World’s solely ‘e book store Airbnb’ has two-year ready record – and you have to work

Welcome to the world’s only ‘bookshop Airbnb’ where guests can spend the night and run the store during the day. The Open Book, a quaint bookshop with a flat above, allows people to sleep upstairs and sell books downstairs.

Located in Wigtown – Scotland’s National Book Town – it offers book enthusiasts the opportunity to ”live their dream” of owning their own seaside shop. According to Airbnb, it is ”the first ever bookshop holiday residency experience” and has garnered such popularity that it has a two-year waiting list from guests worldwide.

The Wigtown Festival Company established it with the aim ”to celebrate books, independent bookshops and welcome people from around the world”. Since welcoming its first holidaymakers in August 2014, the charity-run Open Book Airbnb has become a sensation.

Over 450 guests from places as far-flung as Hawaii and Beijing have relished the unique experience of running their own bookshop. Currently, there is a two-year waiting list for those wishing to stay.

The Wigtown Festival site states: ”Live your dream of having your very own bookshop by the sea. Nestled in the pristine surroundings of Galloway, The Open Book is a charming bookshop and apartment, situated on the main street of Wigtown.

A holiday home with a difference, it presents a unique opportunity for visitors to run a real bookshop at the heart of the town’s vibrant community. “The Open Book’s aim is to celebrate books, independent bookshops and welcome people from around the world to Scotland’s National Book Town.”

“Booked through Airbnb, paying guests live in the self-catering apartment upstairs and run the bookshop below it for the duration of their stay.

“During their stay, guests are free to change displays, price books, re-categorise them, and make inventive use of the blackboard that entices visitors in to browse or chat.”

“Some guests are happy to quietly run the bookshop, while others come with firmer plans and creative ideas! Bibliophiles, avid readers, kindred book lovers and adventure seekers from around the world come to Wigtown to experience the life of a second-hand bookshop owner in a remote Scottish town.

“Sea, highlands, native forests, amazing people and bookshops are just on our doorstep.”

This week’s guests at the quirky Airbnb are Daisy Yeung, 41, jetting in from Hong Kong, and her old school chum Lydia Man, 42. Psychologist Daisy, who works in a Hong Kong prison, stumbled upon the unique Airbnb through a blog post online.

She gushed: “So far we are enjoying it very, very much. My dream to be a bookseller one day, but since it is very hard to be a book seller and make enough money – we thought it would be fun to have a taste of it The weather here is really excellent this week, and everybody here is just so nice.”

Daisy confesses that running the shop has kept her too occupied to crack them open, admitting: “The shop is quite busy to be honest!” Meanwhile, Lydia, who upped sticks from Hong Kong to Nottingham three years ago, is over the moon with the experience, saying: “We are having a lovely time! It’s a calming and nice place – and the bookstore looks really fantastic.”

The dynamic duo had to whip up a theme for their bookshop this week, and with today marking China’s Mid Autumn Festival, they’re sprinkling a bit of their culture into the mix. Daisy revealed:

“Traditionally we Chinese people gather with our family and friends on this day and light up lanterns and eat something called moon cakes – which is what we have brought and are sharing with people today.”

Supply chain pro Lydia chimed in: “We didn’t bring a lot of things but we did bring moon cakes!

“The festival is a time for loved ones to come together and so we are sharing that with people here – trying to have a good time with the visitors and book lovers alike.”

The shop is the brainchild of author and filmmaker Jessica Fox and contributes about £10,000-a-year to the Wigtown Festival Company’s charitable work.

She said: ”I thought I couldn’t be the only crazy American who dreams of working in a bookshop by the sea in Scotland, there has to be more of us.

”I wanted to create the same experience for those book-curious people who had the same dream of running a book shop for a week, and living upstairs.

“It is a success because of Wigtown, the volunteers who make the guests so welcome, the owners of the building, who believed in my idea.”

Chief volunteer Joyce Cochrane is based in the nearby Old Bank Bookshop. She said: “The Open Book has been a way of opening our doors to the world and because of that the world has been coming to Wigtown, and they love it.”

One recent occupant was humanitarian aid worker Isabella Garcia from Austin, Texas – who ran the shop for four days. She told the BBC: “I am a book lover so usually every town I go into one of the first things I look for is a bookshop or a bookshop-coffee shop joined together.

“Running the bookshop was definitely worth it. There’s no better feeling than somebody buying a book that you put on display.”

One recent guest said: “We loved the idea of it the chance to have a holiday running your own bookshop was quite unique.

”’And there’s no strings attached, no real responsibilities, you can enjoy the time however you like. This year, the festival will take place from 27 September to 6 October.“