A few weeks ago I stayed in a VRBO in Texas for my brother’s wedding, and I couldn’t stop mentally redecorating it. It was a great house with great bones, but the whole time I kept thinking about how a handful of small changes would take it from “nice rental” to “we’re booking this again next year.”
Because here’s what I’ve learned from staying in a lot of rentals and designing a lot of homes: it’s rarely the big, expensive stuff that guests remember. Nobody writes a five-star review about the countertops. They write about the robe in the closet, the blanket on the sofa, the game night that went way too late, and how well they slept.
The little luxuries are what turn a one-time stay into a repeat booking. Here are the ones I’d never skip.
Towels that actually wrap around you
Let’s start with the easiest win. Big, generous bath sheets. Retire the tiny towels that barely make it around your waist. It’s one of the least expensive upgrades on this list, and guests notice it the second they step out of the shower.
Bonus points for black makeup towels. Yes, they make these, and yes, they’re worth it. Guests have somewhere to take off their mascara, and your white towels stay white.
A robe in every closet
Is it too much to put a plush robe in every closet? I don’t think so. A robe is the detail that makes a rental feel like a getaway instead of just a place to sleep. It’s a small cost per stay, and it shows up in reviews more often than you’d think. Add plenty of hangers while you’re in there, because nobody wants to live out of a suitcase for a week.
Sleep is the whole point
If guests don’t sleep well, nothing else matters. Blackout drapes or motorized shades are a must, especially in bedrooms that catch the sunrise. If shades aren’t in the budget yet, a basket of eye masks is a charming backup. They make inexpensive disposable ones, so you can offer a fresh one to every guest.
Then layer in good bedding and more pillows than you think you need. A guest should be able to build their perfect pillow fort without having to ask.
The blanket that actually covers two people
This is the one I feel the most strongly about. A throw folded at the end of the bed looks nice, but it covers one person, maybe. It doesn’t cover two, and it usually won’t hold up to wash after wash.
What every bed needs is an end-of-bed blanket that’s actually sized to the bed. Yes, they make these, and I spec one for every primary bedroom I design, because it matters. When the AC is cranking or the cabin gets chilly at 2 a.m., that’s the blanket everyone reaches for. It looks finished, it works hard, and it lasts.
Cozy you can see
When guests walk in, they should want to curl up immediately. A basket of blankets by the sofa, pillows with a little personality, and soft textures everywhere you look all say “settle in” before anyone has taken their shoes off.
In cozy cabin season, this is half the reason people book. The listing photos sell the feeling, and the room has to deliver it.
Worried about keeping it clean?
I get it. All those pillows, throws, and upholstered pieces sound lovely until you picture a week of guests, snacks, and the occasional glass of red wine. But cozy doesn’t have to mean high maintenance.
My secret weapon is the Bissell Little Green. It’s a small portable spot cleaner, and it’s amazing. I use it on our sofa and pillows at home at least once a month, and it keeps everything looking fresh and smelling clean. Because nobody wants to lean back into a pillow that smells like the last guest.
For a rental, keep one on hand and add a quick upholstery once-over to your turnover routine. Spills get handled right away instead of becoming permanent, nothing gets funky, and your soft pieces will last a lot longer.
Give them somewhere to gather
The best rentals are built for time together, not just a place to crash between activities. This great room is designed exactly for that: a deep, curvy sofa you sink into, a swivel chair that turns toward whoever’s talking, and a game table tucked into its own corner for cards, puzzles, and very competitive family game nights.
Vintage forest paintings, a hand-painted hutch with room for games and extra throws, and a mix of warm wood, mohair, and bouclé make it feel collected, not catalog. It’s the kind of room guests take photos of, and those photos end up on Instagram with your listing tagged.
Extra points for a games cabinet
Nobody wants to pack board games in their suitcase. Stock a cabinet with games, cards, and puzzles, and you’ve just planned your guests’ rainy day and every evening after dinner. Then advertise it! “Fully stocked games cabinet” in your listing is a small line that makes families and friend groups picture themselves there.
Light it in layers
Overhead lighting is the fastest way to make a rental feel like a rental. In my own home, I almost never turn on the overhead lights, except in the kitchen, where you really do need them. Everywhere else, it’s lamps.
Think in layers: table lamps by the sofa, a floor lamp in the reading corner, and something soft for the evenings. Guests should be able to light the whole room at night without ever touching the ceiling fixture.
And don’t sleep on portable lamps. They’re cordless, so you can put them anywhere, like a dining table, a bookshelf, or a porch on a summer night. Just make sure they’re charged. Add “charge the lamps” to your turnover checklist, because a dead lamp is worse than no lamp at all.
The guidebook guests actually use
Every rental needs a house guidebook, and the WiFi password is just the start. The good ones answer questions before guests have to ask, and they make the stay feel personal, like staying with a friend who knows all the best spots in town.
It also saves you from a lot of “how does this work?” texts at 9 p.m.
The part a list can’t tell you
Here’s the thing: every rental is different. A lake cabin and a downtown condo don’t need the same upgrades, and not every upgrade is worth it for every budget. The real question isn’t “what should a rental have?” It’s which changes will make the biggest difference for your place, and what order to do them in.
That’s exactly what my Vacation Rental Walkthrough is for. I walk through your rental with a guest’s eye, then send you a prioritized punch list: what to do first, what can wait, and what’s worth the investment. If you’re curious what that could look like for your place, let’s talk.
