Hi, I’m about to update my welcome book or house manual and I’m having some doubts on how to dot it. What are your suggestions?
Printed manual left on some counter, together with paper maps and brochures? or
PDF document sent online before arrival, with 
Google my maps with links?
I already made one map or Portugal and of my region, I use to send, organized by categories (restaurantes, monuments, supermarkets, hospitals…) but I don’t know if people value it.
What do you suggest?
I send a copy by email to my guests and leave a printed copy for when they arrive. I don’t put too many détails about visits, but I leave leaflets from the tourist office.
We send information about services, excursions, restaurants, etc. via text messages. We also have printed maps so you can look more easily.
I have a great experience with a combination:
2 book - one about house one for traveling, sending in advance and have printed version at home + collection of maps, prospects
I also send a digital book. Have a printed copy when they arrive as well as a notebook with brochures and recommendations. In the digital version we have an index by room and topic with hyperlinks so if they have a question about our canoe, they can click on the ‘canoe’ index and be brought directly to the needed info.
I have taken great pains to be as comprehensive as possible in the manual. It feels like it is an opportunity to relief stress on my guests to give them as many details about how each thing works in each room of my house. Relieving confusion for guests is super hospitality.
I send a 8-page guide about our home, with photos, and suggestions abouth the area. And through WhatsApp everything additional.
Hello,
we wrote a google document, which is around 24 pages and includes all info and pictures about the house and suggested tips for restaurants and trips or attractions and also the link to a google maps layer.
You can export PDF files from the google document. And you can translate the whole file with a table of content etc in any language with two clicks. We are sending a PDF file beforehand, in the original language and the guest language if relevant.
I sometimes leave a printed version of this PDF file for the guests.
I like to receive all the information beforehand, so I can read it when I have time, rather than when I arrive late at night at the destination after a 7 hour flight.
I sometimes also borrow a guide book in the relevant language / picture book from the region from the local library for the guests.
I am not collecting any leaflets of attractions any more, because information tends to get old and after a while it is a big pile of paper.