Hosting for Farms
There are many people who would love to stay on a working farm, but have never had the opportunity. With Campable, you can list your farm and become a Host for motorhome travellers, creating extra income from your land and meeting interested new people.
If you have a farm and are considering becoming a Host with Campable, this page should answer all of your questions. Whether you want a broad understanding of the benefits of joining Campable, or you have a specific Health and Safety concern, you’ll find your answer here!
What are the benefits of listing my farm with Campable?
What nightly rate should I charge?
How much income will my farm create on Campable?
How do I make my farm stand out to travellers?
What if someone is badly behaved on my property?
What are the benefits of listing my farm with Campable?
Here are some reasons that other Hosts have listed their farm with Campable:
- Becoming a Campable Host means creating extra income from underused space on your property.
- You can turn your listing on and off at any time, so you only Host when it suits you.
- Some Hosts also use Campable to fund a specific project on their land. Join others who are using their space to fund a conservation effort, begin more sustainable farming practices, or invest in new technology.
- Others have joined Campable for the experience of sharing their land and way of life with travellers, socialising and meeting new people.
What is it like to be a Host?
The hosting experience will differ a lot, depending on how involved you want to be, and whether you want to socialise with your Guests. Generally, we hope it will be awesome - and so far it is proving to be!
We interviewed one lovely Host who has a farmlet in Matamata, and you can read about her hosting experience here.
What nightly rate should I charge?
Hosts set their own price, from $25 a night (the minimum). The price suggestion on each site shows what similar places nearby charge and how often they're booked, so use it as your starting point. The examples below show how different offerings can be priced.
Here are some things to consider when choosing a nightly rate:
- What is your place like? If you can provide privacy, are near a popular attraction, or have a great surrounding environment, travellers will highly value your property.
- What amenities can you provide? Travellers will pay more to stay at properties where they have access to water, toilets, a shower, power, rubbish disposal or wifi. You can also allow only self-contained motorhomes to book your property, if you prefer not to provide these facilities.
- Are there any additional experiences you can offer? Anything special - like offering a tour of your property, fresh eggs from your hens, or vegetables from your garden - will boost your property's value to travellers. You can sell these as add-ons when guests book, or offer them free as a badge on your listing.
How much income will my farm create on Campable?
Your income depends on your nightly price, how many vehicles you take at once, and which nights you're open. You choose all three, and you can pause your listing whenever it doesn't suit you.
It's free to list. Campable's commission is 25% of the nightly price (and 15% of any extra-person charges and add-ons), worked out on what the guest paid after the card-processing fee. For example, on a $30 night the card fee is about $1.17 and you receive about $21.60. See Payments, fees & tax for the details.
How do I make my farm stand out to travellers?
Hosts who get the most bookings tend to...
- Have great photos of their property. We recommend at least 5 photos of your farm, waiting for nice weather to take pictures, and asking someone with a good eye for help if you want it. What your photos are like makes a huge difference to whether travellers will book with you.
- Include unique additions in your listing. If possible, add something special to your listing, like a tour of your farm, collecting fresh eggs with you in the morning, meeting some of your animals or the opportunity to purchase fresh fruit or vegetables from your garden. (Anything else you want to offer is also great!). These are the things which will make the experience of staying with you really special for Guests.
- Offer amenities. Allowing Guests to access a toilet, power, shower, wifi, rubbish disposal, or a water hose can make a big difference.
What if someone is badly behaved on my property?
At Campable we know that staying on a private working farm is not at all like staying at a camp ground - it is a privilege, and we make sure that our Guests know this, too. Here's how we and our Hosts can make sure Guests are aware of the behaviour expected of them:
- Put your rules for visitors in your listing's house rules, so Campable guests see them before they book.
- Guests are also held accountable to the Campable Rules of Etiquette, so in the unlikely event that they do not respect your property, we can remove them from Campable. Contact us straight away if it happens, and leave an honest review of the guest.
What about Health and Safety?
The health and safety of our Hosts and Guests is our absolute priority. Here's how we can ensure that everyone is well-informed about safety:
If you have your own health and safety policy, include the key points in your house rules and arrival instructions, so guests see them before they arrive. (Listings can't contain phone numbers, emails or web links.) We also recommend the OnSide app, which helps you to manage workplace health and safety.
Campable also addresses health and safety in two ways:
- In the Health and Safety page, which tells you what Campable does to keep Guests safe, and what our Hosts can do.
- In the Rules of Etiquette, which outlines the behaviour expected of a Guest when they stay with any Campable Host. This includes an explanation of potential hazards and safety risks when staying on private property, and has a section specifically for staying on farms. Guests are bound by the Rules of Etiquette, as is stated in our Terms and Conditions.
Take a read, and if you have any remaining concerns, please contact Campable at support@campable.com
Thanks for reading!
The Campable team