Airbnb Descriptions 101, Including Examples

As an Airbnb host, you want to do everything possible to sell guests on your property. Fabulous, eye-catching photos that highlight the décor of your rooms help attract travelers’ attention, and it’s even better when you have plenty of five-star guest reviews. But you also need a great Airbnb description that should be more than a breakdown of your property’s amenities and features.

It’s up to you to write an attention-grabbing description that will convince travelers to click the Book Now Button. Need help getting started? Here are our top tips on how to write Airbnb descriptions and get travelers excited about staying in your space. You’ll also find some of our favorite Airbnb description examples for inspiration.

You may also want to check out our guide on creating catchy Airbnb names or download an extensive guide covering all aspects of efficient short-term rental hosting.

Best Airbnb Descriptions: What Details to Include

A listing description needs to be written very carefully to make your listing stand out from the competition. Yet some hosts may skip writing a long description altogether. It’s a big mistake because Airbnb’s search ranking algorithm prefers complete listings over listings that are missing things like descriptions, amenities, or house rules.

Now Airbnb provides four sections to help you describe your listing, and successful hosts who create some of the best Airbnb descriptions typically fill out all these sections:

• Description summary: you can highlight your property’s most prominent features and include your unique selling propositions. You can also provide details about the location, proximity to attractions, and target audience. But it’s critical to be concise because this section allows only 500 characters.

• The space: here, hosts can describe their listing in greater detail, including room-by-room descriptions, details about amenities, additional house rules, check-ins, and check-outs.

• The guest access section can include details on what the guest will have access to during their stay, how they will access the property in general, and details about parking.

• Other things to note: here, you can include anything else the guest needs to know about during their stay at your property, for example, additional fees.

A well-written listing description is one of the best ways to secure bookings and set guests’ expectations. But maintaining effective communication with your guests is critical for making them happy and getting great reviews. Luckily, software tools like Hospitable.com allow you to automate personalized conversations with travelers and provide them with answers to their questions almost instantly.

How to Write Airbnb Description That Converts

The good news is that you don’t have to be a writer to create a warm, inviting description and make it stand apart while accurately representing your place. With these tips on writing descriptions and Airbnb description examples, you should have no trouble coming up with something that will make people take a second look at your listings.

Be specific and honest

Your vacation rental property doesn’t have to be perfect, but it’s important to tell potential guests what they’ll find when they arrive and what experience they can expect. Add as many specific details as possible.

But although you may want to show off how special your rental space is, you should resist the temptation to oversell or exaggerate. Don’t lie because travelers may leave you a negative review when your property doesn’t live up to what they had pictured in their minds. Ensure your words reflect your photos.

Speak to your ideal guest

Know your audience and talk to them—don’t try to appeal to everyone. Your Airbnb description should appeal to those guests who will benefit the most from your short-term rental property. For example, pitch your rental to business travelers or backpackers if you want to rent out a studio apartment.

Keep your target audience in mind and include the details that would matter to them. Is your property filled with technological conveniences and large, open areas perfect for hosting business meetings? Highlight these features that would be convenient for business travelers. And if you have a spacious house that can easily accommodate a large family, you should add details about the amenities that a family may look for, such as outdoor space, appliances, and Wi-Fi.

Showcase your special features

There are millions of listings on Airbnb, but every house or apartment has something unique, so it’s important to convey what’s special about yours. You’ll need to emphasize your own unique selling points to beat the competition.

You should take a few minutes to think about appealing, one-of-a-kind features that set your rental apart from other properties in your area. For example, you can highlight the location, unique amenities of your space, the proximity to famous landmarks, or something else that may appeal to potential guests.

Keep it brief

Travelers are often scanning listing descriptions for the features they’re searching for rather than slowly reading. Remember that many people don’t have the patience to read a wall of text. You need to write for the web, and that means making your description scannable, so you should keep your language concise.

Share the most important information at the beginning so that it doesn’t get lost, or require that your potential guest scroll through copious text. The main listing description allows you to grab travelers’ attention and quickly summarize what’s unique about your place. So first, you should use words that set the scene, highlight the selling points, and then dive into the specifics in subsequent fields.

Use the right tone

Your Airbnb description should be written in a tone that best matches your property. For example, if you have a family-friendly holiday home, you may want to keep your description casual and write in a friendly tone, highlighting areas families could use together. And if you rent out an upmarket city apartment or an elegant Art Deco home, you may want to write in a more sophisticated and formal tone, highlighting the exclusivity.

Airbnb Description Ideas for Inspirations

Stuck on finding the right words for your listing, and are looking for Airbnb description ideas? Let’s take a look at some good examples that can help you get inspired. They paint clear pictures with words, highlight the unique selling points, and manage guests’ expectations within a few lines.

Example 1: Luxurious Suite with Canal View in the Heart of the City

Example 2: Instagrammable Luxury Home with Hot Tub

Example 3: ~NEW~ Contemporary Cottage in great spot w/VIEWS!

Whether you’re renting out your spare bedroom to budget travelers or an entire estate to corporate events, you should think of your listing description as a sales page. So there’s a lot to keep in mind to ensure you’ll grab the attention of travelers. This way, you’ll increase your chances of getting more bookings and become a successful host. And with software like Hospitable.com, you’ll be able to streamline your operations and put your business on autopilot.

Final Thought

Your Airbnb description is the first thing travelers see after they click on your listing. Potential guests don’t want to guess whether your rental property is the perfect fit for them. They should be able to picture themselves in your home. Hopefully, our tips and amazing Airbnb description examples will help you choose the right words and craft an appealing description for your listing.