Over the past few years especially, one category of property that has been absolutely taking over the short-term rental market has been the broader category of "unique stays". Whether it's a dwelling built into a natural cave, a geodesic dome, a treehouse, or a hilltop A-frame, both customers and platforms have been massively favoring these types of stays, with much higher prices, better occupancy rates, and excellent reviews. According to major platforms, hosts with unique stays earned over $1 billion in 2021 alone, giving an idea of the scale and success of these property types.
What is a Unique Stay?
While "unique stays" have only been specifically categorized as such for a few years on major booking platforms, they've existed pretty much since the platforms were founded. The basic idea is this: some properties offer very distinct advantages, experiences, aesthetics, or locations that really set them apart from other properties. This could mean a lake-front property with a dock and boats, an off-grid geodesic dome mountain house or treehouse, a house built into a cave, or houses with unique amenities like rock climbing walls.
The options are inherently endless, the only real restraint is whether it's a kind of unique that guests are going to care about and find appealing. While not inherent to them, the majority of these properties (or at least the top performers) also feature all of the other trappings of luxury stays: high-quality mattresses and bedding, premium coffee/snacks/amenities, luxury toiletries, etc. The combination of the traditional luxury trimmings with the wow factor that many of these properties provide is what truly puts them over the top for many guests.
Fairly early on in their development, booking platforms realized that these distinct property types (you can search by category for boats, ski-in/ski-out, farm stays, treehouses, etc.) were a big part of what people liked about the service, as opposed to staying in a generic hotel. Over the years, platforms have made a number of changes to reward these types of stays, and make it easier for customers to find them.
Why Unique Stays?
At the end of the day, although amenities are certainly still important (guests aren't going to be happy sleeping on a lumpy cot), what makes these properties special to people is the emotions and experiences associated with them. People are much more willing to shell out to wake up to a gorgeous sunrise over the mountains than for a stale hotel continental breakfast.
It's very simple: these one-off, impressive, wow-factor properties invoke much more powerful emotional experiences for guests, which at the end of the day, is what they're looking for. Everyone's already stayed at too many generic townhouses, so people are looking for that next thing that's going to invoke that true sense of awe, wonder, or inspiration.
Fundamentally as well, this gets at the core of why vacation rentals are truly appealing to guests in the first place. Let's face it, hotels are almost always going to be more convenient, with generally more accessible locations, quick and easy check-in, a 24/7 concierge, and maybe a restaurant/bar on the ground floor. And it's not as though a vacation rental is going to be appreciably cheaper, in many cases actually more expensive.
When convenience is the main concern, there are going to be better options. This isn't to say convenience doesn't matter. Hosts should always look to remove friction wherever possible. However, it does mean that hosts should focus on making sure that their properties DO appeal to this emotional connection, wherever possible.
Benefits of Unique Stays
The benefits of unique stays for owners, at the end of the day, are quite simple. The platform algorithms are going to reward you, and give guests more opportunity to find you, plus guests are going to have better experiences and leave better reviews, setting you up for even more success. This adds up very directly to higher nightly rates and higher occupancy rates, which very simply, gets you more money.
That said, the benefits are bigger than just up-front performance. When you have a truly unique property, it becomes much easier to build out your direct bookings with new or returning guests, giving you much more stability and insulating you somewhat from the whims of the big booking platforms. A strong direct booking business is the holy grail for many short-term rentals, giving you much more stability, cutting out the middle man, and adding significantly to the valuation of your property.
How to Capitalize on This Trend
So with all of this hype and benefit, how do you get involved? There's a couple ways to be able to:
Buy an Existing Unique Property: The quickest way to get involved is simply going to be buying an existing property, such as a cabin, a lake-front cottage, or a ski-in ski-out lodge that already has some wow factor that would qualify it. While this is going to be simple and easy, it's often not going to be cheap, and may put you in a place where you have limited flexibility with what you can do with it.
Build from the Ground Up: An alternative to this is to look for opportunities to build from the ground up. Maybe you come across a piece of land in the mountains with a decrepit mobile home on it and build something that would automatically qualify, like an A-frame cabin. While this obviously gives you endless flexibility, it can be expensive, depending on the route you choose to go, and it's almost always going to take quite some time.
Develop Existing Properties: A final alternative is to simply develop an existing home or property into a unique stay through amenities. While this definitely has its limitations, there are a few key types that are going to be inherently possible at most properties, for example high-end design oriented apartments, amazing pools, play areas with arcade games, bed and breakfasts, creative spaces like music/art studios, and many more. Again, the limit is creativity, there are infinite options for any property.
Regardless of the properties you own, there's always potential to develop them into something more compelling for your guests. Remember, at the end of the day, what we're doing is providing hospitality, and creating memorable experiences for guests.
If you'd like to learn more about transforming your Central Oregon property into a unique vacation rental experience, contact Oasis Property Services to discuss how we can help you maximize your property's potential.