Being Pet Friendly May Bring More Bookings

If you are already feeling the pinch with your vacation rental bookings then maybe you should be considering accepting pets.  Our own stats show that over 60% of enquiries this year have been from guests who want to bring their pets on vacation, and the bulk of our current bookings are in pet friendly properties.  This may be because pet owners book early to secure the best properties that will accept their fur friend, or due to a concern over the cost of kennel fees.  Whatever the reason, there's a lot of pet owners about, and if you want to be sure of maximum occupancy, then welcoming them could be your edge in this increasingly competitive market.

Saying yes or no to four legged guests has been a hot topic on the number one vacation rental forum, Lay My Hat, and there are many posts vehemently scoring points on each side. The one that caught my eye recently mirrors my own views and as far as I'm concerned this owner says it all:

I have 3 dogs and a near 2 year old and I can safely say that the dogs do not write on the walls, stairs, TV or furniture with felt pen, make fingerprints all over the windows or hide the TV remote control (or anything else small) somewhere obscure and take the card out of the satellite box. And dogs are generally much cleaner when they eat, food tends to stay in a bowl, whereas that of a toddler ends up anywhere within a 360° 2m radius of the plate.

I've been accepting pets at Osprey Cottage for years and we have never had an issue with a dog. We welcome them with a neat little pet pack that includes a temporary tag; some home made dog biscuits, and a letter that outlines how we expect them to behave.  This does the trick and we rarely have any additional clean up to do. We don't charge extra for them and our pet owner guests are the ones who leave the place the cleanest.  I rest my case!