check-out steps, key drop and the exact time
• Emergencies: fuse box, water shut-off, your number, nearest pharmacy

Write it so guests can skim it

Guests read a house manual one panicked question at a time. Use one heading per topic, two or three short steps under each, and a photo when words fail — a picture of the fuse box saves ten messages.

• One topic per section, with an obvious title
• Numbered steps, no paragraphs
• Photos of anything hard to find
• Say what to do when it goes wrong, not just when it works

Why a printed manual quietly fails

The binder is in the drawer, the label on the boiler peeled off, and the guest is standing in the kitchen at midnight holding their phone. A digital house manual behind a QR code meets them where they already are — and gets to be as long as it needs to be, because guests only read the section they need.

• One QR poster covers the whole manual
• No reprinting when you replace the coffee machine
• Searchable and readable at any font size
• The same page also holds Wi-Fi, rules and local tips

House manual, welcome book or guidebook?

The house manual is the technical half, the guidebook is the local half, and the welcome book is both together. ScanStay keeps them in one page so guests never have to guess which document holds their answer.