One thing this year’s COVID-19 lockdowns have allowed us to do is spend more time during our allocated exercise breaks exploring some of the incredible local scenic walks.  The Mornington Peninsula has over 100 great walking trails across beaches, piers, coastal trails, historic sites and villages.  Ranging from an easy stroll for coffee, to a 100km challenge to tick off your bucket list, anyone exploring the region on foot is totally spoilt for choice!

Here are our Top 4 walk recommendations on the Southern Mornington Peninsula:

Millionaire’s Walk

You don’t have to be a millionaire to walk along the cliffs from Sorrento to the beach at Point King, but you will get a glimpse of the lifestyles of the rich and famous along the Millionaire’s Walk.  Take in the beautiful clifftop views over pretty, private jetties (pictured above) and spot the ferry on its way to or from Queenscliff.  Make sure your phone or camera is fully charged for some seriously Insta-worthy pics!

The Tuckey Track

Crossing from one side of the narrowest point of the Peninsula to the other, this walk starts at the Western Sister headland of Sullivan Bay.  From Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club, cross Point Nepean Road and follow the signposts.  The Tuckey Track takes you through a mix of paved residential streets, undulating tracks, and the Tuckey Reserve.  Once you reach Melbourne Road, turn left and cross the road to head down Ivanhoe Street.  You will end up following a sandy path which at times is hilly, and there are some steep stairs.  It is all worth it when you reach the Mount St. Paul lookout and witness panoramic views over the rugged coastline.  From the lookout you can join the Coastal Walk, or turn right to follow the boardwalk down to Bay of Islands.  Believed to have been used by Lieutenant James Tuckey and the local indigenous people to walk from Port Phillip to the ocean beaches, there are various markers to be discovered along the track which tell of its historical significance.

Point Nepean Trails

Most visitors to Point Nepean will take the shuttle bus from the Quarantine Station to Fort Nepean, but if you choose to walk and experience the park in your own time, you will not be disappointed.  Connect with history as you wander through the old cemetery, take a look at Cheviot Hill and the Harold Holt memorial, and explore the tunnels and WW11 fortifications.  The tracks will take you through woodlands and grasslands, along a remote stretch of beach, and via the road to Fort Nepean where you can take in the panoramic views.

The 100km Mornington Peninsula Walk

This iconic trail can be completed over several days, or enjoyed over several visits.  The total trail combines four walks:

• the ‘Two Bays Walk’ through the hinterland from Dromana to Cape Schanck,
• the ‘Coastal Walk’ through the Mornington Peninsula National Park along the Bass Strait coast from Cape Schanck to Portsea,
• the ‘Point Nepean Walk’ in and around the Point Nepean National Park, and
• the ‘Bay Trail’ from Portsea to Dromana along the shores of Port Phillip.

Along the way, the trail takes in the historic fort at Point Nepean and the foreshores of Portsea, Sorrento, Blairgowrie, Rye, Rosebud and Dromana.  It climbs over Arthurs Seat before descending through lovely stretches of forest and ferny glens to the dark and brooding cliffs of Cape Schanck and the Lighthouse.  From the Lighthouse, the track weaves its way west through thick coastal ti-tree, and drops onto yellow-sand beaches before a final stretch of tight single track and cliff-top trail brings you from Rye to London Bridge.  An absolutely unforgettable experience for those who have the stamina!

For a full list of the Mornington Peninsula’s scenic walking trails, check out this helpful guide courtesy of Visit Mornington Peninsula.

The Mornington Peninsula is the perfect place to visit when looking to escape the hustle bustle of the city for a while. At just a 90-minute drive from Melbourne, the idyllic holiday spot offers a variety of both relaxing and exciting things to do when looking to unwind from the chaos of daily life in the CBD.

Mornington Peninsula National Park

One of the biggest differences between Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula is the opportunity to explore nature and the beauty the rural landscape has on offer. The Mornington Peninsula National Park is an area of outstanding natural beauty, allowing for expansive and impressive costal walks, those which have become synonymous with Australia. The National Park is also home to the iconic elephant rock, which extends out into the sea.

Recreation

The Mornington Peninsula is the perfect spot for adventure seekers. For the ocean lover, the white sandy shoreline and spectacular surf make it the ideal place to catch some waves, take time out on a fishing trip or to take long bike rides. For visitors who are more interested in relaxing and unwinding from the stressors of daily life, there are a number of golf courses as well as the opportunity to visit the Peninsula Hot Springs, where bathing in natural thermal pools in an absolute must.

Vineyards and local produce

Most people don’t know that he Mornington Peninsula is world-renowned for its production of grapes and is also the ideal location for spectacular wine tasting. The region is home to over 90 wineries and 75 cellar doors, offering vineyard tours as well as tasting (and purchasing) the wines on offer. The area is particularly famous for its production of the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, cultivated primarily as a result of the region’s cooler climate.

As a result of the rural landscape of the Mornington Peninsula, the area also prides itself on natural produce, with cheese, beef and berries at the top of the list of products that stem from the area. Because of the success of the agriculture and farming in the region, many people come to visit the monthly Red Hill market – a festive and enjoyable celebration of food and drink.

Historic Australia

For those who are looking to learn more about the history of Australia, the Mornington Peninsula presents countless opportunities to visit a number of important historical sites.

Among them are the HMAS Cerberus Naval base, which served as the Australian Naval College for over 20 years and is home to over a thousand current personnel; you could also pay a visit to the McCrea house or the Heronswood house, both rich in cultural and historical history relating to Australian heritage.

Wildlife

As with many areas in rural Australia, the climate and vastness of the landscape ensures is a great deal more wildlife than in urbanised areas.  Witnessing dolphins in their natural habitat or horse riding along the spectacular shoreline will almost certainly help in relieving the stresses of a busy city lifestyle. If wildlife and Fauna is of interest to you, the Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation park is a must, taking its visitors back to times of pre-colonised Australia. The sanctuary is home to a range of animals, including species which are no longer found in the wild on mainland Australia (such as the Eastern Quoll and Southern Bettong).  The park is dedicated to the conservation and breeding of critically endangered animals and offers visitors the opportunity to see some of the rarest creatures on the planet.

The Mornington Peninsula is the ideal destination to escape to when searching for a return to relaxation and nature, while simultaneously providing an array of activities to keep visitors busy and entertained.

So, you’re thinking about engaging a management company for your holiday rental.  Maybe you just purchased an investment property, or you’re exploring ways to make some extra income from your holiday home.  It could be your first time dealing with holiday rentals, or perhaps you haven’t had success with a property management company before.

A question you might be wondering is — why shouldn’t I just do this myself?

While there are many owners who handle management themselves, it can be incredibly time-consuming.  To do it properly, you will need to be prepared to promote your property, field guest enquiries, organise professional photos, write and continually update a high-converting listing, understand algorithms, answer questions about the property, vet potential guests, follow up booking leads to convert more sales, optimise the property for search, continually review the pricing to maximise profit, set minimum night stays, juggle on-the-ground services like cleaning and maintenance, and then follow up for reviews.

Do we still have you? 😊

Engaging the right management company for your property can take the stress, endless tasks and marketing responsibilities off your plate – and give you the time back.  But before you proceed, make sure to ask these seven questions to know you’re getting everything you need.

1. How is holiday rental performance in the area?

You’re looking for a company who has a good feel for the local market.  A great property manager will know the ins and outs of your location — season and event demands, competing rates, what is most popular in the area, and how local regulations and trends affect the market.

Ask questions and feel out their responses.  If they have strong answers to your questions, you’ve probably found a solid manager who spends a good amount of time thinking about how to help their clients succeed.  Be particularly wary if you know about regulations in the area that they don’t – every manager should be fully aware of the status of local short-term rental regulations.

Importantly, don’t base their experience on years in the business – there are quite a few long-time property managers out there who haven’t kept up with changes in the industry and don’t perform well as a result.

2. What are your fees and contract terms?

Many holiday rental management fees range from 20-25%, plus channel fees, which means in the end you could be losing anywhere between 30-40% of your rental income.

Before hiring a property manager, do the math to determine whether you can afford to pay their total fee and still meet your rental income goals.

Contracts are the biggest sticking point for owners who have wound up with a poor property manager.  If you figure out in the first two months that the manager isn’t doing their job well, but you’re locked in for a year-long contract, you’re going to be very unhappy for the remaining ten months of that year.  You’ll also want to know the payment terms and timing. Some companies can take months to pay and, if you’re caught in an unfavourable contract, it can be a long time until you receive your rental income.

If a company requires a contract, ask whether there are any flexible out-clauses based on performance or poor service where you are able to leave their management without a penalty.

Ultimately you should make sure any agreement helps you build a solid long-term relationship with your property manager and a holiday rental business which prioritises guest experience over short-term profit.

3. What services are included in your Management Fees?

You’re hiring a holiday rental management company for the high level of service they provide, so you will want to know exactly what is included in their fees.  Specifically ask whether the fee covers marketing, professional photography, specialist copywriting, continually updating the listing, observing market trends, cleaning, maintenance, pre-stay inspections, and in-person visits for any issues that might arise during a guest’s stay.

You should also ask about anything which is not included in their fee – for example, some property management companies will charge an additional fee if one of their employees has to visit the property outside of business hours.

Excellent guest support should definitely not cost more.

4. How do you market my property?

This is an important one – make sure you understand their potential marketing plan – including the professional photography and optimised copywriting of your listing, framing your rental for current trends and the market, and how your property is promoted through channels and social media.

Some holiday rental management companies prefer to market their clients’ properties only on their own website.  These days, that’s not enough.  No matter how popular a local manager’s site is, it is never going to get the same amount of traffic as major online listing sites like Airbnb, HomeAway or Booking.com.  If you’re not listed on as many major sites, holiday home portals, online booking agencies and meta-search aggregators as possible, you’ll be missing out on a lot of potential guests.

Listen for words like “appear high in the search results” or “search engine optimisation” – these are good indicators your manager has put effort into raising and maintaining the profiles of both their own website and that of your property online.

Your manager should also actively seek reviews and follow up with guests to see if they want to book again next year. Ask your manager what they do to ensure repeat business and 5-star reviews to entice new guests to come and stay at your property.

5. When and how are guests able to book my property?

Holiday rental managers aren’t awake around the clock (which is fine, because most guests aren’t either) but they should be available when people are likely to be making their travel plans – ie. before work, after work, and on weekends.

If your manager is only available to make bookings from 9-5 on weekdays, the odds are very high you’ll be missing out on bookings from people who work standard office jobs.  Believe it or not, the ideal response time for enquiries is 15 minutes, so the bar is already quite high when it comes to the level of service required to actively convert enquiries into bookings.  Many holiday rental management companies have a 24-hour rule of thumb for response times – if that’s the case, you can almost guarantee you’re going to be losing business to someone else who responds faster.

You should also ask how guess are able to book.  The majority of guests prefer to book online, instantly – not over the phone or where they have to wait for their booking to be accepted.  If your manager isn’t up to date with these preferences and the technology required to enable instant online bookings, again, you’ll miss out on business.

6. How can we be sure our holiday home will be looked after?

Be sure to ask your potential holiday rental manager how they handle issues like broken dishes or missing items after a guest’s stay.  You’re looking for a manager who organises a post-stay inspection after every guest departs.  They should take photos of any damages for your records, and ensure the property is brought back up to optimal condition before the next guest arrives.

Your property manager isn’t expected to pay for damages out of pocket – that cost will come from the guest’s deposit or a damage protection policy.  However, your manager should notice the damage, report it, and liaise with the guest about retaining their deposit to cover the damage if necessary.

7. Can I speak to some of your current clients?

Always ask to speak with a few existing clients prior to signing a contract.  Previous and current owners can share details about working with the property manager and exactly what to expect from your arrangement.  If a manager is reluctant to give you references or isn’t enthusiastic about current clients speaking about their experience, that’s a sign this company isn’t going to be a good fit for you.  You should be able to hear or read success stories from customers who can endorse the company’s reputation.

IT’S TIME TO RETHINK HOLIDAY RENTAL MANAGEMENT

The traditional models of holiday rental management are outdated.  As we’ve covered, doing it yourself is a lot of work.  And unfortunately, working with traditional property management companies can mean less control with fees that can be hard to justify.

But there’s a better way.  You don’t have to do it all yourself.  And you definitely do not have to sign with an underperforming or overpriced property manager who may have become complacent in terms of where the short-term rental market has moved.

Bookabreak.com.au is different.  After two decades in the real estate industry, we are reshaping holiday rental management by increasing performance through our unique pricing data metrics platform.  We provide the latest technology which evolves with consumer behaviour.  And we give homeowners tailored performance-focused marketing support.  Not only does our instant booking platform allow us to greatly outperform traditional property managers, our local network partners are vetted to the highest standard to handle everything from housekeeping and linen to maintenance.  We hire specialists to create search-topping property listings, promptly handle all enquiries, arrange on-the-ground services, execute bookings, issue pre-stay communications and follow up requests for online reviews.  Basically, our unique approach and five-star service ensures a relaxing holiday for both owners and guests!

We also offer an intelligent industry competitive fee structure which is unique to any of our competitors.  Click here to find out more about how we can help you.