How to Design a Coastal STR Without Turning It Into a Beach Gift Shop
Most of our STR design projects are right here in Nashville and Middle Tennessee, but there is something about designing a coastal property that will always feel a little familiar to me.
I was raised on a small island off the Gulf Coast of Florida, and I think there are certain places you don’t just remember. You remember how they felt.
The ocean is like that for me.
It’s the air. The sound of water somewhere nearby. Bare feet. Windows open. Everything a little faded from the sun. The colors of sand and shells and water changing depending on the time of day.
Even now, I can walk into a well-designed coastal space miles away from the ocean and something about the right colors and textures brings me right back there.
That’s what I think the best coastal design gets right.
It doesn’t try to look like the ocean.
It reminds you how it feels to be near it.
And there’s a pretty significant difference between the two.
You can fill a room with anchors, seashells, blue stripes and signs announcing that you’re at the BEACH, but none of those things necessarily create the feeling people traveled there for.
A great coastal STR should feel connected to what is happening just outside its doors.
So if you’re designing one, start there.
1. Start With the Coast You’re Actually On
There isn’t one version of coastal.
A cottage in Maine shouldn’t look like a condo on the Gulf Coast of Florida. A home in the Outer Banks shouldn’t automatically look like one in Southern California.
Before choosing a color palette or ordering furniture, look outside.
What colors are actually there? What grows there? What are the houses traditionally built from? Is the landscape bright and tropical, quiet and marshy, rocky and weathered, or soft and sandy?
Let the destination tell you what the property wants to be.
That’s almost always more interesting than typing “coastal living room” into Pinterest and recreating whatever comes up first.
2. Steal Your Color Palette From Nature
Look at sand.
Driftwood. Sea grass. Limestone. Shells. Cloudy skies. Clear water. Deep water. Faded coral. Mangroves. Sea glass.
Even white behaves differently near the coast. It tends to feel warmer and softer against all those natural colors.
Blue doesn’t always have to do all the heavy lifting. ;)
The best coastal palettes often feel like they were collected from outside rather than selected from a paint display.
And creating one from what you see around the property is easier than you might think. Take a photo of the landscape, the water, the view from the balcony, or even a handful of things you’ve collected outside, and use AI to pull the colors directly from it. We show you exactly how to do that in How to Use AI to Create the Perfect Color Palette in Seconds.
3. Let Texture Do More of the Work
If you want a room to feel coastal without filling it with coastal decorations, texture is your best friend.
Linen. Cotton. Cane. Rattan. Jute. Woven baskets. Natural wood. Stone. Plaster.
These materials give a room movement and warmth without requiring anything to literally reference the ocean.
A woven chair beside a linen curtain can say more about the coast than an entire wall of framed seashells.
And thankfully, nobody has to read a sign reminding them to “RELAX.”
4. Let Things Feel a Little Sun-Washed
Coastal environments naturally soften things.
Wood fades. Fabric lightens. Colors mellow. Nothing feels quite as crisp and untouched as it did when it came out of the box.
You can recreate some of that softness through muted colors, natural finishes, vintage pieces and materials that will age gracefully.
The goal isn’t to make the property look old.
It’s to make it feel like it has settled into its surroundings.
5. Give the Room Space to Breathe
One of the quickest ways to lose the feeling of the coast is to put too much stuff in the room.
You don’t have to decorate every wall.
Every corner doesn’t need a plant.
Every coffee table doesn’t need seven carefully stacked objects.
Leave some space.
Keep sightlines open where you can. Let windows do their job. Choose window treatments that don’t unnecessarily fight the sunlight. Arrange furniture so people can move easily through the room.
There is something inherently spacious about being near the water.
The inside of the property should get to breathe too.
If you’re trying to figure out what a room actually needs versus what you’re adding simply because the room feels unfinished, that’s a whole conversation of its own. We’re putting together another article on How to Know When a Room Is Actually Finished and why sometimes the thing a space needs most is for you to stop adding to it.
6. Design for Bare Feet
This is one of those things that’s easy to miss when you’re designing primarily with photographs in mind.
How does the property actually feel?
Guests at a coastal STR are going to spend a lot of time barefoot. They’re going to come inside warm from the sun. They’re going to curl up on the sofa after being outside all day. They’re going to climb into bed exhausted.
Think about what they’re touching.
Cool tile. Wood floors. Soft washable rugs. Linen bedding. Comfortable upholstery. Really good towels.
Some of the most memorable parts of a space aren’t things we see at all.
They’re things we feel.
7. Give Guests Somewhere to Drop the Beach
The beach will come inside.
This isn’t pessimism. It’s sand.
Design accordingly.
Give guests hooks for towels. Baskets for loose things. Somewhere to leave sandals. A bench where they can sit down. A designated place for beach bags. Easy storage for whatever beach equipment the property provides.
If the property allows for an outdoor shower or rinse-off area, even better.
This is where designing an STR is different from simply decorating a pretty house.
The property has to work.
A gorgeous entryway stops being gorgeous pretty quickly when eight people have nowhere to put wet towels, flip-flops and bags full of sandy beach toys.
Plan for real life before real life arrives.
8. Choose Materials That Can Survive the Vacation
Vacation homes take a beating.
People use them differently than they use their own homes. Add sunscreen, salt water, sand, wet bathing suits, children and the occasional mysterious substance nobody will admit spilling, and durability becomes part of the design.
That doesn’t mean everything has to be ugly and indestructible.
It means choosing beauty intelligently.
Performance fabrics. Washable slipcovers. Durable rugs. Forgiving wood finishes. Bedding that can actually be laundered regularly. Pieces that can be repaired or replaced without dismantling the entire design.
White bouclé may whisper “luxury coastal retreat.”
Six children covered in sunscreen may have other plans.
There’s actually quite a bit to consider here beyond fabric choice, especially in a short-term rental. We’ll dig deeper into How to Choose STR Furniture That Can Take a Beating Without Looking Like It Can Take a Beating in another article.
9. Give Them One Place They’ll Remember
Not every corner needs to become an Instagram moment.
I’d rather create one place guests can’t help but remember.
Maybe it’s two chairs positioned perfectly for sunset.
Maybe it’s a breakfast nook flooded with morning light.
Maybe it’s an outdoor shower surrounded by greenery, a porch swing everyone fights over, a bunk room the kids immediately claim, or a balcony with two chairs and nowhere else you’re supposed to be.
Find the moment the property naturally wants to give people.
Then make it really good.
Because that may become the place where they drink their coffee every morning.
Where someone proposes.
Where a child falls asleep after swimming all day.
Where a family sits around talking long after everyone should have gone to bed.
Good STR design doesn’t just photograph well.
It gives life somewhere good to happen.
10. Stop Before It Becomes a Theme
This may be the most important coastal design advice I can give you.
Know when to stop.
One literal reference to the coast can be charming.
Ten of them start looking like you’ve opened a gift shop.
Do one final walk through the property and ask what can come out.
The architecture, colors, materials, light and textures should already be telling the story.
Trust them.
The space should complement the coast, not compete with it.
Let what’s outside be the star.
What They’ll Actually Remember
When I think about growing up on that little island off the Gulf Coast, I don’t remember what color the sofa was.
I remember mangoes.
To this day, as soon as I see the ocean, I crave them.
I remember bare feet.
I remember thunderstorms. The kind that roll in and take over the whole sky. I’ve lived in a lot of places since, and no place in the world does a thunderstorm justice quite like Southwest Florida.
I remember watching the sun set over the beach.
And later, heading back to the condo, arming the kids with ice cream cones and flashlights, and walking back down the beach after dark to look for ghost crabs.
Those are the things that stayed.
Memories attach themselves to smells and sounds and textures. To something you ate. The feeling of the floor under your feet. A certain kind of light. A storm rolling in.
And years later, one little thing can bring the whole place rushing back.
That’s what I think is worth remembering when we design a short-term rental.
We’re creating the backdrop for somebody else’s memories.
The sofa matters. The linens matter. The lighting, paint colors and rug under their bare feet matter.
But none of those things are the point.
The life that happens around them is.
That’s the kind of place I want to help create.
Not one that simply looks like the coast.
One that becomes part of what they remember about it.
Continue Reading
How to Use AI to Create the Perfect Color Palette in Seconds
Start With the One Thing You Love
The Things Guests Notice That Never Make the Listing Photos
How to Design a Coastal STR Without Turning It Into a Beach Gift Shop
Most of our STR design projects are right here in Nashville and Middle Tennessee, but there is something about designing a coastal property that will always feel a little familiar to me.
I was raised on a small island off the Gulf Coast of Florida, and I think there are certain places you don’t just remember. You remember how they felt.
The ocean is like that for me.
It’s the air. The sound of water somewhere nearby. Bare feet. Windows open. Everything a little faded from the sun. The colors of sand and shells and water changing depending on the time of day.
Even now, I can walk into a well-designed coastal space miles away from the ocean and something about the right colors and textures brings me right back there.
That’s what I think the best coastal design gets right.
It doesn’t try to look like the ocean.
It reminds you how it feels to be near it.
And there’s a pretty significant difference between the two.
You can fill a room with anchors, seashells, blue stripes and signs announcing that you’re at the BEACH, but none of those things necessarily create the feeling people traveled there for.
A great coastal STR should feel connected to what is happening just outside its doors.
So if you’re designing one, start there.
1. Start With the Coast You’re Actually On
There isn’t one version of coastal.
A cottage in Maine shouldn’t look like a condo on the Gulf Coast of Florida. A home in the Outer Banks shouldn’t automatically look like one in Southern California.
Before choosing a color palette or ordering furniture, look outside.
What colors are actually there? What grows there? What are the houses traditionally built from? Is the landscape bright and tropical, quiet and marshy, rocky and weathered, or soft and sandy?
Let the destination tell you what the property wants to be.
That’s almost always more interesting than typing “coastal living room” into Pinterest and recreating whatever comes up first.
2. Steal Your Color Palette From Nature
Look at sand.
Driftwood. Sea grass. Limestone. Shells. Cloudy skies. Clear water. Deep water. Faded coral. Mangroves. Sea glass.
Even white behaves differently near the coast. It tends to feel warmer and softer against all those natural colors.
Blue doesn’t always have to do all the heavy lifting. ;)
The best coastal palettes often feel like they were collected from outside rather than selected from a paint display.
And creating one from what you see around the property is easier than you might think. Take a photo of the landscape, the water, the view from the balcony, or even a handful of things you’ve collected outside, and use AI to pull the colors directly from it. We show you exactly how to do that in How to Use AI to Create the Perfect Color Palette in Seconds.
3. Let Texture Do More of the Work
If you want a room to feel coastal without filling it with coastal decorations, texture is your best friend.
Linen. Cotton. Cane. Rattan. Jute. Woven baskets. Natural wood. Stone. Plaster.
These materials give a room movement and warmth without requiring anything to literally reference the ocean.
A woven chair beside a linen curtain can say more about the coast than an entire wall of framed seashells.
And thankfully, nobody has to read a sign reminding them to “RELAX.”
4. Let Things Feel a Little Sun-Washed
Coastal environments naturally soften things.
Wood fades. Fabric lightens. Colors mellow. Nothing feels quite as crisp and untouched as it did when it came out of the box.
You can recreate some of that softness through muted colors, natural finishes, vintage pieces and materials that will age gracefully.
The goal isn’t to make the property look old.
It’s to make it feel like it has settled into its surroundings.
5. Give the Room Space to Breathe
One of the quickest ways to lose the feeling of the coast is to put too much stuff in the room.
You don’t have to decorate every wall.
Every corner doesn’t need a plant.
Every coffee table doesn’t need seven carefully stacked objects.
Leave some space.
Keep sightlines open where you can. Let windows do their job. Choose window treatments that don’t unnecessarily fight the sunlight. Arrange furniture so people can move easily through the room.
There is something inherently spacious about being near the water.
The inside of the property should get to breathe too.
If you’re trying to figure out what a room actually needs versus what you’re adding simply because the room feels unfinished, that’s a whole conversation of its own. We’re putting together another article on How to Know When a Room Is Actually Finished and why sometimes the thing a space needs most is for you to stop adding to it.
6. Design for Bare Feet
This is one of those things that’s easy to miss when you’re designing primarily with photographs in mind.
How does the property actually feel?
Guests at a coastal STR are going to spend a lot of time barefoot. They’re going to come inside warm from the sun. They’re going to curl up on the sofa after being outside all day. They’re going to climb into bed exhausted.
Think about what they’re touching.
Cool tile. Wood floors. Soft washable rugs. Linen bedding. Comfortable upholstery. Really good towels.
Some of the most memorable parts of a space aren’t things we see at all.
They’re things we feel.
7. Give Guests Somewhere to Drop the Beach
The beach will come inside.
This isn’t pessimism. It’s sand.
Design accordingly.
Give guests hooks for towels. Baskets for loose things. Somewhere to leave sandals. A bench where they can sit down. A designated place for beach bags. Easy storage for whatever beach equipment the property provides.
If the property allows for an outdoor shower or rinse-off area, even better.
This is where designing an STR is different from simply decorating a pretty house.
The property has to work.
A gorgeous entryway stops being gorgeous pretty quickly when eight people have nowhere to put wet towels, flip-flops and bags full of sandy beach toys.
Plan for real life before real life arrives.
8. Choose Materials That Can Survive the Vacation
Vacation homes take a beating.
People use them differently than they use their own homes. Add sunscreen, salt water, sand, wet bathing suits, children and the occasional mysterious substance nobody will admit spilling, and durability becomes part of the design.
That doesn’t mean everything has to be ugly and indestructible.
It means choosing beauty intelligently.
Performance fabrics. Washable slipcovers. Durable rugs. Forgiving wood finishes. Bedding that can actually be laundered regularly. Pieces that can be repaired or replaced without dismantling the entire design.
White bouclé may whisper “luxury coastal retreat.”
Six children covered in sunscreen may have other plans.
There’s actually quite a bit to consider here beyond fabric choice, especially in a short-term rental. We’ll dig deeper into How to Choose STR Furniture That Can Take a Beating Without Looking Like It Can Take a Beating in another article.
9. Give Them One Place They’ll Remember
Not every corner needs to become an Instagram moment.
I’d rather create one place guests can’t help but remember.
Maybe it’s two chairs positioned perfectly for sunset.
Maybe it’s a breakfast nook flooded with morning light.
Maybe it’s an outdoor shower surrounded by greenery, a porch swing everyone fights over, a bunk room the kids immediately claim, or a balcony with two chairs and nowhere else you’re supposed to be.
Find the moment the property naturally wants to give people.
Then make it really good.
Because that may become the place where they drink their coffee every morning.
Where someone proposes.
Where a child falls asleep after swimming all day.
Where a family sits around talking long after everyone should have gone to bed.
Good STR design doesn’t just photograph well.
It gives life somewhere good to happen.
10. Stop Before It Becomes a Theme
This may be the most important coastal design advice I can give you.
Know when to stop.
One literal reference to the coast can be charming.
Ten of them start looking like you’ve opened a gift shop.
Do one final walk through the property and ask what can come out.
The architecture, colors, materials, light and textures should already be telling the story.
Trust them.
The space should complement the coast, not compete with it.
Let what’s outside be the star.
What They’ll Actually Remember
When I think about growing up on that little island off the Gulf Coast, I don’t remember what color the sofa was.
I remember mangoes.
To this day, as soon as I see the ocean, I crave them.
I remember bare feet.
I remember thunderstorms. The kind that roll in and take over the whole sky. I’ve lived in a lot of places since, and no place in the world does a thunderstorm justice quite like Southwest Florida.
I remember watching the sun set over the beach.
And later, heading back to the condo, arming the kids with ice cream cones and flashlights, and walking back down the beach after dark to look for ghost crabs.
Those are the things that stayed.
Memories attach themselves to smells and sounds and textures. To something you ate. The feeling of the floor under your feet. A certain kind of light. A storm rolling in.
And years later, one little thing can bring the whole place rushing back.
That’s what I think is worth remembering when we design a short-term rental.
We’re creating the backdrop for somebody else’s memories.
The sofa matters. The linens matter. The lighting, paint colors and rug under their bare feet matter.
But none of those things are the point.
The life that happens around them is.
That’s the kind of place I want to help create.
Not one that simply looks like the coast.
One that becomes part of what they remember about it.
Continue Reading
How to Use AI to Create the Perfect Color Palette in Seconds
Start With the One Thing You Love
The Things Guests Notice That Never Make the Listing Photos