The Hosting Masterclass

01/10/2026

Hi it’s still me Emma of hibiki_haus and while I’ve got the keys to the THM insta, I thought I’d continue to show some love to our members via the Handbook of Hosts.

Seriously a treasure trove of the BEST airbnbs around the world and my go-to whenever I’m lucky enough to travel.

Today I found this super cute gem located in Victoria in the Otway Ranges.

*funfact : my family spent every school holidays in the Otways visiting our grandparents in Apollo Bay. The rainforest is incredible 🌿🌳and we used to ‘sail’ handmade wooden sailboats down the river with my Grandpa. I wish I still had them. RIP Cyril ⛵️❤️

dufflebird_getaways is “a Steam: Train Carriage with a wonderful past. Hosts Mike & Fleur, spent over nine months restoring the carriage, including careful use of salvaged materials to create a completely original interior. Seeing the absolute delight of their guests experiencing Steam for the first time never tires, it truly is the perfect getaway for those looking for something extra special.”

They’ve just been featured in Country Style so let’s show Mike & Fleur some love! 🤎

23/09/2026

Introducing : Forty Beach.
- a shack built for two just 45mins from Hobart, Simone has brought to life briny, Cape Cod vibes with a touch of seafaring romance amongst the seagrass at Connelly's Marsh in southern Tasmania.

There is something quietly magical about the southern tip of Australia, personally I feel a sense of renewal every time I dip into those oh-so-salty seas that doesn't happen anywhere else in the world.

Let's show Simone and her beautiful creation some love 🛟⛱️🦪

22/09/2026

📣 60% off Lodgify this week only. Friends, a little partnership news, and a big thank-you to go with it!

When the industry shifted this year we did what we always do: we asked the community. Thousands of our graduates compared channel managers in our private hosting forum, and the clear winner, by a landslide, was Lodgify.

Real humans on support, tools that behave, and no tech degree required.

So we’ve teamed up, and from now until 30 September our community gets 60% off with the code HOSTING60. Everything you need to make the move, the free trial, the walk through and the code, is at the first link in our bio.

Always in your corner, team THM ❤️

15/09/2026

Why does professional photography matter?*

If you're new to hosting, it's a fair question. You've already outlaid a small (or large) fortune setting up your magnificent pile and now at the last hurdle, there's one more significant outlay.

Firstly, composition. Photographers are artists - they see the world through a unique lens (philosophically and metaphorically) and how they compose a picture can completely change the viewer's perspective.

Secondly, light. It's literally in the name - 'phos or photos' means light, 'grapho' means write in Greek - photographers are masters at writing with light. No matter how good my iphone might be at capturing some beautiful moments at Hibiki Haus, it is no comparison with what and others have captured.

Finally, they tell stories with pictures for a living. The saying 'a picture tells the story of a thousand words' is an axiom for a reason.

If you haven't got the budget to pay for professional photography in the beginning, do a callout on social media offering a free stay in exchange for photos - you'll be amazed with the number of enormously talented people out there who will help you.

All photos in this carousel by the wonderful

*in the humble opinion of me, Emma

📷

14/09/2026

09/09/2026

Featuring another hosting masterclass alum ninapatinametalworks who’s beautiful Huon Valley store is a must visit any time I head down south.

02/09/2026

Let me introduce the stunning 💫🐚

Rosie has created the most gorgeous holiday home in Port Stephens in NSW - full of nourishment and love, I can just feel the salty air on my skin from here!

Her ethos is similar to , 55 Port Stephens is perfect for those looking for quiet nights under the stars, sunrises, sunsets, full moons over the water, wildlife, connection and time with your favourite people.

My kinda place. 🐚🦞🌊

28/08/2026

1. Why here? What is your guest’s why? What are they escaping from or running towards? Hibiki Haus is ‘escape from the noise (mental, physical)’

2. Why now? Is it seasonal? Is it experiential? EG: it’s snowing so get cozy or, celebrate your love and get married here.

3. Why this place? What is unique about your offering? Hibiki Haus is a secret garden in a forest, at the bottom of the world.

4. Compression and release. Film your spaces with this is mind. Tight focus shots with action, wider establishing shots to set the scene. Edit them to flow from compression (tight) to release (wide).

5. Trending audio helps but is not a guarantee so choose music that reflects your vibe and be consistent

I hope that helps! I’m certainly no expert but these are the storytelling non-negotiables I live by that seem to be working this month (1.8M views and climbing 😳)

Save this post for future edit sessions and let me know your techniques for storytelling on Insta. 💫✨😊

27/08/2026

Hi I'm Emma, creator of and I'll be doing a lil takeover of The Hosting Masterclass feed for a while. 👋

Thanks to .co loving support, her amazing course and this INCREDIBLE community of cheerleaders (that’s you guys!), I launched Hibiki Haus in May of this year. The response has been swift and overwhelmingly positive - seems like retreating to the forest was something a lot of people were waiting for and I'm so grateful I can provide some nourishment to the burnt out peeps out there.

But how did I get here?

A self-identifying Japanofile, at 23 I landed in Osaka with just a phone number in my pocket and no plan. With no real funds or speaking the language, within a week I was working in a bar owned by a man I'd later learn was Yakuza. It was 1998 & 6 months stretched into 2 years.

I spent most of my career telling other people's stories — producing film and TV across Australia and South East Asia, but there's a version of a life where you're always shaping other people's material and never your own. Eventually that stopped being enough.

So I built things instead. On the Greek island of Tinos, I took a scattered collection of local houses and turned them into a business — (pics 3 & 4)
Turns out understanding the mechanics of storytelling is a good basis for hospitality. Anticipating your hero's wants and needs lets you drive the experience - crafting a guest's dream scenario and then delivering it was immensely satisfying.

These days you'll find me in northern Tasmania, on 50 acres of forest I share with my dog Stanley, building the kind of intentional, unhurried life I used to read about in Thoreau. It's called Hibiki Haus — the word means resonance, an echo — and it's the closest thing I've made to a self-portrait: equal parts wabi-sabi Zen master, equal parts poetic stonemason.

If there's a thread through all of it — Osaka, film sets, Tinos, this forest — it's that I've never sat still inside someone else's idea of a safe life. I keep choosing the harder, more interesting thing, and so far it keeps paying off. Ask me again in ten years. 🤎

21/04/2026

HII!

I’m Ish*ta. I’m a photographer, and I’m taking the THM Instagram page out for a little wander!! Come along?? 💛

But first a little story.
I studied film and photography in university.
Took a detour and became a pastry chef - that’s a story for another time 😅
Then covid struck. I think all our lives in some way are going to be defined by a precovid and a postcovid era, no? Through some flash of lightning or just a blessing from the Instagram gods, I came upon this very page.
The Hosting Masterclass.
I didn’t have a space yet. I didn’t have a plan yet. But I felt an immediate pull to sign up nonetheless.

It changed my life.

I picked up my camera again, got back on the photography train and I’ve been on an adventure ever since.
It’s been a DREAM!!!!
I’ve LOVED championing soo many extraordinary spaces by fellow THMers.

I believe this with all my heart, I think we’d all agree, .co brings together the most beautiful people. Beautiful, creative, luminous, artistic humans who come together as a community like no other and are each other’s biggest cheerleaders.

Ever grateful to be part of the THM family!!

I’m really looking forward to spending some time with you here. We can get into dreamy worlds created in spaces, a little peak behind the photography curtain, travel, and whatever else finds its way in.
If there’s something on your mind, let’s wander there together.

I’m so happy you’re here 💛

"Would you like an adventure now, or shall we have our tea first?" 😉

Love,