What a tourism or homestay business is
A homestay is like having a friend from far away sleep over at your house, but they pay you, and you show them your town. You give them a clean bed, a safe place and a warm welcome.
- Homestay: the guest stays in the host family's home and shares daily life. The Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) lists homestays among accommodation establishments that can apply for DOT accreditation.
- Bed and breakfast (B&B): rooms plus breakfast, usually small and often owner-run.
- Short-term rental: a room or whole home rented for a few nights, often through an online platform.
- Tours and experiences: walking tours, cooking classes, farm visits, island hopping, guided hikes. These can be sold alone or with a stay.
- Your main costs: the space (rent or mortgage share), cleaning, laundry, utilities and internet, supplies (soap, toilet paper, towels), repairs, platform or booking fees, insurance, permits and taxes.
- Main risks: rules that do not allow hosting where you live, bad reviews, damage, safety incidents, empty nights in the low season.
- Read the four types: homestay, bed and breakfast, short-term rental, tours and experiences.
- Write which one fits your home and your time best, and one reason why.
- Write who your guest would be (traveller, student, family visiting the area).
- List every cost for one guest night: space share, cleaning, laundry, utilities, internet, supplies, repairs, platform fees, insurance, permits, taxes.
- Mark the three biggest costs.
- Check: you have one type chosen and a cost list that is at least 10 lines long.
Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.
Read the video script
[Host] "Tourism isn't just big hotels. A spare room, a family home, or a local tour can be a small business."
[Text on screen: Homestay, B&B, Short-term rental, Tours] "There are four simple types. Homestay: guests live with you. B&B: room plus breakfast. Short-term rental: a room or home for a few nights. Tours: you sell an experience."
[Screen: list of costs, cleaning, laundry, supplies, fees] "Each one has costs that are easy to forget, like laundry and platform fees."
[Host] "Start by picking one type, and check the rules before you buy a single pillow."
Write down which type fits your situation best and why. List every cost you can think of for one guest night.
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I'm learning "Tourism & Homestay Business" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "What a tourism or homestay business is". What the lesson teaches: - Homestay: the guest stays in the host family's home and shares daily life. The Philippine Department of Tourism (DOT) lists homestays among accommodation establishments that can apply for DOT accreditation. - Bed and breakfast (B&B): rooms plus breakfast, usually small and often owner-run. - Short-term rental: a room or whole home rented for a few nights, often through an online platform. - Tours and experiences: walking tours, cooking classes, farm visits, island hopping, guided hikes. These can be sold alone or with a stay. - Your main costs: the space (rent or mortgage share), cleaning, laundry, utilities and internet, supplies (soap, toilet paper, towels), repairs, platform or booking fees, insurance, permits and taxes. - Main risks: rules that do not allow hosting where you live, bad reviews, damage, safety incidents, empty nights in the low season. The exercise I'm working on: Write down which type fits your situation best and why. List every cost you can think of for one guest night. I'm stuck. Please: 1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example. 2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step. 3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.
I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "What a tourism or homestay business is" from the course "Tourism & Homestay Business". Here's what the lesson says: A homestay is like having a friend from far away sleep over at your house, but they pay you, and you show them your town. You give them a clean bed, a safe place and a warm welcome. The activity: Write down which type fits your situation best and why. List every cost you can think of for one guest night. Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words. Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.
Sources
- Department of Tourism Philippines, online accreditation: tourism.gov.ph/accreditations/online
Are you allowed to host here?
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Costs, pricing and occupancy
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Safety, cleanliness, house rules and reviews
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Food, tours and extra experiences
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Rules where you live (registration and tax)
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Final project
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Quiz
What is a homestay?
A stay where the guest lives in the host family's home and shares daily life.
How do you calculate occupancy rate?
Nights booked ÷ nights available × 100.
What are the four permission layers to check?
Your home (lease, condo or mortgage), your city, your country, and your insurer.
Why check your city's short-term rental rules before listing a home?
Many cities limit which homes can be rented and may require registration (in Toronto: only your principal residence, after registering with the City).
What should a host do when a city caps the nights a whole home can be rented?
Check the local limit before taking bookings (for example London: 90 nights a calendar year without planning permission).
What may happen to the expenses of a short-term rental that breaks local rules?
In some countries they cannot be deducted for income tax (in Canada, from 1 January 2024).
What should a new B&B host check before serving breakfast?
Whether their country or city requires registering a food business before trading (in the UK, at least 28 days before).
What should you always ask guests before cooking for them?
Whether they have any food allergies.
Where may security cameras never be placed?
In bedrooms or bathrooms.
Where can you learn about your country's homestay or tourism registration scheme?
On the official tourism ministry or tourism board site (in India, the NIDHI portal handles the voluntary homestay scheme).
Final exam
This lesson is part of full access: every course and every level for one payment.
Certificate
This lesson is part of full access: every course and every level for one payment.