help with deciding about guests

[Dubravka20]

hi, i am totally new to hosting - just started this month. i had two inquiries so far. although in my listing i noted that inquiries should be sent at least 3-day before the arrival, one request was for 5th november, sent on 4th november afternoon; another request was for one night 5-6th november, sent on 5th november. the first guest withdrew request after a few hours,  and the second obviously fell through as i did not reply. am i required to reply - and in this case is it ok that i reject, stating their obligation for 3-day advance notice? it is written on the site that i have to accept/reject within 24 hrs, but if the guest doesn't even give me 24 hrs, do i have to send any reply? 

many thanks for your help!!!

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Dubravka20 Yes you have to respond to inquiries and requests. With inquiries however you do not need to accept or decline.

If you go to your booking settings where you have set a 3 day notice period there is, I think, a setting that allows guests to request stays with less notice. You should uncheck this if you will never accept a last minute booking.

[Colleen253]

@Dubravka20 It sounds as though you don’t have Instant Book activated, which is good. It’s not a good choice for new hosts.

It’s not enough to specify in your description that you require 3 days notice. You need to adjust your advance notice settings to require it automatically. That way, short notice Trip Requests can’t be sent.

Your questions indicate that you may need to spend some time in the AIrbnb Help pages learning the basics. It’s vitally important for new hosts to be fully informed, to avoid mistakes that can really throw a wrench  in things.  

https://www.airbnb.ca/help/article/430/what-are-response-rate-and-response-time-and-how-are-they-cal...

https://www.airbnb.ca/resources/hosting-homes/a/understanding-calendar-and-booking-settings-16?local...

[Sarah977]

@Dubravka20  As Colleen says, you should read everything in the Help pages on the main site for hosts, so you understand how everything works.

You absolutely must reply to Inquiries and Requests with 24 hrs. Regardless of your settings, inquiries are just a way for guests to ask questions - they can ask you to cook them a gourmet breakfast, lunch, and dinner or if they could check in an hour from now, that doesn't mean their wishes will be granted. But you have to answer.

If it's a Request, you do have to either accept or decline within 24 hrs unless the guest withdraws the request before then.