Hiring a designer
How to Choose a Holiday Let Web Designer in 7 Steps
A simple scorecard for judging web designers, with the questions to ask and the red flags to watch for.
You’ve decided your glamping site or holiday let needs a proper website, and now you have to pick who builds it. Here’s how to choose a holiday let web designer. The best choice is a designer who can show you real accommodation sites that take bookings, explain their work in plain English, and put the terms in writing. Below is a scorecard to judge them by, the questions to ask, and the red flags that should make you pause.
How to choose a holiday let web designer
Score each designer on the same seven things and the choice gets much easier. You don’t need to be a web person to do this. You only need to ask and then notice whether the answers are clear.
| What to check | A good sign | A worry |
|---|---|---|
| Relevant examples | Live accommodation sites you can click through | Only mock-ups or unrelated businesses |
| Booking setup | Explains calendar, payments and enquiries simply | Vague about how bookings reach you |
| Calendar sync | Names the platforms they connect to | Says “it just works” |
| Explains page titles, speed and local search | Promises page one | |
| Hosting and updates | Says who looks after it and what it costs | Leaves it unclear |
| Timeline | Gives a realistic range | No dates, or an endless wait |
| Terms | Puts everything in writing | Won’t discuss leaving |
Why niche experience matters
A designer who has built accommodation sites already knows the awkward bits. Guests often browse on mobile, midweek and weekend rates differ, and your calendar has to match what’s on Airbnb or CoolStays so nobody gets double booked.
A general designer can build a lovely site and still miss these. If you’re considering one, ask for a site where they set up booking and availability, and ask how they’d handle your rates.
That’s the main specialist versus general trade-off. A specialist saves you explaining the basics. A generalist might suit you if you already have a clear brief and a booking system you’re happy with.
Freelance or agency
Both can do good work, so the person matters more than the label. A freelancer is often cheaper and you deal directly with whoever builds your site. An agency has more skills under one roof but you may speak to a salesperson, then a project manager, then someone else entirely.
Ask who will actually build your site and whether you can speak to them. Then ask what happens if they’re ill, busy or move on.
Questions to ask
Keep these short and listen for plain answers.
Bookings and calendars
- Ask how guests will book and where payments go.
- Ask which platforms the calendar can sync with, such as Airbnb, Booking.com, Canopy & Stars or CoolStays.
- Ask whether the booking page can show seasonal rates and minimum stays.
- Ask what they set up so the site can be found for searches like “glamping near me”.
- Ask whether the site will load quickly on a phone.
Hosting and updates
- Ask who hosts the site and whether that’s included in the price.
- Ask whether you can change photos, rates and text yourself.
Timelines and terms
- Ask when the site will be live and what they need from you to hit that.
- Ask who writes the copy. Many designers can write it, and a listing description is a helpful starting point if you bring your own.
- Ask what happens if you want to leave.
Red flags
Most problems show up before you sign. Watch for these.
- Promised rankings. Nobody can guarantee a spot on Google.
- No live examples. If they can’t show finished accommodation sites, you’re the experiment.
- Fuzzy costs. Hosting, updates and changes should have a clear price or be included.
- Jargon instead of answers. If you don’t understand a reply, ask again. A good designer will rephrase.
- Pressure to decide today. A fair offer is still there tomorrow.
- A site that only looks good. Guests need dates, prices and a clear way to book.
Doing it yourself is fine too
If you have one hut, a simple brief and time to spare, a builder may be good enough to start with. Hiring someone makes sense when you want bookings coming direct rather than through a listing, or when you’ve hit the limits of a builder. Guests who find you on a listing site often search for your own website afterwards, hoping for a better deal, so a good site helps even if you stay listed. If you want to see how a specialist holiday let service looks, our holiday let website design page explains what we do.
For a real example, Millie the Hut’s site brought 42 direct bookings in its first year, saving the owners over £3,000 in commission. Rory built the whole thing.
FAQs
Is a specialist holiday let web designer worth it?
Usually, yes. A specialist already knows how booking calendars, listing site syncs and seasonal rates work, so you spend less time explaining and fewer things get missed. A general designer can still do a good job if they can show a similar booking setup that works.
Should I hire a freelancer or an agency?
Either can work. A freelancer usually means one person who knows your site and answers your messages. An agency has more people but can feel distant. Judge the individual who will actually build your site, and ask to speak to them before you sign.
What should I ask a web designer before hiring them?
Ask how bookings and payments will work, how your calendar will sync with Airbnb or Booking.com, who handles hosting, how they approach Google, how long the build takes, and what happens if you leave. Clear, plain answers matter more than clever ones.
How long should a holiday let website take to build?
It depends on the build. A template site can be live in a few days to a week. A more bespoke site with booking integrations can take up to about two weeks. Be wary of anyone who can’t give a timeline, or who gives a very long one without a reason.
Send us your website and we’ll tell you, for free, what’s stopping it getting bookings. Request your free website audit.