1 guest checking in but more arriving

[Suzanne1178]

We just had a guest stay with us who booked our 3 bedroom apartment for just one guest. We thought it was strange at the time as we have a 3 bed apartment. 

We have a lock box so we’re not there when she checked in but the cleaner informed us every room and bed was used. We should have text at time of booking to confirm as it did not make sense but we have never came across this. 

When asked after check out how many guests were there, she did not answer the question, her first response was, I don’t understand the question, when explained again, no response. 

Just wondering has anyone had a similar situation and how they dealt with it. 

[Guy991]

Hello @Suzanne1178 ,

I once had a booking request from a woman for herself and a baby. I asked why she needed a three bedroom house. She admitted it was actually for her whole family, six people in total.

Some guests underreport numbers.

The sneaky ones add one extra person.

The bold ones bring the entire family.

The safest option is to turn Instant Booking off and screen guests first.

Here is what works for me. If someone books for one guest my 3 bedroom property , I tell them only one bedroom will be available and the rest will be locked. If they book for three guests, I say they will have access to two bedrooms.

If they agree, I know the booking is genuine. If they suddenly change their story, I decline because the trust is already broken.

If you keep Instant Booking on, set your minimum price to match what you would charge a group of four or five.

The second part is that in my opinion, starting to ask questions to guests after the stay and before they write a review is a mistake. This is a direct path to getting a bad review.

If you have proof and want them to pay, make a claim after their review is written.

What did you expect when you asked her again? That she would suddenly confess?

[Suzanne1178]

Hi  @Guy991, 

Thank you for the advice. Some great ideas that I will try. 

I asked because I was just curious to see did she do it by mistake and it was just an oversight, as it had never happened before to us. But her not answering was really the answer. 

I should have thought about checking prior to the booking, it’s just a busy season and missed it. 

Thanks again, sue 😊

[Shelley159]

Hi @Suzanne1178 

I agree with @Guy991 , for Instant Book it's safest to charge a rate that's appropriate for maximum occupancy. If you do use Instant Book with an extra guest fee, the extra guest fee should at least be low enough that you don't regret it very much if there's an unannounced extra person.

What you described happens to me fairly frequently. When people do a quick search for their dates, they don't necessarily enter the number of guests correctly in the search function. Sometimes they click through and actually book when they find something suitable, but without changing the number of guests (so often it really is an innocent mistake). I do what you suggested - if I see only one person booked, I ask whether they will actually be just one, because the space needs to be prepared for the correct number of guests (towels, etc.).

[Frances3408]

@Suzanne1178 . My pricing for 3 bed assumes all beds will be used, showers and because people like to bed hop (some snore, prefer different mattresses, kids etc). If it was truly a single or couple only they would choose a cheaper 1 or 2 bed place (which I also offer). 

Or you can try to help their honesty by locking bedrooms. But either way you should communicate this whenever a booking number is well below max capacity. 

The goal is to let guests relax whilst they respect (not test) your rules.

[Elisa]

Hi @Suzanne1178 😊, 

Thank you so much for asking this question in the Community Center!

I’m really sorry to hear about what happened with your guests. However, It’s great to see how much support you’ve received from the host community.

What did you decide to do after reading the other hosts’ comments?
Do you feel like you need more help with this?

[Suzanne1178]

Hi @Elisa, 

No I don’t need any more help. 

my question was answered. 

thank you, sue

[Suzanne1178]

Thanks everyone for the advice ☺️

[Patricia2526]

Hi @Suzanne1178  

I’ve been in a similar situation before when a guest booked an apartment with a capacity for 8 guests. I had to reach out to the guest to double-check if the number of guests they indicated in the reservation was accurate. If it wasn’t, I politely asked them to update their booking to reflect the correct number of guests.

It’s always a good idea to confirm early either through a message or during the pre-arrival checklist. This not only ensures transparency but also protects you as a host.

This way, everything is documented within the Airbnb platform, and you avoid issues later on with insurance, extra guest fees, or house rules being violated.