How to make sure guests folllow the check in times?

[Sonia1891]

Hello Airbnb Community,

I have my third stay where the guests want to check in really late. The first time was supposed to be around 9pm and ended up past 12 am which was a bad experience for me. And now I've bought a lockbox even though I didn't want to just to make sure I don't get stuck waiting around for guests. However, is there any other advice anyone has? Maybe I'm missing something but I did put in specific check in and check out times and added late fees to my house rules. As of now, it should be set to check in 4-6pm. Here is my listing link, airbnb.com/h/dekroon

Does anyone see any changes I should make? If so, please let me know. I'd really appreciate it. 

Kind regards,
Sonia

[Marilyn50]

If last phone number of their listed phone number, they don’t have to get and remember a code.  Very easy

[Marie8425]

@Sonia1891 

I think your check in time should be based on typical arrival times.  When I did a travel spot people flying in international flights were generally late arrivals.  Currently nI do mostly business travel driving in on Sunday.  My check in time is before 7 pm.  Before I accept a booking I remind them, mostly because my dogs like to bark hello and other guests have to get up early for work Monday.  I just say no if someone can't arrive by 7 come the next day stay at a hotel 1 night.

[Susan1188]

"before I accept a booking I remind them"
Me too!
My guests fly in.
Before accepting I get flight arrival times.  And I ask them to withdraw their trip request if flight arriving too late. 

[Susan1188 · Accepted solution]

Hi Sonia!

Communicating to guests around check in times is one of my biggest challenges.
We're superhosts with 7 properties and five years experience.
I've made the choice, that to keep my mental and physical health, and to retain my helpers who assist with check ins, we have to put boundaries and really enforce our check in time limits.

Late night arrivals create multiple issues.
- Flights have more delays late in the day, more problems accumulate, you are at risk of waiting up all night

- EVEN IF you have self check in lockbox, at night time, people have trouble following even the best instructions.  And so IME you have to wait up for "that call" when they "can't get into the lockbox", basically you're on call until they've successfully entered your place.
- Lockboxes can fail!  Cleaners can forget to put the keys inside! Internet can be down, guest cell phone out of battery, guest can simply have trouble manipulating it.  So self check in is not a surefire answer.

- Guests get disoriented, have a few drinks on the flight, want to have dinner before check in, get lost easier in the dark, have more trouble being on time and following instructions
- Guests arrive late and realize they have no food and restaurants are closed, which makes for bad check in experience, I'd rather refuse the stay than have it start on a bad note
etc etc etc

As a result here is what we do!

- Make check in window VERY clear in multiple places on the listing:  In the description, in "other things to note", in house rules - not just filling in the times but mention it specifically in your rules "cutoff time 10 pm, if you arrive later keys given next day".

- Put it in your INSTANT BOOK message 

- If you get a TRIP REQUEST, message them immediately and only approve the request after they have given you their flights or driving itinerary and requested check in time

- If you get an INSTANT BOOK,  message them immediately to get their flight/drive, and follow up until you get an answer.  You should set instant book to only experienced guests with good reviews to avoid having novices who don't realize they need to communicate with you.

- Pre-schedule automated messages 1 week before the stay and 1 day before the stay, where you remind of your check in procedure and rules.  I personalise these when I know the flight times saying "just checking your flight is still on track to arrive 13:00" or whatever.  So they know you are following

- Let them know "we meet you with the keys, we'll be on-line during your arrival day waiting for your messaged to confirm the check in meeting".  If you have self check in, let them know that you are on-line and will only go to bed when they have messaged you from inside the apartment.  Or say that if they arrive after X time,  they will not be able to get assistance until the next morning (this is not ideal, you should stay onine untile the guest is in).

 - Have a virtual guide or use Airbnb's template, and put these rules in there as well

- Your HOUSE RULES should include not just the check in time but a mention that guests must respond to your airbnb messages and if they are unresponsive the booking can be cancelled

The main thing is, communicate multiple times and multiple ways.

Good luck and happy hosting to everyone!

[Elisa]

Hi @Sonia1891 😊

Did you have a chance to check out these comments?

Our hosts have given you some amazing suggestions! 😍

Warm regards,

[Sonia1891]

Thank you so much Susan for all your advice! I have been doing this already by checking in with people right when they book, a week before, day before and day of in messages. I guess I will have to hope for the best moving forward and be more strict about allowing certain time check ins. As well as, to continue to set boundaries and make sure I don't allow any guests who go against the ones I have set or seem like they will. Unfortunately, I may have to take the route of not thinking guests will abide by the rules but rather that they might not and enforce reiterating any house rules I have set, probably by sending a screenshot of the ones I have ahead of time. Once again, thanks so much for your advice. I will definitely come back to this in the future and think over everything you mentioned. Have a good one! 

[Susan1188]

Dear @Sonia1891 
Set your boundaries and limits.
**** State them in your Airbnb house rules! ****
Airbnb will enforce them.  I have had 2x when guest wanted to get keys outside of set times and airbnb had my back, refused, keys given next day.
The thing is it must be clear in your lisitng and house rules.

The hard thing is refusing a reservation because guest was expecting 2 am check in.   Refuse it.  We have to take the goal posts back.

All the best and don't hesitate to pm me if you need some help or advice.

[Kumsal1]

Unfortunately I cannot agree with @Susan1188 that Airbnb will have your back in that cases.

We have been hosting guest in two private rooms in our home for last 2 years. At the beginning, there had been times that we had to bend our rules and wait until late hours just like @Sonia1891 mentions, despite our check in time ends at 22:00.

However, this wasn't the most desirable situation for us, as that massively affects our sleep schedule and causes some noise disturbing our other guests in the next room, we have decided to enforce our check-in times more strictly, except for the times that the guests inform of unexpected delays etc.

Few months ago, we had a guest who made a 3-day reservation and only one day before her arrival, she said her flight will land at midnight. As there was no prior communication about it at the time of booking, we told her that they may check-in next day, so they did. The result was a 3-star review left by her among our 5-star reviews, and she mentioned that all was great except not allowing late check in.

Airbnb refused to remove the review because it reflects the guest's experience and that we should look at the bright side that this is the only one that differs among our many good reviews.

Fast forward to today, I woke up to the Airbnb Support messages at 06:30 in the morning asking me to contact the guest who was supposed to check-in yesterday, because they arrived 01:00 at night and half an hour later after the first support message that the reservation cancelled on my behalf, with additional fee as a punishment, my calendar blocked and my superhost status is at risk.

This happens after several messages that the guest read, clearly indicating our check-in time window , in addition to the house rules and pre-approval message for instant bookings. Airbnb decides to make a decision against us in rush, without even waiting for a reply from us, while we were still sleeping.

Under these circumstances, I cannot unfortunately agree that Airbnb will have your back in that kind of situations.

Maybe Airbnb should check out these unfairly solved issues, instead of promoting lockbox ideas as amazing suggestions. @Elisa. They might work out for some hosts, but not all and Airbnb should stop punishing the hosts just for enforcing the rules that the guests agree by completing a reservation.

Here is the topic that I talk more in detail about these two cases:

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Support-with-your-bookings/Unprofessional-Airbnb-Support-Ambassa...

[Sonia1891]

Thanks for sharing! That is what I was worried about and I have yet to see if the guest wrote a bad review but I have a feeling they probably did since they threatened to do so anyway. At the end of the day, Airbnb is sometimes a hotel but more than not, it is personal property of hosts who decide to share their space for whatever reason whether it be cost, entertainment, etc. so that should be taken into consideration and guests should act accordingly to how they would want their space to be treated. I've also used Airbnb as a guest and that's what I always think, "how should I act if it was the other way around". Hopefully, Airbnb will be able to see your side better. My best suggestion is also try calling because that way you can explain your situation better and not get lost in translation which can happen through messanger. However, I hope overall that Airbnb host aircover helps hosts want to continue to use Airbnb and protect them. Good luck! 

[Sonia1891]

@Susan1188  Thank you! I updated my house rules with a lot more clear boundaries that I thought people would automatically understand but now I know its better to state them anyways. And thank you for offering your help and advice in the future. I may take you up on that if needed but hopefully, my new house rules will help guests paint a better picture of how to act respectfully. 

[Ema3296]

Dear @Sonia1891 

Thank you for sharing your experience! It sounds frustrating to deal with late check-ins, especially when it disrupts your schedule. Here are a few suggestions that might help:

1. Clear Communication: Make sure to reinforce your check-in times in your listing description and in your pre-arrival messages. You could also consider sending a reminder a day or two before their arrival.
2. Late Arrival Policy: Since you've already added late fees, you might want to specify that guests should inform you in advance if they expect to arrive later than the agreed time. This way, they know you expect communication.
3. Check-in Instructions: If you haven’t already, provide detailed lockbox instructions to ensure guests can access the property easily, even if they arrive late.
4. Buffer Time: Consider adjusting your check-in window slightly, if possible, to accommodate any unforeseen delays without making it too flexible.
5. Set Expectations: In your listing and communication, emphasize that while you are accommodating, late check-ins can affect your plans.

I hope these tips help improve your experience with future guests! Best of luck with your hosting.

Kind regards,

Ema

[Sonia1891]

Thanks Ema! Yes, I definitely do the clear communication with reminders already. I think I got unlucky in this one case but so far my other guests have been nice and communicative. I did have a late check in and check out fee and will be applying that in this case especially. Most times I dismiss it because guests communicate and are pleasant but this stay didn't go like that. I did just recently update my house rules with detailed lock box set up instructions with a focus on making sure the guest sends me a message and requests a lockbox if needed. And buffer time I have person to person but I could expand my time slots in the check in times for Airbnb. It's interesting because as of now, at least for me, the check out time slot is set to one time only though so I made sure to change that to check out by 11 am. And definitely I set expectations, like I said I think this stay the person just expected more accommodation from me like a hotel but I do not stay to check in people at 11 pm. If you have any more tips, please feel free to share. Learning as I go and still loving the process despite situations like this one. Thanks again for your advice! 

[Sheila574]

@Sheila574 I've been a Superhost 4 years running but I feel that I am still learning.  There are some similarities between my experience and yours regarding check-in times.   I prefer person-to-person check in, but sometimes people arrive after 11pm and expect swift check-in.   I communicate with them ahead of time so that they have realistic expectations when they arrive after 11pm from airport of AmTrak..   I do like the late-check-in fee, but it is not easy to apply it without getting fierce pushback from hostile guests on a fixed budget.   You can suffer poor feedback.