Is a female host able to refuse to host local men only

[Vanessa1511]

Hi, I'm a female host new to Airbnb. I live in Egypt and am wanting to host guests in a private room in my home. My question is, as I live in Egypt, am I able to refuse to host local men only. In Egypt it is not really acceptable for unrelated men and women to live together, exceptions are made for foreigners of course. I don't have an issue hosting foreign men, but hosting an Egyptian man in my home would be completely unacceptable. I know they have an anti-discrimination policy that states that female hosts can refuse to host men if they share common areas - I want to exclude specifically local men. Is this acceptable?

[Flavia202]

In such a sensitive cultural situation of course your local laws takes precedence, @Vanessa1511 .

Why not use a heading for your listing that would reflect the situation in Egypt and therefore your preference?  Also, you could include some up-front text that will show why, so that you are covered against complaints from potential male guests and from bing penalized by Airbnb.

A suggestion for your listing title using your current one, slightly edited:-  "Private room for women available in Dahab - clean and quiet."

A suggestion of your 'About this space' using your current text, slightly edited:- "Clean and comfortable - this private room is available for women guests only, due to Egypt's laws and cultural norms.  The room is in a shared apartment with me - an Australian woman who lives in Dahab."

In your house rules you should stay clear of  anything that will confuse the guest - like the text you have about "passport holders are ok" and "Couples must present a marriage certificate (foreign passport holders are Ok)"

What couples? And didn't you say that it's dangerous (my words) for you as a woman to host any males that are not relatives?

So keep it simple by deleting those text in your house rules to avoid confusion for the guest and Airbnb customer service.

Happy and safe hosting!

[Flavia202]

.. and from being penalized by Airbnb...

[Mark116]

@Vanessa1511  I see two choices, you can manually decline any local males who request to rent the space, and hope that no one accuses you of discrimination and/or that too many declines affect your listing search results OR only host women.  I don't know what percent of your business is foreign male travelers, but I would think hosting solo women in Egypt would remain a pretty good market.