Hot Tubs for Holiday Lets

In the world of holiday letting, you want to give your property the best chance to stand out over the rest.

Luckily for you, there are a few quick wins you can utilise to ensure that your property has the best chance of succeeding. Adding luxury items to your holiday home such as pizza ovens, swimming pools and even a bar can entice your guests to choose your property. 

But even among these examples, the best feature to help your property stand out from the crowd and shoulders above the rest is a hot tub. 

Key benefits of utilising a hot tub

1. Usable all year round

Most people tend to think of hot tubs as a winter prop to warm up guests, but this is a misconception.

Hot tubs tend to drive bookings all year round. No matter what time of year it is, hot tubs can help bolster bookings in property.

According to Sykes Staycation Index data, the most-searched property features on the Sykes website in 2024 are hot tubs.

Whether its a relaxing dip on a cool summer's evening, or a bone-warming unwind on a nippy winter's day, guests will love the hot tub. 

2. They can increase low season bookings

You may find that your property may not draw in as many bookings as it would during the winter months. 

As mentioned in our first point, a hot tub can provide you with bookings all year round, which in-turn, can improve your chance of attracting guests and may even drive low season bookings.

As the weather gets colder, a hot tub will become a feature that is well sought-after in properties across the UK. 

3. Stand out over your competitors

Although holiday letting is a fantastic investment, you will find that there will be some competition when trying to attract guests. 

One of the best ways to stand out above your competition is by having a hot tub. This could give the edge over your competitors.

But what if your competitor also has a hot tub?

Try placing your hot tub in an area with the best view, or with the most attractive surroundings. Maybe even place a minibar close by.

Getting the most out of your hot tub

There are tons of ways you can improve your hot tub setting to make your guests' stay even more exciting. 

Mini Bar

Having a mini bar close by to the hot tub will alleviate any effort required from your guests to top up their beverages. 

Adding a stocked minibar to the vicinity of your hot tub can elevate the atmosphere significantly. 

You can even go as far as adding local beverages in the minibar to make the experience that little more unique.

Views 

Not every property can offer the luxury of stunning views, but unfortunately, a hot tub staring at a concrete wall just isn’t very exciting. 

If your property boasts some of the best views around, ensure that these views can be taken in from the point of view of the hot tub. If you aren't lucky enough to have these surroundings, try to make the area as welcoming as possible.

Your guests and their social media pages will thank you for it!

Keep it Private

Privacy is key to ensuring that your guests have the most comfortable stay possible. This should be thought of in every area of the property. 

However, for the hot tub and any changing areas, this should be considered with greater care. With your guests being more exposed than in most other places of the property, ensure they will be free from general eyesight. 

Scenery 

If you want to make your hot tub experience stand out from the competition, try adding some scenery to your hot tubs surroundings.

Some fairy lights and other outdoor lighting can make the experience feel more luxurious, homely and comforting (especially when getting in and out of the tub). 

Solar powered outdoor lighting can be found for an inexpensive cost in many appliance stores around the UK. The best part is that because they are solar powered, they do not require any additional energy costs. 

Hot Tub Maintenance for Holiday Lets

When it comes to maintaining your hot tub, there are many things to consider.Unfortunately, you can’t just simply fill up your hot tub and wait for the water to heat up. Hot tubs do require a certain level of attention and care. 

Checking on your PH levels and sanitation 

With guests coming and going, it’s important to keep the water hygienic to help protect all of your guests. 

Sanitiser - To keep the water clean and bacteria free, you can deploy a small diffuser filled with specialist hot tub sanitizer. 

PH - Your hot tub will need a PH level between 7.2 and 7.8. You can manage your PH level with PH increaser granules. If you don’t maintain a healthy PH level, your guests may suffer itchiness and eye burn. 

On top of this, your sanitizer will be less affective and the acidity levels in your water can damage several parts of your hot tub.  

Chlorine and Bromine - Ensuring that your water is clean is crucial. Chlorine and Bromine are two of the popular choices for hot tub cleanliness. These will help stop the water getting dirty and they also act as a disinfectant. 

Warning: Be sure to use hot tub specific cleaning products on your hot tub. Regular household cleaning products may cause irritation to your guests and damage to your hot tub. 

Cleaning your hot tub 

It is essential that you clean your hot tub to ensure that your guests do not leave your property with infections or any illnesses. Cleaning your tub will help maintain its lifespan, saving you from investing in a replacement. 

To effectively clean your hot tub, you will firstly need to drain it and then give all surfaces a good scrub. 

When you go to refill your tub, ensure that you are adding the right amount of chlorine/bromine as well as adjusting the PH levels. 

As with most water features, your hot tub will have a filter. Although this will only need to be changed once a year, it is worth giving it a check to ensure that it is functioning properly. You can even give this a clean upon every check. 

For more information, why not read our ultimate guide to holiday let cleaning.

Servicing your hot tub 

As hot tubs are not the cheapest feature to include in your holiday let, it’s important to get it checked over once in a while. After all, you will want to get the best lifespan possible out of your hot tub. 

Contact a local supplier or holiday let maintenance service, such as Archpress, about getting your hot tub serviced on a regular basis. Through a hot tub specialist, they will ensure that your hot tub is deep cleaned as well as ensuring that your system is working soundly. 

If you’d like to learn more about what a holiday let maintenance company can offer you, visit Archpress and find out more about their priority service scheme, where Sykes owners can claim an exclusive 10% discount on all hot tub maintenance services.

Health and Safety for Hot Tubs

Although hot tubs are great fun for your guests and will enhance their experience whilst staying at your property, there are some ground rules that you will need to establish. 

It’s important that the safety guidelines are given to your guests in a clear and concise way to help minimise any accidents. 

You can find out more about general health and safety requirements for holiday lets here. 

Slippery Surfaces

As your guests get in and out of the hot tub, the surfaces can become extremely slippery. This is one of the biggest causes of injury with hot tubs and swimming pools. 

You can limit any risk of injury by implementing non-slip surfaces such as non-slip tiling, mats or even tape. Decking around your hot tub, or non-slip sand paint will also help prevent any injury from wet surfaces.

Glassware

Glassware around a hot tub can be very dangerous. Glass bottles or any drinking glasses can get smashed very easily in and around the hot tub area. 

We suggest providing plastic cups to be used when guests are using the hot tub.

Adult Supervision

Although children aren’t the primary audience for your hot tub, they do provide some entertainment for your younger guests. 

Make it clear that any unattended children should not use the hot tub and advise that anyone under the age of 5 should not use the hot tub at all. 

Overcrowding

For safety reasons, the amount of people that a hot tub can hold is limited. Overcrowding in a hot tub can cause damage to the structure as well as the mechanics. 

Check the limit for your hot tub and pass the information onto your guests through a guest information pack.

Storage

As a hot tub owner, your hot tub will need various amounts of chemicals to keep it working effectively. These chemicals are poisonous if consumed.

To avoid any fatal incidents, keep the chemicals away from your guests, particularly children. 

Hot Tub Regulations for Holiday Lets

It’s important to lay down some ground rules for your holiday let hot tub, as it could be your property's most valuable asset.

Shower Time

Did you know that shampoos, detergents or any other cosmetics on your guests can have a negative impact on your hot tub? 

Encourage your guests to take a quick rinse before and after using the hot tub. 

Reusable Cups

Glass around a hot tub can be extremely dangerous. Smashed glass can cause incredible harm to your guests. 

If your holiday home includes a mini bar, providing reusable plastic alternatives to glass cups can help minimise any harm that your guests may potentially face. 

All holiday cottages are subject to specific holiday let rules and regulations. As an owner, it’s important to know and understand the legal requirements for letting your holiday home.

For more insight into what you need to know as a holiday let owner, take a look at our holiday let rules and regulations.

Caring for the Hot Tub

Any real care for your hot tub should be taken care of by yourself or management services. However, there are a couple of things that your guests need to consider when using your hot tub. 

Firstly, ensuring that the lid has been fastened to the top of the hot tub is essential. A strong breeze could end up lifting the lid, leaving it exposed to debris and other unwanted rubbish. As well as this, it cost more in energy to keep the hot tub at it’s right temperature. 

With temperature in mind, our second point is to maintain the ideal water temperature. A hot tub should be heated anywhere between 35°c and 39°c. Anything above this is considered unsafe. 

Lastly, encourage your guests to respect your hot tub. This will help prolong the lifespan of the tub.

Which Hot Tub Should you Buy?

When buying your hot tub, you will need to be sure to buy one that is low maintenance and also comply with legal requirements.

Due to the nature of holiday letting, you will be having many different people using your hot tub over a short period of time. This means that the hot tub can be open to infectious diseases including legionella. 

To comply with legal requirements as well as limiting the risk of infection, you will need to ensure that the hot tub you purchase is HSG282 Compliant.

Eco Friendly Hot Tubs

For those looking to provide an eco-friendly experience, the Wellis hot tub is a good choice. Some of the benefits of installing a sustainable hot tub include:

• Environmentally friendly heat pump saving owners 85% on energy cost By a similar principle, the heat pump system is also capable of partially recycling the residual heat, which significantly reduced the heat demand of the technology from external supply.

• Flexible finance option to pay in weekly or monthly instalments and option to swap hot tubs after 3-5 years for a new one

• Dedicated owner app to control the hot tub and option to turn off after a certain time

• Exclusive Sykes owner discount offering up to 25% on Wellis hot tubs

• Wellis hot tubs feature an additional air heat pump that owners can purchase, reducing average changeover times to 1 hour 20 minutes instead of 4-6 hours

• If you sign up with Wellis, they can remove your old hot tub for £60 and will plant 3 trees in your name per hot tub

For more advice on going green, read our ultimate guide to eco-friendly holiday letting.

Cost of Running a Hot Tub 

Unfortunately, there is no definitive answer to estimate the cost of a hot tub for your holiday let. There are many variables that can change the cost significantly. Here are some things you need to consider: 

• Branding of the hot tub

• Size of the hot tub

• Water rates

• Energy rates 

• Cleaning chemicals

• Servicing of the hot tub 

With all this in mind, you will need to remember that buying a hot tub could help improve your holiday let occupancy rates.

DisclaimerAs a holiday letting owner you are responsible for compliance with health & safety laws, regulations and guidance, and for having suitable insurances in place (not Sykes Holiday Cottages or its brands (Sykes)). From time to time, Sykes shares information with you on the topic of health and safety and insurance. When it does so, it is not providing you with advice (legal, financial, tax or otherwise); please seek your own as you see fit. In addition, it is not making any representations or warranties about the information being complete or free from errors or inaccuracies. Sykes shall not be liable for any loss or damage arising under or in connection with your reliance on it.