Reviewing a not so great guest (+friend)

[Rossana121]

The guests left a review, it's time to write mine. I'm torn because having read a lot of topics on this, I want to leave something for the next host to see, but I'm not sure if my perception is a little high standard, so I'd like the input of other hosts.

Here's all that added up (sorry if long).

1. Before booking the guy writes a message "hi, we'll be there around 2/3, two people, ok?"

Politely I remark that I can only start check-in at 5. He says ok.

Day before check-in, message "we'll arrive around 8.30. Usually check-in is until 8, but if you have issues I can make 8.30 work, I reply.

Day of check-in. 9 pm. Not there. I write, any issues? Reply "gps says 21.29. Ok.

They only arrived at 10 pm. And I had to wait another 15 minutes to wait for the friend looking for parking.

2. End of introduction tour, bring them to the kitchen to show the microwave (as per house rules, the only thing a guest is allowed to use in the kitchen). Guest goes "but of course we can cook our dinners, right?". Ehrr... actually no. Sorry. Guy starts negotiating trying to both convince me and make me feel guilty for saying no. Still, NO.

3. I have movement sensors for the entryway and hallway. First thing I say when I give the tour is to not use the switch on the wall. For the first 3 days, despite the NO! post-it note on the switch, they kept turning off the lights. Had to stick an A4 sheet asking to please not use the switch.

4. Before I agreed for the booking, guy said it would be him and a colleague. I remind him that I only have a queen size bed, cannot split in 2 single, he said it was ok. Night of arrival he notices there's not enough space for him to lay down the extra mattress he brought for the colleague. O_O 

5. Day 3, colleague asks for a laundromat. None in the area. Out  of  kindness, I agree to let him do the laundry (usually extra charge) for free. Yes, dryer too. But it's already 9pm I tell him he won't be able to start the dryer right away, it's noisy and I can't have that at night. Little uncertainty about timings but agrees to start it in the morning. Morning, I get up early. Again, out of kindness (and not to have him mess up with my precious dryer) I start it for him. Also separating and hanging 3 skirts.... Ready before I have to leave for work, I put laundry in the basket and leave it outside their room. 2 days later, still there. I actually had to ask the booking guest to tell his friend to pick it up. Didn't even get a thank you.

6. 2 days before planned checkout, booking guy says they'll leave a day earlier. Ok, I say, just change the booking, you may get some refund (maybe 20 bucks). Nono, he says, it's fine, you've been very kind and it's a cheap accommodation, I'll keep it like this.

Checkout day, packed and ready to leave, friend says he "might" come again for the night after all. Plus, might bring another colleague (??!?!?!?). Guys, I'd prefer for you to decide soon, I'll leave you the key for now but please let me know asap.

7. They technically left, I go in the room to assess the situation. I discover that they took out of the closet (and use) the second double duvet I had ready for the next guest. And another set of towels. Self service, no asking, nothing. WTF?

8. They did then, after all, put down the extra mattress. And forgot to take their bed sheet. And left 2 skirts in the closet. I send a message "hey, you forgot here a few items". Calls me and says his friend already left the key in the mail box, they're in a hurry, if they can come pick their stuff another day. I reply that sorry no-can-do. I work, come home late, can't stay to wait for them and won't leave them the key. Ok, I'll come now.

Now, it may seems all of these episodes, singularly, are not that big a deal.

For me it was just adding up to the fact they didn't clean after themselves, threw away what they didn't like of the provided breakfast (found still packed in the trash bin) and generally didn't behave like guests in someone's home.

How am I supposed to review this? I thought I'd just write a few remarks/suggestions in the private message, but I cannot, in all honesty, write a good review.

I'll appreciate suggestions on what to do.

Thanks

[Anna9170]

@Rossana121ваши гости не сделали ничего плохого, честно говоря, правило прибытия почти все стараются нарушить, это не преступление).
Чем яснее условия, которые вы имеете, тем лучше для вашего гостя и для вас.
Например, если у вас есть доступ на кухню, странно, почему вы можете использовать только микроволновую печь. У вас есть отличный журнальный столик в гостевой спальне, и микроволновая печь очень удобна, чтобы поместиться там. А можно просто писать-доступа на кухню нет. Это избавит вас и вашего гостя от многих недоразумений.   @Gordon0 был очень четкий список, который я рекомендую.
Кроме того, если в вашем районе нет прачечной, то лучше сразу оговорить этот вопрос в вашем доме, что плата за пользование стиральной машиной составляет, например, 5 евро. Понятно, что гостям неудобно ездить с грязным бельем и носками на другой конец города, но нужно сформулировать не "разумную плату", а четкий прейскурант.
И еще один важный момент-то, что предназначено для очередного гостя, не храните в шкафу, где живут нынешние гости. Они могут понять, что это для них, и не ошибутся.
Потому что когда есть странная смесь доброты и неудовлетворенности, это всегда плохо как для хозяина, так и для гостя.
И в отзыве вы должны написать именно фактические нарушения, а не свое отношение к ним, это важно для будущих гостей.

[Rossana121]

For some reason this reply showed as written in English (not just Google translate) in the notification email. I'm confused.

Anyway.

Maybe 12 years in Switzerland have sort of spoiled me, but I still believe that manners should not be out of fashion. When I used Airbnb as a guest, I found myself in rooms where stuff was stored in the closed, but I would have never dreamt of freely using it. Why would someone think to be entitled to use anything more than what is explicitly left at their disposal without asking?

About the kitchen: it's a very slippery slope and I have no will to even open the door to a possible series of mishap that this might cause. I don't want guests to help themselves with my pans and pots and tools, I don't want to risk having them cooking when I need to fix myself my modest dinner, I don't want to risk having them filling the house with odd smell or cooking long preparation at weird hours. But I don't want to force them to go to a restaurant or live out of sandwiches too. Although as a guest, I lived on canned tuna salads for a month, cause my host didn't give use of the kitchen. If it's not included, it just isn't. Why would you try and get it out of me?

I thought about putting a microwave in the room, but 1. The room is already rather small and I didn't want to overload it and 2. I don't want the bedroom to smell like food.

Our supermarkets have a wide variety of pre-cooked meals that just need 4 minutes in mw. Thought it would suffice. Or (crazy idea, I know) maybe choose a listing with use of kitchen instead?

[Kelly149]

seems like guest did not read listing well before booking and perhaps is better suited to a hotel listing with full-time staff.

[Anonymous]

@Rossana121  As someone who wants to provide good hospitality, I can understand that you feel it's a "kindness" to try to accommodate every request and whim from whoever comes your way. But this is a case where no supposed kindness goes unpunished.

Look, every single detail about this booking is screaming that the guest did not choose the right place to stay. It's not your responsibility to reconfigure your offering to accommodate a cheapskate's needs - it's the guest's responsibility to use the search filters properly and adjust their budget to locate the property that has an appropriate set of amenities and number of beds for the kind of stay they're intending to have. I know it's a hard time to turn down any business, but the minute you get an inkling that the guest's needs are not a match for what you have already decided to offer, the best solution is not to summon your reserves of kindness - it's to decline the request and advise the guest to book somewhere that's a better fit.

Your review should anticipate that you might get some critical marks, so I recommend emphasizing that the guest's requirements were not a match for the place he chose to book. In the future, I recommend that you avoid people who try to make your home something it isn't, as many of them will only reward you with poor ratings because they can't take responsibility for their own bad choices. Approve the guests whose needs already line up with your service.

[Rossana121]

@Anonymous 

This is exactly what I ended up writing. That they were good guests but should have chosen a listing more suitable for their needs. I believe it's diplomatic enough 😄

Edit:

Those were the last guests for this year, I blocked the room because my son will come over soon and I don't like the over crowding (not that big a house).

Should be enough to become Superhost.

I reserve the right to only take bookings when I feel like, but don't like the fact that a host is penalized for declining a booking.

I read a lot yesterday here in the community, about the IPO and the business abb has with megahosts.

It's appalling.

And definitely NOT what abb was born for. Should be kept separate or excluded from the platform altogether.

[Anonymous]

@Rossana121  There is not a penalty for declining a booking, as long as you avoid verbiage that triggers the anti-discrimination policy.

Where did you get the idea that there is a penalty, and what exactly do you think that penalty is?

[Sarah977]

@Rossana121  No, they don't seem like just small things to me. Taken individually, sure, but their entire attitude was wrong. These people acted as if they could just do whatever they wanted to and showed no appreciation for the things you did for them. They are disrespectful and self-centered. 

"These guests didn't bother to read the listing information and constantly pushed the boundaries, from arriving 3 hours past the latest check-in time, to thinking they could cook in the kitchen, when it's clearly stated that only the microwave is available for guest use, to wanting to use the off-limits laundry facilities. When I did their laundry for them, free of charge, leaving it in a basket outside their door, they left it sitting there for 2 days, and never even thanked me. They may be okay guests in an entire place listing with self check-in, but if they are going to book home-shares, they need to learn to behave like respectful guests in someone's home."

If they did anything right, mention that as well, then it seems like you're a fair person, like if they left their room tidy or communicated well before check-in day.

It's a good idea to keep extra bedding and towels that you don't want guests to use somewhere they don't have access to it. Even guests who are respectful may assume that anything in their room is available for them to use without asking. That's the only thing I don't think they did wrong. 

[Rossana121]

@Anonymous 

I believe I was taking my first steps as a host, and now that you state it and went checking I realize I mistook the cancellation penalty with the general Airbnb warning that tells you that you should accept all booking requests in order to be a good host.

Actually, I just remembered that this was precisely the reason why I opted for pre-approval on all requests.

Thanks for reminding me!

[Anonymous]

@Rossana121  It's not possible to pre-approve a "Request." You can pre-approve an "Inquiry," but those are different - inquiries are non-binding, so the only action you have to take on those is to write a reply to the initial message. 

Whatever manipulative thing a bot tells you is no substitute for your own judgment as a host. Never forget, you don't work for Airbnb - their service is just a product that you choose to use. My Acceptance Rate has never reached 70%; the threat you highlighted has always been misleading. Also, the acceptance target is currently suspended indefinitely due to the pandemic.

[Rossana121]

You're right, mixed up terms. I simply turned off instant booking so guests need me to approve in order to book.

Any idea why my rating would be 86% despite never declined any?

I dread the idea of having to deal with support

[Anonymous]

@Rossana121  I don't know what happened there, but it's very common for the stats display to be inaccurate. Take it with a grain of salt, or ignore it outright.

[Rossana121]

Found it!

 

Note that I never declined a booking request, and yet, it shows as 86%.

Wonder why that is.

[Sarah977]

@Rossana121  Is it possible that you missed accepting or declining a booking request within 24 hours? As I understand it, if that happens, it registers as a decline, so it would affect your Acceptance rate. That happened to me once- due to an Airbnb glitch, I didn't receive a text alert of a request, and didn't respond to it for 25 hours. Even though the guest went on to book after I messaged her, apologizing and clicked accept, I still got dinged on the acceptance rate.

[Anna9170]

@Rossana121  @Sarah977  
Sorry for the inconvenience, of course I sent my answer in English, perhaps a bug when working in different browsers...😆
Please understand me correctly, there is the specificity of the printed text and it does not pass completely what I want to explain. I did not say that the guests are right and you are not. Just make some controversial nuances so that you yourself do NOT doubt your actions, and now there is doubt.
For example, you don't want to see a guest in your kitchen, and you don't want the microwave to stand in the room and there is a smell of food. Perhaps in this case you should rent for 1-2-3 days, for those guests who are on a business trip and buy fast food or go to a cafe. For you and for the guest who booked a week it will be a problem.
It is really a huge problem that guests do NOT read the rules, otherwise 90% of the tops would not have been created on this forum.
At the same time, we are adults and understand that there is no point in complaining that it rains in autumn, for example. It is easier for your nerves (and finances, given the policy of Airbnb to always kiss a guest) to buy an umbrella and rubber boots, to protect yourself from some misunderstandings.