Do you provide....?‌‌

[Laura2592]

What sorts of things have you been asked if you provide by guests?  Have you thought "oh great idea!" and purchased them? Or been confused that anyone would expect a host to have this for guest use?

Here are some from our experiences.

-Fishing gear. Nope, we don't.

-Camping gear. Again, no. 

-Bicycles. No, but I have thought about getting some old bikes. Not really a great place to cycle near us though.

-High chair. No, we don't host infants at this point.

-Breakfast. No. Though we do leave snacks for guests. 

-A laptop for guests to use. No. 

- Sheets and towels. Of course. 

-Firewood. We provide a duraflame for indoors and do not provide wood for the firepit. We did at one point but it was impossible to keep up with how much got burned by some guests. 

-Pet beds. No but I have thought about getting one as we are pet-friendly. Will likely provide one in the future.

-Entertainment. No, not sure what type of entertainment the potential guests in this case wanted, but we are not on site. I guess I could sing to them over the phone?

-A steamer for clothing. Not at this time.

-A flat iron. Not at this time.

What about you my fellow hosts?

[Sarah977]

@Debra300 Hair dryers suck a lot of electricity, too. As do all small appliances which heat up really hot really quickly. Irons, electric kettles, curling irons, etc.

I just have a stovetop kettle but my neighbor next door loves his electric kettle. Each of us live alone, and although I have a couple of things which use electricity which he doesn't have, like a water pump and a washing machine, his electric bills are higher than mine. I'm sure it's that electric kettle.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

we provided an iron and ironing board but now I will remove it from the list. Why? The cord is burned in at least 3 places ( when they are done with ironing they just wrap the cord around the hot iron) and, the fresh one from today - guests didn't find the ironing board and obviously used the bed cover instead and burned it.

Oven? No, sorry, I don't have time to scrub it between guests.

I also removed most decorations, leaflets, city guides and books etc... to speed up the cleaning process.

Less items = less damage = less  danger = less cleaning = less problem

[Helga0]

Hi, those are funny lists - I got lured back into the CC even if I'm not hosting at the moment (but actively looking for my future house which will have guests again)

We left a computer to use since about 2004 (before airbnb),

my husband would happily buy every kitchen implement anyone could think off but for a microwave,. Still, the desperate look of a young women discovering the holiday would include 2 more kids from her partner's first relation broke his resolution of "No microwave in my kitchen!",

we got a lot of baby equipment in our no infants listing,

the barbecue was usually well hidden to avoid the house burning down 

we refused a gymnastics mat ("no sports" hosts) 

and the blowtorch for the crème brulée. My husband was tempted at this request, but the fire risk seemed imminent if you leave that for guests. 

Some people asked for special pillows - I understand forms, fillings and softness but there was a request for a different pattern (the pillow was supposed to be in a pillowcase anyway)

One request for a round bucket, as a square one would not do for wiping the floor immediately after arrival. (after the cleaner passed)

Ginger tea for breakfast - I added that and still buy it now and then

All kinds of strange dietary requests for breakfast - gluten free, soy milk, mate tea, spirula powder ... if it seems probable that I'd like sharing it, I'd try it, but none of those passed that test. Guests brought their own - no, thanks, still not sampling fluorescent green blue stuff at breakfast. 

[Anonymous]

@Helga0  ! ! ! So nice to see you back!

[Sarah977]

@Helga0  A different pattern on the pillow- that's a good one.

[Pat271]

Is the computer still from 2004??

[Russell49]

Don't bother getting a pet bed. The animal's scent will be there and the next animal may want to mark territory.

Do not buy a brulee torch. Guests are not chefs and likely not experienced with torching creme brulee. The caramel could drip on them and it's like napalm. Also, if they set the torch down and it's still lit, expect something to burn.

[Anonymous]

@Russell49 It would be a crazy thing to stock in an Entire Home listing, but if you're a Private Room host who happens to have catering supplies on site, you can make a judgment call on that. 

[Russell49]

lol-Yes, of course it's your call to stock a brulee torch. I was a chef for 25 years (went to culinary school) and can see the potential for risk or hazard by a guest who may be clumsy, careless or inexperienced. It's certainly a risk that Airbnb likely wouldn't help with in the event of an accident.

[Linda3345]

New, and reading through old threads. I had thought about getting a pet bed, but your wise comment has changed my mind. Thanks!

[Alice-and-Jeff0]

The craziest request was "Do you provide a driveway and a garage?".  Huh, did you read anything about our listing? 

Most common: (1) take away cups for coffee.  If they are staying another night, we will give them one to use, but if they are heading to the airport - no, we don't provide throwaways. (2) Umbrella - we have plenty to use if they are coming back, but leaving - no. (3) Band-aids, aspirin, allergy meds, tampons, etc... we'll give them one and the locations of the closest pharmacies where they can purchase more. 

We have a basket with extra toiletries for people to use.  Razors and Q-Tips are always needing to be refilled. 

[Stephanie]

@Alice-and-Jeff0 

"Do you provide a driveway and a garage?" I read that as the Host is expected to roll them out of storage on request - as if they're normally flat pack in storage. 😂

[Pat271]

Yes, and also the Host is expected to feel a slight twinge of guilt if they don’t “provide” them.😏

[Michelle1851]

@Laura2592 

We were asked by several guests for sleds, we provided and then insurance said no, so now they are gone.

Iron/ Steamer yes, although I'm not sure who comes to a ski resort and needs to iron

Hair dryers yes Curling irons or straighteners no

Duraflames yes, firewood no as guest would burn thru it like crazy 

Feminine products no

Most toiletries yes: soap, lotion, shampoo, conditioner, toothbrush toothpaste

Gas grill yes

Breakfast yes sort of:  Pancake mix, frozen croissants to bake, oatmeal , eggs, coffee, cream, butter

humidifiers and fans yes

wireless phone chargers yes

sound machine yes

pancake griddle yes 

snowshoes yes

[Michelle1851]

I have to admit whenever I travel, I love finding little amenities the host has left.  This is what I provide, the item I'm most happy with is the petite nail clippers and nail file, whenever I travel, one of us always needs a nail clippers, which we have inevitably forgot.  My most taken items are the toothpaste and the chapstick.