Writing a house manual guests actually read

Put the essentials on page one

The first page should answer the questions guests ask in their first hour: Wi-Fi, heating or air conditioning, how to work the shower, where the bins go, check-out time, and who to contact. If a guest reads only one page, it should be this one.

Then go room by room

Organise the rest by room rather than by topic. Guests standing in the kitchen want to know about the oven, the dishwasher and the coffee machine — not to search a section called "appliances". A photo of a tricky control panel, with an arrow, is worth a paragraph of text.

Write like a host, not a landlord

Compare "Guests must not use the oven without the fan" with "The oven works best with the fan on — the switch with the little propeller." Both say the same thing. The second is clearer and friendlier. Keep house rules short, explain the reason where it helps (neighbours, a fragile floor), and put them in one place rather than scattered across every page.

Local recommendations that are really yours

A handful of places you or your team genuinely like — a bakery, a walk, a restaurant for a rainy evening — is more useful than a long list copied from a tourist guide. Say what you like about each one.

What to leave out

• Long histories of the home or the area.
• Instructions for appliances guests will never touch.
• Warnings about every possible misuse.

Keep it alive

Every time a guest asks a question that the manual should have answered, add the answer. Every time something changes — a new code, a new coffee machine — update it the same day. A printed copy in the home and a digital copy sent before arrival should always match.