Email marketing for vacation rentals: bring past guests back

Email marketing has the best ROI of any digital channel: €42 back for every €1 spent, according to the Data & Marketing Association. For vacation rentals specifically, it's the cheapest way to bring a happy guest back — instead of paying Booking.com 15% commission to acquire a new one.

In this guide you'll see how to build an email list from zero, what to send and when, and how to measure whether it's working.

Why email marketing is non-negotiable

Three simple arguments:

1. Repeat guests book direct. They don't go through Booking.com. 0% commission.
2. You own the relationship. On Booking.com or Airbnb, the guest "belongs" to the platform. On your email list, they're yours.
3. Low cost. Tools range from free to €20/month for small properties.

A guest who has stayed once and had a great experience is 4x more likely to book again from a reminder email than to go looking for you on Booking.com.

How to build an email list (without spamming)

1. Collect from existing guests

If you already have guests coming through Booking.com/Airbnb:

• Mind the GDPR limits: you can't use the Booking.com relay email for marketing without explicit consent.
• Ask in person with a check-in form. A form guests sign at check-in with a newsletter consent line.
• Welcome card: "I agree to receive updates from [Property Name]" with a checkbox.

2. Website signup form

Your website should have a newsletter signup in 2 places:

• Footer: always there.
• Pop-up with a 30-second delay or exit intent: "Get 10% off your next stay".

The lead magnet is critical. What do you offer in exchange for the email:

• 10% off their next booking
• A free guide, "What to see in [Your Area]"
• Early access to special offers

3. Social media

Your Instagram bio should link to your newsletter signup. Your followers are a warm audience — many will subscribe.

4. QR code inside the property

On the back of the door, in the guestbook, in the kitchen:

"Join our newsletter for exclusive offers"

A QR code that leads to a landing page with a signup form.

What to send (by email type)

Type 1: Welcome email (immediately after signup)

• Say thank you
• Introduce yourself (1 paragraph)
• Deliver the lead magnet (discount code, etc.)
• Link to your property

Open rate: 50-70%. The most important email you'll ever send.

Type 2: Post-stay thank you (3-5 days after check-out)

• Thank them for their stay
• Ask for a review on Google / TripAdvisor
• Offer an incentive to return (10-15% off if they book within 6 months)

This is the email that drives repeat bookings. Never skip it.

Type 3: Seasonal newsletter (4-6 times a year)

Examples:

• Spring: "Antiparos in spring — why it's worth even more"
• Autumn: "Off-season offers — 30% off in October"
• January: "Best of [Your Area] — news you haven't heard yet"

Don't send offers only. The ratio is 80% value content / 20% pitch.

Type 4: Birthday / anniversary (optional)

If your CRM supports it:

• On the guest's birthday: a special offer
• On the anniversary of their first stay: "One year ago, you were here"

High ROI, if you have the setup.

Type 5: Abandoned booking email

If someone started a booking on your site but didn't finish:

• 1 hour later: "Forget something?" with a link back
• 24 hours later: "[Dates] are still available. Take another look with 5% off"

Recovers 15-25% of abandoned bookings.

Email marketing tools for vacation rentals

Mailchimp (free up to 500 contacts)

• The most popular
• Easy interface
• Automations on the free plan
• Paid plans from €13/month

Brevo (formerly Sendinblue)

• Free 300 emails/day
• Best for SMS integration
• From €19/month

ConvertKit

• Premium feel
• Great for creators
• From €9/month

MailerLite

• Very affordable
• Free up to 1,000 contacts
• From €9/month

Our recommendation for starting out: MailerLite. It has the best free tier and it's plenty for small properties.

Best practices that lift your open rate

1. Subject lines that work

The best subject lines:

• Curiosity: "What's changing at [Property] this summer"
• Discount: "Just for [Name]: 15% off"
• Urgency: "3 days left for early bird"
• Personal: "We were thinking of you"

Avoid:

• CAPS LOCK
• Multiple exclamation marks!!!
• "FREE" / "WIN" (straight to spam)

2. Send time

Based on data for a Greek audience:

• Tuesday - Thursday: 10:00 - 12:00 or 18:00 - 20:00 (best)
• Weekends: 11:00
• Avoid: Monday morning (inbox overload)

3. Mobile optimization

80% of emails are read on a phone:

• Subject line: up to 40 characters
• Single-column layout
• Large CTA buttons (44px+)
• Optimized images (under 200KB)

4. Personalization

Never "Hi there". Always "Hi Maria".

Every tool does this automatically if you have first names in your database.

Metrics that actually matter

Open rate

• Travel industry benchmark: 22-28%
• Target: 30%+

If it drops below 18%, your list has gone stale (subscribers who never buy).

Click-through rate (CTR)

• Benchmark: 2-3%
• Target: 4%+

This measures engagement. If your emails get opened but nobody clicks, the content isn't selling.

Unsubscribe rate

• Acceptable: under 0.5%
• Problem: over 1%

If people keep unsubscribing, you're sending too often or the content is off-target.

Conversion rate (the one that matters most)

• From the email → to your website → to a booking
• Benchmark: 1-2% for travel
• Target: 3%+

To measure it, you need UTM tags on your links.

What NOT to do

• Never buy email lists. It's illegal and gets you banned.
• Never email without consent. GDPR fines run up to €20 million.
• Never forget the unsubscribe link. It's illegal without one.
• Never email daily. Your guest's inbox is not yours.
• Never use spam trigger words (FREE, GUARANTEE, WIN) — they land in junk.

A realistic first-year plan

Months 1-2: Setup (choose a tool, write the welcome email, add newsletter signup to your website)

Months 3-4: Target 100 contacts. Send post-stay emails, launch the newsletter.

Months 5-6: 200-300 contacts. 2 newsletters a month. Track your metrics.

Months 7-12: 500-1,000 contacts. Automations (birthday, abandoned bookings). Seasonal campaigns.

Year-one goal: 10-20% of your bookings coming from email.

The bottom line

Email marketing is the most underrated investment a vacation rental can make. It doesn't have the hype of Instagram or the instant results of Google Ads. But over 12 months it builds an asset — your email list — that's yours forever and doesn't depend on anyone's algorithm.

Want to add a newsletter signup to your website and start the right way? Send us a message and we'll build the setup together.