How to Choose a Family Friendly Hotel or Airbnb (A Parent’s Prep Guide)
Short on time? Here’s the fast version:
Booking family accommodations requires thorough vetting for safety and comfort—so your trip feels like an actual vacation, not just "extra parenting in a new location."
Read on for our complete breakdown (it is thorough!) on how to vet hotels and Airbnbs, or ↓ jump straight to our Free Family Hotel & Airbnb Booking Checklist ↓ to grab your download.
Planning where to stay is one of the biggest factors when traveling with kids. You are looking for something to be your home base, but how do you figure out if a listing is a good choice for your kids? What is the difference between “it looks nice in photos” and “this meets all our family’s needs”?
Sure, there are times you just make do with what’s available (hello, unexpected overnight stay while the car gets fixed!) or grab the lowest rate to save a few bucks. But when you have time to plan, this guide will help you feel prepared, safe, and sane in your home-away-from-home, regardless of how old the kids are.
How to Fully Evaluate a Listing
First, Consider Your Plans
Before you book, think about the job this place has to do. When it's just the 4 of us (even for a long stay) we can get away with a lot less. The rental mostly needs to be a comfortable home base for sleeping and recharging. One job.
But when we travel for a specific event, the rental may be doing multiple jobs. The Airbnb we used to host my sister's wedding bridal party for the getting-ready wasn't just our home base! It was the gathering place and part of the memory. That changed what we looked for and what we were willing to pay.
So before you book, ask what this place is actually for:
Quick Stop or Family Home Base: Some trips call for reducing housing costs as much as possible — a bed to crash in is the whole assignment.
The Venue: Other events require the location to be just as much part of the moment as anything else. The place itself becomes part of the memory, and often the photos. It also may mean you have to put less weight on certain aspects of this list (see our example of booking for venue benefits rather than stair safety alone ↓).
Truly Evaluate the Photos
This sounds like a “duh” comment, but the truth is its easy to miss when you are in vacay fantasy mode (look at the high ceilings! And the view!!….). I thought I was doing a good job of truly evaluating listings too, until we experienced a few stays where things we should have noticed before booking caused avoidable issues. Since then, we've really learned how to look and see what matters.
Stare at those photos, as if you were going to buy the place. ALWAYS do your best to figure out the layout of the home or room, because that is the key to getting insight into what works for your family. Floor plans are usually visible in hotel photos, but rental home layouts may not be marketed or easily discernible from photos alone. However, I promise you can find the layout using the listing photos and a little Google investigation.
“But Emily! You can’t see an Airbnb's exact address until after you book!”
Why, it’s elementary, my dear Reader!
Zoom all the way in on the rental's location map on the listing.
Open Google Maps in another tab, locate that exact spot, and drop into Street View to find the house. (With great power comes great responsibility. Don’t use this for evil, please!)
Then, use the satellite view to figure out tricky floor plans! Usually the roof view can help with shape and window/door placement.
If it is still not clear, search for the address on Zillow or other home sales sites. There is often a floorplan or photos showing how the house connects since that is a huge part of buying a house.
Having a better sense of scale of the house vs the property, how warped interior photos on the vacation rental site could be, and being able to see it relative to other homes or buildings in the area can provide serious insight to how things are laid out, how cramped it might feel, and if there is anything you might be turned off by from layout alone.
Property Surroundings
Once you have the home in sight on Google Maps, you can dig into the property’s history and surroundings. REALLY consider the following items and ask if there are any potential red flags that a property is not the right fit for your family:
Yard & Fencing: Is the yard actually as child-friendly as advertised? Is it fully fenced off from the road?
Traffic & Parking: What’s the street traffic like? Will it be difficult to get in and out of with the car for adventuring? If it's street parking only, evaluate how painful it will be to unload luggage and unbuckle kids on a busy road. Is it so busy you might not get street parking right out front?
Neighborhood Vibe: Does the area look peaceful, or is it mid-construction zone? No one wants to be woken up by power tools at 7:00 AM on vacation. Is there a possibility of a thumping night life nearby that could interfere with bedtime?
Management vs. Owner-Operated: Does the vacation rental listing show an individual owner, but Street View shows a corporate property management sign in the front yard? This can tell you a lot about the customer service vibe if something breaks during your stay, and how often the property is being checked in on.
Every family’s needs will be different but these can give clues about what will work for the trip you have in mind, and how relaxed your family can be in this property.
The Indoor Safety Check: What to Look For Before You Book
Some of these items your kids will age out of, while others will be an important consideration no matter how old your kids get. Safety first!
Stairs
While I worry less about my kids falling down stairs these days, that anxiety is never entirely gone. In a new environment, it's easy for kids to forget they don’t know these stairs, so they take them at lightning speed. This can quickly mean trips to the urgent care clinic, which no one is interested in on vacay. If you are looking at a listing with stairs:
Evaluate their steepness as much as possible in photos and then plan to check again on arrival
Explain to your kids before you leave that the stairs will be different and it's a rule to be slower than usual
Be mentally prepared to do lots of extra hand-holding and more parental reminding near them
We stayed at this beautiful Airbnb in Portland for my sister's wedding, and it was everything we needed for hosting family and the bridal party get-ready before the wedding, but it had very steep, slippery wooden stairs. We needed that unbelievably photogenic family room and open kitchen for the getting ready photos, but it meant we had to prepare our kid and ourselves for handling the stairs attached to the property.
We also stayed at this Airbnb home in Cannon Beach and I didn't think to evaluate the stairs enough. While the location is what eventually won us over (less than 5 minutes walk to the beach?? Yes, please!!), we did have to navigate stair safety for the kids every day. We also had to close off part of the Airbnb to everyone (steep, slippery wood stairs with tile on concrete at the bottom) and my husband, Jeremy, & I had to sleep on a couch bed to ensure they could get to us without using even more stairs in the middle of the night. (To be clear, I do still highly recommend the rental property for families with kids aged 7+).
Glass Tables
Glass coffee and side tables are gorgeous and make rooms feel bigger, but glass + rambunctious kids = disaster & hospital bills at worst, expensive replacement fees at best. If a place has one, do the following:
Message the host to ask if it can stay put away while you’re there. No parent wants to spend vacation panicking about the kids breaking the glass if they can avoid it, and owners/property managers love accident prevention!
Move it somewhere safer if you can (take a photo or look at the listing pictures to be sure it goes back in the right spot!)
If it isn’t movable, tell the kids about it ahead of time and discuss safety plans to prevent injuries. It’s doable but it does require more focused parenting during your stay.
Bed Height
Both our kids are very tall for their ages (thank you, Jeremy!), so we've aged out of a lot of this risk early on, but we've still run into this problem. Hotel and rental home beds are often TALL and made for adults or older kids.
Try to evaluate heights against furniture or doorframes in the photos; it can save you a headache or help you plan ahead.
If the “it” home has higher beds, consider bringing the small stool from home, or pull it from the hotel bathroom, to prevent kids falling while getting up or down.
When we haven't had another choice, we've been known to surround the kid in pillows to prevent rolling (obvi don't do this with babies!! But our toddlers have been fine).
Cord Safety
We have noticed this can be a common oversight in many vacation rentals labeled as “family friendly”, so be sure to evaluate photos for this carefully!
Look for obvious visible cables an electronics-curious child will pull on. Evaluate if there are extra electronics in the kitchen (smart speakers, smaller counter kitchen devices, etc). Can you see visible cables around the TVs? Are there floor lamps or table lamps that may be a pull-down risk or a cable tripping hazard?
Check the window shades for corded blinds. Some older properties still use these!
If you notice any concerns with cables but you feel the rental may be your best option otherwise, try to kindly message the rental hosts ahead of time about what you are seeing and ask if anything can be done. Safety is always worth the conversation.
No matter what, plan to do a walk-through looking for cable risks when you check in. If possible, do it before you even unload. Usually we have one adult enter the home upon check-in while the other sits with the kids in the car. That extra few minutes of inspection time before kids begin exploring is worth everyone’s peace of mind and safety.
Low Windows & Balconies
I know you are already excited to see the window views. Use that time to critically analyze photos for low window sills, furniture pushed under windows, balcony railing or wall heights, and climbable patio furniture. Fortunately, most of these can be an easy fix upon arrival, but they are worth noticing before booking.
Flooring
For littles in the rolling, crawling, or toddling ages, floors are where they spend most of their time. They are also more prone to falls. If most of the flooring is hard tile or there are tricky floor-height changes, this may be the wrong place to stay right now. Be aware of your child's needs and how you can help, so your expectations are set for the trip too.
Water Access
Swimming is often a highlight of a vacation stay, but water safety requires proactive due diligence. (I wouldn’t be staying true to my years as a lifeguard without talking about this.) Before booking a property with a pool, hot tub, or nearby water features, check for these critical safety boundaries:
Pool & Hot Tub Fencing: Is the pool or hot tub area completely enclosed by a self-latching, child-proof fence? Check the Google Maps satellite view for fencing and gate placement, see if the listing mentions how the hot tub is secured, and if not, message the host about hot tub cover locks. (Note: Many municipal codes require full fencing for pools, but private hot tubs are often excluded from fencing requirements, and previous guests or hosts can accidentally leave hot tubs unlocked!)
Visibility & Sightlines: Can you clearly see the pool or patio area from the main living spaces (kitchen/living room), or do building walls obstruct the view?
Door & Window Alarms/Locks: Do exterior doors and windows leading to the water area protected with top-of-door safety locks, or audible door-open alarms? (Crucial for exploratory toddlers who may wake early in the morning.)
Pool Cover Security: If the pool or hot tub isn't fully fenced, is there a locked, rigid safety cover in place that can support weight, rather than just a soft solar cover?
Natural Water Barriers: Is the property next to a lake, river, pond, or ocean? Is there a secure fence or barrier between the house and the natural water line?
Life Jacket / Safety Gear Availability: Does the host provide properly fitted USCG-approved life jackets in multiple sizes for dock or natural water access, or should you pack / rent your own?
If you aren’t sure of the answers to these questions, ASK BEFORE BOOKING! And again, ALWAYS do a full safety check of water access safety when you check into the property, including that the pool gate self-latches.
Comfort & Coziness: Making it Feel Like Home
Kitchen & Laundry
I know we don’t love chores on vacation, but a stocked kitchen and in-house laundry with kids can be real life-savers on a trip. Locations can be filtered by accessible laundry options on most vacation rental sites, and hotels will generally have an onsite laundry room you can access.
Does the listing photos show where the laundry setup is? (Running laundry at night is helpful for keeping day adventure time, but check its location to avoid sleep impacts from noise!)
Is there a dishwasher available?
How well stocked is the kitchenware? (Read through the listing carefully if you need specific items for hosting/cooking for a crowd)
Is there a high chair available? Many will say this is available upon request, so be sure to message the hosts ahead of time if you need one.
Room Darkening
If you're crossing time zones, blocking out light helps support your kids' natural melatonin production & time-zone adaptation. Check if bedrooms have a darkening curtain or shade. I also use the Google street view to figure out where windows face and try to avoid east facing bedroom windows for my kids if I can. If not, and the room lacks thick curtains, I will plan ahead as follows:
Painter’s tape is great for closing gaps in the curtains without ruining the fabric (Blue Scotch painters tape works best)
Travel with a blackout shade (tape this into windows for extra darkening)
Also, a little painters tape over bright clocks on appliances is helpful for sensitive kids in hotel rooms.
TV Location
Parents want to wind down after bedtime on vacation too! Check if the living room TV shares a wall with the kids' sleeping area. Thin walls may mean you’ll be whispering all evening instead of watching your favorite show. (Although white noise machines can help block the sound if you can’t avoid this!)
Nighttime Distances
When you are deciding who will sleep where, be sure to ask the following questions about the layout of the home:
How far do children have to walk in the dark to get to you? Is it a reasonable distance for their age?
How close is the children’s bedroom to the nearest bathroom?
How well lit are the hallways? Consider how you can light the way so they can reach you safely if they need you in the night. (Travel nightlights to the rescue!)
Once you arrive, be sure to do a walk-through of the house with all the kids to show them the pathways in the light. This helps remove bedtime anxiety and risks of nighttime accidents.
Crib Locations
If you book a home with multiple rooms, this usually isn’t a consideration. But in a single hotel room, how do you put a baby down when you still want to stay awake? My suggestion: find a spot where your travel crib fits in a darker corner, or even the bathroom (yes, it's not ideal and it sounds weird, but it works!). Leave the bathroom door slightly open for ventilation.
Once we stayed in a hotel suite with a big desk/wardrobe closet combo in the middle of the room. We hung a blanket on it and put the crib in a corner behind it. The blanket made the crib corner darker and gave us a physical barrier between the crib and our bed, blocking our phone lights and conversations.
No travel crib available?
Floor Bed MacGyvering: Create a safe floor bed in the hotel. We have made makeshift beds for our young toddlers out of couch cushions wrapped in sheets, or even taken a couch bed mattress off the frame and laid it on the floor.
Co-Sleeping in a Pinch: To be clear, I am not advocating this choice, but I know what its like to have this unexpectedly be the best you can do. This is me sharing real-life experience navigating unforeseen circumstances & knowing that sometimes the “ideal” choice isn’t available. There have been multiple times a hotel has promised us a travel crib, only to have the hotel run out before we arrived, and we had to make do. It happens! From experience: try to always bring your own travel crib everywhere!
Research safe co-sleeping practices. Find a reputable source (I love Chrissy of The Peaceful Sleeper's nuanced, researched, & AAP compliant approach) and remember that one night, or even a week, isn't going to wreck your family when done safely.
Hotel Couch Bed Sharing for Kids
Jeremy is 6’6”, which means a king bed is pretty much a requirement to make a stay comfortable for our family. We've done our share of sleeping in a queen for a cheap overnight stop on the way to somewhere else, but otherwise the king bed is non-negotiable. That often leaves our kids sharing a pull-out couch. Here is how we avoid nightly bedtime battles when sharing a bed:
The Pillow Divider: Place the sturdiest hotel pillow you find down the middle of the mattress to prevent rolling, midnight kicking, and complaining (well, most of it).
Centralized White Noise: Position a travel sound machine right on the back of the couch to drown out ambient hotel noises and each other’s fidgeting. We have used this one for years, at home and on the go.
Individual Blankets: Never make kids share a top blanket. Sharing leads to tug-of-war and cold toes. Bring your own or ask the hotel for extras!
Extended Parent Snuggles: If they're having a hard time sharing, one of us lies down in the middle while they settle into this less familiar place. It’s a good spot for a bedtime book, holding hands, or rubbing backs while they calm down. It also helps them relax when they're wound up from a late night. Remember: your presence is the greatest asset during travel bedtime. Once they're asleep and you've ninja-ed out of bed, put the pillow back in the middle.
Sharing a Rental with Extended Family
When booking with grandparents or extended family, priorities shift. We usually assign our kids the bedroom closest to us and near a main bathroom. Once bedtime hits, adults get free rein over the shared living spaces.
In a pinch, we take the room with an attached bathroom for our family of four (sometimes making the kids a bed on the floor) and leave the other rooms and bathrooms to other guests. It keeps our kids separated from adult wind-down time, and other guests keep the shared bathrooms tidier than we could. If our kids make a mess, it's in our own space, so there’s no pressure to constantly clean up for other families. It also confines lost socks and missing items to our room, helping make packing up faster.
Group Trip Planning Tip: When comparing options across a large group, narrow it down to 2–5 properties and share a quick comparison spreadsheet so everyone can weigh in on layout preferences or accessibility needs (step-free entry, elevator vs. stairs-only, bathroom on the main floor, etc.). Be sure to advocate for your kids’ needs, too!
Final Thoughts
As much as I wish it could be, no hotel or vacation rental is perfect in every way. However, using these tips, you can make a highly informed decision and set your family up for great travel success. Here’s to your next family adventure being as cozy & relaxed as possible!
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