The Things We Considered Before Hosting Primrose Farm

When we first started talking about opening Primrose Farm to guests, I think we both had a mix of excitement and hesitation.

Like most people, we had plenty of questions.

Would people actually want to stay there?

Would it become too much work?

Would we lose the feeling of the farmhouse being “ours”?

And realistically — could it actually help support the costs of owning a second property?

I think it’s important to say this honestly: hosting isn’t completely effortless, but it’s also far more achievable and rewarding than many people probably expect.

For us, the positives have absolutely outweighed the negatives.

One of the biggest considerations was protecting the character of Primrose Farm itself.

We didn’t want to create something overly commercial or turn the farmhouse into a place that felt impersonal. It was important that it still felt warm, comfortable and connected to the property’s history and surroundings.

In many ways, that became the biggest surprise about hosting.

Guests genuinely appreciate places that feel thoughtful and authentic. People are looking for experiences that feel different from standard accommodation — somewhere they can slow down, reconnect and enjoy time with family and friends.

Another consideration was time.

We both work, our girls are in school in Brisbane, and like most families life is busy. We were conscious that we didn’t want hosting to become stressful or feel like a second full-time job.

What we quickly realised is that platforms like Airbnb and Stayz offer a lot more flexibility than people think. You can choose when to open your property, how often you host, and how involved you want to be. For us, that flexibility has been one of the biggest advantages.

Primrose Farm is still very much our family’s place, but now it’s also something other people get to experience and enjoy when we’re not there.

Of course, there are practical things to think about too.

Cleaning, maintenance, communication with guests, and making sure the property is always presented well all take effort. There are also quieter periods at times, and like any business or investment, you need to approach it thoughtfully.

Financially, it has helped make owning and improving Primrose Farm more sustainable long term. But beyond that, there’s also something genuinely rewarding about seeing people enjoy the property the same way we do.

Some of our favourite messages from guests have simply been about how relaxed they felt after a weekend away, how much they enjoyed the open space, or how nice it was to reconnect with family without distractions.

That’s probably what hosting changed most for us. Primrose Farm stopped being somewhere that sat empty between visits and became something shared. And for anyone considering opening up their own property, I’d probably say this...you don’t need to have everything perfect before you start. You just need to create a place people feel good being in. Clean, comfortable and well looked after.

For us, hosting has never been about creating a luxury retreat or building a large accommodation business. It’s been about making the property work in a practical and meaningful way while still protecting everything we love about it.

And honestly, it’s been one of the most rewarding parts of the Primrose Farm journey so far.