The Winter Amenities Guests Filter For, and What Each One Costs to Run

In a cold market, winter guests do not browse. They filter. Hot tub, fire pit, sauna, EV charger, each one is a checkbox on the search screen, and a listing without it drops out of the results before anybody sees a single photo.

That makes a winter amenity a visibility decision before it is a comfort decision. It is also two decisions most owners only make one of: what it costs to install, and what it costs to keep running once the novelty has worn off and somebody has to check it between every stay.

Our team manages 300+ properties across 50+ cities and 7 countries, so we see both halves. Here are the five winter amenities worth considering, what each one costs to add, and what each one adds to the job of operating the property.

1. The Hot Tub

The hot tub is one of the strongest amenities in short-term rentals. Airbnb lists it as the sixth most-searched amenity worldwide, and it has its own search filter.

It also shows up in revenue. AirROI data from 2026 puts the lift at about 11% of yearly revenue in Gatlinburg and about 27% in Big Bear. Those are two mountain markets with very different competitive sets, which is the first clue that this is a market by market decision rather than a portfolio-wide one.

A built-in spa is a construction project. It is not the only option. Inflatable hot tubs have improved a lot, and a four person Intex PureSpa runs about $800 and plugs into a regular 120V outlet, so there is no electrician to hire. It ticks the same box in the listing.

If you go inflatable, say so in the description. Guests should know exactly what they are getting, because the gap between the photo and the reality is where review scores go. In very cold weather give it extra time to heat before check-in, since the manufacturer notes the water heats slowly below 50 degrees. On a portfolio that is not a note, it is a scheduling rule: the heat-up has to start before the housekeeper leaves, which means it belongs on the turnover checklist with a name next to it.

That is the ongoing cost nobody prices. A hot tub is a recurring task at every single turnover, forever. If no one owns that task, the amenity that won you the booking is the thing that loses you the review.

2. A Fire Pit or Fireplace

A fire pit and an indoor fireplace are both search filters. They photograph well, and a fire pit adds another outdoor seating area without touching the footprint of the house.

They are not only for snowy markets. Our team is adding a fire pit at a Florida property, because a lit fire pit at dusk can be the photo that makes a guest click.

Costs run wide:

• Kits from Lowe's, Home Depot or Costco start around $500
• Custom builds with a new patio can reach $10,000
• Gas or wood both work. With wood, say in the listing whether you supply it or charge for it

Fire pits and hot tubs also need their own house rules: hours, who is allowed to light it, and what has to happen before everyone goes to bed. Write that language once and apply it across every property that has one, rather than letting each listing carry a slightly different version. And if you supply the wood, somebody is restocking it, which is another line on the turnover list.

3. The Sauna

Saunas are one of the fastest growing amenities in short-term rentals, and sauna has its own filter on Airbnb.

Prices have come down. Costco sells a two person outdoor barrel sauna for about $3,000, and indoor infrared units start around $1,800.

The catch is the setup and everything after it. Outdoor barrel saunas run on 240V, so budget for an electrician on top of the purchase price. A sauna also brings ongoing maintenance and more liability than a fire pit does. It looks excellent in photos and it is a bigger commitment than it first appears, which is why we would want it in one or two properties and performing before anyone rolls it out across a portfolio.

4. An EV Charger and Covered Parking

EV charger is its own filter, same as hot tub and sauna. AirDNA data shows EV chargers add about 6.8% to nightly rates in areas where public charging is hard to find.

Winter sharpens that. According to AAA, an electric car loses about 41% of its range at 20 degrees with the heat running, so winter guests often arrive with a low battery and a short temper about it.

A Level 2 charger, the faster kind used at home, runs about $800 to $2,500 installed, and more if the electrical panel needs an upgrade. Whoever answers messages needs to know the connector type and whether there is a fee, because that question arrives at 10pm from a car park, not at 10am from a desk.

Parking matters too. Free parking is expected at most vacation rentals, but covered parking stands out in snow and ice. If the property has no garage, a carport can be a real selling point.

5. Reliable Heat, and the Cheap Extras

Reliable heat is not optional. Heating or air conditioning is the fourth most-searched amenity on Airbnb worldwide.

If one room runs cold, fix it permanently instead of leaving a space heater in the corner. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, space heaters cause 3% of home heating fires but 41% of heating fire deaths, and insurers take note of that. A DIY 12,000 BTU mini split heat pump heats one room at a time, costs about $2,360, and runs on a standard 115V circuit. Across a portfolio, a space heater sitting in a guest bedroom is a standing risk rather than a temporary fix, and it is worth knowing which properties still have one.

Then come the cheap extras that win bookings on photos alone:

• Extra blankets and board games for cold nights in
• A hot cocoa station next to the coffee setup, which goes a long way with families
• An electric fireplace, inexpensive and excellent in photos
• A boot dryer if you are near a ski resort

Whatever you add, list it in your amenities and show it in your photos. The filter reads the amenities list, not the description, so an amenity you own but never ticked is an amenity you are not being found for. We make that check part of the winter pass we run on every listing, alongside the rest of the seasonal prep we covered in our piece on preparing a property for winter guests.

Run the Numbers Before Anyone Buys Anything

You do not need all five. The right amenity depends on the market, the guest, and the budget. A hot tub in Big Bear is a different decision from a sauna in a beach town, and an amenity that is standard in your market is an entry fee rather than an advantage.

Before you spend, compare the cost against what the amenity is likely to add in bookings and nightly rate, and then add what it costs to operate for a year. We laid out the comparison method in our piece on choosing amenities, and the budgeting side in our real world furniture breakdown.

What We Would Check Across a Portfolio This Week

Which cold market properties are missing a filter that most of their competitors have. Whether every amenity you already own is actually ticked in the listing amenities list, since that is what the filter reads. Whether the photos show it, and whether it appears in the first five. Who owns the hot tub check, the fire pit reset and the wood restock at turnover, by name. Whether the house rules for the hot tub and the fire pit are the same wording everywhere. Whether any property is still relying on a space heater as a permanent fix. And whether the winter extras are stocked before the first cold week rather than after it.

None of it is complicated. It is a short list per property, multiplied by however many properties you have, and the difference between an amenity that earns its cost and one that simply sits there is almost always whether somebody is maintaining it.

Want help setting up your STR for long-term performance? The team at Corzly manages properties across multiple markets and helps operators build the systems that drive results. Reach out here.

This article was inspired by Episode 363 of the Short-Term Rental Riches podcast.