Breakfast basket

[Josie109]

Hello, advice please. I’ve recently listed my air bnb and have my first guest staying soon. I’d like to provide a welcome breakfast basket. Can I ask please, if you do this, what do you put in it? And is it assumed that you’ll just provide one lot of provisions?..... my guest is staying for a week, the fresh bread/jam etc might not last this entire time!!! 
I was thinking of a breakfast consisting of bread, croissants, few small pots jam / marmalade? Do others do this? 
should I contact my guest beforehand to see if there are any allergies?? Thank you 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Josie109 

Before you start to offer breakfast you should research is it allowed in your country and should you pay extra taxes or get a license.

Then you should do the math how much work and costs it would involve and how much could you raise your prices. You know how Airbnb works, cheaper listings have better ranking in search.

We don't offer breakfast but we leave some cereals, tea, coffee, sugar in the kitchen cupboard for our guests to use. I thought about adding a toast, jam, and milk and say I offer breakfast 🙂 but my friends explained that's not how it works. If I offer breakfast then I should make tea and coffee and serve the breakfast on the table, not just leave it in the fridge and cupboards. We, the same as you, are off-site hosts and we rent an apartment with a full kitchen, not just a room so there is no need for breakfast.

I've seen numerous posts about it here on CC. Hosts are saying how guests are picky and have special wishes like gluten-free bread, sugar-free jam, low-fat milk etc... and a lot of food ends up uneaten in the trash bin.

One of my friends is a host and he rents rooms with breakfast and he is successful.  BUT he owns a restaurant and his rooms are above his restaurant. It makes sense, otherwise, it's just too much trouble..

[Andy542]

Hi, I supply snacks (free) for arrival day only consisting of croissants, cereal biscuits, buns plus some teabags, coffee, sugar, milk and bottle of water just enough to see guests through the first night or breakfast the next morning.  Sometimes the items are consumed and other times not.  Seems to work for me and most guests appreciate the gesture!

[Lilly28]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 

I have a question. I think you could answer me - I tried to put it on the right place - but alas...

My question is about Superhost status - and more exactly to the rating we have. What this rating is - is it for all the guests we hosted from the beginning our listing appeared or it is just for the last year. 

I am giving you an example. 5-stars hotel - rating from guests - 3.8 average. Then the hotel manager makes improvements - reconstruction is done, new design - more comfortable atmosphere, new staff or new courses to the old staff. The new rating  now is 5 - for a 5-stars hotel. But what about our rating?

I have thrown all money I received until now - for 3 years to make improvements, but ... the price is going only down and the rating is not changed. I must admit - I am now much more confident as a host, I am doing much more things for my guests, but for lower and lower price. I went on Smart pricing - thinking they will be changing price for different days according to demand. And they did just for a month,  now they put every day at the same low price and are asking me to put 22 leva per day which is 10 euro - I cannot pay even the heating for that price. My holidays day around Christmas are pure loss, as a man just booked for one day only the Saturday before Christmas - so I do not expect these days to be asked any more. I think I am just a looser who does not know how to organize the listing and its price - and I was always a looser in my life. I think I am always doing the wrong thing, but Branka - is this so because I live in Bulgaria - the poorest country in Europe? I am deeply depressed - taking pills the last month - because I feel all guests are looking at our country as a cheap place, cheap people, who MUST fulfill all their needs and give them as much as possible for free.   I stopped going to concerts, even cinema - to have money to pay my guests... and doing improvements and improvements... Even my daughter does not want to visit Bulgaria as she thinks this is too cheap, too bad... and the guests coming here are only coming because it is cheap - they almost never book for more than 2 days, as it is so bad, so poor. You see the contradiction - I am proud that I am Bulgarian because of so many things which cannot be found anywhere in the whole world - the Rose oil, the Bulgarian yoghourt, the most clever people inventing the computer and competent medical staff working everywhere, the beauty of our land... but we as a country are so much poorer than even Macedonia... 

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Lilly28 

super host status for private hosts is evaluated quarterly, for the last 12 months. I have no idea how it  is evaluated for hotels.

I can see how much love and care you invested in your property and your guests appreciate it according to your high ratings 🙂 But 25€ for 2 bedroom apartment is really low.

We have the same problem as you have: many listings in the area, low prices, and short average stay (1,75 nights according to statistics). As a result, guests are choosing the listing in the strict center because they can afford it, while the listings further away stay empty.

Our Airbnb apartments are in the strict center, just 5 min walk to the shopping street, 8 minutes to the funicular which brings you to the old Upper town, and 10 min walk to the main square. If we would be just 200 meters closer we could charge 50% more because of how Airbnb shows listings on the map. On the first page are always displayed 20 listings closest to the main square.

We also have a property 25 min away from the main square but we don't rent it short term via Airbnb. It is just too far away for tourists. It is perfect for long term stay/tenants because of the traffic connectivity, open market, universities etc... so we have no trouble to find tenants and charge the rent similar to those closer to the main square.

Maybe you should consider renting it long term? Do the math and decide.

[Helen3]

If you host remotely just leave some basics like tea coffee milk and sugar and maybe a local cake or a bottle of wine.

Unless you are remote I wouldn’t leave breakfast. @Josie109 

[Kevin1322]

Bottle of wine 😬

That settles it, we're staying at your place next time we're visiting No2 son in Bristol 

[Yadira22 · Accepted solution]

Hi @Josie109 

as mentioned above guests are picky and dietary requirements vary so much from one person to another, a lot of the time when we left milk, cereal bar, fruits etc they went to waste and I hated this.

Also some people lack common gratitude and would barely acknowledge the extra effort or just outright complain about it- combined it does become a bit disheartening. 
Do as mentioned above and first research the logistics and licensing etc required for this. Personally, I think providing guests with a selection of great local eateries would do more for them, for all you know you can get into business with them and see if you can get a referral scheme and your guests a discount etc... 

Good luck and happy hosting! 
Yadira 🙂
 

[Trude0]

I offer coffee, tea, sugar and milk for a couple of days, and inform that guests can ask for more if they run out  - they never ask.

i don’t offer groceries - as someone said, would mean increased price and extra work, and quite sure it would not be woth it for my listing. Grocery store is 5-10 min walk away.

But if guests will check in very late, I offer to go shopping (list, please), and I’ll charge the cost of the groceries via the Airbnb app. Only 1 guest has wanted this, charging via the app worked well.

Recently, an 82 year old grandmother arrived on her own, rest of the family would arrive later that day. As it was a Saturday, I had already agreed to pick grandmother up from the train (5 min drive) - and asked her if we should stop at the Supermarket for first shopping. She was very greatful. 

[Josie109]

How lovely. Thanks for your response 

[Miloud0]

Salute @Josie109, 

If it is possible for you, i think that you could provide your traditional breakfast. 

Thanks, 

Miloud

[Anonymous]

@Josie109  If you're not an onsite host, I don't recommend providing perishable breakfast items. Stuff like bread and pastries are only nice if you're present to replenish them daily. 

Breakfast is generally not an expected amenity for Entire Home listings, but if you'd like to supply a welcome basket I recommend sticking to things that won't go off. Coffee, tea, single-serve cereal, instant oatmeal packets, and granola bars would be nice things to have on hand.

[Josie109]

That’s a good idea. Thank you 

[Andrea-and-Francis0]

We offer a treat basket of individually packaged instant oatmeals, granola bars, chocolates, candy, popcorn, coffee, tea, hot chocolate etc. It's definitely a nice touch & our guests love it 🙂

[Josie109]

Sounds lovely, I’d like to do this too ☺️