Setting expectations with an accurate location

A home’s location can play a big role in whether guests decide to make a reservation. After booking, they’ll need the exact address and clear directions for a seamless check-in.

It’s vital to display an accurate location on your Airbnb listing. Doing so helps answer questions, set expectations and give guests more confidence in booking. 

Start by making sure the street address is complete and correct. You can only edit your address before accepting your first booking. After that, you’ll need to contact Airbnb Support to make changes. Guests don’t receive the address until their reservation is confirmed.

You can choose how your location appears on the map in Airbnb search results.

• General location: The map of your listing shows the radius around your place, within about a half mile (less than 1 kilometre) of the street address. This is the default setting.
• Precise location: The map shows a pin that points towards the nearest crossroads without marking the exact spot. You can drag the map until the pin points to the right location.

Pick the option that works best for your situation. A precise location may make your place more appealing to guests who want to confirm its distance to the nearest bus stop or the beach, for example. A general location could help you manage privacy or security concerns.

You can add directions and other details in the Listings tab. Along with the map, this information can help check-ins go smoothly.

• Arrival guide: Provide directions with tips for guests travelling by car or public transport. Include parking options. Your arrival guide is automatically shared with guests once their booking is confirmed.
• Neighbourhood description: Share highlights about the neighbourhood, such as whether it’s busy or quiet or has pavements with or without kerb ramps.
• Getting around: Let guests who haven’t booked yet know how to get around locally and what parking is typically like.

There’s no such thing as being too specific when it comes to directions. Juliette, a Superhost in Nairobi, Kenya, shares her place’s GPS coordinates with guests, as well as the colour of the gate and what’s written on it.

Other tactics for making navigation easier include affixing large house numbers to the front door and installing better lighting along the driveway.

Keshav, a Host Advisory Board member in New Delhi, India, gets even more creative to help guests find their way. “Our mud houses are difficult to locate,” he says. “We’ve started to think about how we can put up signage on the main street.”

Information contained in this article may have changed since publication.