How to Make Your Vacation Rental Family-Friendly: A Host's Safety Kit

If you want to know how to make your Airbnb family friendly, think in layers. A pool barrier with alarms and a latch, window and cord checks, gates at the stairs, anchored furniture, locked cleaning supplies and a recall-checked sleep space each close a gap the others leave open. Start with water, because that is where the stakes are highest.

How to Make Your Airbnb Family Friendly: The Layers That Matter

Guests with young children read a property differently than other guests do. They look at what a toddler can reach, climb, open or fall from.

You know the property, so you are the one who can spot those openings. Walk each room at a toddler’s eye level and look for the open edge, the loose cord, the low cabinet. Baby-proofing a vacation rental comes down to finding each opening and adding a layer to it.

Pool, Hot Tub and Spa: Airbnb Pool Safety Rules

The AAP says drowning is the leading cause of death in children 1–4. Young children can drown in as little as an inch or two of water, and it can happen quickly and silently. The AAP says the biggest threat for toddlers is unexpected, unsupervised access to water, and names swimming pools, hot tubs and spas among the risks. For a host, that is the job: control access.

The CPSC’s barrier guidelines are the reference. A barrier that completely surrounds the pool is better than a fence that uses the house as the fourth side. Fences should be a minimum of 4 feet high, and 5 feet or higher is preferable. The AAP gives the same 4-foot height and says the fence should have no opening under it or between slats more than 4 inches wide.

Doors and gates are where a barrier tends to fail. Picture this: you are a guest unloading the car after a long drive, and the back door to the pool deck is propped open for the luggage. Nobody is watching it for a few minutes.

When an outside wall of the home forms one side of the barrier, the CPSC says to install door alarms on all doors leading to the pool area. It also says those doors need self-closing and self-latching devices, or locks beyond the reach of children. The AAP says a pool gate should be self-closing and self-latching and open away from the pool. The CPSC adds that pool covers are another layer, with the control device kept out of children’s reach.

Check for a pet door too. The CPSC says never to have a pet or doggy door if the door leads directly to a pool or other backyard water, and that locking these doors is not sufficient. Where pet doors are installed, an isolation barrier or fence is, in the CPSC’s words, the best defense.

The CPSC says barriers are not childproof, but they give layers of protection when there is a lapse in adult supervision. The AAP says that whenever a toddler is in or near water, give them your full attention and stay within arm’s length, which it calls "touch supervision."

You cannot supervise your guests’ children. The fence, alarms and cover are layers around the adult at the water, never a substitute for that adult. A deeper walk through baby-proofing a pool covers fences, alarms and water habits in more detail.

Windows and Window-Covering Cords

The AAP says to open windows from the top if possible. If they must open from the bottom, install operable window guards that only an adult or older child can open from the inside.

Picture this: the only sofa in your rental sits right under a living room window, with a screen in place. The AAP says a screen is not strong enough to stop a fall. It also says never to put chairs, sofas, low tables or anything else a child might climb on in front of a window. Move the furniture away from the glass.

Cords are the other window hazard. The AAP names window-covering cords as a strangulation risk and advises avoiding coverings with cords. If blinds or drapes are not cordless, attach the cords to floor mounts that hold them taut, or wrap them around wall brackets out of reach. Use safety stop devices as well. Cords with loops should be cut and fitted with safety tassels.

Hotels deal with the same window and cord questions, so baby-proofing a hotel room starts from the same checks.

Stairs Need Gates at Both Ends

For a crawling or walking child, the AAP says to install safety gates at both the top and bottom of stairs. Avoid accordion-style gates, which can trap an arm or a neck. Use gates firmly mounted to the home’s studs.

Think about the full route a child can take. A gate at the bottom of the stairs does nothing for a child who starts at the top. Split-level homes and loft bedrooms with a few steps count too.

Tip-Over Hazards: Furniture and TVs

The AAP says 77% of all tip-over deaths from 2000 to 2019 involved kids under six. A dresser in a rental bedroom matters here, because guests cannot know how it was built or whether it is anchored.

The AAP says to anchor all furniture to the walls. It also advises mounting flat-screen TVs to the wall or to furniture, and never putting a TV on top of a dresser. Fit dresser drawer stops or safety straps. If you are working out how to make Airbnb kid friendly on a small budget, start here. The AAP says anti-tip devices cost $5–$25 and take minutes to install.

A baby-proofing checklist for every room puts anchors on the list for bedrooms, living rooms and any room with a TV.

Keep wall anchoring separate from strap locks. A strap lock is a latch for drawers and doors. It does not hold furniture to the wall.

Cabinets, Medicines and Outlets

The kitchen, bathrooms and laundry area hold the poisons. The AAP says to put safety locks on all cabinets containing cleaning fluids or other dangerous items. Keep all medications, including those in a purse, out of reach, and do not depend on child safety caps. For laundry detergent packets, the AAP says to seal the container and store it in a locked cabinet after each use.

In an emergency, call 911. For poison questions, call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222 (America’s Poison Centers).

Two Baby Proof Me products fit the cabinet job:

• Strap lock: a peel-and-apply adjustable strap on 3M adhesive that does not require screws or drilling. The listing says to allow 24 hours for the adhesive to bond. It suits cabinets, drawers, the fridge and the dishwasher.
• Magnetic lock kit: 12 locks and 3 keys, fixed with either 3M adhesive or screws.

Outlets get the same treatment. The AAP says to put non-choking-hazard safety plugs in all unused electrical outlets, which protects against shock by keeping a finger or toy out of the holes. Baby Proof Me’s standalone outlet plug cover listing includes a removal tool, so you can take the plugs out when you need the outlet. Several kits include 24 outlet covers.

A Safe Sleep Space

Among family friendly vacation rental amenities, a sleep space is one worth planning. Guests traveling with a baby already have plenty to haul, so a proper place to sleep takes a real load off them.

The AAP says to place a baby in a crib, bassinet, portable crib or play yard that meets the CPSC’s safety standards. Check the CPSC site to confirm it has not been recalled, especially if it is not new. A secondhand play yard is the one to check first.

Keep soft objects and loose bedding out of the sleep area. The AAP lists pillows, quilts, comforters and bumper pads. A bare, fitted sheet on the mattress is the cleanest setup for a host to offer.

The Kit and Its Limit

Baby Proof Me’s Bump Defender and Baby Bunch kits each bundle 12 corner protectors and 6 strap locks. Bump Defender adds 24 outlet covers, and Baby Bunch adds 12 magnetic cabinet locks. The clear corner protectors use an acrylic adhesive, and the kit listings say they stick to wood, metal, marble or glass.

The single-product listings for the strap lock, outlet plug covers, corner protectors and magnetic lock kit each carry a warning: the product is not a toy and not a substitute for adult supervision. A kit adds a layer. It does not make a rental safe, and nothing on this list replaces an adult watching a child near water, on stairs or in the kitchen.