Here are some valuable tips on how to furnish, equip and decorate your holiday home or holiday apartment and attract as many guest as possible. An appealing, stylish interior is often what triggers guests to make their booking decision. You can be creative when choosing the furnishings and give your holiday home a personal touch, which is great fun. Let's start!
For all the interior design tips, watch the video.
Planning and first steps
How much budget do you have?
Before you furnish your holiday home, you should think carefully about how much you want to spend in total. It is best to make a note of all the purchases you plan to make and prioritize them: What furnishings are considered absolute basic necessities and which are more like something extra? Define a realistic budget that takes into account factors such as delivery and installation, where this is needed.
What type of holiday home are you offering?
When planning, consider what type of holiday home you want to offer and how it will be used - perhaps you own a cabin in the mountains or a holiday apartment near the beach? Different types of holiday home, of course, come with different requirements.
What kind of guests do you want?
You should also consider which target group you mainly want to address, for example families with children. Think about what the individual rooms will be used for. If you have many rooms available, you can, for example, think about a playroom for children, a wellness or fitness room or even a dressing room. Such special features will make your holiday home stand out from the rest.
Materials and colors
Preparation
Familiarize yourself with the all the spaces in your new holiday apartment and check the condition of the walls, ceilings, windows and doors. Now you can paint the walls and make any repairs that are needed. If there is some furniture already, it is best to move it to the center of the room and cover it.
Color choice
Natural colors are ideal for walls and floors. Shades of cream, beige or gray create a harmonious effect. When planning the interior, let yourself be guided by the dominating features and materials in each room. Do the rooms have a more rustic style with stone floors or wood paneling? Or are there more elegant features like stucco or large stained-glass windows? You should choose furnishings which emphasize the features which are already present, in order to create a coherent overall impression.
Create your own style
As a rule, when it comes to furnishings, you should try to achieve a balance between form and function. The design of the furnishings will be decisive in getting potential tenants to choose your accommodation - and once they arrive, their function of course has to thrill them as well. The furnishings should suit the type of holiday home you offer. For example, in a ski lodge, a more rustic style is appropriate, while in a chic modern building in the city, choose a contemporary style.
each style of furnishing has its charm.
Get inspiration from the Internet and think about whether your interior should present an overall theme that matches both your holiday home as well as the main target group. However, do not forget that you want to appeal to as many guests as possible. The furniture should be in a predominantly uniform style, so that the overall look is harmonious.
Little breaks in style can really work as super eye-catchers. As well as looking in the typical furniture stores, maybe browse an antique store to find unique objects to give your holiday home that special extra allure. This way you create a unique style so that already in the published photos of your holiday apartment or holiday home, potential tenants can see that it is interesting and inviting. If your holiday home has special features, emphasize them. For example, set the scene for a great view with a seating area directly in front of the window.
The most important furnishing tips
Quality
When choosing furnishings, you should always go for quality, as this will save you money in the long run. Moreover, high-quality furniture will leave a good impression on your guests, and they will remember their stay in your holiday home as a time of relaxation. Guests very often rate the quality of the bed and seating furniture.
Lighting
Having the right lighting contributes to an atmosphere of well-being in your holiday home. When buying light bulbs, you should mainly opt for warm white light that is not too glaring and makes the rooms look nice and cozy. Especially in the living room and bedroom, several indirect light sources have a more harmonious effect, compared to a single ceiling light. With different lights such as pendant or table lamps, you can also vary the appearance of the room. In the kitchen and bathroom, cool white indirect light is often the best. The bathroom mirror and the kitchen work surface should be well lit.
The right light for each room: Warm white light in the hallway and a well-placed fixture for indirect light next to the couch.
Seating & Storage
Likewise, provide ample storage space in the form of cabinets, dressers, wardrobes and/or drawers for your guests. A place to hang coats in the hallway is also a must-have. This can be quite minimalist, consisting of wall hooks and a shoe rack.
With a dresser or wardrobe in the bedroom, guests do not have to live out of their suitcase. The armchair is useful when dressing and can also serve as a shelf.
Carpets
Do not choose carpets that are too dark unless your holiday home has high ceilings. When choosing carpets, look for sturdy material that should last well. The carpet should always be larger than the furniture that will be placed over it, for example, a dining suite or a sofa. This not only makes the room look larger, it also has a sound-absorbing effect.
Tipp: Outdoor rugs also work well for indoor spaces.
Examples from our owners
Tips for each room
Living room
As the heart of the holiday home, the living area should be furnished with especially high quality and loving care. When buying sofas, armchairs and other forms of seating, make sure they are really comfortable so that they feel comfortable even when sitting for a long time. Make sure that there are enough seats, so that even when your holiday home is at maximum occupancy, each guest will find a seat.
Bedroom
Like for the rest of the holiday home, for the bedroom, finding the right balance between aesthetics and functionality is crucial. High quality and comfortable mattresses are essential for a restful sleep. Equip the room with enough wardrobes so your guests do not have to live out of a suitcase. The bedside tables should also be large enough. Choose a nice bedding in a style that matches the decor.
Kitchen
Choose sturdy, high quality kitchen fittings. If have enough in your budget, you can invest in extra features such as a kitchen island. The kitchen equipment is particularly important for many guests when choosing a holiday home. After all, the advantage of self-catering is often one of the reasons for staying on holiday in a holiday apartment or holiday house instead of a hotel. So, your kitchen should be well equipped and contain everything a guest’s heart desires. This definitely includes a refrigerator with freezer, a stove, a sink and an oven. Also it should have a toaster, a coffee maker and a microwave. Anyone on holiday is sure to be glad to have the luxury of a dishwasher. Provide enough pots, pans and kitchen utensils so that your guests can cook and bake to their heart's content, and allow for double the amount of crockery and cutlery per guest.
Bathroom
The furniture in the bathroom of your holiday home should be both functional and durable, as well as create a comfortable atmosphere. Here, too, choose a high-quality and attractive basic furniture and provide enough storage space through cabinets or chests of drawers, shelves and baskets. Ideal are base cabinets for the sink. Matching bathmats or shower rugs and towels can add beautiful touches of color. You can round off the overall impression with targeted, discreet decoration such as a few candles and a plant. A small assortment of care products such as soaps, shampoo and shower gel in the shower or in a basket as well as the provision of sufficient toilet paper will certainly also leave a positive impression on your guests.
Exterior
If your holiday home has a garden, terrace or balcony, you should also furnish the outdoor area appropriately and attractively. Aesthetically designed, functional furniture, such as different types of seating, tables and umbrellas will ensure that your guests feel comfortable outdoors and enjoy using the additional space. Having the right outdoor lighting makes for a great atmosphere. A barbecue is a big plus and an important criteria for many summer holidaymakers when choosing their holiday home. And if your holiday house even has a pool, make sure it is regularly cleaned and provide sun loungers and umbrellas. In addition, you should also think about the parking facilities you can provide for your guests.
Less is more: attractive decoration
Once your holiday home is equipped with all the furniture, add the finishing touches with some tasteful decoration. The decorative elements of each room should go well together and match with the style of the furniture. An overarching theme, such as a beach holiday, can be marvelously expressed in the decoration. And of course, you can also bring some color into play. However, the decor should have a fairly sober tone and not make the space look cluttered or appear too kitschy. Decorative objects which are functional at the same time, are ideal, for example elegant floor lamps, umbrella stands, or plants which purify the air. Select tasteful pictures for the walls, possibly with a matching theme to add a special flair to the whole interior. Wall tattoos with lettering are also popular in holiday homes. To get inspiration for your decoration ideas, check out social media and specialized blogs and imagine what will appeal to your guests, creating a homey atmosphere and letting them feel completely at ease in your holiday home and want to come back.
