Airbnb Minimum Stay: What Strategy Is Best for Your Listing?

Setting the minimum stay restrictions is one of the critical decisions you must make when completing your Airbnb listing. You need to be strategic about this decision because your Airbnb minimum stay policy directly affects your property’s profitability, guest satisfaction, and guest experience.

Mastering the art of setting the perfect minimum stay is essential for your success as a host. So, in this blog, we’ll discuss what ‘minimum stay’ means and explore strategies for setting it that will allow you to optimize your occupancy and earn more revenue. You’ll also learn how to set the minimum stay on Airbnb.

Airbnb Minimum Stay Policy: Why It Matters

The minimum stay length is a restriction you can set for your Airbnb listing. It’s the minimum number of nights a guest can book your short-term rental property. For example, if you set a minimum stay of two nights, your Airbnb guests won’t be able to book a stay shorter than that.

Setting your Airbnb minimum stay requirements is entirely up to you as the host, and you have the flexibility to adjust your settings based on specific dates and days of the week to manage your bookings for different seasons and booking windows. For example, hosts in seasonal markets usually extend minimum stay requirements during peak seasons, which helps them make up for low occupancy during low seasons.   

Remember that deciding on the minimum number of nights isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach and should be based on market trends. Finding a delicate balance that relies on managing supply and demand and using your local market opportunities is important. Being strategic with your minimum stay policy can help you prevent gaps in your booking calendar, reduce the workload and operational costs associated with guest turnover, and ensure a steady flow of income.

Navigating length of stay requirements is just one of many tasks you have to take care of as a STR host daily. With so much to do, finding the time to do everything and ensure that your Airbnb property is performing at its best can be challenging. That’s why savvy hosts automate their routine operations using vacation rental software like Hospitable.

How to Set Minimum Stay on Airbnb

You can set a minimum stay restriction if you log in to your Airbnb account. You need to go to Calendar and select the listing calendar you want. Then, you need to click Availability on the side panel. After that, you can update your minimum and maximum night settings under Trip length.

When setting minimum nights on Airbnb, hosts can also create custom rules for each day of the week. For example, you can set a 2-night minimum for Friday check-in vs. a 1-night minimum for all other days.

Setting Airbnb Minimum Stay: Best Practices

When determining the minimum length of stay for your Airbnb listing, your goal is to find a balance between attracting guests, ensuring profitability, and managing your time and resources effectively. Here are some tips that will help you be successful.

Understand your market

Before setting your minimum stay, you should analyze the market demand in your area. Research travel trends, local events, and festivals that can influence the demand for accommodations.

Is your property in a highly seasonal travel destination with waves of tourists during the summer or winter months? For example, more people go to beach destinations in summer and ski resorts in winter. Or is your property in an urban area that attracts a consistent flow of visitors all year round?

Analyzing market trends will help you adjust your minimum stay settings based on peak and low seasons. For example, if you own a vacation rental home in a coastal destination, setting a one-week minimum stay during peak summer months can help maximize occupancy and reduce turnover costs. And during the low season, you may consider a more flexible minimum stay policy to attract potential guests.

Note that properties in urban markets, which are not seasonal, seldom get bookings longer than a day or two. That’s why hosts who manage studio apartments or 1-bedroom apartments in big cities usually keep their minimum stay limited to 1 day.

Watch your competitors

Analyze the minimum stay requirements set by your competitors and adapt your policy to gain an edge, if necessary. For example, if you notice that your direct competitors have set a longer-than-average minimum stay, you can set yours comparatively shorter. It may help your Airbnb stand out, and you may win guests over because they’ll feel more flexible with you.

However, remember that managing your minimum stay is only a part of the equation if you want to get more bookings on Airbnb. You need to create a compelling listing with stunning photos and an accurate description, set competitive prices, and be a responsive Airbnb host.

Being available to your potential and current guests 24/7 can be challenging. Still, you can ensure fast and clear communication with your guests if you set up automated messages using vacation rental software like Hospitable.

Understand your guest preferences

The length of your minimum stay can also depend on who most commonly stays at your Airbnb rental. For example, leisure travelers tend to stay longer than business travelers. So, if your target guests are mostly families with kids or couples on holiday, a longer minimum stay can be probably fine.

And if you want to attract business travelers or people looking for a weekend getaway, keep in mind that they typically prefer to book shorter stays. A more flexible minimum stay policy may be more suitable.

Consider cleaning and turnover costs

Since shorter stays may mean more frequent cleanings and turnovers, it’s important to ensure that your minimum stay makes sense financially after accounting for vacation rental housekeeping costs.

Remember that cleaning costs tend to be higher for bigger listings. So if you have a bigger property like a big family home or a 3-bedroom apartment, by setting a comparatively longer minimum stay, you can ensure you won’t spend too much money on the upkeep of your rental. Besides, guests usually book bigger properties for longer.

Final Thought

Optimizing your Airbnb minimum stay settings is an ongoing process, and it’s not just about setting a number, so it requires careful thought and planning. You should be prepared to continually analyze the performance of your Airbnb listing and regularly review your strategy to stay competitive and responsive to changing market trends.