Where are the towels?

[Inna22]

I put several in each bathroom plus a stack in a linen closet. But get this question a lot. My rule of thumb is: one time a stupid question equals stupid guest, two times a stupid question equals stupid host.

Are the towels better placed on each bed? Where do you leave them? Are instructions on where to find them in the welcome message an overkill?

Now I am also worried that one of these people will report me for a missing amenity. And we all know that a house with no towels is for sure a party house. In all fairness to my guests, I am currently at an airbnb myself and just messaged the host on how to make it warmer. There is a giant instruction sheet taped right across from where I am seating. I have never seen a central heat boiler like this before so did not even think to look there. If you see a new post on this board with something like: heat instructions in visually impaired font are posted on the boiler but Superhost still asks how to make the place warmer. What to do?- you will know it is about yours truly

[Susan151]

@Inna22  Since my listing only accommodates three people, I place the appropriate number of towel sets on the vanity; one for each guest. I then have extra towels on a shelf behind the tub under the eves. I point these out during the "house tour."

I have been told by a number of Australian and UK guests that towels on the bed would be more standard, but I don't want to encourage towels in the bedrooms since I don't really want wet towels hanging off the wooden furniture. However, given the size of your houses, maybe the bed is the correct solution or sorted into "sets" on a shelf with directions in your house message.

I do think that hosts should expect a certain number of questions from guests, and the larger group the more questions there will be. Not sure if this is helpful....

[Inna22]

@Susan151 this is a great perspective- I should be expecting some questions . And I should learn not to freak out over them. When the latest guest messaged, instead of calmly figuring it out with her, I started to frantically message the housekeeper and also worry about what I will do if they are not there since I am out of town myself.

[Donald28]

I used to put extra towels out but now I leave 1 set per person. If they are staying more than 3 nights I will ask them if they need more towels. Otherwise, when I put extras out, they would generally use all the towels they could find. A guest only needs 1 set of towels. To use more is wasteful and causes a host more work. 

[Tracie24]

I place them on the bed. No  guessing needed. And extras are very visible in the closet.  

[Mark116]

@Inna22  I put them, two rolled up and a wash cloth rolled up on either a basket or a tray in each room. In one room the tray sits on a bench in the other it sits on the dresser.  There are extra towels in the hall closet which I don't point out because I don't want people to go crazy using them, LOL.  

[Dimitar27]

To put them somewhere, where they will be "еasy to find" is a lost battle. Because it's based on your own idea for "easy". Put them somewhere, where they will be visible. Baskets are gaining popularity, (thanks to the IKEA catalogue) worldwide.
I still put them on the bed.

[Lisa723]

I put a large number of towels in open shelving in the bathroom. In your situation I would put a small sign in the bathroom indicating where the extras are.

[Sarah977]

@Inna22  Since I only host one guest at a time in my home, it's easy- their towels are folded  upon a shelf in their ensuite bathroom, which I point out at check-in, and I just offer them clean ones if they stay more than a week.

Maybe you could have some little laminated cards made up,saying where extras are, and leave the card on top of the folded towels left on the bed, one card to a room. If the group can't communicate that to each other, they really are stupid, or should be travelling with people they actually communicate with 🙂

[Suzanne302]

@Inna22  If the towels are in the bathroom, how much more obvious could you be? Unless they're hidden, or your bathroom is 1000 sq. ft or something, I cannot understand how someone can't notice towels.

I have two towel racks right beside the shower. Each rack contains a bath towel and a hand towel. I also have 4 extra bath towels in a cabinet under the sink with a framed note on the counter than extra supplies are in the cabinet.

Interestingly enough, I've had several guests forgo the towels on the rack and use the towels under the cabinet. I guess they thought the towels on the rack were just for show. LOL!

Maybe this is a cultural thing, but it's common sense for me to look for/find towels on a shelf, rack, or cabinet in the bathroom. If you're too lazy to look, well, that's a different story!

[Emily487]

@Inna22 

I put one bath towel, hand, and face towel for each booked guest in the top drawer of each dresser and this info is listed as the first bullet point on my info sheet posted on the fridge. If I have guests for more than 3 nights, they get two bath towels each. I'm a grinch.

The ONE time I left the basket of extra towels hidden in the closet they were all used up so I now am happy to dole them out one at a time like a WWII Red Cross worker with cigarettes to the soldiers (or so I've gleaned from family stories). 

[Donna519]

Hi Inna,

2 towels rolled-up on each bed will easily do the trick.

Some extras in the bathroom cabinet, that you can point out to your guests.

Happy Hosting!

[Mike-And-Helen0]

Ours go on the heated towel rail, a bath sheet and a hand towel for each guest.

[Rachel0]

@Mike-And-Helen0  That is exactly what I do, with the addition of a face cloth for each guest as well.  I never cease to be amazed though by the number of people, particularly from the USA, who have never seen a "ladder" radiator before.  They still tend to dry their towels by hanging them over the wardrobe door, over the luggage rack or anywhere else but where they belong!

[Md-Mizanur1]

Dear Inna

Thanks for sharing the topic "Where are the towels?"

I am working almost 30 years in hotel, tourism and hospitality industry. Our all budget hotel and guest house we put our towels in the bed so, once the guest enter the room they will find it immediately. The 3-5 category hotel we put all the towel in the bathroom rack.

All guest are not same, some guest they are really stupid they don't want to use their brain and lazy to to find the towel.

Hope our Airbnb host community understand this.

Thank you.

Regards

Mizanur