Instant Book and house rules

[Barbara2737]

Hi All,

I am fairly new to hosting and so far all good instant book experiences.  Recently had one, however, in which the guest booked and then messaged that she would be having  six guests over so she could do their hair for a wedding.  
My listing clearly states 2 guests—it is a one-room barn loft.  I told her this wasn’t acceptable and that she should cancel (I don’t want my stats to get skewed because *I* canceled) and she has not.  I asked Airbnb to reach out and they said “she agreed to follow house rules.”  She lives locally and I have a suspicion she will still try to bring all the guests.  It’s self check-in.  Do I stand sentry at the door? Cancel her?  Ugh.

[Gillian166]

@Barbara2737 
so whilst I agree this might not be a good fit for your space, it does look a little small, I have some different advice.
 this woman could become a new income stream for you, if she's a local, professional wedding HMUA (hair and make-up artist), and you could actually charge her more for this stay. 
one of my listings i've converted to a 'wedding' listing, where I allow MHUA, photographers, parents etc come to the house to prep for a wedding. I charge 40% more and give them late checkout as needed, and allow photos to be taken inside the home and on the grounds. 

I don't know when you were last involved in wedding prep @Helen744  but wedding hair is not done in a salon typically.  HMUA are very professional, have all their own equipment, are very tidy and organised, and they always, always post the day on instagram (and tag us).  i love my wedding brides, they are happy and fun and so far have been so respectful and tidy.  I wish i could fill every week end with these groups. 

[Rhonda301]

Do they book by the night and do you slow the wedding party to stay?

[Rhonda301]

Allow not sure if I mistyped or autocorrect did that. 

[Barbara2737]

They booked one night and included a message saying they would be doing hair and makeup for 6.  I replied that this is not allowed, only 2 guests are permitted.  She said, “please reconsider, you live so close to me,” and I said I was sorry but she would need to cancel.  She didn’t, so then I called Airbnb and asked for assistance.

[Gillian166]

@Barbara2737  I do agree with the others that this is really inconsiderate of this guest. 

I would tell her that there's not enough space for this, you don't have enough chairs and tables required for hair (surely make up is happening too?).  

I'd tell her the lighting isn't very good and they should perhaps find somewhere else. I think if you were able to talk to the bride she would absolutely agree, but the HMUA might not be so fussy. 

She's going to have an unhappy bride and i'd urge her to find a more appropriate venue for this. 
 

[Gillian166]

@Rhonda301  yes, they book per night, i allow 6 guests to stay over, which is usually the bride, 3-4 bridesmaids and sometimes her mum. there's a bit of extra work for me, as i email the HMUA beforehand too (i ask for the details of anyone who will be coming) and give them parking instructions, and just to let them know we expect professional behaviour.  So far everyone has been great.  

[Helen744]

@Gillian166 No Gillian. I have not been recently involved in a wedding but I have been to more than one witch fest. My niece is a hairdresser and has a 'salon ' in her home currently in Daylesford Victoria as during covid many 'hairdressers closed their doors but me being involved with or without hairdressers is not the issue .H

[Helen744]

Also in Victoria more than any other state weddings ,funerals. and any major life outing was limited or could not happen . I am not sure about  Barbaras area but I imagine Lancaster was pretty heavily locked down not so recently . Haircuts and hairdressing in general, have not been high on anyones agenda recently. I believe it is a bit different where you live Gillian . H

[Gillian166]

---

@Helen744 wrote:

@Gillian166No Gillian. I have not been recently involved in a wedding but I have been to more than one witch fest.  

---

sorry, a "witch fest".  ? can you elaborate on this? (off topic, but interesting)

@Helen744 

[Huma0]

@Gillian166 

Yep, I don't expect they would be cutting and colouring hair for a wedding. Usually it's just styling. 

I don't have experience of hosting this type of thing but I have had several photo shoots at my house. The only 'mess' a hair and make up artist has made is to leave a couple of products behind. You might have to scoop up a few hair pins from a table or something, but that's the worst I've seen.

[Laura2592]

@Barbara2737 We had this exact situation. Our space was actually an event space for micro weddings prior to COVID. We did NOT book through ABB as it is not appropriate and we would have left money on the table. Instead we had a price and package list for the weddings through our own website and social media. One of those prices was photo location. You have to have a photo location agreement (who owns the negatives, where are they allowed to shoot, do you get credit on images, do you get an image to share, does the photographer get consent forms, what happens if something is damaged etc) and this is not something ABB will enforce. Likewise you don't want a review based on how good the bride looked in the pics or how amenable to photos your space might be. You want a review based on the stay.

I would ask ABB to cancel and say "I am sorry I had to cancel this stay. Airbnb is not the appropriate platform for photo locations. We do occasionally rent our space privately for photos and have a separate agreement and price list for photography. Please have your photographer get in touch with me on social media at (whatever address.)"

ETA your space is adorable and you will get this request over and over. I would suggest really exploring a photo location income stream. Its pretty easy money. We had local photographers that would get in touch with us for family, pregnancy and wedding portraits. We booked them a lot mid week and had stays on the weekend. And no reviews to worry about!

[Barbara2737]

@Laura2592 thank you! I am considering a package for photo shoots with a “hold harmless” and other stipulations such as you outlined.  Because I have a FT job, I’m not comfortable with any farm animal interactions without my supervision—especially with my horse.  So it would need to be dependent on my availability.  The reason the hair (and makeup) part chaps me is that it’s not a space for 6 people, and the guest is clearly using it to generate her own revenue.  

Appreciate your feedback and insights!

[Laura2592]

@Barbara2737 good point about the livestock! Yes I would be super uncomfortable allowing someone to do this without supervising. You know they are going to want those cute goat pics. 

I do think it could be a fantastic revenue stream for you if you do your due diligence and get an iron clad agreement. We had a lot of fun with some of the shoots. But ABB is not a good fit for anything outside of a vacation stay: not events, not a landlord/tenant long term situation, not a space for guests to run a business out of, etc. You will get all kinds of creative requests and some may even be tempting, but consider very carefully before saying yes. Don't be afraid to insist that customer service cancel when its not a fit. Best of luck!

[Barbara2737]

@Laura2592 you’re the best—thank you!!!