Short Term Rental Welcome Message

Most short-term rental welcome messages read like a hotel brochure that nobody asked for. Three paragraphs of "we are thrilled to host you," a list of amenities the guest already saw on the listing, and somewhere on line 14 the actual Wi-Fi password buried in italics. Then the host wonders why guests message at midnight asking how the door works. The fix is not nicer words. The fix is a short term rental welcome message structured around the moment the guest is actually reading it — tired, in the driveway, one-handed on a phone, with a kid asleep in the car seat.

This guide gives you a copy-and-paste version, three tone variations, and the smart-home setup that turns the message from words on a screen into something the house actually does when the guest walks in. If you want the platform-specific Airbnb wording, jump to the airbnb welcome script; the version below is platform-neutral so it ports cleanly to VRBO, Booking.com, and direct bookings.

Who this is for

If you run an Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com, or direct-booking short-term rental and you cannot meet every guest in person, you need three messages: the booking confirmation (the day they book), the day-before reminder (24 hours out), and the welcome message (sent on arrival day, repeated inside the property on a card and a smart display). This guide is about that third one. It is the message the guest references when they are touching the door, opening the fridge, and looking for the thermostat. The pure logistical version — door code, Wi-Fi, parking only — lives in the airbnb arrival message template.

Most hosts try to make this message do everything — arrival, house rules, local recommendations, checkout instructions. That is the mistake. The welcome message handles arrival and orientation only. House rules go in a separate place. Local recs go in the digital guidebook. Checkout has its own message 24 hours before departure. Each message does one job.

The copy-and-paste welcome message

Use this as your base short term rental welcome message. Replace the bracketed text. Send it 3 hours before check-in.

———

Hi [Guest first name], welcome to [city / neighborhood]. The place is ready whenever you are. Here is everything for check-in:

Address: [full address]
Door code: [code]# (press # after the numbers, you will hear a click)
Wi-Fi: [SSID] / [password]
Parking: [specific instruction — driveway, street, garage, permit]
Check-in: Anytime after [3 p.m.]

Inside, the kitchen Echo Show 8 has the house guide pinned — tap it for thermostat, TV, trash, and a few local picks. Coffee and bottled water are in the fridge. Thermostat is set to 70.

If anything is off when you walk in, message me here. I respond fastest through the [platform] app.

Have a great stay.
[Your name]

———

About 130 words. Operational facts on top, where a tired thumb can scan them. Warmth in the wrapper. No filler.

Three tone variations

Short version (under 80 words)

Hi [Name], you are all set. Address: [address]. Door code: [code]#. Wi-Fi: [SSID] / [password]. Park in the driveway on the right. Check in after [3 p.m.]. House guide is on the kitchen Echo Show. Anything off, message me here. Enjoy [city].

Use this for repeat travelers, business guests, and anyone whose past message thread is one-sentence answers. They want facts.

Friendly version

Hi [Name], so glad you are coming — the house is ready and waiting. Quick rundown so check-in is easy:

Address is [address], door code is [code]# (press the # after the numbers and you will hear it click). Wi-Fi is [SSID], password [password]. Pull right into the driveway. Two cars fit comfortably.

I left bottled water and a bag of [local coffee] for you, and the thermostat is set to 70 so you walk into a comfortable space. The kitchen Echo Show 8 has a quick house guide with the trash schedule, TV remote tips, and a few coffee shops we love nearby.

If anything is not working when you arrive, just message me here. Welcome in. The longer cabin-warm wording lives in the friendly airbnb welcome message guide.

Luxury version

Good afternoon [Name],

The home is ready for your arrival. Your private code is [code]#. The driveway accommodates two vehicles. Wi-Fi is [SSID] / [password] and is also displayed on the kitchen Echo Show 8.

You will find a chilled bottle of [local sparkling] and a small welcome tray on the island. The Ecobee Premium is set to 70. Say "Alexa, open the house guide" for thermostat help, restaurant picks, and check-out details.

I am reachable here at any hour. Please let me know if there is anything I can arrange. The full restraint-first wording is in the luxury airbnb welcome message reference.

Warmly,
[Your name]

Wire the welcome message into the house

The text is half. The other half is what happens physically when the guest opens the door. A few automations make a property feel cared for instead of empty.

Use a smart lock that supports per-stay codes — Schlage Encode, Yale Assure Lock 2, August Wi-Fi Smart Lock. Push the code into the welcome message via your PMS so you never type it manually.
Build an Alexa routine triggered by the lock unlock event on arrival day. Routine actions: turn on entry lights, set the Ecobee Premium, Nest Learning Thermostat, or Honeywell T9 to 70, play a brief Echo Dot 5 announcement ("Welcome in, the house guide is on the kitchen display"). The end-to-end routine build is in the alexa welcome message for guests walkthrough.
Pin the digital guidebook on the kitchen Echo Show 8 home screen. Wi-Fi password should be visible without anyone tapping anything.
Schedule outdoor pathway lights (Lutron Caséta, TP-Link Kasa, or Philips Hue outdoor) to go on at sunset on every check-in day, regardless of arrival time.
Place a printed welcome card on the kitchen counter with the same critical info — Wi-Fi, thermostat, trash day. Triple redundancy beats elegant minimalism.

How to customize the message for your property

Where this template typically needs surgery:

The lock instruction. Every smart lock behaves a little differently. Schlage Encode wants the # key. Yale Assure Lock 2 wants the keypad woken first. August Wi-Fi Smart Lock can take 2 to 3 seconds after the code. Tell the guest the exact behavior in one sentence.
Identify the door. "The blue door, last unit on the right." If you have a duplex, condo, or any unit ambiguity, name it.
Parking specifics. "Driveway on the right, two cars fit, do not park on the street side." Generic parking notes get ignored. Specific ones get followed.
Audience tweak. Booking with kids? Reference the pack-and-play and stair gate — longer wording in the family-friendly airbnb welcome script. Booking with a dog? Lead with the fenced yard, mirroring the pet-friendly airbnb welcome message.
Quirks. If the front door sticks, the basement light switch is hidden, or the trash day is unusual, mention it once here. Save the rest for the digital guidebook.

Where to place the welcome message

Three placements, in this order:

Booking platform message thread — primary, automated 3 hours before check-in. Always send through the platform first; you want it logged for any future dispute.
Backup SMS via your PMS, fired 30 minutes after the platform message. Catches guests who do not have the platform app open.
Inside the home: a printed card on the kitchen counter and a digital welcome screen on the Echo Show 8 or Google Nest Hub. Same key info, different surfaces.

FAQ

When should I send the welcome message?

3 hours before your listed check-in time, automated through your PMS (Hospitable, Hostfully, OwnerRez, Guesty all handle this). That window catches the guest after they have left for the property but before they arrive. Sending the night before is fine as a heads-up, but the actionable details — door code, Wi-Fi, parking — should fire same-day so they sit at the top of the message thread when the guest is in the driveway.

How is this different from an airbnb arrival message template?

Functionally they overlap heavily. An arrival message focuses purely on getting the guest through the door. A short term rental welcome message includes the same arrival info plus a one-paragraph orientation to what is inside — the smart display, the thermostat setting, the small touches that signal "you are taken care of." Most hosts use one combined message rather than two.

Should I greet the guest by name in every message?

Yes — first name only, never "Mr./Ms." The first name is in your booking record; PMS platforms pull it automatically. The greeting is the only personalized part of the boilerplate; everything operational below should be identical every time so you do not accidentally drop the parking instructions on a busy day.

What if I do not have a smart display?

The message still works. Drop the line about the Echo Show 8 and replace it with a reference to a printed welcome card on the kitchen counter, or a digital guidebook URL (Touch Stay, Hostfully, Operto). The point is to have one obvious in-home reference so the guest never has to scroll back to the chat thread to find the Wi-Fi.

Should the welcome message include house rules?

No. House rules go in a separate spot — the listing, the digital guidebook, and the printed card. The welcome message is for arrival logistics only. Stuffing rules into the welcome message turns it into a wall of text that nobody reads, and the rules get diluted. Keep one job per message.

Next steps

Copy the base template above into your PMS, set the trigger to 3 hours before check-in, and walk through the parent welcome message template library and the broader guest scripts pillar to round out the system.